Princess of Blood by Sarah Hawley
The Shards of Magic #2
Fantasy
September 30, 2025- Ace

Review by Angela

When I read the first book in this series, Servant of Earth, I was intrigued by the worldbuilding and enjoyed my overall reading experience, but I wasn’t foaming at the mouth with book lust. So, when the second book came up for review, I knew I wanted to read it and see where the author took the story arc and how Kenna Heron, the FMC and new Princess of Blood House, would adapt to her new circumstances. After going through a rough reading slump this year, I decided to jump ahead in my ARC reading (I’m writing this review in June) and pick this book up.

HOLY SHIT. I was not expecting to be completely absorbed and on the edge of my seat for the entire 500+ pages.

This is the second book in the The Shards of Magic series and continues the story of Kenna Heron, once a poor human servant and now gifted with the magic of Blood House. She has fae magic and the power to throw her house’s support behind whomever she thinks will be the best candidate to take over the reins from the now deceased King Osiric. But the fae courts are treacherous and Kenna must navigate them with limited knowledge while also offering refuge to both fae and humans within her own court and dealing with the trauma of her two best friends.

Kenna is coming into her own and dealing with some deep challenges. Her romance with one man began and ended in the first book. And a new romance has taken its place. Someone who I dare say I was rooting for in Servant of Earth. Kallen, the mysterious, secretive, dangerous Kallen, is who I was hoping would step in to help Kenna. Their relationship is passionate and full of longing, and I LOVED IT.

This is a dark, perilous world, with danger around every corner. Even though the evil king from the first book is dead, a new contender is claiming the throne, and the rebels are still making plans and trying to choose a leader. Kenna is the swing vote and has quite a bit of power. I think this book delves even deeper into the politicking of the fae courts as well as its brutal history. Readers learn more about outlawed unions between different house members and what became of their children. I was deeply surprised at some of the secondary character’s backstories and true motivations.

It’s not often that I enjoy the second book more than the first, I don’t know exactly how many books are planned in this series, but with the cliffhangers Ms. Hawley tends to leave readers with I hope not too many. I’m almost mad at myself for reading this so soon because the ending is BRUTAL, and now I have to wait a year for the next installment.

Final grade- A