Ever the Hunted (Clash of Kingdoms)

My 12 year old 7th grader is an avid reader. Here is her review: --- "Britta is an outcast. She has been her entire life, but now it's gotten worse. She is alone; her only friend and crush - Cohen - is missing and is accused of murder. Her parents are dead. She is disliked by everyone - and then, she's caught poaching, a crime that is punished by hanging. Thankfully she's given a chance to live, IF she finds and kills the love of her life. Who is thought to be her father's murderer. This leads her off on a journey to finding out more about herself and discovering new things. With a great female main character; the love, the mystery, the magic powers, the secrets, the action and the journey all made this an awesome adventure-romance book! The setting is kind of Medieval times but with magic. Britta was my favorite, because she was brave, caring and smart. I really related to her the most. The characters felt real but in a magical setting. I would recommend it to 12+ due to some of the heavier content: death, pain, and sexual abuse (older men grabbing Britta's thigh and saying suggestive things like wanting to watch her undress.) Despite that, this is a great book that I hope you'll read and enjoy. This is one of the best books I've ever read, I just loaned it to my best friend and I've started reading the sequel,  Ever the Brave (A Clash of Kingdoms Novel)  ! I hope you'll read it and enjoy it, too!"

This story is the perfect blend of adventure, courage, and romance. As an expert hunter, Britta is forced to track down the young man, Cohen, who is accused of killing her father. The problem is, he is also the boy she loves. The story unfolds with great pacing and lots of intrigue as Britta tries to solve the mystery of who is really behind the killing of her father. Could it really have been Cohen or is there something bigger going on? Who is the hunter and who is the hunted? I loved this book, the first in a series, and I can't wait for book two to come out!

*no spoilers were harmed in the making of this review*"Safety ensures survival"Hey guys, so I finished Ever the Hunted (A Clash of Kingdoms #1) by Erin Summerill. This was a pretty good book, if I do say so myself. I easily got lost in the storyline. Sometimes maybe a bit too lost, lol. But it was just that easy to slip into the book, and before I knew it, I was flying through the pages. i was like, surely I missed something?? But when I back tracked, I hadnt. The story was just that flowing and of ease to breeze through. The writing was great, not packed with to much info, but having just enough that it was easy to navigate this new world. The descriptions were just enough so that I knew what was happening, but wasnt overwhelmed. I got to know the characters, but I wasnt too immeshed in trying to figure them out. It was a great balance. This story was just swirling with deceptions and betrayals and revelations and all that good stuff. I actually thought that the way the story was written, it effortlessly built up to some of the major plottwists. I mean, it made it not as shocking, but it helped a lot with just understanding how the character reacted to learning these truths and dealing with the fallout. Now, that was only in regards to the major shock of the story. There were several other surprises along the way. Most of them revolving around the people that the main character held close to her heart. First her father, then her Cohen, then...another whom I shall not name in case of spoiler. But a lot,a lot happened in this novel. And although this novel has many "travel scenes" they didnt feel like that at all. Usually I skim through scenes like that because it is all fluff and doesnt really contribute to the story. However, these travel scenes were just as crucial to the novel as any of the action scenes. The travel scenes did not drag, and even if it seemed like they were about to drag, BOOM, action event happens and stirs everything back up. So yes, I liked the plotline of this novel. And the ending, whew, that was a whirlwind, I couldnt read it fast enough as everything unfurled in rapid succession. Bang bang bang. Oy. I had to take a breather. Man. So yes, I really liked the novel.Now, the main character Britta, she was amazing. So determined and focused and she almost never loses sight of her endgoal, even when the universe practically tries to shove her off course time and time again. I feel like she was the most influenced by her father through most of the novel, which obviously is because she is driven to find his killer. And during the journey to find the killer, she finds out alot about him, and about herself. Secrets, secrets everywhere. I think she acted appropriately and realistically as the world she thought she knew comes crashing down around her. The feelings she had about everything, they were believable and true. Britta has flaws, just like any other person, but she also has strengths. Both her flaws and strengths seem to be tethered to one particular person. Cohen. Gods. I loved Cohen. He was just so daring and dashing. Handsome and a handful. Protective to a fault. I just loved him so much. And the chemistry and pain between Brit and him was electric. *fans self* They were just so amazing together, even if sometimes he acted like a jerk or came on too headstrong/arrogant. Thats just men for ya. Cant live with em, cant live without them. Alright, there was another character that I really grew to admire, but I am afraid if I say who it is, it will spoiler something. and I would hate to do that. The person is someone who Brit ends up being really close with and shares a deep connection with. For people who have read this book, i think they will know who I am talking about. If you dont, gotta read this book.

I loved the storyline and think the author has some great ideas and a huge amount of talent, the only thing that spoiled it for me was the occasional use of (admittedly mild) swearing, if it hadn’t been for that I would’ve given it 5 stars.The author is American and I suspect that the words I found objectionable are not considered bad in America so perhaps I’m nitpicking. I know in this day and age swearing is considered the norm and in comparison to many authors the language I objected to was pretty mild but I had intended to buy the set for my grandchildren who have been raised not to use bad language.Ditch the P and the B words and I will be delighted to buy them a set.

Just to get it out of the way, the aesthetics of this book are gorgeous.It is definitely one of those books that I look at and almost think of rearranging my bookshelves to have certain books facing forward.The story was equally as gorgeous.The magic system was introduced into the plot in a way that it didn’t smack readers in the face.It also played on the notion of people fearing what they do not understand, with the Kingdom of Malam prosecuting magic, while the Kingdom of Sharedan revels in it.Speaking of the kingdoms, the use of realism sprinkled within their lore’s both made me connect and be able to visualize them.The characters in Ever the Hunted were dynamic to read about, and the love aspect didn’t bother me because Britta and Cohen have known each other since they were young, no insta-love here!Also, I’m saying it here, Leif is an amazing character and he better get more ‘screen time’ in future books, here’s looking at you Summerill.But that ending though… Blew. Me. Away.All I can say is I will be eagerly waiting for Ever the Brave to be published later this year.

Ich habe bereits einige Meinungen zu diesem Buch gesehen und habe mich ehrlich gesagt gewundert, dass so viele schlechte dabei waren. Ich fand Ever the Hunted ein wirklich sehr guter und gelungener Auftakt zu einer Trilogie. Der Schreibstil hat mir sehr gut gefallen, man steigt sofort in die Geschichte ein und auch die Charaktere waren mir sofort sympathisch. (Bis auf manche, die Bösen natürlich)Die Geschichte beginnt zwei Monate nach dem Tod von Brittas Vater und wie sie versucht, sich über Wasser zu halten. Zwischendurch gibt es immer wieder Flashbacks aus Brittas Kindheit, wodurch man ein wenig mehr über sie und Cohen erfährt, da die meisten Erinnerungen von ihm handeln.Der Zwiespalt, in dem sich Britta befindet, ist wirklich gut nachvollziehbar, einerseits war Cohen ihr bester Freund, anderseits hat er sie einfach verlassen und angeblich ihren Vater ermordet.Natürlich stellt sich dann heraus, dass er nicht der Mörder ist (Wer hätte etwas anderes erwartet?) und die beiden machen sich auf die Suche nach dem wahren Mörder, währenddessen die Wachen des Königs erbittert hinter ihnen her sind. Und nebenbei lernt Britta dann auch noch, wer und was sie wirklich ist und was sie mit ihren Fähigkeiten alles erreichen kann. Auch wenn sie durch diese in noch größerer Gefahr schwebt.Ich kann über dieses Buch wirklich nichts negativ sagen, es beginnt spannend, geht spannend weiter und endet spannend. Es gibt viele überraschende Wendungen, wobei es wirklich nie langweilig wird und auch die Liebesgeschichte in diesem Buch kommt genau richtig zutage. Nicht zu schnell und unrealistisch, aber trotzdem präsent.

It’s an amazing work of art. This book doesn’t fail to entertain and keeps you at the edge of the seat. Like, it’s so interesting that I didn’t even realise I’ve been reading for hours. Britta is a strong and bold character who shows that girls can handle themselves on their on, but Cohen is still there to help. It interesting to see how she figures out who murdered her father.

Beautiful book, great read, good package