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2.5 stars! This review will be spoiler free!
Trigger warnings: sexual assault, murder, torture, PTSD.
Synopsis:
For ten years Theodosia has been a captive in her own castle. For ten years she's lived with the man who murdered her mother, the Queen, and the Kaiser who conquered her kingdom. She has since been tortured for every single indiscretion her people have done. One day she is ordered by the Kaiser to put blood on her own hands changing her completely. Theo no longer plans to remain a mockery of a princess, she plans to reclaim her throne.
Initial thoughts:
I’m feeling pretty in the middle about this book. It’s an easy, decently enjoyable read. I felt like I was rooting for the side characters (Blaise in particular) and I was intrigued by the magic system. However, it’s something I felt I read before and lacked originality and surprise for me. But that ending! I really did like the ending and want to continue simply to find out what happens next. (A fatal flaw in me, which is why I can almost never stop reading a series once I’ve started).
Plot:
This story felt really familiar, like a conglomeration of elements from multiple series I’ve read previously:
>The premise of the story kind of reminds me of Snow like Ashes, with the whole princess lost
her whole kingdom to an invading neighbor who’s all kinds of cruel.
>The captured princess that’s treated well, but not really treated well is akin to Cleo from the
Falling Kingdoms series. Not to mention she grows feelings for her "enemy prince who's not
like his cruel father at all"
>The plan to make the Prinz fall in love with her only to betray him and her heart in the end
reminded me of elements from The Remnant Chronicles.
>The whole secret rebellion with a plan to take down the Kaiser from the inside reminded me
of Red Queen.
See… Just of mix of commonly used plot points from multiple popular YA series.
Now that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it. I wasn’t ever bored while reading this book, just didn’t feel particularly engrossed either. I wanted something to jump out and surprise me, but that didn’t happen. I found everything to be rather predictable.
The romance was kind of off-putting. I felt like Prinz Soren’s feelings for “Thora” were underdeveloped and lacked any true basis. He just kind of fell for her for no reason because I felt he knew nothing about her. Theo’s feelings for Soren were always going back and forth based on what was going on in the book and that was understandable, but in the end, I’m happy with where they left off. My REAL ship though… Theo and Blaise. Of course.
The ending was really where I felt invested. Most of the book is quite predictable, but a lot of the ending took me by surprise. This is another one of those books that made it feel worth it to make it to the end because: new characters, new intriguing plot point I didn’t see coming, new enemies, and more players for politics!
Some other things I did enjoy were the political intrigue, the fact that we have some semblance of pirates on the side, and the magic system. I like how in this magic system it’s not just one kind of people that can use this magical gems, but all can. However, those with the affinity to use magic are the ones who can truly wield them. I really want to see some more magic wielding in the books to come.
Characters:
I’m pretty half and half with there characters. I found myself more interested in the side characters at times. There are a few I am rooting for though like Blaise and Art (though I don’t know much about them still), so I keeping my eyes peeled for them.
THEODOSIA is flippy-floppy for lack of a better term. I feel like her PTSD wasn’t portrayed as well as it could have been and it came off as a inconsistent personality trait. When she was having her “Queen” moments, that’s what I’ll call the times she actually took charge, she was kind of bad-ass. She’s got a clever mind and I think that will only help her from here on out.
PRINZ SOREN is completely flat until about the end of the book. I didn’t like him until the rebellion plan started to truly unfold.
KAISER is unquestionably cruel and hateful. I was seriously disgusted with his character, which is how I know the author wants you to feel. She does an amazing job of making you want to stick a knife in his left eye.
CRESS has a character arc. One I didn’t see coming. I’m so excited for where this series is going to take her.
I like all of the rebels who are helping Theo. I like them A LOT. But I don’t want to say much more about them, so I don’t accidentally mention a spoiler.
Overall:
Do I recommend? If you’re a fan of Snow Like Ashes or Red Queen, MAYBE. I still can’t decide. I think it’s something you could enjoy and end up being bored with. It just depends on which elements of the story you choose to keep you going.
I do feel though that the comparisons to Falling Kingdoms fall short. This did not give me those angsty slow burn romance vibes and evil prince turn good vibes that I loved in Falling Kingdoms. So if you picked this book up because you think it's like that series, you'll be sorely disappointed.