The Porcelain Child (Book Two in The Broken Line series) by Jessica Dall

Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

Publisher: 5 Prince Publishing

Release Date: July 3, 2014

Pages: 252

Source: The book was given to me from the author for an honest review.

Synopsis: With less than a decade of stable rule behind them, Lord Protector Richard Seymour has passed away leaving the country once again in turmoil. With her connection to the old regimes, seemingly on all sides thanks to her mother, Adela, Mary might find herself pulled into the heat of battle whether she wants it or not.

Book 2 of The Broken Line Series, The Porcelain Child picks up with the next generation thrown into the mix.

Review:

When I was asked to review the second book of The Broken Line series I was highly intrigued to find out what happened to Adela when she left the country. This book isn't about Adela but about her daughter Mary who is left with her aunt to be raised. Shortly after starting this book I began to love Mary's character and how different she was from Adela. I ended up giving this book a 5 out of 5 stars on goodreads.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am excited about the many more stories to come from this series. Mary is a very serious character and she seems to always be on alert around others. She has learned to be suspicious of others due to her mother. Even though Adela, her mother didn't really raise her, Mary was still able to learn things from her. Even though she sometimes was confused about life or where things were headed she dealt with them head on. Making no excuses for herself. She could have let the Royalists walk all over her when they were trying to make her queen but she stood firm in wanting peace, not war. 

Of course she wouldn't have been so strong if not for some of the people that helped her along the way. Again it seems the maid has a big part in helping things along. Like Adela had Lettice, Mary has Abigail who she can talk to and trust. They seemed to me to have a pretty good friendship regardless. Abigail is always there for Mary whether it be running from the guards, helping her escape, or trying to keep Mary away from people she don't really care for. 

Another character who is of strong importance is Will, who is friends with Mary. They grew up with each other so he is the one that knows Mary sometimes more than she knows her own self. I love how patient and kind he is. He also isn't afraid to stand up and do something when someone he cares about is in trouble, regardless of if he isn't good with guns or fighting. 

I loved how this all wraps up and glad there were more than one happily ever after at the end of the novel. The plot of the story moved well throughout, never a dull moment. When Richard Seymour dies his son takes over. Adela has played a risky game with not telling everyone exactly who Mary's father is. She only says who her father is when it helps Adela with something. Since Mary's father is an unknown variable Seymour's son tries to eliminate the problem by bringing her in. From beginning to end it was full of action and confusion with all the games people were playing. Makes one really rethink going into any sort of politics. 

Information:

Other information about this series is I found out there will be a book 3 and it will be available this winter some time. The title of the book will be The Paper Masque. She also has two novella's coming out as well. The first one is The Copper Rebellion and will be out in August. This will be about Adela and what happened to her after she left the country. So this book is in between book 1 and book 2. There will be a second novella set after book 2 called The Porcelain Queen. I am not sure when this will be out. For more information pertaining to The Broken Line series please check out her blog. http://jessicadall.com/about/the-broken-line-series/