The Heretic Royal
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- Create Date：2022-12-03 08:53:42
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：G.A. Aiken
- ISBN：1496735080
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Summary
In this riveting， feminist tale perfect for fans of Katee Robert and Nalini Singh， two sisters battle for a single throne， warring factions take up arms， a land is divided， and uncertain allies become very certain lovers。 With subtle commentary on today’s political polarization， this riveting epic celebrates strong female characters and champions the underdog with diverse， expert world building。
Gods save the queen！
Ainsley Farmerson has always planned to break free of the family business—and the family drama。 But what was once farming， smithworking， and bickering over the dinner table has turned into open warfare between sisters。 Sides have been taken， lives are on the line， and Ainsley has no doubt which sister must be queen。 She’ll do whatever is necessary to take down the soulless Beatrix。 Even if that means joining forces with angry battle nuns， irritating monks， and overbearing centaurs。
Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan has no time for human beings。 And yet 。 。 。 there is something about the uncontrollable princess that he can’t ignore。 Maybe it’s the way her eldest sisters underestimate her。 Or her bravery facing down dragons and mad queens from distant lands。 Whatever the reason， Gruff is willing to fight by this human’s side。 Not only for the entertainment value， but because she’s right。 Beatrix must never be queen。 So whatever he has to do， whoever he has to destroy， Gruff will battle beside Ainsley。 Fast。 Hard。 And with absolutely no mercy 。 。 。
Gods save the queen！
Ainsley Farmerson has always planned to break free of the family business—and the family drama。 But what was once farming， smithworking， and bickering over the dinner table has turned into open warfare between sisters。 Sides have been taken， lives are on the line， and Ainsley has no doubt which sister must be queen。 She’ll do whatever is necessary to take down the soulless Beatrix。 Even if that means joining forces with angry battle nuns， irritating monks， and overbearing centaurs。
Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan has no time for human beings。 And yet 。 。 。 there is something about the uncontrollable princess that he can’t ignore。 Maybe it’s the way her eldest sisters underestimate her。 Or her bravery facing down dragons and mad queens from distant lands。 Whatever the reason， Gruff is willing to fight by this human’s side。 Not only for the entertainment value， but because she’s right。 Beatrix must never be queen。 So whatever he has to do， whoever he has to destroy， Gruff will battle beside Ainsley。 Fast。 Hard。 And with absolutely no mercy 。 。 。
Reviews
Gail Gallant
，
While I enjoyed the various types of creatures and their interactions with humans I did not appreciate the foul language in the book。 Nor the treatment of sister against sister to the degree it was shown， unrelenting。 It was interesting but I wouldn't rush out to get the next book。 While I enjoyed the various types of creatures and their interactions with humans I did not appreciate the foul language in the book。 Nor the treatment of sister against sister to the degree it was shown， unrelenting。 It was interesting but I wouldn't rush out to get the next book。 。。。more
ALR
，
The snarky humor， the action and adventure， and （high pitch squeal） so many familiar faces I’m about to burst。 I am super excited that I received an arc copy of this book as this series keeps getting better and better！ Don’t let the beginning frustrate you， as this book picks up right at the end of the last one。 There is a lot going on， but the laugh out loud humor starts off with a bang and I can’t tell you if I love the instigator Ainsley or the silent and grunty Gruff more。 They are opposites The snarky humor， the action and adventure， and （high pitch squeal） so many familiar faces I’m about to burst。 I am super excited that I received an arc copy of this book as this series keeps getting better and better！ Don’t let the beginning frustrate you， as this book picks up right at the end of the last one。 There is a lot going on， but the laugh out loud humor starts off with a bang and I can’t tell you if I love the instigator Ainsley or the silent and grunty Gruff more。 They are opposites in all ways， I mean one of them is a centaur for goodness sake， but these two leads blend so well with each other。 Those of you who are familiar with this author and this series， which I highly， highly recommend that you read too， know that there’s a lot of snark， attitude， pent up heat， and action in her characters， and this book does not disappoint， but to be fair there’s more of a slow build up of the relationship between Ainsley and Gruff than actual bedroom time。 Trust me you will not be disappointed。 There is an end to the story but there’s definitely a set up for more and let me tell you the ending， chef’s kiss。 Definitely 5 stars， must read。 I voluntarily read and reviewed an arc copy of this book。 All thoughts and opinions are my own。 Fingers crossed the next book comes out soon。 。。。more
Susanna
，
