For Love and Honor by Jody Hedlund [Review & Giveaway]
Read on for my full review and a chance to win the whole series!
About the Book
Author: Jody Hedlund
Genre: Young Adult Historical
Release Date: March 7, 2017
Lady Sabine is harboring a skin blemish, one, that if revealed, could cause her to be branded as a witch, put her life in danger, and damage her chances of making a good marriage. After all, what nobleman would want to marry a woman so flawed?
Sir Bennet is returning home to protect his family from an imminent attack by neighboring lords who seek repayment of debts. Without fortune or means to pay those debts, Sir Bennet realizes his only option is to make a marriage match with a wealthy noblewoman. As a man of honor, he loathes the idea of courting a woman for her money, but with time running out for his family’s safety, what other choice does he have?
As Lady Sabine and Sir Bennet are thrust together under dangerous circumstances, will they both be able to learn to trust each other enough to share their deepest secrets? Or will those secrets ultimately lead to their demise?
The Artist Librarian Review
I've always enjoyed Jody Hedlund's historical romances, so I was excited to learn she was going to write YA novels. When I learned they were to be medieval historicals, that excitement doubled. For Love and Honor closes her first teen-aimed series with more sweet medieval romance that will leave you with a satisfying sigh ...Sabine and Bennet's tale is told through alternating first-person narration: Sabine's in a serif font (text with the little "tags" at the ends of the letters) and Bennet's in a sans-serif font (without the "tags"). I thought this was a nice visual way to differentiate, though I read my review copy digitally and despite the font being the same, I never was confused between whose point-of-view I was in. I felt that Jody Hedlund made their voices distinct. I am unsure if the e-book version features different fonts for the alternating chapters, but I enjoyed it in the print version!
For Love and Honor follows Hedlund's previous tales in this loose trilogy: An Uncertain Choice and A Daring Sacrifice. However, these can be easily read as stand alones, since each novel features different protagonists. Though I read the first book, An Uncertain Choice, when it first was released, I didn't really remember much about Sir Bennet, other than he was a knight, but it didn't hamper my enjoyment of the novel. I was quickly introduced to Bennet and Sabine. Both were likeable protagonists and both were holding secrets from each other that, as a reader, I knew would eventually be found out, but how? At under 300 pages, this romance was a quick read that I finished in one night!
I've been reading some darker graphic novels/comics recently, so reading For Love and Honor was like a breath of fresh air! I loved that Hedlund's first novels were on the ... "steamier" side of your typical Christian romances, but the best way to describe her YA series is sweet medieval romance. It's perfect for tweens and young teens beginning to be interested in romance novels, but perhaps not yet ready for some of the more edgy romantic fare in many general YA titles. Fans of Melanie Dickerson's novels are sure to enjoy these. To me, the spiritual thread isn't overbearing and appropriate for the time period, so I see some potential cross-over appeal. As a librarian, it can be difficult to recommend well written Christian YA (when I was a teen, there was hardly any), so I hope that Hedlund continues to write for both teens and adults!
[Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.]
About the Author
Jody Hedlund is a best-selling and award-winning author who loves fairy-tales and happily-ever-afters. She makes her home in Midland, MI with her husband and five teen-aged children. When she’s not writing another of her page-turning stories, you can usually find her sipping coffee, eating chocolate, and reading.
Blog Stops
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May 15: Faithful Acres Body Soul Spirit
May 15: Baker Kella
May 15: Remembrancy
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Jody is giving away all three books in the Noble Knights Series!
Click on the picture or the link below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/b6fc
Do you have a favorite medieval book, film, or tv show?
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10 comments
I love Jody's historical novels but haven't read this series yet. Thanks for sharing about it!
ReplyDeleteHi Heidi! Great to see you again --I hope you'll be able to give this series a try. I especially recommend it if you enjoy medieval or fairy tale-like settings. =)
DeleteThank you so much for hosting me on the Celebrate Lit blog tour! I'm delighted to hear that you would recommend this series for libraries! I appreciate your very lovely review! Blessings! ~ Jody
ReplyDeleteAw, thank you for stopping by, Jody! Keep writing great books! ^_^
DeleteOh I'm so glad you reviewed this book! I've been eyeing it for a long time and SO want to read it. Even more now, after reading this blog post.
ReplyDeleteHey Anna! It's a really nice series --maybe your local library system has it? If not, I've seen them online for under $10 USD each. I'm totally in love with how gorgeous the cover art is as well --I need to bookstagram it soon!
DeleteI love Jody's books! I'm excited to read this series.
ReplyDeleteI hope you got a chance to try this one out, Caryl!
DeleteThanks for this review. I just discovered your site. Hadn't heard of this series but I'm happy to see my library has it. I'll have to check it out.
ReplyDeleteWelcome! I'm working on getting my blog out of its semi-hiatus state but there are lots of reviews to look at. Hope you get a chance to read this series soon!
DeleteThank you for taking the time to share your thoughts! Comments are always welcomed and appreciated.