Review & Giveaway: The Madly Series by M. Leighton

Book Synopsis for each book in the series:

Madly (Book 1)

Madly is your average nearly-eighteen year old girl—for a princess, that is.

Madly James is thoroughly enjoying her internship in the small town of Slumber when the unthinkable happens—there’s a prison break in Atlas, the magically-protected home of Madly’s race. A traitor has set free eight Lore, the spirits of what humans know as fairy tales, and they are making their way to Slumber to awaken their descendants. 

In order to save her home, the lives of her family, and all of humanity, Madly must learn to wield her exceptional powers and recapture the Lore before it’s too late and all is lost. But Madly’s only help are her two best friends and the Sentinel, Jackson Hamilton, that threatens both her heart and her destiny. Madly has loved Jackson as long as she can remember, but he is the one thing even a princess can’t have. Can she resist love to become the queen she was fated to be? Or can she find a way to have both?

This novelette introduces you to Madly and prepares you for the quest of a lifetime.

Madly & Wolfhardt

Madly is your average nearly-eighteen year old girl—for a princess, that is.

Madly James is thoroughly enjoying her internship in the small town of Slumber when the unthinkable happens—there’s a prison break in Atlas, the magically-protected home of Madly’s race. A traitor has set free eight Lore, the spirits of what humans know as fairy tales, and they are making their way to Slumber to awaken their descendants. 

The first spirit to arrive is that of Ulrich Wolfhardt, a man that was once obsessed with wolves and a young maiden he would follow through the woods. After a bite from a wolf, Wolfhardt’s obsession with the girl became an unnatural hunger and the young maiden’s grandmother cursed him with a fate worse than death. And now he’s back…with a vengeance and a bite that can infect others as well.

Madly must learn the identity of Wolfhardt’s descendant and stop him before he kills again and spreads his curse across the earth. But the only person strong enough to help Madly is Jackson, the Sentinel who vowed to protect her and the one person capable of breaking her heart. Can Madly resist forbidden love long enough to save the world from Wolfhardt? Or will she have to sacrifice her heart and her destiny to save the ones she loves? 

Madly & The Jackal

How deep does love run? Deeper than the ocean? Deeper than memory? Deeper than magic?

Following their plan to save Atlas, Madly and Jackson return the spirit of Wolfhardt to his prison beneath the sea. But even the best laid plans couldn’t account for the surprises they find. This time, Lore aren’t their only challenges. 

Madly is special in ways no one could have guessed and dark forces seek to control her. They want her power, but first they must weaken her. They need her beaten. Vulnerable. Near death. And alone. But that task isn’t an easy one with Jackson at her side. The strongest of their kind, the only way to separate Jackson from Madly is to destroy his love for her, to erase it from his mind. And his heart. 

Is it possible to steal Jackson’s love from Madly? Or is their love the only truly unbreakable thing?

My thoughts on the series:

The Madly series is a mermaid tale.  I love the names of the characters.  Our heroine is Madly and her friend is Jersey.  How cool are those names?  So unique too.  In the beginning of the series, Madly is interning in a small town called Slumber.  One day 8 Lores (what we simple humans refer to as Fairy Tales) are released.  They are headed to Slumber to stir up trouble and work towards destroying the human race.  

Through the course of the series, Madly, who is a mermaid princess, is trying to capture the Lores before they can destroy humankind.  At her side fighting are Jersey (her best friend), Aidan (her betrothed) and Jackson (head sentinel in charge of protecting madly).  Though Madly is betrothed to Aidan, she is struggling with her feelings for the hot and broody (just how I like ‘em).  Jackson is also Jersey’s brother.    Will Madly settle for Aidan, her betrothed, fulfilling her duty?  Or will she follow her heart and choose Jackson?  You’ll have to read and find out! 

The world-building in this series is amazing!  The characters are well developed and lovable.  Jersey and Aidan are both great supporting characters that add so much to the story.  Jackson has such strong ethics and is such a great guy.    You find yourself feeling bad for both he and Aidan.  I don’t want either one to be hurt! 

Madly is a strong-willed, determined female character who tries to balance doing the right thing with following her heart.  She struggles to catch the first Lores,  Wolfhardt and Jackal, in these two books.  There are so many complications, twists and turns along the way.  Family members are abducted.  Giant monsters get in the way.  Stopping the Lores challenges Madly and takes more out of her than she thought possible.  Each battle makes her stronger.  I like Madly, and I really got caught up her story.  She is a well done character and I can’t wait to see what further installments hold for our princess.

The author's playlist for the books can be found here: http://www.playlist.com/playlist/23178828299

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