Thank you to the publishers at Kensington for this free advanced review copy via Goodreads giveaway。A quirky， irreverent， humorous fantasy， The Heretic Royal picks up the journey that started in The Blacksmith Queen and continued in The Princess Knight。 （This is not a standalone and will not make much sense or be as enjoyable if you’ve not read the previous two books。） These books do have a lot of war and violence， which is offset by the constant humor， slice-of-life stuff， and family drama。What Thank you to the publishers at Kensington for this free advanced review copy via Goodreads giveaway。A quirky， irreverent， humorous fantasy， The Heretic Royal picks up the journey that started in The Blacksmith Queen and continued in The Princess Knight。 （This is not a standalone and will not make much sense or be as enjoyable if you’ve not read the previous two books。） These books do have a lot of war and violence， which is offset by the constant humor， slice-of-life stuff， and family drama。What I loved most about this novel in the Scarred Earth Saga was the introduction of DRAGONS！ A whole bunch of dragons enter the story， and of course， they add a bunch of chaotic， boisterous， funny， and murderous personalities to the already lively canvas。 Aiken has created such a rich world full of different types of magical/mythical creatures—a major strength of the series。The featured romantic pairing is Ainsley， middle and forgotten daughter of the Smythe-Farmerson family， and Gruffyn， grumpy centaur and official grudge-holder of his clan。 Like all main characters of this series， Ainsley and Gruffyn are colorful， distinct， and interesting to follow。 IMO the romance is a minor element in this book， as the continuing saga fills up much of the limited 300-ish-page length of the book。 So while I didn’t think we got much of a chance to get invested in the pairing or feel any sort of chemistry， it was fine。 The book started with a bang and certainly ended with a bang。 The stakes are HIGH: personal survival and collective survival。 The epilogue definitely provides a cliffhanger that ratchets up the tension and brings forward the timeline of war。 。。。more
Hijinx Abound
，
*Received a copy for review。* I absolutely adored the first 2 books in this series。 I was looking forward to the continuation of the story。 However， this book was really hard to get into。 The beginning of the book took me over a month to get through。 It was way too busy in a distracting way。 Instead of getting in with the main story， there are a ton of characters from her other series and just nonsense。 I plan to read the rest of the series but this book was a difficult read and the romance took *Received a copy for review。* I absolutely adored the first 2 books in this series。 I was looking forward to the continuation of the story。 However， this book was really hard to get into。 The beginning of the book took me over a month to get through。 It was way too busy in a distracting way。 Instead of getting in with the main story， there are a ton of characters from her other series and just nonsense。 I plan to read the rest of the series but this book was a difficult read and the romance took too long。 。。。more
Bonita
，
I read all of G。 A。 Aiken’s books。 All of the books in The Scarred Earth Saga have been delightful， so The Heretic Royal did not disappoint。 The characters are fantastic， the world building is wonderful， and the premise is very entertaining。 It was a excellent read。
Courtney
，
I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review。 All opinions are my own。 The Heretic Royal continues the trend from the previous book in the series of being rather bland and dull。 There are some small elements I did still like， but they were mostly related to the fantasy aspect。 The Mad Queen， for example， was a cool character， and I did generally like the focus on her。 The world remains pretty interesting-ish…but I’m not sure if it’s enough to keep me inv I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review。 All opinions are my own。 The Heretic Royal continues the trend from the previous book in the series of being rather bland and dull。 There are some small elements I did still like， but they were mostly related to the fantasy aspect。 The Mad Queen， for example， was a cool character， and I did generally like the focus on her。 The world remains pretty interesting-ish…but I’m not sure if it’s enough to keep me invested in this continuing saga of nothingness on the romance side of things。 But who are the main characters supposed to be again？ The only thing I remember about the hero is that his name is Gruff， and that pretty much sums up who he is too…he’s， well， gruff。 And I can’t think of anything remarkable about Ainsley either。 While I can see how G。A。 Aiken’s writing， including this series， works for others， I’ve decided that this series at least isn’t for me。 And given much of her other work under high pen names is paranormal or urban fantasy， I’m unlikely to pick up anything else from her。 But if her style and subgenre appeals to you， and you enjoyed the first two books， you might enjoy this more than I did。 。。。more
Heather
，
The Heretic Royal is the third book in G。A。 Aiken's Blacksmith Queen series （which is really called the Scarred Earth Saga。） This book is in no way a standalone， so go read the first two books or you may get confused。 G。A。 Aiken has the best dry wit commentary by characters and has the ability to elevate common dialogue to the hysterically funny level - you don't want to miss it！Do you remember the dragons from book two？ Well you get to see more of them and their queen along with everyone's conf The Heretic Royal is the third book in G。A。 Aiken's Blacksmith Queen series （which is really called the Scarred Earth Saga。） This book is in no way a standalone， so go read the first two books or you may get confused。 G。A。 Aiken has the best dry wit commentary by characters and has the ability to elevate common dialogue to the hysterically funny level - you don't want to miss it！Do you remember the dragons from book two？ Well you get to see more of them and their queen along with everyone's confused reactions to well， everyone。 There are shenanigans， some fighting， more shenanigans， dragons， undead horses， dragons， centaurs， dragons， the Blacksmith Queen Keeley trying her best to work out a treaty with the Mad Queen Annwyl the Bloody， and Ainsley hangs out in some more trees。The Heretic Royal is another G。A。 Aiken book that will live on my re-read shelf and I recommend it to you wholeheartedly！ 。。。more
