“Love has a sound. It sounds like a thousand heartbeats happening at the same time.” – 4.75/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: heavy capes, dark caves, discipline, war, royal guards, sacrifices, family disputes and new territories.

#1 New York Times bestselling author of The Selection series Kiera Cass is back with her most epic novel yet—a sweeping enemies-to-lovers standalone romance.

“Love has a sound. It sounds like a thousand heartbeats happening at the same time.”

Princess Annika has lived a life of comfort—but no amount of luxuries can change the fact that her life isn’t her own to control. The king, once her loving father, has gone cold, and Annika will soon be forced into a loveless marriage for political gain.

Miles away, small comforts are few and far between for Lennox. He has devoted his life to the Dahrainian army, hoping to one day help them reclaim the throne that was stolen from them. For Lennox, the idea of love is merely a distraction—nothing will stand in the way of fighting for his people.

But when love, against all odds, finds them both, they are bound by its call. They can’t possibly be together—but the irresistible thrum of a thousand heartbeats won’t let them stay apart.

Kiera Cass brings her signature sparkling romance to this beautiful story of star-crossed lovers and long-held secrets.

I missed this Kiera Cass so much. She has the ability of writing the most perfect romances, and this book was proof of that once again. I’ll even say this is probably my favorite book from her after “The Selection” series – that’s saying a lot coming from me!

This book is filled with elements for a successful book. The romance is amazing, the main characters were very likable, and the story and writing were creative and unique!

I loved both the characters and the romance in this. Nobody writes princesses (and kingdoms) like Kiera Cass! This princess was one of my favorites that she ever wrote, right after America from “The Selection”. She was sweet and sacrificed a lot, and the boy was tough with a good heart – but what they have in common is that they’re both very strong and brave. I truly loved their romance and how they complemented each other perfectly! They made me swoon all the time – plus, I’m a sucker for enemies-to-lovers stories!

The writing is also amazing! I was super invested in the story and it was hard to put the book down. It’s full of romance and action! The dual point of view is also a great decision for this story and worked wonderfully.

I guess the only reason why I’m not giving this 5 stars is because of the pacing. I understand this is meant to be a standalone book and that means there’s a bit of a limitation with the writing there, but I think it would be better if this was a duology or even a bigger book. The reason why I say this is because some of the moments were a little rushed. For example,(spoiler alert ahead!) I feel like when they left the cave they should maybe have a small doubt about if they like each other or not, instead of already confessing straight up they liked each other. I think things moved on a little too fast and the story would benefit if they had more of a slow burn romance. Other than that I absolutely love this book!

And just as a side note: I’m so glad she stuck to the theme of having a girl on the cover! It’s such a small thing but it truly makes me happy how she is keeping her signature covers! I just wished the publisher put the girl in the spine too.

I can only hope the author continues to write amazing stories like this one! Great job Kiera Cass, this is an A+ for me! I’m very happy with this book, I definitely recommend it.