Lion Heart: A Scarlet Novel

I got an eGalley of this book to review through NetGalley (thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for the chance to read it). I absolutely loved this wonderful conclusion to the Scarlet series. This whole series has been an absolutely spectacular historical fantasy series.

Scarlet/Marian has been imprisoned by Prince John for months. After a daring escape she finds that Prince John has hatched a plot to prevent King Richard from coming home...ever. Scarlet works with Eleanor of Aquitaine to put together a plan that will bring King Richard home safe. However, Scarlet finds she can’t stay away from Nottingham or Robin for long. Can Scarlet, Robin and their allies keep Prince John from hatching his nefarious plans and keep England safe?

This show more series has just been so well written and so engaging. This book was impossible to put down and just a pleasure to read. There is a lot more intrigue in this story than in previous books because Scarlet spends a lot more time trying to sway the nobility to her cause. However, there is still a lot of action as well and I really enjoyed how Scarlet continued to hold her own in a fight.

Rob and Scarlet have gone through some extremely difficult trials in this series. I love how their characters are so human. I was really hoping they would finally get some happiness or even just a brief break from their struggles in this book. While they do go through a number of tough struggles in this book; they finally do get some happiness as well. They are both a little too selfless at times and you kind of want to yell at them. However, both of them have also grown and matured a lot from the first book in the series. They have both grown from rebels to leaders and it was wonderful to read about.

We meet some new characters and get to see lots of our favorites from previous book. Both Eleanor and Margaret are in the story a lot and they are strong women in their own right. We also spend quite a bit of time with some very strong and noble male characters; a new knight named David joins the story, we see a lot of Winchester, and of course Allen of Dale is causing mischief like normal. I was impressed with how well the side characters were developed and filled out; they really come alive.

The writing flows well and is beautifully done. Scarlet does spend quite a bit of time rehashing her fears, but these sections are written in such a way that they come off as very poetic. There is some humor here too, and despite all the diplomacy Scarlet is forced to endure, her biting sense of humor is definitely still here.

My only complaint with this book was that I felt like the ending was a bit rushed. I was left feeling a bit unsatisfied with how things were left with Prince John (it made me think of the Princess Bride movie where the kid yells at his Grandpa about the bad guy). However there is a very nice Afterward that explains the history supporting this series and that does a great job of explaining why the book ended how it did. That Afterward also does a great job explaining how this series compares with what we actually know historically about Robin and Marian.

Overall this was a spectacular conclusion to an absolutely perfect historical fantasy series. I loved the characters, the intrigue, the wonderful fight scenes, and the sweet romance between Rob and Scarlet. This whole series is highly recommended to fans of historical fiction/fantasy. show less

I don't really know what to do with myself now that I've completed this trilogy. I loved the initial idea and am beyond in love with Scarlet, Rob, and everyone else now that we know the full story. Gaughen is a genius for weaving together the story of Robin Hood with historical events and a spin that could easily have actually happened. My favorite though also most painful part of Lion Heart, I think, is that Scar has to deal with her maimed hand in lots of little and not so little ways and Gaughen doesn't downplay the emotional and physical ramifications for amputees.

Original de: El Extraño Gato del Cuento

Los finales de serie son bastante difíciles de leer, te llega la nostalgia y si eres como yo, eres capaz de dejarlo y leerlo dentro de muchos, muchos años. O quizá sea solo yo. Mi gran preocupación con Lion Heart no estaba en que era un libro final sino que su antecesor, Lady Thief, fue todo menos mi favorito, temía mucho que terminara la trilogía Scarlet con una una idea de lo que pudo ser. Pero sí fue, oh, kitten, lo fue todo.

Confieso que al ser un libro que leo un año después de su secuela, además que ésta se me hizo bastante pesada, estuve bastante confundida con algunos personajes, no recordaba muy bien quienes eran exactamente o no recordaba exactamente que los motivaba a ser lo show more que eran. Tuve un completo vacío mental con la Princesa Isabel, estoy segura que si se hubiera dado cuenta me habría dado una de esas miradas asesinas y me habría destruido entre la nobleza. O con la pandilla de Robin Hood. Recordaba claramente ese hecho de Lady Thief, es imposible no hacerlo, pero cuando uno de ellos aparece para ser personaje bastante importante en la historia, no tenía idea de quién era. Incluso ahora, no recuerdo haberlo visto antes en el libro.

Dejando de lado el detalle de memoria, porque seamos realistas, estoy más pa'lla que pa'ca.

Lion Heart, kitten, Lion Heart es todo, es todo todo todito TODO. Después de haber leído los tres libros, siento que el segundo, si bien no es mi favorito, fue perfecto para construir este tercero. Es hermoso, es cruel, es romántico, tiene acción, mucha angustia. Tiene algunas cosas que me hubiera gustado explicara más, la verdad, pero en total es un libro que los fans de la trilogía amarán.