LiteratureLover
，
I loved the story not only is Annwyl coming and making Keeley open her eyes to the possibilities but there it also contributes to the story as it continues and now that Annwyl is here I am wondering if this is going to continue the dragon kin story。 While I would love to give more I don't want to ruin the story for the rest of the people。 I loved the story not only is Annwyl coming and making Keeley open her eyes to the possibilities but there it also contributes to the story as it continues and now that Annwyl is here I am wondering if this is going to continue the dragon kin story。 While I would love to give more I don't want to ruin the story for the rest of the people。 。。。more
Lindsay
，
I love this book series I requested this as soon I knew it was available as I enjoy all the books by this author。This is third book of the Scarred Earth series this time following Ainsley the fourth eldest in the Smythe family。 Ainsley is the archer in the family and can always be found in trees mainly avoiding her family drama。This book continues straight on from the last book with Annwyl and the dragons appearing hunting from for the slave queen。Once this has been ironed out they get down to f I love this book series I requested this as soon I knew it was available as I enjoy all the books by this author。This is third book of the Scarred Earth series this time following Ainsley the fourth eldest in the Smythe family。 Ainsley is the archer in the family and can always be found in trees mainly avoiding her family drama。This book continues straight on from the last book with Annwyl and the dragons appearing hunting from for the slave queen。Once this has been ironed out they get down to finding a way to stop Beatrix。A non stop laugh with action and romance too if you’ve read Shelly Laurenston/G。A Aiken before then you’ll love this 。。。more
Trudy Dowling
，
As usual， G。A。 Aiken does not disappoint。 I found myself laughing very loudly on numerous occasions。 I can think of twice where I sprayed my coffee on the Kindle。 Thank goodness the dragons have come to Keely's kingdom。 They have made my day。 I didn't realize how much I missed the wonderful dragons from the Dragon Kin series。 Then Gwenvael let loose with so many things he might have thought better of。 The strength of Morfyd shines as she puts Briec in a corner。 He may think he doesn't belong the As usual， G。A。 Aiken does not disappoint。 I found myself laughing very loudly on numerous occasions。 I can think of twice where I sprayed my coffee on the Kindle。 Thank goodness the dragons have come to Keely's kingdom。 They have made my day。 I didn't realize how much I missed the wonderful dragons from the Dragon Kin series。 Then Gwenvael let loose with so many things he might have thought better of。 The strength of Morfyd shines as she puts Briec in a corner。 He may think he doesn't belong there， but his antics say otherwise。 Oh my word！！！！ My side was hurting。 The clashing of personalities was lovely。 The clashing of queens was not so lovely。 Others trying to influence the possibility of an alliance created chaos。 The rumors have both queens leery of the other。 They are not off to a good start。 Have no fear， Ainsley is here to help save the day。 The archer is so misunderstood。 I don't see it。 If I had her family I would be hiding in trees as well。 Her actions have its advantages。 She listens and learns。 She will fight battles to protect her family。 She will have Gruff right by her side。 The battle scenes had me wishing The Heretic Royal was on the big screen。 But I didn't need that。 The author was so descriptive， I could picture arrows flying。 The author had me gagging with some of the situations。 The Heretic Royal is not a cute romance。 My imagination went wild with Annwyl dropping into to save the day。 Queen Beatrix is at war with Queen Keely。 Queen Beatrix will stoop to new levels in her quest for world domination。 Only Annwyl knows how to destroy the demon army。 As usual， it got a little messy。 It was a glorious battle。 But there is more to come now that Beatrix has begun to make moves on the Dark Plains。 Alliances have never been important。 It will now be three queens standing against Beatrix。 The question is--will it be enough？ 。。。more
CYIReadBooks （Claire）
，
How unfortunate。 I was so looking forward to reading The Heretic Royal。 Especially since I enjoyed Aiken's previous novels， The Blacksmith Queen and The Princess Knight。 Both of those novels garnered five and four stars respectively from me。The Heretic Royal didn't quite get my attention。 Perhaps it's been too long of a time span （2 years） between the last installment and this novel。 I was just lost at the get-go and I didn't really want to re-read The Princess Knight to play catch up。 Too bad t How unfortunate。 I was so looking forward to reading The Heretic Royal。 Especially since I enjoyed Aiken's previous novels， The Blacksmith Queen and The Princess Knight。 Both of those novels garnered five and four stars respectively from me。The Heretic Royal didn't quite get my attention。 Perhaps it's been too long of a time span （2 years） between the last installment and this novel。 I was just lost at the get-go and I didn't really want to re-read The Princess Knight to play catch up。 Too bad that I thought I could just pick up and go。With so many new characters （at least that's what it appeared to me，） I was floundering from the start。 At least there was the staple of the four sisters。 But it didn't help much。 The same entertaining snarky remarks between the characters were there， but after struggling to recall the plot of the previous novel， I called it quits at 33% I think that had I read The Heretic Royal shortly after The Princess Knight， my opinion and outlook would have been a lot different。 As it stands， The Heretic Royal is a disappointing single star。I received a digital ARC from Kensington Books through NetGalley。 The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions。 。。。more
D A
，
The Scarred Earth Saga continues with much occurring -- there is adventure， battles （great & small）， humor （sometimes off the wall）， family shenanigans and drama， a bit of romance， and twists and turns a plenty。 As with the prior books， it is primarily a fantasy story with a relationship forming and becoming serious subtly happening in amongst the rest of the story。 This series takes place on the opposite side of the huge mountain range from the author's Dragon Kin series with little more than a The Scarred Earth Saga continues with much occurring -- there is adventure， battles （great & small）， humor （sometimes off the wall）， family shenanigans and drama， a bit of romance， and twists and turns a plenty。 As with the prior books， it is primarily a fantasy story with a relationship forming and becoming serious subtly happening in amongst the rest of the story。 This series takes place on the opposite side of the huge mountain range from the author's Dragon Kin series with little more than a brief mention of dragons and the "mad queen" occurring in the prior books as no one crosses those mountains （or at least never returns if they do）。 However fans of that series will get a treat as part of the royal dragon army has indeed crossed those mountains with Annwyl， Fergus and several of his siblings and other relatives to find out what is going on and offer some wisdom and advice to Keeley and her sisters about what it now means and is expected of their change in status to "royals" and warnings on what might expect on dealing with Beatrice。 All in all， it was an enjoyable， interesting and entertaining read that left looking forward to the next book。Arc courtesy of net galley in exchange for a fair and honest review 。。。more
HappyBookWorm2020
，
This is book three in the Scarred Earth Saga， a continuing story featuring four sisters。 Two of the sisters are battling for a single throne。 One of them would be a disaster for the whole world。 This is a continuing story so I'd recommend reading them in order。 The Smythe family is huge as their parents have many， many children。 The sisters featured in this book are Keeley （a blacksmith and Queen）， Gemma （a War Monk， a fearsome group of warriors）， Ainsley （quiet and usually in a tree）， and Beatr This is book three in the Scarred Earth Saga， a continuing story featuring four sisters。 Two of the sisters are battling for a single throne。 One of them would be a disaster for the whole world。 This is a continuing story so I'd recommend reading them in order。 The Smythe family is huge as their parents have many， many children。 The sisters featured in this book are Keeley （a blacksmith and Queen）， Gemma （a War Monk， a fearsome group of warriors）， Ainsley （quiet and usually in a tree）， and Beatrix， an emotionless， ambitious， and ruthless psychopath。 This is Ainsley's book。 There is a romance between her and one of the centaurs， Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan。 Ainsley would rather be neutral， but she knows that Beatrix must not be allowed to win the throne。 Beatrix married a king of a neighboring kingdom so she is a queen， but she wants to rule it all。 Everything。 Everyone。 In this book， her army takes on Keeley and her allies - the War Monks， the centaurs and the dragonkin。 I already knew from small hints here and there in previous books that the Dragonkin books and the Scarred Earth series inhabited the same world， and the dragons finally arrived！ Flying over the huge mountain range that divides the continent and shaking the ground as they landed！ With Annwyl， the Mad Queen！ Ainsley was the first sister to meet one of the dragonkin。 The ending of the book was shocking - Beatrix causes something to happen that will have a huge impact on everyone and everything who lives near the mountain。 I can only hope that the next book comes soon。I received a review copy of this book from the publisher Kensington Books via NetGalley， and have voluntarily read and reviewed this book。 。。。more
Michaela
，
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read a copy of one of my most anticipated reads of 2022！This might just be my favorite so far！ I love Aiken’s dragonkin series because of the chaos and ridiculousness which this book has in spades。 The action sequences were so well-written and the slow burn romance was cute！ My only complaint is that I would have liked more progress on the overarching war as this book didn’t offer much in the way of overall plot。 Don’t get me wrong， Ainsley Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read a copy of one of my most anticipated reads of 2022！This might just be my favorite so far！ I love Aiken’s dragonkin series because of the chaos and ridiculousness which this book has in spades。 The action sequences were so well-written and the slow burn romance was cute！ My only complaint is that I would have liked more progress on the overarching war as this book didn’t offer much in the way of overall plot。 Don’t get me wrong， Ainsley and Gruff are adorable and I would read a whole nother book about them， but I also want the war to be resolved so we can get a new villain。 Beatrix is a genuine psychopath but also has no fighting skills and doesn’t really feel like a ‘big bad’。 Everyone agrees that no one is safe with her alive， and yet no one is willing to use their formidable abilities （physical or magical） to really take action。 。。。more
Kat
，
When I got approved for GA Aiken's Heretic Royal， I screamed internally & externally。 GA Aiken or Shelly Laurenston （her other moniker） never fails to make me chuckle， cackle or literally laugh out loud with her banter。 This is the 3rd book in the Scarred Earth Saga and is in the same world as her Dragon Kin series。 As usual her characters are crazy， out of control and hilariously unhinged。 Ainsley Farmerson， as the 4 eldest sister is constantly trying to find her way without her older sisters o When I got approved for GA Aiken's Heretic Royal， I screamed internally & externally。 GA Aiken or Shelly Laurenston （her other moniker） never fails to make me chuckle， cackle or literally laugh out loud with her banter。 This is the 3rd book in the Scarred Earth Saga and is in the same world as her Dragon Kin series。 As usual her characters are crazy， out of control and hilariously unhinged。 Ainsley Farmerson， as the 4 eldest sister is constantly trying to find her way without her older sisters ordering her around。。。。and her other sister trying to kill them all。 Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan speaks in grunts and holds the esteemed title of Grudge Holder in his tribe （honestly same）。 As a centaur， humans get on his nerves to know end。。。except for Ainsley。 This book is full of violence， action and great humor。 Heavy on the humor。 This book is a 3。75 for me and I just want to note as usual I love how Aiken/Laurenston can write a well-complex character but excels at developing diversity in her worlds。 Please please PLEASE check her out， you will not be sorry！ 。。。more
Joee Tiamzon
，
It seems like we've waited forever for this book--and it didn't disappoint！！！ Yay for G。A。 Aiken！ From the beginning to the end， it took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions。 Ainsley isn’t your traditional strong-willed heroine—at least compared to her two older sisters。 But I love how she and the Hero， Gruff seem to complement each other’s personalities。 And I love how we meet the Dragonkin characters again after so many years。 I will have to re-read the whole series before the next book （cro It seems like we've waited forever for this book--and it didn't disappoint！！！ Yay for G。A。 Aiken！ From the beginning to the end， it took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions。 Ainsley isn’t your traditional strong-willed heroine—at least compared to her two older sisters。 But I love how she and the Hero， Gruff seem to complement each other’s personalities。 And I love how we meet the Dragonkin characters again after so many years。 I will have to re-read the whole series before the next book （crossing my fingers it’s about the fifth sister， Isadora） so I can get them all straight in my head。 And there's so many new characters introduced who might have an interesting future story？ （hint， hint） I loved the “Blacksmith Queen” and the “Princess Knight” and I can’t wait for the audiobook of “The Heretic Royal” to come out！ I have both the paperback and the audiobook on pre-order！ Love， love this series！ 。。。more
Bonnie Meyer
，
So first of all I have read everything G。A。 Aiken has written and she is on my “automatically buy these books” list， her books are really just that good！ The Heretic Royal was as good if not better than the others she has written。 I really loved the fact that this book has so many characters from her dragon books。 This is the kind of book you can’t put down and don’t want to end， but you can’t wait to read about what happens next。 It’s filled with humor （ but not the cringey kind！） and I enjoyed So first of all I have read everything G。A。 Aiken has written and she is on my “automatically buy these books” list， her books are really just that good！ The Heretic Royal was as good if not better than the others she has written。 I really loved the fact that this book has so many characters from her dragon books。 This is the kind of book you can’t put down and don’t want to end， but you can’t wait to read about what happens next。 It’s filled with humor （ but not the cringey kind！） and I enjoyed every page of it。 。。。more
Kat
，
When I got approved for GA Aiken's Heretic Royal， I screamed internally & externally。 GA Aiken or Shelly Laurenston （her other moniker） never fails to make me chuckle， cackle or literally laugh out loud with her banter。 This is the 3rd book in the Scarred Earth Saga and is in the same world as her Dragon Kin series。 As usual her characters are crazy， out of control and hilariously unhinged。 Ainsley Farmerson， as the 4 eldest sister is constantly trying to find her way without her older sisters o When I got approved for GA Aiken's Heretic Royal， I screamed internally & externally。 GA Aiken or Shelly Laurenston （her other moniker） never fails to make me chuckle， cackle or literally laugh out loud with her banter。 This is the 3rd book in the Scarred Earth Saga and is in the same world as her Dragon Kin series。 As usual her characters are crazy， out of control and hilariously unhinged。 Ainsley Farmerson， as the 4 eldest sister is constantly trying to find her way without her older sisters ordering her around。。。。and her other sister trying to kill them all。 Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan speaks in grunts and holds the esteemed title of Grudge Holder in his tribe （honestly same）。 As a centaur， humans get on his nerves to know end。。。except for Ainsley。 This book is full of violence， action and great humor。 Heavy on the humor。 This book is a 3。75 for me and I just want to note as usual I love how Aiken/Laurenston can write a well-complex character but excels at developing diversity in her worlds。 Please please PLEASE check her out， you will not be sorry！ 。。。more
