Chosen (Warrior Chronicles #1): Volume 1 (The Warrior Chronicles) Paperback – 15 July 2014

Ready for a new book and/or series, then you're in luck, as I've found a really great first book.Shanti, the Chosen, is out looking to connect with a people who were once the same people as hers. Generations ago they had left and set up in a new land, but it's now time for the Chosen to find them and bring them home.Her people have been decimated by a nation that is sweeping across the world and taking or killing the people of other nations. It's a mass war and the choice is to either join the Graygual, or die and whoever is left....well depending on who you are will depend on what will become of you. Either way it's willingly or forcibly!!Shanti is a line woman and is found close to death, starving and without water, in a barren land like a desert, which used to be a lush forest. Found by a group of army cadets and their officer Commander Sanders, out on patrol, they instantly turn and head back home with her a full five days before they're due back.While there she finds someone who is just like her.Their leader is Captain Cayan and when she is finally strong enough she is taken to meet with him, so he can find who she is and why she was found close to death, in a inhospitable and desolate land, without anyone else!!Shanti is a woman with a gift and she thought she was the only one to have this gift, at the strength hers is. That is of course until she meets the Captain. The difference is, he is untrained, where she is not!!From the start this book is a page turner and there is action in it, but not a huge amount. However, that doesn't take you away from what's happened in her past or present!! It keeps you riveted and wanting so much more for her.So far her life has always been about training, loss, the fight and the constant running and hiding. You can't help but want more for her. The good news is though, that for a while she won't be going anywhere, as she needs to heal and regain her strength, not only in body, but her mental ability too!!So While she's doing all that, she does help out. There's the battle from this people's enemy who thought to take them unawares. However, with her gift she is awoken to her gift telling her that they were coming.She also trains the young cadets who found her and also helps the Captain with his gift too, honing it and hopefully giving him the chance to be able to protect his people should the Graygual or the Ink'na....allies of the aforementioned as well as having many sarsiers (those with the gift but much weaker) within their own people!!Along with all of that is of course the audio book to go with it. If you're like me, then you'll enjoy reading the book while listening to the narration. Personally I believe that it helps to bring all of the characters to life.Also if the narrator is talented, then it will also give the characters a personality and a voice to match and just makes it so much more enjoyable. Of course there are times where it can be an epic failure.....However, that's not the case with this narrator!!Caitlin Davies is her name and trust me when I say this....She is bloody brilliant. Oops sorry my British accent came out there a little 🤷🤷😁😁She literally has a different voice for EVERY single character. I've never come across one with such a wide range before.....EVER!!!I've come across quite a few that have plenty of nuances and helps to differentiate between the main characters, but there's usually not many main characters and on occasion a few of the characters do have the same one.But not with Caitlin Davies!! Between the nuances and octaves, everyone has their own voice!! And almost every character is a main character!! None of the five boys, also called her Honour Guard, has the same voice and the same with everyone else!!If you don't do anything else today, great yourself to both the book and audio.Buuuut, if you can only do one or the other, then for the first time EVER, but the audio alone!! I never thought I'd ever type those words in my life....for this audio.....yeah I'll definitely do it this time, though.Whatever your decision you won't be sorry as the story is epic, and I'm glad I've got the next book AND audio waiting lol, the audio is brilliant and you truly won't be sorry!! Enjoy 😉😉🙉🙉

What a brilliant start to a new series by K.F.Breene! If you've read her Darkness series you will love this one. It has all the best ingredients...badass female; strong, dominant males; unlikely friendships; just enough violence; just enough humour; that little sizzle of romance; plenty of swearing (I like a swear word!!) a personal history to make you cry and of course, the almost obligatory cliff hanger!!I like all the characters, they've been introduced enough to be personable while still leaving room for growth. I like the relationships they all have, particularly the boys and Shanti! I've found I have a particular soft spot for Marc! It moved along at a good enough pace; just the right amount of action, personal time, flashbacks etc. The combination worked well and I didn't feel as though too much time was spent lingering on any one particular part of the story. I really liked how we saw different charcters' points of view...I've seen another review that says they'd like to get to know The Captain's POV in the next installment...I slightly disagree...I like the air of mystery, the not knowing how and why he's feeling. Kind of coincides with that mental block he's got going on with Shanti! If she can't read him, then maybe we shouldn't either?!I liked the story as a whole and the idea of it is intriguing. It's left me interested to see where the next book will go, what other bonds are formed and what battles will be fought.

Shanti has been given a mission by her people and it’s one she’s willing to fulfil even if it kills her. Landing herself in the Captain’s city wasn’t what she planned but it might just be what she needs. The only problem now, is whether she’ll be able to escape before the Captain and his men figure out who she is.I’ve read the darkness series, so I wasn’t overly surprised to find that I enjoyed Chosen too. It’s a unique story and Breene creates a rich and detailed world that I quickly lost myself in. The book alternates between the perspectives of several of the characters over the course of the novel, so don’t be surprised when you’re suddenly in the mind of Sanders or Marc. I actually enjoyed some of the shorter scenes from the viewpoint of the secondary characters, as they provide a different perspective of events. You will definitely feel sorry for Sanders with what he goes through. Shanti is a wonderfully complex character, even if she does seem to be focused on the destiny and title her people paced upon her. I absolutely adore the little observations she makes about the society she finds herself in. Being an outsider she has a unique perspective. I probably shouldn’t have been as amused as I was by her observations about the wealth and art, but there’s a social commentary there for those that want to see it. The scene with her being dressed up like a lady is particularly funny. Shanti is also unique in the way in which she trains and punishes her boys. She’s able to inspire them through the rather odd blend of patience and violence. Cayan, much like the rest of the men in his city, isn’t used to such a strong willed woman and certainly not one that is able to fight and evade them. Shanti is a challenge for which none of them are prepared. At this stage in the story both Cayan and Sanders are a little annoying, at least they are to me, as their treatment of Shanti comes across as more than a little sexist. I’m hopeful that as the novels continue, Shanti can change the way they view women. I highly doubt the change will happen overnight though. While they can respect the power Shanti has, when she eventually shows them, they still don’t take her as seriously as they should do (in my opinion). I’m hoping book two will show a marked improvement in the way in which the men treat Shanti.Cautionary element(s): While not explicit, the threat/topic of rape is a recurring element within this book/series.