Uno de las tantas cosas que me gustó de este último libro fue la confianza entre Robin y Scar, luego de todo lo que pasaron. Se me hace resaltante porque yo no podría jamás confiar tanto en alguien y hacer lo que Scarlet hace en Lion Heart. Fueron los dos o tres capítulos más alegres y estresantes para una persona tan desconfiada como yo.

¿TIENE ALGUNOS FALLOS EL LIBRO?

Sí, no es tan perfecto, siendo sincera. Varias veces tuve que recordarme que por ejemplo Rob no sabía todo lo que había pasado Scar cuando estuvo con Gisbourne, algo que dije en mis actualizaciones en GoodReads. O que Rob fuera tan desesperante a veces, él tiende a caer mejor cuando se queda callado.

Otro punto es que Gaughen me da a conocer a un personaje bastante interesante como lo es Kate para luego no tenerla más metida en la historia, salvo unas pequeñas apariciones. Estaría bastante contenta si la escritora anunciara en un futuro algún spin-off con ella como protagonista.

Luego está esa sensación que tengo por Allan & David... pero es algo que tendrán que descubrirlo cuando lean el libro.

Conclusión: Todo es cruel y maravilloso al mismo tiempo. Me gusta el trabajo que A.C. Gaughen se tomó para que los tres libros tengan bastante relación con la historia real de Inglaterra, aunque ella misma aclara que sí, se tomó algunas libertades.

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"That's the funny thing about light and darkness - like hope, you can never blot out either one completely."

This was a good conclusion, the ending I was looking for. I'm glad to finally see Scarlet come into her own and realize that she isn't a little girl anymore. She had to start making some grown up decisions if she was really going to lead - and those decisions had to be thought out and informed.

I was also glad to see that she was finally taking everyone's advice - she had to start utilizing the resources and people around her so she could gain some footing.

I was sad about some of outcomes but overall, I enjoyed this one much more than the last.

Full Review on my blog!

Wow, what a series! I didn’t even know how to write this review.

Lion Heart begins with Scarlet’s imprisonment by Prince John. She has been locked away for months and after she escapes she reunites with her Grandmother, rather than Rob, to figure out Prince John’s next move. This is the crux of what I didn’t like about this book. My favorite thing about Scarlet and Lady Thief were the interactions, and camaraderie, between Scarlet and Rob and in Lion Heart there was less of that.

I can’t say a lot about the plot without getting into spoiler territory, but I loved this book so, so much. I loved that Scarlet didn’t wait around to be saved, she didn’t sit around wringing her hands and feeling sorry for show more herself, she leapt into the action, and used her intelligence and her physical abilities to help herself and those around her. She and Robin made my heart ache in the best possible ways, and together, they were unstoppable. Scarlet is the kind of female character I like to see in YA. Scarlet is fierce, independent, loyal, and despite the odds being stacked against her she still perseveres and doesn’t compromise her own morals to reach her goals.

Lion Heart was the perfect end to a fantastic trilogy. I highly recommend it! I loved this series. If you haven’t read it yet I seriously suggest a binge read!

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I could not put this book down. I checked it out of the library with Lady Thief, and as soon as I finished Lady Thief I picked this up and finished it!! I'l try not to include spoilers by being vague so, the event that occurred in the tree in the King's Forest. I loved it! I needed it like I need air. However, with Prince John skulking around, not everything was idyllic. Nottingham, David, Scarlet at the beginning of the story, such horror and sadness overwhelmed me. I loved the ending though I wish we could have met a certain character, witnessed a certain marriage, and seen a little further into the future of the characters.

“I’m just a thief. I stole your nobles- they will never put their trust in you again, even if Richard never comes home. I stole your power, because without them, you are just a spoiled child with very few lands. And I stole your mother, because she just likes me better than you. I told you when you took my fingers that you would regret this, John. Everything I have taken, you let me steal.”

Scarlet has been an amazing character to follow since the beginning of the Scarlet trilogy. She’s strong and independent, but throughout the series she’s also learned to lean on other’s for support and that, dear readers, is strong character development over time.

In this particular novel Rob’s character isn’t very prominent- which is show more a shame because I love Gaughen’s Robin Hood. He’s healed more from the broken man we left him in the second book, but just lacks spark that brings his character to life.

The character that does take front and center is Allan a Dell, and the minstrel deserves his standing ovation! What highlighted his character was a knight traveling with Scarlet named David. There’s endless witty banter and David’s reactions to Allan’s antics only spurs the minstrel to continue.

The romance was the same slow burning lava as the first two books- finally cranked up a few notches towards the end. In fact, the majority of this book is made up of romance. The action was taken down considerably which did not work for the book at all. The ending was rushed way too much and was disappointing considering this climax was supposed to be the end-all for the trilogy.

Overall, Lion Heart was an okay ending to a nice series.

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