Review: Extremely Engaging
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 18, 2013
Ilias, son of Decebelus, King of the Dacians, has sworn vengeance against the Romans. It was the Romans that attacked and destroyed his home, his lands. It was Romans that killed his mother, his sister, and his father. Ilias, and his brothers in arms, swore that one day they'd exact their revenge and take back what is rightfully theirs. That day has finally come.However, Ilias didn't consider the effect Nerva might have on him. Nerva, the daughter of his sworn enemy and the central piece in his plot for revenge, doesn't elicit the hate Ilias thought she would. Rather, she elicits the need to protect and that threatens all the carefully laid plans.Born in Vengeance is an extremely engaging novella, despite its length. Y'all know I usually take issue with novellas as I always feel deprived of character development. However, Born in Vengeance gave me just enough of a taste to want more. I enjoyed the historical aspect quite a lot. Now whether or not it's historically accurate outside of Dacians and Romans having really existed, I'm not sure. But it feels historically accurate.I also liked the love versus logic element as well. I think the internal battle Ilias waged was realistic, especially for a warrior. He fought to do right by his family, his people but also by Nerva. It is a strong leader who can stand up for what he believes in and sway his people to follow him.Ilias and Nerva, as well as Zyraxes, Ursus, Bastisza, Galtys, are well developed, I felt the closeness these characters had cultivated and understood the turmoil caused by all the events in the story. Ms. Skiba allows us to see enough of their personalities to become invested in what happens to them. I really like that Nerva is a strong heroine. She doesn't back down in the face of danger. That, along with the realistic portrayal of battle during this time, kept me turning the pages. I'm anxious to read the complete Dacian Legends series.