Legacy by Cayla Kluver

Legacy is the first book by Cayla Kluver.  Legacy is also the first book in the AmazonEncore program.  The Encore program takes small run independent books and re-releases them with a lot of promotion in Kindle format.  Since the introduction of the program in August 2009, 27 books have been released with the Encore program.  Legacy was also re-released in hardback for only $5 on Amazon.

The story of this book is as much about the author as the book.  The first draft of the book was started when Kluver was 13.  She was unable to find a traditional publisher as a 16 year old unpublished author, so Kluver’s mother created a small publishing house to initially publish the book.  With lots of travel, online promotion and a good story the book created a lot of buzz.  Within a few months, Amazon contacted Kluver to be their first Encore author.  Kluver will turn 18 in Oct 2010.

The story, while well written, is not completely original.  The main character, a 17 year old princess must choose a suitor before her 18th birthday.  Her father wants her to choose an egotistical son of the chief of the military.  She wants to marry for love.  Eventually there is a second boy that her father disapproves of, but the princess falls for.  What the story lacks in originality, it makes up in good writing.

If you are a teen girl, or read a lot of teen girl books like I do (insert dig here), you will probably like this.  As a warning, this is the first of a planned 3 book series.  The second book is written but not released.  The ending was a cliff hanger and not all that fulfilling, but book two is supposed to be published soon. (I cannot find a date for it yet.)

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I picked this up when Amazon was giving it away free last fall and just now got around to reading it.