Pages: 344
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Release Date: March 6, 2018
Genre(s): Fantasy
Format: Hardcover
Goodreads Synopsis
“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 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?”
What Did I Think?
For the past four months, I have been trying and epically failing to find a young adult novel that would keep my attention – until I found To Kill a Kingdom. I picked this beauty up because its overall concept isn’t something I traditionally find myself reading. The novel follows the story of Lira, a royal siren known as the Prince’s Bane, who gets turned into a human by her mother in an attempt to get rid of the humanity left in her so she can become the ruthless leader her people “need” her to be. Prince Elian, the prince/pirate/world-renowned siren killer, is her target. Though I’m not one for the enemies-to-lovers trope, I thought it worked very well here and fit the dynamic between Lira and Elian to a tea. This being said, though, the romance didn’t steal the show, which I found so refreshing! I also really enjoyed that the reader is taken into this fantastical world where there are various folktale-esque rumors spreading about traits only the royal lines of each kingdom possess (i.e. like Elian bleeds gold instead of red). This novel is written from dual perspectives, which I though was a really good call, as it helped me to see that while Lira and Elian may be different species, their lives are much more alike than either of them really wants to believe. As a whole, I found the overall concept of the novel both intriguing and compelling, just like a siren’s song to a sailor (ha… I knew you’d get the joke!).
If I had to pick one phrase to describe Lira, it would be “a force to be reckoned with.” At first, I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt about Lira’s iciness towards basically everyone, but quickly realized that she was simply a product of the environment in which she was living – the next pawn in the perpetual cycle of ruthless Sea Queens. I absolutely loved watching her perspective shift as she learned more about what it was like to be human and starts to see the flaws in her own upbringing. I feel like this is something we all experience as we live more of life, and to see this represented so well in Lira’s character was lovely. Other than her fiery temper and sass for days, the only constant in her character was her love for her cousin, Khalia. I think the relationship these two had with one another was what helped me to get over Lira’s lack of empathy at the beginning of the novel. Overall, I found Lira’s character very dynamic, the overall lessons from her journey as a human relatable, and, for the most part, generally likeable!
Onto our princely pirate, Elian. From the very first chapter told from his perspective, I knew I was going to love him. He’s got sass, he’s got class, and he’s always ready to kick some… err… you can fill in the blank for where I was going with that one. While his risk-taking often stressed me out to high heaven, his purpose behind brokering such extreme deals made my heart so happy. Though a prince, Elian is the first to think of the betterment of humanity as a whole rather than his own personal and/or princely interests. In addition to enjoying his very dark but super funny interactions with Lira, the relationship Elian has with his crew was so much fun to read about. Any time he was around them after attending to his royal duties, I could totally visualize Elian letting go of the deep breath he’d been holding in and just letting loose with his most loyal friends. While I am sure Elian is not hard on the eyes (I mean, come on. Even Lira was intrigued and she’s COLD sometimes!), I mostly enjoyed the fact that Elian, deep down, had a good heart and a willingness to risk everything for those he cares about.
Christo’s writing style is what made reading To Kill a Kingdom such a treat. I found myself reading along, completely absorbed in the plot, and then BAM! She would hit me with a line that cut deep and encourages the reader to stop and reflect on its meaning in our own lives. There were also moments that were so beautifully worded that I had no choice but to stop in my tracks and take it all in. Though I thought some lines were a little bit clunky to read through at times, that in no way overshadows how magnificently written the vast majority of novel is.
I could not have asked for a better book to help me move past my (very lengthy) reading slump. To Kill a Kingdom was full of both loveable and complex characters that were constantly keeping me on my toes. I thought the plotline flowed nicely, and though the world had to be established rather quickly, it was executed very well. The only major critique I can think of is that the ending felt very abrupt, given that the few chapters before novel’s end were very detailed – overly so, for my liking. While To Kill a Kingdom is a standalone novel, I could totally see it having spin-off stories in the future with an ending like that, and you can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be reading them all should they surface!
Who Would I Recommend This Book To?
If you are a fan of YA novels that are ultimate examples of a well-constructed enemies-to-lovers trope, pirate-y adventures, and (on the outside) coldhearted characters who aren’t afraid to throw down to get what they want, To Kill a Kingdom is totally for you!
I would also wholeheartedly recommend this book to those of you who thoroughly enjoyed the overall theme and plotline of Tricia Levenseller’s Daughter of the Pirate King duology. And, if you loved the wickedly loveable characters of Holly Black’s Folk of Air trilogy and Brigid Kemmerer’s Cursebreakers series, you’re sure to enjoy the characters Christo has created for To Kill a Kingdom.
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