The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

Title: The Valiant
Author: Lesley Livingston
Pages: 384
Genre: Historical, Fantasy, YA
Publisher: HarperCollins Canada, Razorbill
Release Date: February 14, 2017
Buy: Amazon|Chapters Indigo| Kobo
*I received an advanced reader copy of this book from Indigo Books & Music Inc. in exchange for an honest review* + HarperCollins Canada

Summary (Goodreads)
The youngest daughter of a proud Celtic king, Fallon has always lived in the shadow of her older sister Sorcha's legendary reputation as a warrior. But when Fallon was a young child, the armies of Julius Caesar invaded the island of Britain and her beloved older sister was killed in battle.

On the eve of her seventeenth birthday, Fallon is excited to follow in her sister's footsteps and earn her rightful place in her father's royal war band. But she never gets the chance. Instead, Fallon is captured by a band of ruthless brigands who sell her to an exclusive training school for female gladiators—and its most influential patron is none other than Julius Caesar himself. In a cruel twist of fate, Fallon's worst enemy, the man who destroyed her family, might be her only hope of survival.

Now, Fallon must overcome vicious rivalries, chilling threats and the dangerous attention of Caesar himself to survive the deadly fights that take place both in and out of the arena—and claim her place in history among the Valiant. 

Review:

I'm completely in love with this book! Need more immediately! The Valiant was captivating and I wish that the story never ended. Fallon is a strong female character, a badass and she stands out. Lesley definitely did her research when she was creating this book. I'm already looking forward to hopefully more in the series. Everyone needs to pre-order this book immediately!

If you love history and gladiators then this is the perfect book. Lesley's writing style is amazing as she lets you follow Fallon on this journey from warrior princess to gladiator. The Valiant is also action-packed and has some romance.I loved all the characters! I felt like I was being pulled back into history in the Roman Era. Definitely brutal world that all the gladiators lived in to survive. As a person who loves to read about history, The Valiant hit it out of the ball park!

Fallon is the youngest daughter of the Celtic King. After her sister Sorcha died defending their land from Julius Ceasar. She is on fierce character who is strong and spirited. Then she is thrown into the hands of slavers who then sell her to a training school for gladiatrix's own by the one and only Julius Caesar. The story is one you will love in seconds, action, brutal battles and the relationships she creates that become her family (Elka). There are twists and I didn't expect some of them but it made the story better. While there was a romance it doesn't play a huge role in the book. I already can't wait to read the sequel!!  It did take me a while to read due to circumstances but I would've flown through this book in a day or two! The Valiant is a must read!


5/5