Review--Kingdom of the Feared by Kerri Maniscalco

 

Two curses.
One prophecy.
A reckoning all have feared.

And a love more powerful than fate. All hail the king and queen of Hell.

Emilia is reeling from the shocking discovery that her twin sister, Vittoria, is alive. But before she faces the demons of her past, Emilia yearns to claim her king, the seductive Prince of Wrath, in the flesh. Emilia doesn’t simply desire his body, she wants his heart and soul—but that’s something the enigmatic demon can’t promise her.

When a high-ranking member of House Greed is assassinated, Emilia and Wrath are drawn to the rival demon court. Damning evidence points to Vittoria as the murderer and she’s quickly declared an enemy of the Seven Circles. Despite her betrayal, Emilia will do anything to solve this new mystery and find out who her sister really is.

Together Emilia and Wrath play a sin-fueled game of deception as they work to stop the unrest that’s brewing between witches, demons, shape-shifters and the most treacherous foes of all: the Feared.

Emilia was warned that when it came to the Wicked nothing was as it seemed. But, have the true villains been much closer all along? When the truth is finally revealed, it just might end up costing Emilia her heart.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Stalking the Jack the Ripper series comes the steamy conclusion to Kingdom of the Wicked trilogy.

 

 

I’ve finally finished Kerri Maniscalco’s Kingdom of the Feared now that the craziness that is life has settled down for however temporary! Lol. It’s been way too long since I dove into this world and it was a bit of a struggle to get back into the story as I remember the “main events” but the little details about other characters was long forgotten and somehow became very important in this one! Nevertheless I was able to follow along well enough to love every moment of this story!

It most certainly has been a wild ride! I started this series with an ARC and had to wait long after the sequels released to read them. But I can say it was worth the wait because it was such a delightful read! This is by far one of the most mature and steamy YA books I’ve read. Though I’ve only read Maas’ one YA series, I would say it rivals her YA books in terms of steam! But that’s just me! Lol.

Emilia and Wrath are trying to find a peaceful happiness for themselves now that they’re a “couple.” It took a long time to get there and Emilia’s memories definitely played a part in keeping them from truly connecting but just as we seem to be seeing a happily ever after in their futures, Emilia’s twin sister Vittoria seemingly returns from the dead! Vittoria is back and more powerful than ever and has a plan of her own, one that involves Emilia joining her at her side and leaving everything and everyone she loves behind. But Emilia is not so easily swayed, even by her missing twin.

It soon becomes revealed that one of House Greed’s favorite guards has been murdered and his number one suspect is Vittoria herself. But despite all she has done, Emilia is certain that her sister is innocent and with Wrath’s help, she is given the chance to prove it. So thus begins a murder mystery of sorts, but it’s not your traditional whodunit kind of mystery as there is a lot of other Seven Circles politics going on as well, along with Emilia and Wrath trying to perform their marriage ceremonies.

Maniscalco writes a very detailed world within this series involving witches, demons, vampires, and werewolves. There always seems like that there’s some inner battle happening between two of the groups and where each group stands with another is always changing too. A lot is revealed in this series finale including things about Emilia’s past and family. While I wish I possessed a better memory for these things, I was able to follow things well enough, but their impact might have been lost on me due to faulty memory. How I wish it was better or that I could read faster and forgo sleep, but I have yet to develop that superpower despite all the wishing for it! Lol.

The romance between Emilia and Wrath remains forever strong in this one and just as steamy as before! It truly amazes me how far we’ve come with the YA literature world! I remember the early YA books barely having romance or if they did it was simple and non-descriptive, very “closed-door.” I suppose the “changing times” thing really does hold true for most things. This book is definitely for a mature YA audience that’s for sure, but it’s not overly graphic in that area and is still highly enjoyable!

I may have bought a few different copies to obtain as many bonus scenes as I could and I can say that the Wrath and Envy editions were delightful snippets to read! The Wrath edition also included some of Maniscalco’s notes on the series and the frozen writer in me enjoyed that bonus material as well!

Kingdom of the Feared is a spellbinding read of a finale! It’s got everything fans of the series to date will love; action, magic, mystery, mayhem, romance! It’s a wild ride of a read and I cannot wait to see what Maniscalco will write next! I wait with bated breath for its reveal! Hopefully soon too because I simply can’t get enough of her writing!

 

 

Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars