Sword and Verse by Kathy MacMillan - Paul's PRE-READING

*I received this book as an eARC from HarperTeen via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

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Title: Sword and Verse
Author: Kathy MacMillan
Upcoming Release Date: January 19, 2016

Synopsis: Raisa was just a child when she was sold to work as a slave in the kingdom of Qilara. Despite her young age, her father was teaching her to read and write, grooming her to take his place as a Learned One. In Qilara, the Arnathim, like Raisa, are the lowest class, and literacy is a capital offense. What’s more, only the king, prince, tutor, and tutor-in-training are allowed to learn the very highest order language, the language of the gods. So when the tutor-in-training is executed for teaching slaves this sacred language, and Raisa is selected to replace her, Raisa knows any slipup on her part could mean death.

Keeping her secret is hard enough, but the romance that’s been growing between her and Prince Mati isn’t helping matters. Then Raisa is approached by the Resistance—an underground army of slave rebels—to help liberate Arnath slaves. She wants to free her people, but that would mean aiding a war against Mati. As Raisa struggles with what to do, she discovers a secret that the Qilarites have been hiding for centuries—one that, if uncovered, could bring the kingdom to its knees. 

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Why?: I am a huge fan of Fantasy YA and it has really increased in popularity over the past few years. I love that more books like this are being published! This book also has reading/writing at its core and a potential royal romance? All this things attract me. Plus the cover is gorgeous.

Expectations: I'm expecting an interesting world where writing is integral to the world-building. I want some royal intrigue and complicated romantic situations. 

Judging a book by its cover: I LOVE this cover. So much about it captures me.


--PAUL