Cheryl Cloud
，
I didn't enjoy this book as much as the previous two books in the series。 The plot seemed somewhat disjointed， and I had trouble keeping track of all the many names and relationships associated with all the new characters that were introduced。 I didn't enjoy this book as much as the previous two books in the series。 The plot seemed somewhat disjointed， and I had trouble keeping track of all the many names and relationships associated with all the new characters that were introduced。 。。。more
Tricia
，
4。5 Stars As per usual with this series is chock-full of action， humor， violence， foul language， kick-a*s heroines and just generally a solid good time。 The only thing that was a bit overwhelming to me was the sheer amount of names/people to keep track of in this fantastical world Aiken has created。 I freaking LOVED the new bunch of characters。 They were brimming with chaos and full on entertaining。 They were so fleshed out instantly and I fell so hard for them that by the end I'm like PLEASE GI 4。5 Stars As per usual with this series is chock-full of action， humor， violence， foul language， kick-a*s heroines and just generally a solid good time。 The only thing that was a bit overwhelming to me was the sheer amount of names/people to keep track of in this fantastical world Aiken has created。 I freaking LOVED the new bunch of characters。 They were brimming with chaos and full on entertaining。 They were so fleshed out instantly and I fell so hard for them that by the end I'm like PLEASE GIVE US A SPINOFF cause I need Annwyl's whole backstory。 And then I made the most incredible discovery。。。。this series already exists！ No need to hope and wait， there's like 9 Dragon Kin books plus novellas already waiting for me to consume。 Which totally makes sense as to the big introduction and them being so seemingly well established。 Having read those first probably would have helped the whole being overwhelmed with all the new people to remember。Anyhow， back to The Heretic Royal， Ainsley was super fun。 I kinda dig her middle（ish） child vibe。 Poking at her sisters and able to evaporate from their minds at times and just get up to her own shenanigans。 But of course still integral to her family。 Ainsley ruffling Gemma's feathers with each passing breath was a fun highlight for me。 Gruffyn was a good counterpart for her。 His general grumpiness and and aloofness with most people was oddly charming， and the whole champion grudge-holder thing still makes me chuckle。 Ainsley probably rants enough for the both of them so him being a more verbally reserved dude works out kinda well。 I like that he just quietly was amused by her and had her back from the jump。 They established a nice friendship beforehand and it made the leap into something romantic even more enjoyable to me。 Another noteworthy thing about this series， I love that it's really heavy on the fantasy with the smaller side of romance。 That's pretty much the icing on the cake for me， gotta love a good solid base。 The family dynamics never fail to entertain。 I can't wait to see where things go next！ I received an ARC of this book from Kensington Books via NetGalley and this is my honest review。 。。。more
Rhonda
，
Disclaimer: I received a free advance uncorrected edition of this book。 Overall， I enjoyed this book。 Would give it 3。5/5 stars if half stars were a thing。 I enjoyed the story， the main character was likeable without being perfect， and the world-building that Aiken has done continues to shine。 I will continue to read this series as more books come out。 I should have reread the previous two books in this series before starting this one; I was a little lost on trying to remember who all the charac Disclaimer: I received a free advance uncorrected edition of this book。 Overall， I enjoyed this book。 Would give it 3。5/5 stars if half stars were a thing。 I enjoyed the story， the main character was likeable without being perfect， and the world-building that Aiken has done continues to shine。 I will continue to read this series as more books come out。 I should have reread the previous two books in this series before starting this one; I was a little lost on trying to remember who all the characters were at the beginning。 If I had read the books in Aiken’s other dragon series， I would probably have had a better understanding of all the new to me characters being introduced here， but I don’t think it was necessary for enjoyment of the story。 The parts of the book I disliked the most were Ainsley’s family interactions。 I found Gemma to be intolerable here， whereas I liked her character just fine in the last book if I recall。 All the family squabbles， amongst the main clan， and to a lesser extent， the dragon clan， were just annoying。 I just found their dynamics to be overwhelming， and it took me out of the story a bit。 。。。more
Larissa
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4，5 starsI have yet to find something G。A。 Aiken （Shelly Laurenston） has written that I have not loved。 Her Dragon/Centaur world is right up there and The Heretic Royal was a delight。I confess I was a bit skeptical when Aiken came out with the Scarred Earth Saga， but I should not have worried， cause she always delivers。 The Heretic Royal proves that even more cause we get my favorite queen ever back and a bunch of dragon join the chat。 I can’t imagine a better combination。The romance in this new 4，5 starsI have yet to find something G。A。 Aiken （Shelly Laurenston） has written that I have not loved。 Her Dragon/Centaur world is right up there and The Heretic Royal was a delight。I confess I was a bit skeptical when Aiken came out with the Scarred Earth Saga， but I should not have worried， cause she always delivers。 The Heretic Royal proves that even more cause we get my favorite queen ever back and a bunch of dragon join the chat。 I can’t imagine a better combination。The romance in this new novel is not as predominant but the intrigue， alliances and relationships （old and new） more than made up for that。 If you have yet to check out Aiken’s books， I definitely recommend them， any of them to you。 They are the perfect combination of world building， romance， laughter and action。*book provided in return for my honest opinion 。。。more
Julia Contino
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I won a copy here I enjoyed the story but I need to read it again because I missed something。 I know the main characters spent a lot of time together but I don’t remember any sexual chemistry going on till the very very end all the sudden it’s love almost like I forgot I was supposed to include that in the book。 I really liked when Annwyl showed up with the dragons that was fun。 I will say it was interesting how Ainsley got so used to Gruff grunting she could interpret its meaning without him sa I won a copy here I enjoyed the story but I need to read it again because I missed something。 I know the main characters spent a lot of time together but I don’t remember any sexual chemistry going on till the very very end all the sudden it’s love almost like I forgot I was supposed to include that in the book。 I really liked when Annwyl showed up with the dragons that was fun。 I will say it was interesting how Ainsley got so used to Gruff grunting she could interpret its meaning without him saying a word 。。。more
Christina Maust
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I love this series。 I received an ARC of the third book and was so excited to dive into it。 I love all the different relationships you see between the different creatures。 I'm a big fan！ I love this series。 I received an ARC of the third book and was so excited to dive into it。 I love all the different relationships you see between the different creatures。 I'm a big fan！ 。。。more
Deborah
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I received an Advanced Read Copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。The third book in The Scarred Earth Saga also includes characters from Aiken's Dragon Kin series including Annwyl the Bloody， who plays a large roll in the war against Beatrix。Do NOT start with this book。 It will not make sense。This series is so much fun。 They are crazy， bloody （especially since Annwyl joined the cast）， and super fast paced。 Although this book is supposed to be Ainsley and Gruff's story I received an Advanced Read Copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。The third book in The Scarred Earth Saga also includes characters from Aiken's Dragon Kin series including Annwyl the Bloody， who plays a large roll in the war against Beatrix。Do NOT start with this book。 It will not make sense。This series is so much fun。 They are crazy， bloody （especially since Annwyl joined the cast）， and super fast paced。 Although this book is supposed to be Ainsley and Gruff's story， there is so much going on that they had to share this book with many， many people。Be that as it may， this is a good entry to carry the plot forward in the series。 I'm not sure how many more there will be， but since the Farmerson family has many children and wars take quite some time to win， there could be quite a few more books。 I am here for it。 。。。more
LoveYourShelf （LAB☺）
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（ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley; opinions are my own。）Mayhem and shenanigans are what makes every G。A。 Aiken book so entertaining。 This is the 3rd book in The Scarred Earth Saga and I do recommend reading the previous two books to understand what's going on here。 Annwyl the Bloody and her dragons have crossed the mountains to find out who is enslaving children after finding some escaped slaves on her land。 It may not sound funny， but trust me。 The meshing of the Smythe-Farmerson （ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley; opinions are my own。）Mayhem and shenanigans are what makes every G。A。 Aiken book so entertaining。 This is the 3rd book in The Scarred Earth Saga and I do recommend reading the previous two books to understand what's going on here。 Annwyl the Bloody and her dragons have crossed the mountains to find out who is enslaving children after finding some escaped slaves on her land。 It may not sound funny， but trust me。 The meshing of the Smythe-Farmerson family and the Dragonkin characters make for pure comedy delight even with the gory， bloody， violence that always takes place。 Or maybe because of it。 And if you find yourself wanting to read more about Annwyl and the crazy dragons that are her kin you're in luck - there's a whole other series you can binge on after reading this。This story is loosely based on the developing relationship between Ainsley， Queen Keeley's sister， and Gruffyn the centaur of the Torn Moon Clan。 Ainsley is known to hide in trees to get away from her outrageous family; Gruff speaks primarily in grunts and was named Keeper of the Grudge for his clan。 Together they play their parts in the fight against Ainsley's other sister， the evil Beatrix。As with previous stories， romance takes the back seat and we get a fantastical romp full of bickering siblings， undead horses， war monks， centaurs that don't get along and having been holding grudges for 7，000 years， dragons， and the Dark Plains Queen who is known to be insane and has a terror inducing scream but likes to read。For some reason I had it in my head this was going to be a trilogy， and I'm thrilled that I was wrong and we will be getting more books with these crazy characters。 Looking forward to the next one！ 。。。more
boogleloo
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Aiken aka Laurenston has been a favorite author of mine for years and I love this new fantasy romance series。 Not only is the world building incredibly well written but the characters are kick-butt women and fantastically loveable heroes whom you will root for。 While the book slants more heavily to the storyline then the romance don’t think there isn’t some slow burn steamy on page sex。 I can’t wait to see what’s next in this awesome saga。 This is the third book in the Scarred Earth Saga series Aiken aka Laurenston has been a favorite author of mine for years and I love this new fantasy romance series。 Not only is the world building incredibly well written but the characters are kick-butt women and fantastically loveable heroes whom you will root for。 While the book slants more heavily to the storyline then the romance don’t think there isn’t some slow burn steamy on page sex。 I can’t wait to see what’s next in this awesome saga。 This is the third book in the Scarred Earth Saga series and I strongly suggest reading them in order， so check out the first two books， The Blacksmith Queen and The Princess Knight。I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books， Kensington in exchange for an honest review。 Publishing dates are subject to change。 。。。more
Llynnya
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Centaurs and Dragons and Annwyl the Bloody， Ohhhhhh My！！！ All the fun insanity readers of G。A。 Aiken have come to expect。 No， you really don't need to have read the two previous books in The Scarred Earth Saga or even the Dragon Kin series of which this is a spin-off but some comments and interactions between characters will mean more if you do。 It's like being in on an inside joke。I highly recommend this book！ I've read it twice already first without a refresher of the first two books， then as Centaurs and Dragons and Annwyl the Bloody， Ohhhhhh My！！！ All the fun insanity readers of G。A。 Aiken have come to expect。 No， you really don't need to have read the two previous books in The Scarred Earth Saga or even the Dragon Kin series of which this is a spin-off but some comments and interactions between characters will mean more if you do。 It's like being in on an inside joke。I highly recommend this book！ I've read it twice already first without a refresher of the first two books， then as part of a reread of the previous books。 So very enjoyable！I received this ARC from Kensington Books & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review， thank you。#TheHereticRoyal #AnnwyltheBloody #NetGalley 。。。more
Maria
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Ainsley Farmerson's sister is the queen， and her other sister is trying to kill the whole family。 As soon as this is sorted out she can go do something normal。。。 Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan has no time for human beings。 He's a centaur that grunts more than talks but when he's assigned to watch Ainsley he's surprised and intrigued by what he sees。。。 an uncontrollable， underestimated princess。 She brave， willing to fight for her family and lies to drive her sisters crazy。 The entertainment value Ainsley Farmerson's sister is the queen， and her other sister is trying to kill the whole family。 As soon as this is sorted out she can go do something normal。。。 Gruffyn of the Torn Moon Clan has no time for human beings。 He's a centaur that grunts more than talks but when he's assigned to watch Ainsley he's surprised and intrigued by what he sees。。。 an uncontrollable， underestimated princess。 She brave， willing to fight for her family and lies to drive her sisters crazy。 The entertainment value alone， is worth following her around。Why I started this book: Found it on Netgalley and immediately requested an ARC。Why I finished it: Aiken delivers another ridiculous， fun and crazy romance。 Fans of her work， know that her heroines take up as much space as they want， fight with the friends and destroy their enemies and are simply captivating to their love interests。 Everyone just accepts whatever niche interests or talents they have。 Families are the people closest to you， a noisy crowd with insane quirks and the ability to embarrass you without trying。 The best part of this story， was that I immediately picked up another of Aiken's books for a relaxing reread。 Because sometimes the best comfort， is to have all your crazy on the page of a good book。 。。。more
Megan
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I was so happy to be back in this world， and see the cross over with the Dragon Kin series。 I loved the humour， loved the dragons， and while I"ve enjoyed the previous two books in this series， Ainsley has definitely been the most relatable heroine so far （for me）。 I'm really hoping this series isn't wrapped up yet， because I feel like there's a lot more story to be told。 Highly recommend！ I was so happy to be back in this world， and see the cross over with the Dragon Kin series。 I loved the humour， loved the dragons， and while I"ve enjoyed the previous two books in this series， Ainsley has definitely been the most relatable heroine so far （for me）。 I'm really hoping this series isn't wrapped up yet， because I feel like there's a lot more story to be told。 Highly recommend！ 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Heretic Royal
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Heretic Royal&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Heretic Royal&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0