Alright, guys, getting back in the swing of here with the book reviews. (I know, FINALLY). A while back, I read and reviewed Book 1 of the Kingdom on Fire series, A Fire Bright and Burning by Jessica Cluess. Now I’m going to review books 2, A Poison Dark and Drowning, and Book 3, A Sorrow Fierce and Falling together.
So the things I loved about this series. This story has a savior-like prophecy. Some prophecies are in the background of stories, but this one played through all three books, sometimes taking on completely new meanings. It was really fun to try to figure out and there were plenty of awesome twists and turns. Again I love the kind of Jane Austen, regency era feel to it, set in England, and the monsters and the stakes were super compelling and well done. The division of the different forms of magic was also clear and a cool take.
The main character, Henrietta, is rash, strong willed and complex. But most of the time you are on her side, rooting for her and I love seeing her struggle through the consequences of her actions.
While there were some great relationship moments going on, the sad thing I was a bit turned off by the romance. Another review I read that made me chuckled said that the author treats the romance like a “multiple choice question.” And that kind of sums it up. There are not two but three love options in this story and right when you think she has settled on one she changes her mind and goes after another. Honestly, I think it is hard enough to do a compelling love triangle that doesn’t make someone want to tear their hair out so doing three was quite ambitious, and it didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
But the writing was beautiful. The world building and backstory were awesome. If you are into dark fantasy romance with false chosen ones and choices that are not clearly black and white, then check out Jessica Cluess’s Kingdom of Fire series!
To learn more about books by Jessica Cluess, check her out at her website.
JA Curtis 