Promised to the Crown

&;An engaging engrossing debut.&;&;Greer MacallisterUSA Today bestselling author of The Magician&;s LieBound for a new continent and a new beginning.In her illuminating debut novel Aimie K. Runyan masterfully blends fact and fiction to explore the founding of New France through the experiences of three young women who in 1667 answer Louis XIV&;s call and journey to the Canadian colony.They are known as the filles du roi or &;King&;s Daughters&;&;young women who leave prosperous France for an uncertain future across the Atlantic. Their duty is to marry and bring forth a new generation of loyal citizens. Each prospective bride has her reason for leaving&;poverty family rejection a broken engagement. Despite their different backgrounds Rose Nicole and Elisabeth all believe that marriage to a stranger is their best perhaps only chance of happiness.Once in Quebec Elisabeth quickly accepts baker Gilbert Beaumont who wants a business partner as well as a wife. Nicole a farmer&;s daughter from Rouen marries a charming officer who promises comfort and security. Scarred by her traumatic past Rose decides to take holy vows rather than marry. Yet no matter how carefully she chooses each will be tested by hardship and heartbreaking loss&;and sustained by the strength found in their uncommon friendship and the precarious freedom offered by their new home.&;An absorbing adventure with heart.&;&;Jennifer Laam author of The Secret Daughter of the Tsar