Waiting on Wednesday: The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

A weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

Title: The Valiant Author: Leslie Livingston Published: February 14, 2016 by Razorbill (Penguin Random House) (Amazon / Goodreads) Synopsis: Lost to history, the story of the female gladiator has never been told. Until now. Fallon is the daughter of a proud Celtic king and the younger sister of the legendary warrior Sorcha. When Fallon was just a child, Sorcha was killed while defending their home from the armies of Julius Caesar. On the eve of her seventeenth birthday, Fallon is excited to follow in her sister's footsteps and earn her place in her father's war band. She never gets the chance. Fallon is captured by ruthless brigands who sell her to an elite training school for female gladiators owned by none other than Julius Caesar himself. In a cruel twist of fate, the man who destroyed Fallon s family might be her only hope of survival. Now, Fallon must overcome vicious rivalries, deadly fights in and out of the arena, and perhaps the most dangerous threat of all: her irresistible feelings for Cai, a young Roman soldier and her sworn enemy. A richly imagined fantasy for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Cinda Williams Chima, "The Valiant" recounts Fallon s gripping journey from fierce Celtic princess to legendary gladiator and darling of the Roman empire."

Why I'm Waiting:

Do I really need to explain why I am super excited about this book? No, we're all on the same page here? Cool, cool. Well then, see you next time.

Just kidding! Except not really. I mean obviously I am super excited about this book because it is about a female gladiator. Who would not be excited about this book? I love me some kickass female protagonist, especially if the female in question is in a world dominated by men. And this has all the trappings of that. Not to mention that it is billed as a brutal fantasy and I am a big fan of those as well.

But I think that the thing I am most excited about is the historical fiction aspects. I read a fair amount of historical fiction and while I enjoy some of the classic periods like Victorian England and World War II, it can get a little stale. I am always really excited for historical fiction set in different periods and involving different things. I don't think I have ever read something about gladiators and that is exciting in and of itself, but I am also super interested in the Celtic/Viking portion of the story. I'm guessing it will be brief but I'm cool with that, it's something different.

I recently preordered a copy of this book because I am so excited to read it. It is definitely one of my most anticipated books for the first half of 2016, it sounds super interesting and creative. I haven't seen many reviews for it but the ones I have seen are good. But seriously friends, I can't wait for this book

What about you? What are you waiting for this Wednesday? Are you waiting on The Valiant along with me? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!