Chantel Seabrook has written a riveting tale that combines love, lust, contempt, deceit, and pulse-pounding scenes of romance and action-packed encounters. ‘Cara’s Twelve’ revolves around Cara, who is to be crowned queen in place of her cousin, Maeve, since Maeve has been found to be incapable of bearing children. As the novel begins, Maeve’s mother Birkita, not only drunk on, but completely enamored with power and nothing else, forces Maeve to befriend her cousin, only so she can deceive Cara and take the throne back when Cara bears an heir. Maeve’s opposition to this, which could have proven completely futile, fuels the storyline, causing Maeve to share warnings with Cara as they set out on the journey that will have Cara touring the various provinces of her future kingdom, in an effort to choose her future king out of the twelve men who are serving as her consorts.

The storyline reminded me at times of ‘The Bachelorette,’ as the men were living under the same roof, traveling together, and seeking relations with Cara. Some men were loyal and true, while others were nothing more than brute savages who would happily dispose of Cara once they achieved the throne. Maybe that’s a little more than anyone who watches ‘The Bachelorette’ bargains for, but in the time period this novel was set (I sometimes pictured ‘The Princess Bride’ as a backdrop with all the travels they had to make in that movie, but that’s just me), the fight for freedom and the retaliation against those who seek to keep that freedom from occurring rang quite true.

Cara learns about and spends time with the men as the novel progresses, but it is her time with Finn and Tahdaon that resonates most with readers. There are others who hold a special spot in her heart, and whom she trusts and cares for, but those two were the ones who cause her heart to flip-flop in her chest, questioning herself about which one of them was the right one for her. Finn, on one hand, is kind, true, and loyal almost to a fault. He cares for her and shows her nothing less than admiration and strength as she fights against the powers that be. Tahdaon, on the other hand, is more of a mystery at first. It is only through their time together that trust begins to emerge, and their relationship grows, albeit more slowly than the one she has with Finn. Tahdaon seems hardened and angry, and Cara doesn’t understand what it is that causes his animosity toward her. It was hard as a reader to try to decide which one of these two men she should be with more, as she most obviously cared for each of them, and the author’s description of each man, and how he cared for her in his own way, astutely captured his feelings. Seeing both sides of each relationship made the ending of the novel a bit hard, as she does have to choose one of them to be her husband, as well as the King. However, the choice, and how she made it, made sense based on the ways in which she grew over the two years she spent traveling, fighting, surviving, and connecting with those around her, no matter whether they were kind or vicious, pleasant or threatening. Her strength was never in question, despite times when it could easily have been lacking. Inner turmoil often made her stronger, and made for a more compelling and worthwhile read, as she struggled against her own feelings and uncertainty over how to handle certain situations.

Chantel Seabrook has written an electrifying and provocative tale of love, truth, war, and peace. I am excited to read more of her work and encourage others to pick up ‘Cara’s Twelve’ as soon as they have the chance!

You can find ‘Cara’s Twelve’ by Chantel Seabrook here: http://www.amazon.com/Caras-Twelve-Chantel-Seabrook-ebook/dp/B00ZPQJOLA