Amazon Cynthia Van Auken Black Rose Writing Penguin Bookshop Category:  Fantasy Publisher: Black Rose Writing ISBN-10:  1935605542 Type: Fiction Pages: 305 Copyright: Aug 5, 2010 ISBN-13: 9781935605546 "The Prince" tells the story of young Ashling’s defiance of her destiny. It was foretold in an ancient prophecy that three guardians would rise against a black dragon and his puppet, Prince Driscoll. With the appearance of a cryptic message claiming she is one of the guardians, Ashling sets out to discover the truth. Ashling was too young. Too young to understand why she survived the plague. Too young to understand why she suffered strange dreams. And now too young to understand how a knight's murder is connected to the rise of Prince Driscoll and the return of dragons. With the appearance of a cryptic message claiming Ashling is one of three prophesied guardians, she sets out on a quest to find out the truth about the knight's murder. Within only a short amount of time, her world fades away as she discovers an evil straight out of a fairytale. It's then that she meets Darge, the goblin king, and Esequiel, an elf warrior... both named guardians. Suddenly, Ashling is thrust into a dangerous mission she never wanted--but always dreamt about--a mission to defeat the tyrant prince. Now, she must decide whether she chose or was chosen to be a guardian. Excerpt He looked upon the fearful face of the demon creature. Dark blood oozed from a gash on the vetala’s forehead and fell into his wide orange eyes. The knight almost considered mercy, but as he saw man’s blood smeared on the vetala’s hands, he would not forget those who had died, he would have vengeance. Hatred coursed through the knight’s veins. He cried in rage and plunged his sword into the barbarian. He opened his eyes and saw that the creature was motionless. He looked up, men and vetala raged in battle, but mankind was losing. Then, a horrifying cry filled the sky, and the knight looked up to find the marvelous white dragon, Skythir, spewing fire upon the vetala! However, the knight’s hope quickly vanished when a wretched black creature appeared from the clouds. Shike closed his jaws upon the white dragon’s neck! Skythir shrieked and fought Shike off. Inside a ball of fire and smoke, the two tore at each other. It seemed the battle could turn either way. The battle took place for what seemed days, as neither dragon would surrender. All watched in worried anticipation, for if the white dragon lost… all would be lost. Then, the sky grew dark and lightning ripped to the earth, and at that moment, Skythir knocked Shike from the sky. He fell to the ground flapping madly in a futile attempt to remain airborne. Shike crashed against the ground and the white dragon landed atop him. Skythir could have killed the black beast, but instead he let out a growl. "I banish you, Shike. You shall sleep for five hundred years in the place of your birth." Skythir declared. He let out a mighty roar and Shike vanished!

Adder's Bite Review by Patty Foltz
Adder's Bite the Prince by Cynthia Van Auken
Fantastic Fantasy with lots of danger and excitement.
Although there are no wizards in this book, there are plenty of magical dragons, goblins, elves and other mystical creatures. It also has kings, princes, noblemen, knights and warriors.
It all started with a 13 year old maiden named Ashling who stumbles upon a dead knight and later learns she is a prophet guardian, which she refuses to believe. She also believes goblins and elves are just in story books, but soon learns they are real.
Now, with the aid of two other guardians, a goblin king name Darge and an elf warrior called Esequiel (and a third guardian she didn't know about), they must hunt for Prince Driscoll who has pledged his alliance to a very evil black dragon who is set to destroy all of Ilarian, a country divided into four states with many kingdoms and villages.
Ashling has no idea of all the danger she is about to go though. She is frightened, scared, and just wants to go home. Why her, she is just a kid, a simple maid? She is no warrior, she has no magical powers.
A wonderful story from beginning to end. And speaking of ending, I wonder if there will be a sequel or maybe a series coming, the end sounds like there could be. I hope so. This reviewer will definitely be reading them if there is. And, oh what a great movie this book would make.
If I could give this book six stars I would. It is right up there with Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. One of the best fantasy Sci-Fi books I have ever read.
Patty Foltz
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