Arek Barial is a Light Blade warrior, sworn by the Lady to defend humanity and kill all the demon Na’Reish who prey on them for slaves and food. When Arek is captured, he hides his abilities and masquerades as a farmer, attempting to penetrate the Na’Reish strongholds as a slave and kill as many highborn as possible.Imhara Kaal is the only female Na’Reishi leader, of a clan which secretly follows the Old Ways of the Lady, with humans, half breeds and Na'Reish living together peacefully. However her leadership is under threat as Savyr, commander of all the Na’Reishi, wants Imhara married off, so her husband can assume her titles and land, then launch an all out war on the humans.Desperate to protect her clan, Arek's presence seems like the Lady's Blessing to Imhara - a Light Blade masquerading as a slave has a chance of killing Savyr, saving her clan, and preventing a war. But can Arek trust Imhara and play the part of her blood slave well enough to get a chance at Savyr?This is a well written paranormal romance which was an enjoyable read.Despite being book three in a series, it was quite readable as a standalone, with previous events hinted at to give the reader a sufficient gist.The world building is good with the various races well fleshed out in history, religion and conflicts, both internal and external. Likewise the plot was fairly solid - two characters need to put aside their differences and mistrust to team up to take care of a mutual enemy - and carried out well.Characterisation was good, as is usually the case in paranormal romances, with alternating point of views giving us good insight into both Imhara and Arek, and the way they, and their relationship develops over time.Overall, this was a good paranormal romance with some nice world building and characterisation. I'll probably go back and chase up the first two when I get a chance. If you like paranormal romance, give this a try and you may be pleasantly surprised.prk.Disclaimer: Whilst I read this as a judge for the 2013 Aurealis Awards, this review is my personal opinion and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of any judging panel, the judging co-ordinator or the Aurealis Awards management team. Allegiance sworn is my most favourite Light Blade book so far and that's why, I give it all my five stars. I didn't really enjoy Vengeance Born that much, though I carried on with it as the ending promised the much awaited story that I now love! I was on the edge all along while reading this book, with possibilities, usually dreadful ones right around the corner in almost every situation. The last few pages of the book made my heart pound wildly! Just like the previous two Light Blade books, this story follows the journey towards love and this time, of Arek, who was thought to be dead, and Imhara, a pure-blood Na'Raish as he survives in the Na'Reish territory, disguised as Imhara's slave with this hot temper and long ingrained hatred for the Na'Reish, it was a huge challenge to get along with the plan to bring down Savyr, let alone trust each other. Imhara is a very strong woman who has had to, just like Arek, make really hard decisions to be on the right path, even it it breaks them internally. She has an alter-ego, one with her clan and the other with the rest of the Na'Reish, one which portrays a dirty, cruel image of her while she protects the humans, Na'Chi and demons among her clan who live together. There is a lot of tension in the story and twists and action just at the right times.All in all, it was a good read and now, I cannot wait for the next book to come out and hoping against hopes, I hope the next book also focuses on Arek and Imhara and if not, I'd love to see a story as good and romance as sizzling as this one.
What do You think about Allegiance Sworn (2013)?
read for the aurealis awards. all ratings for these books will be withheld until next year.
—rexshami
I just haven't like the rest of the series like I liked the first book?
—Sehee
It was okay, but honestly not my kind of book.
—Sophiax94x
