That is, until one day a boy from her past comes and offers her a way out, and a way to maybe right a few wrongs that have happened to her people. But Theodosia is constantly reminded of all the things she lost alongside her mother, but she is forced to do the only thing she can: survive. I loved seeing their friendship develop and become what it was by the end of the book. Yet, Cress also lost her mother when she was very young, so an unconventional friendship grew from two girls both mourning the mothers they never got to know. Inside, Theodosia feels a constant battle about what she can do while feeling so absolutely helpless. Theodosia’s only friend is a girl named Cress, whose father is the one who swiped the blade across her mother’s throat. Now that the Kaiser rules, he forces the slaves down there to mine, but most lose their minds after being around the power(s) for too long, and eventually lose their lives. The caves have so much magic inside them, that when Theodosia’s mother would rule, people would go down and stay in the caves, most dying, but some emerging and proving that they are worth the element the god and goddesses gave to them. And gems come from those caves to give people magic, but they also give people with an affinity for the element(s) a lot of magic. The Kaiser conquered Theodosia’s land because there are caves that run beneath four major temples that her people worship (air, fire, water, earth). “The last person who called me by my true name was my mother, with her dying breath.” Her back is incredible scarred from the whippings she has had to endure, but the Kaiser also inflicts so much mental and emotional abuse alongside the physical. She is used as a reminder for her people that the Kaiser has enslaved, and when they do anything to rise up, Theodosia takes the punishment. the Kaiser allowed her to live, but only so that she could live among them, while they take everything she has ever known away. I was just so invested with the romance, the rebellion, and the betrayals, that I couldn’t stop turning the pages.Īsh Princess is Laura Sebastian’s debut novel, which is a story about a girl named Theodosia (yeah, I’m going to be singing Hamilton all day after writing this review), whose ruling mother was murdered, and their land taken over by another kingdom when she was only six-years-old. This was the first book of 2018 that I read in one day, which is saying something because this book is almost 450 pages. This was such an addicting and captivating read. “My name is Theodosia Eirene Houzzara, Queen of Astrea, and I will endure this.”įriends, I couldn’t put this down. Goodreads | Amazon US| Barnes & Noble | Book DepositoryĪRC provided by Penguin Random House in exchange for an honest review.

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