The Prince of Secrets by A.J. Lancaster – Review

Published: January 21, 2019

Publisher: Camberion Press

Series: Stariel #2

Genre: Fantasy, Romance

Pages: 370 (Kindle)

My Rating: 4 Stars

Synopsis:
Well-bred women should not be seen kissing their butlers. Even when the butler in question is secretly a fae prince.

Wyn knows falling for Hetta Valstar is a bad idea. She’s not only human but the new magically bonded ruler of Stariel Estate. If their relationship gets out, it’ll cause a scandal that could ruin their attempts to sort out the estate’s crumbling finances.

And it doesn’t help that Stariel has decided it doesn’t like him.

But more than jealous sentient estates and Hetta’s good name are at stake. Wyn’s past is coming back to bite him. Ten years ago, he broke an oath and shattered the power of his home court, and the fae have been hunting him ever since. Now they’ve found his hiding place, they won’t rest until he’s dead or the debt is repaid–and they don’t play nicely. 

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After loving The Lord of Stariel immensely, I decided I didn’t want to wait to pick up the sequel, The Prince of Secrets. I can never get enough cozy fantasy or the fae, so this was basically a win-win.

The Prince of Secrets picks up almost immediately after the events of the first book, with Hetta now the Lord of the Stariel lands. Stariel is magical by nature and chooses its own lord when the old one has passed. Unfortunately for Wyn, Stariel’s magical nature means that it can be temperamental with him as it sees him as a potential threat to its lord. You see, Wyn was revealed to be a fae prince in hiding and though it’s been years, some of his family would still like to see him dead.

The plot of this volume focuses heavily on Wyn and his recently revealed status as a fae prince. Some of the Valstar family knows of this and some don’t – it’s a constant balancing act for him. To top things off, a few of his siblings have shown up to cause trouble and it puts him and Hetta both in some precarious situations.

Overall, I enjoyed this installment quite a bit, though not as much as the first. There’s some decent action, family drama aplenty, and we even get to learn more about the various fae courts and Wyn’s family. I hope to pick up the third installment, The Court of Mortals in the near future.