Mundie Moms

Sunday, March 4, 2018

TO KILL A KINGDOM by Alexandra Christo / Book Review #ToKillAKingdom


By: Alexandra Christo
Published by: Feiwel & Friends
To Be Released on: March 6, 2018
Purchase from: The PublisherAmazon | B&N
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Rating: 4.5 stars
Thank you to Fierce Reads for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review

Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most--a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen and or remain a human forever. 
The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby--it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good--But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy?

Talk about a thrilling, deadly surprise. This book doesn't lack in adventure, deception, betrayal, and action. Mix that with some perfect character chemistry, and you've got yourself on exciting read! This is not your typical fairytale of mermaids and sirens. This is much darker, exciting read. 

This book is what happens when one pirate prince and one deadly, take no prisoners siren princess are forced into an unlikely situation. Oh wow, these two characters couldn't be more opposites attract, and more perfect for each other. It's definitely not a like at first sight, which I liked. Instead it's an uneasy truce of having to trust each other, despite their natural feelings towards each other. It's through the learning to trust each other, that their chemistry really starts to burn. I'll be honest, I love their bantering that happened long before that. 

Lira, aka Prince's Bane, was a character I liked from the get go. This girl is fierce, stubborn, and doesn't care that she is the creature those on dry land fear. She is infamous prince killer. Literally. I'll leave the details of her ripping out prince's hearts for the story. She's also the daughter of of the Sea Queen. A character who makes Ursula from the Little Mermaid, look tame. 

Despite her natural tendencies, one of the things I like about Lira, is that she doesn't make excuses for her what comes natural to her. She is a ruthless, brutal Prince killer. She gives vicious a whole new meaning. However, she's also a character who hasn't had the best upbringing, which makes her the perfect candidate to overcome there horrible things she endures from her mother. The exciting turn of events towards the end of the book had me on the edge of seat. That's all I'm going to say. 

To match Lira, is the equally enchanting Elian. I loved his character, and his pirate crew from the moment they were first introduced in the story. While Elian isn't your typical prince or pirate, he is the prince who secretly dabs in in piracy, so that makes him the perfect Pirate Prince. He's down right ruthless in his own right. He's killed plenty of sirens himself. While Lira is known a the Prince's Bane, Elian has a record number of sirens he's killed as well.

To match Lira's tough, snarky personality, Elian has plenty of sass himself, and doesn't hold back on what he's thinking or what he says. Yep, you guessed it. When they two are forced into a situation together, it's down right comical! From the moment these two were on a ship together, to the last scene, it's a battle of wills, wits, and undeniable character chemistry. I loved these two together. 

Christo's writing is FANTASTIC! My word, I didn't think I could like something that was so ruthless, yet beautiful all at the same time. She makes everything about this book fascinating. From her characters, to her wording building, the richly detailed descriptions of every part of this story, two intriguing kingdoms, the romance, drama, character journeys, and so much more. This book was just a fun, at times morbidly fascinating read, with all the high seas, under water, and on dry land adventure I had hoped it would be.

Trust me, this is not a Disney version of sirens and mermaids. It's the kind of story you'd except to hear on a pirate ship, and be both drawn to the illusion of the what if, and fearful of the possibility of it's truth all at the same time. It is gruesome at times, but that shows the true nature of what a siren is. There's something about the way Christo wrote this story that made it impossible for me to put it down. I love the way she wrote this book. 

If you're looking for an exciting, flawlessly written, highly addicting read, pick this one up! Trust me, it will leave you wanting more of this story. I'm looking forward to reading Christo's next book. 

There is some mild language in this book. 

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