The Offering by Kimberly Derting

Title: The Offering
Author: Kimberly Derting
Publisher: McElderly Publishing
Release: January 7, 2014
Series: The Pledge
Pages: 286 (ARC)
Review: Five Stars!

I did a short review for this book in the October Wrap-Up post if you want to read it here.

I can't even tell you how amazing this book was. I got the ARC from YASH this year. When I'd heard that I'd won it, I went around my house happy dancing the rest of the day! I love this series SO much and I can't believe that it's over. Seriously, I just want to go up to Kimberly Derting and say "Write more books!" Luckily, she has a book coming out this summer called The Taking! *happy dance* So yes, when The Offering comes out, read your heart out!

The main character Charlie goes through so many changed in the book. As of the end of book one, she's the queen of dystopian country Ludania. In book two, she faced hard ships from her people as well as the fellow queens of neighboring countries. The Offering takes off where The Essence left off-one of her fellow queens has declared war on Ludania. I feel like Charlie finally accepts her role of queen and leader of a whole lot of people in this book. Before, she's always lead grudgingly, but now, she's prepared to go all-out. Each of the characters had their own agenda that was very similar to all the other character's agendas. They were all trying to do the same thing, but didn't realize it. It made for a lot of near-misses that drove me insane, but in a way that kept me turning pages. Oh, and the romance between Max and Charlie is practically sizzling. It makes me smile just thinking about it. We become familiar with characters that, before, were names that were mentioned in passing.

Okay, how do I go about the rest of this providing no spoilers for the book? Well, I've already told you it was awesome and amazing and spectacular so... The book has action people! Remember how amazing book one was? Now amp that up by a million. The days of standing by in book two are over! Death, destruction, overall mayhem and chaos, it's all there! Oh, and romance! I'm pretty sure anyone that reads it will swoon for Max. Besides the action, there's also the touching family/tender moments. A character saying goodbye to a loved one, either permanently or temporarily, always breaks my heart. If you have any doubts, throw them away. I read this book right after Allegiant, which shattered my heart in two. The Offering managed to mend it right back up in only 24 hours! I've faced many disappointing series endings recently, but this is not one of them! The book is perfect, from page to shining page. This is one book that should be on everyone's to-be-read list! A total five stars!

Author Bio:

I was born and raised in the Seattle area, with the exception of a few short stints in Phoenix, Boise, and San Jose. I had a colorful childhood, raised by a single mother who worked her butt off to make ends meet. She showed my brother and me how to enjoy life on a shoestring budget. She was the kind of person who, given the choice between paying a bill and taking us to the circus, would always opt for the circus...and somehow, she always managed to pay the bill. She was the one who taught me how to laugh.

I first fell in love with writing (giving up my childhood dreams of being a Veterinarian, and then my later aspirations of "lady trucker") when I signed up for Journalism as my 7th grade elective. It was supposed to an easy A, but it soon became my passion. I moved on to be Copy Editor of the high school yearbook so that I could correct other people's writing mistakes and fill in when they missed their deadlines (and, hey, it was high school...deadlines were frequently missed!).

I still live in the Pacific Northwest, which is the ideal place to be writing anything dark or creepy...a gloomy day can set the perfect mood. I live with my husband and our three beautiful (and often mouthy) children, who serve as an endless source of inspiration for my writing.

You Can Find Her At:

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Synopsis:

To save her country, Charlie must sacrifice...but how much? Love and war are at stake in the riveting conclusion to the Pledge trilogy.

Charlie, Queen Charlaina of Ludania, has settled into her role as leader and ruler of her country. She's done admirable work to restore Ludania's archaic and broken communications systems with other queendoms, and she's mastered the art of ignoring Sabara, the evil former queen whose essence is alive and well within Charlie.

When the negotiation of a peace agreement with the Queen of Astonia goes awry, Charlie receives a brutal message that threatens all of Ludania and all that Charlie loves. Backed into a corner, it seems the only way to avoid war is for Charlie to offer herself to her enemy.

But things aren't so cut and dry. Peace is never that simple. Other forces have aligned with the enemy, and Charlie must ask herself how much she is willing to surrender to protect all that she loves.

You Can Find it At:

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IndieBound
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