To Wake a Kingdom

CW: multiple attempted sexual assaults, death, violence, gore

This was a very unexpected addition to my tbr when I accidentally saw a tweet by the author and I just immediately had to ask her for an arc. And turns out it was such a quick read that I hardly took one break in between and that too only because I finally had to sleep.

The author just starts off right in the middle of a very tense scene and then it takes a while for it to slow down. It's a brutal tale and the author pulls no punches, but she also balances it out with some sweet slice of life moments and some very steamy scenes which makes for a very balanced read. The twists and turns are also quite unexpected and unpredictable most of the times, keeping me on the edge of my seat. There are quite a few fairytale inspirations and the whole story itself has a noticeable dark fairytale vibe, but it's also equally original, giving us a fun new story to explore but with familiar beats.

Our main character Thorne will break your heart. Having been born and brought up under the shadow of a curse and then been in an enchanted sleep for hundred years, currently being hunted by a malicious Fae - she has never had the opportunity to live the life of a carefree princess or even a normal girl and even now, has to remain strong and figure out how to break the curse and defeat someone much much stronger than her. Her resilience is admirable and when she sets out to do something, she'll do everything in her power to accomplish it, even if it breaks her. I only kept wishing that she get some reprieve from all the danger and heartbreak.

Her turbulent but developing relationship with Kianna was lovely to read and while initially they didn't have much choice but to be nice to each other, I liked how much they came to care for each other. Ronan as a love interest felt like a typical one initially but as the story goes, I started liking him more, and it was nice to see a guy who was a warrior not underestimate a girl who can hardly fight but is driven to learn at any cost. Their dynamic was fun and sexy and what I liked was that they had a lot of understanding between each other and any turbulence in the relationship was due to external factors. There are also his friends Gideon, Em and Noah who are all lovely people and together they all make for a very endearing found family.

In the end, I don't know if I can use the word “fun” for this book because it is pretty dark and violent but with a lovely romance and friendships but it thoroughly entertained me throughout. If you are looking for a fantasy with heavy fairytale vibes but slightly on the darker side, I think you'll really enjoy it. While this is supposed to be a duology, I think it also works well as a standalone with a satisfying conclusion and I'm so glad I discovered the author's Twitter and got to read this.