Scarlet Princess by Robin D. Mahle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Rowan Pendragon and her cousin Davin have found themselves in a bit of a sticky situation, as usual, they have been caught trying to smuggle a few bottles of vodka from the neighbouring realm of Socaria into their homeland of Lochlann after their only way back was blocked and they resorted to travelling through a tunnel for days with nothing but the vodka, only to wake up in a Socarian dungeon. As they slowly wake up and come to the realisation that their predicament is worse than just waking up with a hangover, their captor comes to inform them of the crimes they have permitted and the sentence that they carry, the penalty of death, however, when Rowan reveals their identities, they are moved into more suitable accommodation and invited to join the clan leader and his brother for dinner later on that evening.

It is during the conversation that Rowan learns that the women here are to be seen and not heard and when she agrees to have her future decided by a Summit of the Clans, she makes the case that they should be lenient with her cousin as he is her guard and not actually high in the ranking of their society, they agree, but on the principle that she behaves like a proper Socarian princess would. The only point which rankles Rowan is that she will not be able to create and read a statement of reasoning for what she did and put it before the Summit herself, only a male and one of the ruling party of a Clan can do that, much to her disappointment.

As they leave for the Summit, Rowan reluctantly leaves her cousin behind at the palace where they were being held, at least she knows that one of them will return to their family and tell them the truth of what happened so that they can get closure whatever the decision of the Summit may be. Davin is not in the least happy about the situation and wishes that he could go with her like always and watch her back, however, Rowan insists on it and he acquiesces in the end. As they travel, Rowan gets to know her captors and their family more, as well as the customs, rules and laws which she will have to obey on her journey, however, as she does this, something changes between her and her captor.

Will Rowan be able to face the Summit and take their decision and see it through, what will their decision be and how will it affect her and her captor, will they have to fight for a future they want, or will it become too much of a barrier to them? This is a historical romance with rivalry, hierarchical challenges and family feuds galore which will pull you along as the story progresses as you fight for their future along with them.

Reviewed by @roxsannel

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