Sonnets and Serpents by Elizabeth Lowham - OPTIONAL

Sonnets and Serpents (Casters and Crowns #2) by Elizabeth Lowham, 384 pages. Shadow Mountain Publishing, 2025. $25.

Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL

Princess Eliza (17yo) runs away from the castle and country of Leogria when her beloved Henry is banished, determined to join him in exile. She soon finds herself lost and unable to communicate in Pravusat, where the only Loegrian she can find is also a monster—a magical shapeshifter—and rude besides. Desperate for help, Eliza traps the shapeshifter to convince him to be her translator, not knowing that she is trapping herself in the process.

While the first book gives context to the world and some of the characters’ backstories, Eliza and Silas’s adventures can be enjoyed independently of the first book, which focuses on Eliza’s sister. The magic in this world is unique in its division of magic classes, and, though they are not unique aspects to this story alone, love and betrayal abound in the lives of the protagonists. Eliza is the romantic chasing after a love story to make it into something real, and Silas is the academic who has been hurt too many times to believe in love. I enjoyed watching these characters grow as Lowham showed how these two opposites could come together as a complementary pair.

Eliza is described as “pale,” and Silas is described as “honey brown.” The mature content rating is for mentions of alcohol and nudity, mild innuendo, and kissing. The violence rating is for assault, blood, fantasy violence, mentions of human trafficking, and murder.

Reviewer: Carolina Johnson