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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Who Is Your King, & Why Does It Matter?

by Chautona Havig · 6 Comments

Will Heart of a Royal turn your heart to the true Royal of this world? Only He knows, but this book does its best to offer a taste of the Lord's goodness. via @chautonahavig

About two chapters into the book, my server brought a fresh glass of Coke and said, “No good?”

I shook my head.  “Well written, but I don’t think the princess trope is my thing.”

Still, at least the book contained a plot.  So, I kept reading…

Who Is Your King, & Why Does It Matter?

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you. Additionally, I received a free review copy.

Who Is Your King, & Why Does It Matter?

Sometimes a book comes across your path that makes you nervous but you want to like–hope you’ll love.  In my experience, if you have to “hope” you’ll love it, you usually won’t.  Heart Of A Royal proved to be a lovely exception.

Princess tropes tend to bore me, but the synopsis had intrigued me. It seemed like there might be something… more to it.  The problem was I didn’t know what that “something” actually was.

Now I do.

Well-written with mostly relatable characters–good and bad–and an interesting plotline.,  Heart Of A Royal will keep YA romance lovers’ attention. One of the best things about the story is how the author took familiar tropes and used them when you didn’t expect her to and in the same way you didn’t expect her to use them. Furthermore, Hannah Currie added depth to the story by making the main female character less than perfect.  Seriously, I wanted to smack the girl more than once.  In many ways, Kenna comes off as an overly-emotional, dramatic, teen.

And why should that surprise us?

Why should anyone be surprised that a seventeen-year-old acts like it?  Especially when you consider that the author turns her life upside down in this book.

More than that, however, the book offers subtle depth.  A greater thread weaves itself through the story and ties into heartstrings at the end.  You see it coming, and because of it, you cheer.

Part allegory, part fantasy, part romance, Heart Of A Royal offers a strong story of love, faith, and putting your trust in something greater than yourself.  Or, should I say Someone?

Heart of a Royal

Heart of a RoyalAbout the Book

Book: Heart Of A Royal

Author: Hannah Currie

Genre:  Young Adult/Royalty

Brought to the palace as a newborn, the royal life bestowed upon Mackenna Sparrow was never meant to last forever.

With Princess Alina engaged to be married, Mackenna’s presence as companion is no longer required and, like it or not, she must return to the birthright which should have been hers – that of a commoner. But not everyone at the palace wants her gone.

When the truths she’s based her life on start crumbling as fast as her future, will she find the courage to trust, both herself and the prince she’s fallen in love with?

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Comments

  1. Bea LaRocca says

    December 6, 2019 at 7:49 am

    Thank you for sharing your wonderful review of Heart Of A Royal. This sounds like a must read for my granddaughter and I

    Reply
  2. Melissa Wenger says

    December 6, 2019 at 3:06 am

    Looking forward to reading this one!

    Reply
  3. Trixi says

    December 5, 2019 at 8:12 pm

    Like I said on another blog, I would read this based on that gorgeous cover alone! I bet the story is just as gorgeous inside 🙂

    I love reading your thoughts about this book. I’ve not read many princess stories or YA so this would be a nice change of pace. Definitely going to check it out! If course, I hope to win too, lol!

    Reply
  4. Lila Diller says

    December 5, 2019 at 7:49 pm

    This sounds right up my alley, as I love the royalty trope but would love to see a Christian theme. I hope I win! 😉

    Reply
  5. Amelia says

    December 5, 2019 at 10:33 am

    It’s not usually one I read either but I might try this one. Thanks for the review!

    Reply
  6. Andrea Stoeckel says

    December 5, 2019 at 7:24 am

    Thank you for the opportunity

    Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 549: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
byChautona Havig

I’ve been anxious to read this one since the moment I saw it. I mean, come on! Secrets are always cool but then Frank L. Baum? And The Pilgrim’s Progress? WHAT? Listen in as Laura DeNooyer and I chat about A Hundred Magical Reasons.

note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

The L. Frank Baum connection was a draw, but then she brought in The Pilgrim’s Progress, and it took the whole story idea to a new level!

I had a blast chatting with Laura and I’m excited to read this one. It’ll probably be my flight read tomorrow. EEEP!

A Hundred Magical Reasons by Laura DeNooyer

Some fairy tales don’t end when the story is over…they begin when the truth is finally told.

At eighty-eight, Charlotte Rose Gordon has spent a lifetime guarding secrets—burdens that have turned her into the town’s most notorious recluse. But before her story ends, she has one final quest: to set the past right and clear her husband’s name.

Even if it means facing the dragons she’s spent decades avoiding.

Carrie Kruisselbrink is fighting dragons of her own. Fresh out of college and desperate to escape the weight of her parents’ expectations, she risks everything to chase a dream that feels just out of reach.

An unlikely job with the reclusive Mrs. Gordon seems like a temporary solution. Until it becomes something much more.

As Charlotte begins to unravel her past—from a stifling childhood to an extraordinary friendship with author L. Frank Baum—Carrie is drawn into a story filled with imagination, loss, and long-buried truth.

But the deeper Carrie digs, the more she’s forced to confront her own fears, her own choices… and the cost of living someone else’s life.

Because some stories were never meant to stay hidden.

Spanning generations and woven with echoes of a beloved literary legacy, A Hundred Magical Reasons is a moving tale of courage, identity, and the kind of hope that only comes when truth, grace, and imagination collide.

Can two women from different generations find the strength to rewrite their stories—before time runs out?

Step into a story of secrets, second chances, and the courage to believe again.

Learn more on Laura’s WEBSITE and follow on GoodReads and BookBub.

Like to listen on the go? You can find Because Fiction Podcast at:

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Episode 549: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
Episode 549: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
June 8, 2026
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Episode 548: A Chat with Sarah Heatwole
June 6, 2026
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Episode 547: A Chat with Terri McAdoo
June 1, 2026
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Episode 546: A Chat with Chuck Richardson
May 30, 2026
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Episode 545: A Chat with Gina Holder
May 25, 2026
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Episode 544: A Chat with Nicholas Teeguarden
May 23, 2026
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Episode 543: A Chat with Stephanie Cardel
May 19, 2026
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Episode 542: A Chat with Megan Schaulis
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Episode 541: A Chat with Demi Griffin
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