Sequel to The Winter Prince, though focusing on a different protagonist. The first-person voice is beautiful and gripping, but without the tension and darkness that make The Winter Prince unique.

 

I was nervous after the first few pages, where most of the characters from the previous book are killed off, but

fortunately Medraut makes a comeback,

(spoiler show)

and if I hadn't known that going in, I wouldn't have continued.

 

Unusually, this is a book without a villain- there are antagonists, but as the title intimates, they are not defeated but rather brought into alignment with the protagonists via compromise. There are no irredeemable or even wicked characters, but rather people with differing flaws and agendas struggling to get their way and believing themselves in the right. Goewin, the main character, even identifies with and at times parallels the villain of the first book.

 

The setting is also worth noting- ancient Ethiopia, where the British Goewin flees from her war-torn country, in a neat reversal.

 

Many tropes from the first book repeat- fraught sibling relationships, the problem of lesser royalty, accepting you won't rule, physical abuse and punishment, defiance, the rulers mishandling relationships but then redeeming themselves, a hunt on which loyalties are tested and forged. The plot and setting, however, are quite different.

 

Edited to add: You have to love a YA book where the main motif is the Song of Songs, and the female protagonist is described as "terrible as an army with banners."

Enormously interesting, and -- sometimes, and surprisingly -- incredibly moving. This is a very beautiful, delicate study of first love, which is also filled with political intrigue, adventure, lions, secret passages, twists, adventure, comedy, tragedy....and the most amazing characters. I don't know how Elizabeth Wein can do everything she does in so few words -- and I also don't know how she can always make me cry.I thought this was a great book -- it wouldn't be everybody's cup of tea (or coffee, as the case may be). But I loved it.I think anybody who likes the books of [a:Megan Whalen Turner|22542|Megan Whalen Turner|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1241223424p2/22542.jpg], [a:Rosemary Sutcliff|26457|Rosemary Sutcliff|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1300512422p2/26457.jpg], or [a:Amanda McCrina|6216354|Amanda McCrina|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1350874139p2/6216354.jpg] would love this, too.

Reads like there's a missing first half -- the fall of Camlann, the ship voyage, the friendship between Goewin and Priamos. The most recent reread, I could finally see some of what Wein was attempting: the difficult position of a woman in a world which did not allow women to be politically powerful, where her only models were evil (Morgause), suffering (Turunesh), or half-mad (the Queen of Queens). But as much as I admire Wein's restraint and Goewin's self-control, I needed to see where Goewin's traumas earlier. I also wonder about the absence of Gwenhwyfar among Goewin's models.

I think the most important thing to say about these books is that they’re not The Winter Prince. They certainly build off of that story, and I would most definitely read it first. But The Winter Prince is one of those books that I don’t think you could write a real sequel to. Nonetheles, A Coalition of Lions and The Sunbird are both fascinating and well-written. Telemakos is a wonderful character who’s reminding me more and more of Megan Whalen Turner’s Gen. I’ve got the next one ordered and I can’t wait till it gets here!
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And then I went on an Elizabeth Wein re-reading kick. I left out The Winter Prince, which I’d re-read quite recently and which always feels like it’s only tenuously part of the series anyway. (I don’t mean that as a criticism at all–just that I’m in a different mood when I read it than when I read the rest.) I love Goewin, who continues to be a fantastic character. The sense of being trapped between bad decisions and trying to find a way through them is very strong here. And, finally, Camlann makes me sad. (Authors are mean people. I may have mentioned this before.) [Jan. 2011]

This book was marketed as YA, but I really didn't feel that it had that feel at all...
This is a short but complex historical fiction story that postulates that in the time of 6th-century Arthurian Britain, there was a political/trade connection between Britain and the kingdom of Aksum (modern-day Ethiopia). The British princess, Goewin, has had to flee her country due to political unrest and has travelled to Aksum in the company of the African ambassador, in order to meet with her British fiance, who is curently acting as regent in Aksum. However, her emotions do not match up with the course of action that may be most politically expedient....

Strong characterization and vivid cultural depictions make this book a stand-out. It also has a nice note at the end that puts it into context with "known" history - something I always like!