“Love and madness are two stars in the same sky. You cannot build a roof to keep out last year’s rain.” ― To Kill a Kingdom
A dark romantic fantasy about a siren with a taste for royal blood and a prince who has sworn to destroy her – Here is my review of To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo:
THE PLOT, CHARACTERS AND STORY PROGRESSION
As dark retelling of The Little Mermaid, To Kill a Kingdom is a book full of adventure, memorable characters, dramatic suspense and epic would building. A story about two kingdoms at war, this book is everything you’d want from a fantasy story. It’s fast paced, enthralling and keeps you lingering for more after every page.
The main character Lira is so sassy – I LOVE IT! I really enjoyed reading her inner monologue. I got a sense for this character who was trying so hard to be dark and ruthless like her mother, but deep down was so soft and wanting to be kindhearted. When we see her slowly let down her guard for the enemy, you see her transform into her truest self and I loved reading her flourish into that.
I am a sucker for an enemies to lovers trope. So, although I usually prefer one POV, in this book the multiple points of view were done so incredibly well for the romance aspect of the story. Without it the build up would have fallen flat and not left the reader on the edge of their seats as it did. Reading the denial of feelings, secret yearning, hopes and fears between the two characters is unmatched!
To Kill a Kingdom tackles some pretty serious topics, too. We see parent abuse, manipulation, the importance of found family and more.
WORLD BUILDING, ATMOSPHERE AND SETTING
Admittedly, I was really worried I wasn’t going to enjoy this book. After how disappointed I was after Fable I didn’t want to be disappointed by another sea-related story. This theme is one of my absolute favourites to read but unfortunately I am yet to read many that have been done well. Alexandra smashed it though! You can so vividly imagine the characters and the places. The battle scenes especially are so imprinted into my brain as I pictured them whilst reading.
The rival kingdoms, and the different places the characters go to. The belief systems of the people, creatures and so on is done in a way that is incredibly easy to follow. Fantasy has a tendency to be over-complicated and can leave you feeling bogged down with trying to understand what is going on as your’e reading.
THE VERDICT
This book was exactly what I didn’t know I needed and more. The romance, the dark and gripping story and the underlying meaning behind it all. I 100% recommend if you’re looking for a twisted tale from under the sea!
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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