Review: The Prince of Secrets (Stariel #2)

• Title: The Prince of Secrets

• Author: AJ Lancaster

• Series: Stariel #2

• Genre: Gaslamp Fantasy / Romance / Fae Fantasy

• Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

𝑯𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕; 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒍-𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒍𝒊𝒑𝒔; 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔; 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒔𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒆𝒛𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒓; 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕.

What an incredible ride this world continues to be. Whilst there is still some of the wonderfully mundane moments that occurred in The Lord of Stariel that made me fall in love with this series, the added aspects of the Fae in The Prince of Secrets really elevated this world for me.

I adored that this was told from multiple POVs, as opposed to mostly just Hetta's in the first book. Having Wyn's inner dialogue made him so much more enjoyable this time around, and I loved how the reader gets to glimpse his fears and insecurities under all the dry and evasive wit Hallowyn is known for. I especially enjoyed everyone calling him out on those behaviours in this book also and seeing him open up to the Valstars, people who have called him one of their own for so long now. His connection with the Fae that came to visit was a good contrast to see how he values himself and his place at Stariel. I really liked Rakken's interactions with Wyn, and I look forward to seeing their sibling interactions in future novels.

I also enjoyed watching Hetta and Wyn's relationship evolve, and further, how it became a strength for them through the numerous events that happened in this book. Their love for one another is beautiful, and reading them accept how they feel for the other was rewarding. I am sure, since this is only the beginning of their romance, and with only a few people knowing of their relationship, that there will be a whole lot of drama to unfold in following books regarding their union, but within The Prince of Secrets, I found the balance of their connection executed well.

The magic in this was intriguing, and I liked learning more about both Fae and land magic. Stariel's connection to Wyn and Hetta was unlike anything I've ever read before, and I found it refreshing. Understanding the Fae side of this book was equally thrilling, especially with the new characters that entered this world.

Overall, this was another delightful read by this author, and I cannot wait to continue onto book three!