Review: Amazing Fantasy Story
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 25, 2013
Tempest (Scribes of Medeisia Book II) by R.K. RyalsTempest is the second book in the Scribes of Medeisia series and after reading Mark of the Mage, I could not wait to get my hands on Tempest.  I loved Mark of the Mage - I fell in love with the fantasy world and the characters that Ms. Ryals created.  And Tempest made me fall in love even more.When Tempest begins, we are introduced to a new character - Prince Cadeyrn of Sadeemia.  Cadeyrn is a fierce warrior and the second son of the king.  Cadeyrn is concerned about stories he's hearing regarding Medeisia and he tells the king that he needs to travel to Medeisia to see if his concerns are valid.  The story then takes us back to where Mark of The Mage ended - with Stone and Kye amongst the rebels in the forest.  All of my old friends are there - Stone and Kye, Maeve, Brennus, Daegan, Lochlen, Oran the wolf and the trees and the rest of the rebels.  Stone and Kye know that they need the help of the Sadeemians to overcome evil King Raemon so they come up with a plan (that will either be brilliant if they succeed or suicidal).  They decide to journey over the Ardus (the desert) to Sadeemia...but that means they'll have to survive through the horrid desert and manage to elude the wyverns who roam there.  So Stone, Kye, Lochlen, Oran the wolf, Maeve, Daegan, and Brennus set off to do the impossible - survive the Ardus and convince King Freemont of Sadeemia to help them.I am absolutely captivated by this series.  Ms. Ryals has created this amazing fantasy world with dragons and magic, and her writing is so wonderful that I found myself transported to that fantasy world and it became real.  And the characters became real, too.  Each character was so unique and well-developed...and each character made me empathize with them.  I cannot wait for the next book in this series to be written so that I can sit down with my friends again and continue their journey.The story left me an emotional mess when I finished it.  I went through so many emotions as I read it - love, elation, surprise, fear, worry, heartbreaking sadness, and hope.  I cheered for Stone and Kye as they allowed themselves to love...and I cried for them at times.  As Kye said, "The best kind of love always hurts like hell."*Note - I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.