Diomere’s Exile (Gate Keeper Chronicles #1) by Sabrina A. Fish

I received an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. This the first in the Gatekeeper Chronicles by author Sabrina A. Fish. This is the first full length novel by this author.

Nadia de Quinones was exiled from Diomere when her nephew, the crown-prince, was abducted while under her care. Twelve years have passed since Nadia was exiled to Thuno’s. Nadia is determined to atone for her actions and find her nephew. Time is running out as mer people can only survive for so long cut off from m’ami (the source of their power.) Discovering the lost Gate of Thuno’s and discovering she is one of the missing gatekeepers adds to Nadia’s quest. She must now find her heartbond to open the gate.

Lord Gregor Cyrene is charged with protecting the Royal family. Close friends with Prince Stefan since childhood, Gregor takes his role to protect Prince Stefan and his illegitimate brother seriously. When threats to Prince Reis (the illegitimate Prince) surface, Gregor is determined to protect him at any cost.

Drawn to the mysterious Nadia, Gregor finds himself torn, whether to follow his heart or his loyalty. Gregor is certain there is more to Nadia that she lets on. He believes she is connected to the young prince and is determined to discover the truth.

I struggled to follow the story initially and found myself losing interest. It suffers from a lack of word-building. For much of the first chapter I was lost, there is no backstory given. No description is given of previous events, Nadia’s current whereabouts are not detailed, no information is given on m’ami. I would not have struggled through if I had not agreed to review the book. This is the only downfall to the book.

The author really hits her stride once the action gets going. The plot is fast paced and action pact. While the book does suffer from an excess of secondary characters, the main antagonist is cleverly concealed by the author until the very end. Gregor was a favourite of mine. He is intelligent courageous and while there were plenty of opportunities for him to act first, think later he gathers all information and is not quick to judge.

The sex scenes in this book between the two protagonists is hot and steamy. A word of warning to sensitive readers, there are several scenes of sexual violence in this book and there is depiction of rape in the opening chapter.

I would recommend this book to lovers of fantasy, stick with it and you will be rewarded with an action-packed adventure.