Court of Swans by Melanie Dickerson

Rating
Four stars

Blurb
Where there is wealth and power, there’s always someone willing to do anything to take it.

England, 1381: Delia’s idyllic life as daughter of an earl is shattered when her father dies and his wife accuses Delia’s seven brothers of treason and murder. The youngest is only ten years old, but this doesn’t stop the guards from hauling them off to the Tower of London. There they await a grim fate, as child-king Richard II is executing anyone who poses a threat to his throne. Delia is their only hope for pardon and freedom.

Sir Geoffrey did not expect his first assignment as captain of the guard to be the arrest of boys so young. He dutifully imprisons the brothers, but he can’t ignore the sense, rooted in personal experience, that injustice and treachery are at work.

Determined to rescue her brothers, Delia secures a position as a seamstress for the queen. Her quest is all but impossible as the executions continue. Sir Geoffrey offers to be her ally, but should she trust him in a court where everyone has an agenda?

From New York Times bestselling author Melanie Dickerson comes a tender retelling of The Wild Swans, where the virtues of loyalty and love face a harrowing showdown with power and fear.

Review
This was a disappointment for a Melanie Dickerson book. I have wonderful memories of Melanie Dickerson’s books but I think I’m realizing more and more that the Hagenheim series is really her best. I enjoyed the story and the characters of this book, but it wasn’t near as good as usual from her.

Honestly, I almost gave it a lower rating. Maybe I should have. There wasn’t any content that I can blame for this, but the story itself went nowhere it seemed. It had some good moments, and I thought those moments would lead to something great… and then they wouldn’t. It’s a story that I really can’t pinpoint what exactly made me not like it so much, but it simply wasn’t that great.

I will definitely continue the series nonetheless but I hope they get better as the series continues. Because this book was a real disappointment for what I know Melanie Dickerson is capable of. Would still recommend this book since there was no content and everything that I didn’t like was probably personal opinion. Just know, if you’re expecting it to be as good as her others, it’s really not.