• Home
  • About
  • Policies
    • Privacy Policy
    • Copyright
    • Disclosure Policy
    • Republication Policy
    • Review Policy
  • Reviews
    • Sortable Archive
    • Reviews by Author
    • Reviews by Narrator
    • Reviews by SubGenre
    • Reviews by Series
    • Reviews by Year
  • Challenges
    • 2024 FINISHING THE SERIES READING CHALLENGE (Archived)
    • In Death Read-A-Long Challenge
  • Giveaways
  • Author Interviews & Guest Posts

A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog

Review: ‘The Second Son’ by Elise Marion

January 27, 2012

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog earns a small commission at no extra cost to you from any purchases made through these links. You can read the full disclosure underneath the Privacy Policy.

Review: ‘The Second Son’ by Elise Marion

The Second Son

by Elise Marion
Series: Kings of Cardenas #2
Published by Marion Press on January 14th 2014
SubGenres: Historical Romance
Format: eArc
Pages: 228
Source: the author
Add to Goodreads
Purchase at Amazon
five-stars

He has always loved her. She is still reeling from the lost of her first love. Can a marriage of convenience give birth to true love? Can the second son of a king prove his worth? Will a pampered princess stand beside her husband to save her country and her people?

My Review

I was looking forward to reading the next book from Elise Marion’s King of Cardenas Series. After reading “The Third Son” I fell in love with the world she created. I had never read Historical Romance before until I read “The Third Son.” I don’t know what I was thinking about avoiding the Genre…because now I can’t get enough of it.
This book was about Serge and Isabelle. It picks up from where the last book left off. Serge was badly hurt in the last book, and he was in a coma. They never thought he would wake up, but he proved everyone wrong. The only person who really didn’t give up him was Isabelle, his brother’s wife (Lionus). Isabelle was his best friend, and he always had feelings for her, but she was destined to be married to his older brother, Lionus. Isabelle never thought her world would be thrown upside down though and she lost Lionus in the last book. In “The Second” Son, Isabelle is being forced to remarry so she can claim her throne in Barony. Who does everyone suggest she marry but her best friend and her late husband’s brother, Serge? Can she love him though like she did Lionus the only way for you to find out is to read this book? =)
What I loved most about this book, was how strong a character Isabelle was. She was dealing with a lot during the beginning of the book and couldn’t get over her husband, Lionus. She had been mourning him for over a year, and now she had to make a hard decision of re-marrying. How could she love someone again? Towards the end, she decided to become a stronger woman than anyone expected. She took it upon herself, to make Barony realize she would be a fantastic Queen to them and she wanted to take care of herself and not rely on someone else.
Elise Marion brings two characters together after going through so much. She puts both the characters through tests that they must figure out how to get out. I don’t know how many times, poor Serge had to put Isabelle in her place because of the dangers she put herself in her life. He just wanted to keep her safe and all Isabelle wanted to do was a help.
I cried several times in this book because I felt so sorry for Serge in this book. The poor guy lost his brother, lost a year of his life, and he loved a woman who didn’t know how to love him back. I also felt sorry for Isabelle because she had lost her husband, was being forced to re-marry and had to learn how to be entirely a Queen. She broke Serge’s heart so many times in this book too. I just wanted to jump into the book and tell her to WAKE up already.
This book is full of action-packed love trials that will have you keep turning the page to read what comes next. You will cry, laugh, smile and get mad in certain parts of the book but in the end, you will be amazed at the outcome like I was. I’m looking forward to the next book which will be about Esmeralda’s cousin, Tatiana. ***You also get a glimpse of what happens to Tatiana in this book*** =)
So if you haven’t read “The Third Son,” yet you need to…so you can read “The Second Son.”

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
FranJessca
FranJessca
Owner/Reviewer at A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog
I guess I should type a bio here. I'm FranJessca, or Fran for short. I'm the owner/reviewer behind A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog. I've been reading and reviewing books on my blog since leaving the Navy in 2011, and I will keep doing it as long as possible. My favorite genres will always be Romance & Fantasy, and I read every subgenre underneath those two genres. (Sorry, not a fan of nonfiction, so don't try to convince me to read it.)
My obsession with reading started over 30+ years ago when I went to my first Scholastic Book Fair and found R.L. Stine's Fear Street series. Later, I came across Anne Rice's novels at my public library when I was fourteen when my obsession with vampires started. I was the girl who preferred to be a vampire over a princess any day. My husband says I would leave him a heartbeat for a vampire that looked like Spike or Angel (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) or Damon Salvatore from The Vampire Diaries. (It's true, though, and he's accepted it.)
FranJessca
Latest posts by FranJessca (see all)
  • Happy Release Day + Giveaway: ‘Bracing The Storm’ by J.C. Reed - May 27, 2025
  • ARC Review: ‘Restless Hawke’ by Gwyn McNamee - May 26, 2025
  • ARC Review: ‘From Drummer to Gamer’ by Emberlynn Raine - May 25, 2025

Share this post:

Share on X (Twitter) Share on Facebook Share on Pinterest Share on Email
5 Star ReviewsBook Read 2012Book Reviews 2012

About the Blogger

About the Blogger

My name is FranJessca. I wear many hats: I'm a Wife, Mom, Navy Veteran, Shy Introvert, Tattooed, Romance and Fantasy Reader, and Book Blogger.

Follow FranJessca

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Bloglovin'
  • Amazon
  • Instagram
  • Goodreads

Currently Reading

ARC Review: ‘Salvatore’ by Eden SummersReview: ‘Tangle of Need’ by Nalini Singh

Books Reviewed in 2025

A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog has reviewed 61 books this year.

49%

May Reviews

  • Restless Hawke by Gwyn McNamee
  • From Drummer to Gamer by Emberlynn Raine
  • Broken Souls and Bones by L.J. Andrews
  • Rebel Hawke by Gwyn McNamee
  • You Can Die by Rebecca Zanetti
  • Broken Butterfly by Jennilynn Wyer
  • Beautiful Mess by Ashley James
  • Decker by Eden Summers
  • Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry
  • Archangel's Ascension by Nalini Singh
  • Wild Invitation by Nalini Singh
  • The Wind Weaver by Julie Johnson
  • Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh

FTC Disclosure/Info

In accordance with the current FTC disclosure rules for bloggers & reviewers, the books you see reviewed on A Book Lovin’ Mama’s Blog are either purchased by me or procured from NetGalley, Edelweiss, directly from the author or publisher or PR company in an exchange for an honest review. I do not receive compensation of any kind for the reviews.

Purchases made through buy links (Amazon specifically) may result in a small commission, which helps support the blog and fund giveaways.

Please review the Policies above on the Menu Bar.

© 2012- 2025 A Book Lovin Mama's Blog, All Rights Reserved.

Site Design by JennJ Designs