Daughter of the Shadows is the 2nd book in the Defying the Crown series by Kerry Chaput
I have not read the first book Daughter of the King, but I was able to read and enjoy this second installment as a stand-alone.
Daughter of the Shadows starts out in New France, Quebec, and brings together several strong women characters, the main character Isabelle, a Huguenot turned Catholic (but only to save her fellow Protestants), Naira, a strong female Huron warrior who helps Isabelle find her true and strong self, and Charlotte, another Huguenot who arrives in New France as a converted Catholic, but still a protestant in her heart and vies to take revenge on those who hurt her and her family back in France, the same as Isabelle. These women interact with several deeply troubled men who struggle with the strong-willed Isabelle and Charlotte.
Though this historical fiction is based on true events in 1667, it is written like a fast-paced adventure story. The world-building is somewhat lacking, so I didn’t feel completely emersed in the locales (for which I gave the book 4 stars). That said, the richly developed characters and the emotion-filled plot carried me through to the end in a page-turning end. I particularly liked that the story carried me to Paris, France for half of the book, into the palace of King Louis IV, and also through the streets of the city's darker side.
I recommend this easy-to-read, exciting peek into the past of a part of history I knew little about.
Genre: Historical Fiction
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