Legacy
by Cayla Kluver

    LEGACY by Cayla Kluver
    Category:  Fantasy
    Age Recommendation:  Grades 9+
    Release Date:  4/15/08
    Publisher:  Forsooth Publishing
    Reviewed by:  Allison Fraclose
    Rating:  5 Stars


    Seventeen years ago, a bloody war waged by the Kingdom of Cokyri on the Hytanicans ended abruptly when the
    Cokyri stole away forty-nine newborn males…and only returned the bodies of forty-eight. Hytanica has managed to
    rebuild from the war, but the anger felt towards the warriors of the mountains—not to mention anxiety that the war
    could resume at any time—has never completely ceased.

    Alera, crowned princess of Hytanica, now celebrates her seventeenth birthday, and must prepare to wed in exactly
    one year. In a land where men hold complete dominion over women, Alera may not take her father’s place as ruler,
    but must seek a husband who will fulfill the role as king. Unfortunately, no suitor matches her father’s strict
    qualifications aside from Lord Steldor, the egotistical son of the Captain of the Guard whose very breathing
    manages to annoy Alera.

    All of this grows less important to Alera once the Cokyrians manage to infiltrate the palace, and word is whispered
    that there is a traitor among the Elite Guard. Even Alera’s beloved bodyguard begins behaving strangely, and Alera
    finds herself having to make a difficult choice. Her budding interest in the political affairs of her kingdom come to
    head when another Cokyrian, a young man named Narian, is captured, and Alera finds herself probing him for
    information that she, as a woman, is not allowed to know.

    As she grows closer with Narian, who was raised in a society where woman often hold power over men, Alera
    learns that she is capable of much she would never have imagined…even of finding love. But the intriguing
    circumstances surrounding Narian’s life will throw everything into jeopardy, for Alera as well as for the entire
    kingdom of Hytanica.

    This brilliant story by a young new author captured my heart, and I am eager to read the tale’s conclusion in the
    following book.