As seen on Amazon - posted on September 25, 2009
Frank gave me 5 stars
I don't know how I missed this - sorry Frank

Imagine our world racked by natural disasters, earthquakes, tidal waves and radiation from reactors and nuclear waste spread by hurricanes across the globe. Add to that a global winter that caused glaciers to cover the earth wiping away the last vestiges of civilization - pretty much the worst parts of the Bible.

Ten thousand generations later, mutations developed on earth with strange and wonderful powers. Yet people survived and handed down stories of things that once were. Anna Walls book, `King By Right of Blood and Might', is one such story.

Anna's book is a coming of age story of a young prince who has to learn about himself, his country, his family - and above all - a great king. Like most Prodigal Sons stories, Prince Harris Penn must leave his home and country to learn the things that will make him a great leader when he returns to take command of his kingdom.

His adventures and education range far and wide. He learned to train his own warhorse and became a corporal in his foster father's army under the command of his foster sister. While stationed at one of the posts that guarded the southern border, the post was raided in an attempt to kill him. This event is pivotal in his development as an adult.

Who would be searching for him and why? His search for an answer brings him into contact with desert nomads, Shapeshifters and Truthsayers, all of which help in his discovery of himself and his destiny.

This a good first book from a new author who is just feeling out her steps into the world of fantasy fiction.

As seen on Amazon - posted on January 15, 2011
Larry gave me 5 stars

I don't ususally enjoy this genre of fiction, but King By Right of Blood and Might captivated me. Finally, a book with characters of strength and courage, not wimpy, disfunctional like so many other books these days. Gotta see the movie.

As seen on Amazon.com on January 2, 2011
She gave me 4 stars

King by Right of Blood and Might is an epic tale of a young man who was born a prince, yet was forced by circumstance to fight for his Kingdom rather than easily inherit it. This intricately-woven tale takes the prince from the palace that has kept him prisoner for most of his life out into the world that he has been aching to experience. What he finds is a shock. The Kingdom of Penn is not much of a kingdom at all; in fact, it's been taken over by bandits ruled by the evil Kain who has also gained control of the queen, Harris' mother. As the truth unfolds, Harris finds that his love for the Great Mother is rewarded by her blessing and he works to unite his kingdom and free its people from slavers, poverty, and Kain's grip of power. With the help of healers and truthsayers, shape-shifters, and nomads he wins over along the way, there is plenty of fascinating paranormal action and adventure to keep any reader turning the pages. Set in post, post, post-apocalypse America, this enchanting tale reads more like a Medieval adventure story than a post-apocalypse survival novel. I was slightly disappointed to find this out, as I am a huge apocalypse novel fan, but perhaps a prequel will come out to quench my curiosity over what happened just after the great disaster. I loved the healing with herbs and magic, the selkies, and the Mother Goddess religion in this story. The nomads were interesting, as well, reminiscent of Ghegis Khan and his people and also the Native Americans. Overall, this is a fun read that would suit young adults as well as adults interested in fantasy, knights, and adventure. It is also ripe for prequels and sequels, which I hope Ms. Walls plans on writing.

Learning to Rule
posted February 8, 2011 - http://amoslassen.wordpress.com/2011/02/08/king-by-right-of-blood-and-might/

We Americans love royalty but I wonder how we would feel if we had a King instead of a president. Be that as it may. We do love to read about how one becomes royal and here is just the book for that. It is the story of a young prince, Harris, who has to learn how to run his country from others aside from his father. The king, Aidyn, his father, has closed himself off from others and he has been this way since the death of his father and while he was set away, his country suffered. The infrastructure collapsed and citizens were either done away with or taken away. The king knew that he could not teach his son and so he sent him to live with another king in the south and it was there that he learned to build an army and go home to reclaim his country. His biggest task was to hold the country together. As he tried, his mother went mad and the young king fell in love.

Our king faced problems and he must find his way to lead his people and secure his country. This is a tale of medieval characters that are set in the future so I suppose we classify this as fantasy. The author took the story of a king and set in a world where an asteroid nearly erased humanity as it brought about a nuclear winter that killed thousands of people. This story is set in North America in a country known as Pennland under the rule of an inept king, Aidyn, father of Harris who is soon to take the throne. When he does come to power, his country is decimated but he is determined to bring it back to what it once was. He has challenges ahead of him, the chief of which is Kain, an enemy who has convinced all to follow his lead.

This is quite a story and the idea that the price who should have inherited the kingdom but instead had to fight for it is a novel approach. Kain in all of his evil gained control of the kingdom through Harris’s mother, Harris is devout and he will restore his kingdom. And he does just that but I am not letting on how. You should want to read this charming story which is beautifully written.

A word of warning—it takes a while to get into the story but once you do you will not want to stop reading. For a first novel this is amazing and KI cannot recommend it highly enough.