Review--Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

In the three kingdoms of Mytica, magic has long been forgotten. And while hard-won peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest now simmers below the surface.

As the rules of each kingdom grapple for power, the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed...and four key players, royals and rebels alike, find their fates forever intertwined. Cleo, Jonas, Lucia, and Magnus are caught in a dizzying world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances, and even unforeseen love.

The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?

I finally dug out Morgan Rhodes' Falling Kingdoms from my TBR mountain. This is no way the oldest book in there, but it's one I've been wanting to read for awhile and since I got the sequel for Christmas, I figure why not read it now? My system of choosing books is weird, even to me!

Anyway, this is definitely your high fantasy kind of story and it's one I really like! I enjoy a good fantasy novel, as long as it's not overwhelming or confusing as some have been in the past and I promptly close the book or never pick it up in the first place. Since this was YA--and still sounded incredible--I decided to give it a shot and it was quite fantastic!

There was a bit of a bumpy start for me. For a few chapters in the beginning, I was at a loss as to what was going on, but once I got through these "starter" events, the pages began to fly by as I was eagerly devouring this book! 

We have many characters here, so much that it was a tad overwhelming, for the four key players are not the only players or even narrators in this book. Told in multiple third person point of view, we most stick with our key players; Cleo, Jonas, Magnus, and Lucia. Cleo is the princess of Auranos--the most powerful of the kingdoms, Jonas is from Paelsia--the poorest of the kingdoms, and Magnus and Lucia are from Limeros--our middle ground kingdom. Their connections become simple enough; but getting into all those details will be time consuming and unnecessary.

The plot is rich with details as well, there was an incident in the beginning of the book that took place with Cleo, her soon to be betrothed, her friend and her guard and it basically resulted in the death of another boy at Cleo's betrothed's hands which causes Jonas, the brother of the slain, to get mad and set on the path of revenge which then breaks out into an upcoming war. And that is only the beginning of some of the details. 

Cleo then sets out on a dangerous journey in order to find a cure for her dying sister, a cure that might as well be futile. But she's heading into enemy territory and Jonas wants to kill her because he blames her for his brother's death. He blames her betrothed too, but he blames Cleo just as much.

There's also a lot of magical history entwined with this story and as I said, it's hard to explain all the details without basically retelling the story, but as you're reading, it is easily explained and understood. Again, I only had minor troubles in the beginning with the prologue and then jumping into a scene in present day, but after that minor speed-bump it was all smooth sailing!

I was quite shocked by all the death that occurred, but it seemed fitting with the story. These are trying times in all the kingdoms and with war brewing, death is inevitable. I was surprised by our cast of characters. They would start acting one way, but as the story went on, they continued to grow in improving ways and it was just astonishing. I barely recognized them by the end of the story because they had transformed so entirely. I cannot wait to read the next one.

Negative points? Not much really. There was my "disorientation" in the beginning, but I think that was due to me not knowing where the story was headed. The description doesn't give much on details, so it was a wonder for some of the story what was going to happen, but then a path forms and it is easily followed after that. For all the characters and their specific path. Another little thing that bugged me was a few modern slang words thrown in. For some reason, I didn't think it fit with the characters and the supposed time. It felt way too modern day and it kind of had a ruined effect since I was supposed to be in the fantastical land of Mytica. But minor issues aside, I truly enjoyed this one.

There was a mix of emotions flowing overall. I swear I had to experience nearly all of them. Shock, happiness, sadness, devastation, a bit of fear for the characters, it was quite the read to say the least! I am eagerly looking forward to reading the next one since this one ended in a shocking way. It's definitely a most annoying cliffhanger, but maybe not as much as previous ones only because I have the next book waiting for me! 

Falling Kingdoms is without a doubt a most incredible read that should be read by all fantasy fans!


Overall Rating 4/5 stars