I thought once Cerulia managed to reclaim her throne and kick out Matwyck, that would be the end of this series by Sarah Kozloff, but all that happened pretty early in this book, and yet the audio version is 17 hours long, which left a lot of time for more adventures.
For one thing, Percia and her new husband had just left before Cerulia revealed herself, so they had to be called back and Percia had to come to terms with her sister’s lies, which she did, but it took much longer for her than it took for Stalia, their mother.
Matwyck was not killed right away. He was pushed off a balcony, but it didn’t kill him. Instead he was spirited away by General Jurgen to recover at his place. Once they found where Matwyck was hiding, they gave Jurgen a chance to give him up. Jurgen didn’t believe the queen could or would do anything to hurt him, so he refused and Cerulia killed him via owl.
Then they questioned Matwyck, but he died during questioning.
Then they organized a big party to celebrate everyone who had fought to protect Weirandale, which of course includes the Raiders because Cerulia and Thalen have to be reunited, which of course they are, and of course they live happily ever after, but not until one last big battle.
Cerulia is drawn away from the capital to visit someone who was once loyal to her mother, but along the way they discover it’s a trap/distraction, so Cerulia heads back home while Thalen and the rest continue on their journey to deal with the friend turned traitor.
By the time Thalen and the others get back to the capital, Cerulia has been alerted to the fact that Pellish and Oromondo ships are on their way to attack the capital, begging the question why their port has never been properly built up for defense. The response is that they have always relied on the queen’s talent to protect them, prompting everyone to look at her expectantly.
So she heads for a cliff overlooking the water and manages to recruit some whales and pelicans to help them. Thalen and the other Raiders join her as soon as they can, and just when things are looking desperate, Cerulia’s paternal family literally sails in to save the day.
They sustain heavy losses, including Cielo, but they manage to defeat the Pellish and Oromondos and Cerulia and Thalen get to live happily ever after. Of course they have a daughter and when she’s just a few years old, a plague hits the country, killing almost everyone infected, especially children. Fortunately, the young princella Catalina turns out to be a healer because Nargus always provides the Weirandale queen with whatever talent the country needs at that moment.