Another Isabel Ibañez masterpiece! I loved this book, maybe more than the first one. Filled with South American culture, Spanish, loveable characters and phenomenal world-building. Also, is anyone else crazily in love with the cover of these books? Isabel illustrates them herself and they’re so so beautiful!

Written In Starlight is the second novel set in Inkasisa following Condessa Catalina after she is banished to the jungle where she finds adventure, magic and herself. The events of the book follow shortly after Woven In Moonlight. Catalina has been betrayed by Ximena and Princess Tamaya is now the Queen of Inkasisa. The book follows an exiled Catalina through the jungle as she looks for the Illari people so she might take back her kingdom alongside quiet, stoic Manuel.

I would definitely recommend reading the first instalment in this series to truly enjoy this one.

I love Isabel’s world-building. Everything about this book is so well thought out, the smallest elements come together to build Inkasisa into its own fantasy world brimming with South American culture and Isabel’s own magical ideas. She uses descriptive writing to help make everything come together. You can envision the food, the forest, the caimenas, the feral animals hunting the Condesa and the Illari. Everything is beautifully done. While the first book focuses on espionage and political intrigue this book is more of a jungle adventure. With the vast difference between the two settings of the books, Isabel shows the range of her writing and world-building and it seems endless.

I didn’t have high hopes for this book because I hadn’t particularly liked Catalina in book one. About halfway through I didn’t like her at all and I had to put the book down to think. And when I did I realized how relatable Isabel had made her. I wondered what I would do exiled in the jungle after the life of ease Catalina had priorly lived. I realized how interestingly written that was because suddenly I related with Catalina a lot more. I would probably have behaved in the same way, terrified and inexperienced. But she grows as a character, refuses to get ploughed down, keeps going, finds herself and is able to come to terms with everything that is happening with Inkasisa politically. She becomes so likeable. The other characters are well written but the book’s focus is on Catalina and that was okay because her growth is the main focus of the book.

I really loved the romance in this one. It was a slow-burn one and I really like Manuel and his loyalty to Catalina. There was so much angst between them. Catalina was already in love with him and the journey to be able to tell him and be able to convince him to look past his duty was filled with tension and crackling chemistry. I was holding my breath until they finally decided to get past all of it and be together, it was like waiting at a precipice and falling into a lovely cool pool at the end of a dry summer. So beautifully written, romantic and realistic.

Five glowing stars and I think Isabel has become a must-read author from me. I’ll probably be pre-ordering any book she writes in the future.

FUN FACT: The background for the featured photograph is actually a Peruvian Tapestry brought back home from Peru! It seemed only right!