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To Kill a Kingdom (Hundred Kingdoms, #1)

Alexandra Christo

Start date: March 1, 2020

Finish date: March 31, 2020

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What Members Thought

Oct 23, 2019 ❀ Crystal ✿ - PEACE ☮ LOVE ♥ BOOKS rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2019-read

To be completely transparent, for about 80% of this book I was conflicted. I wasn't overly blown away and I was engaged enough to keep going, I just felt like something was missing. I stand corrected because that last 20% hooked me, no pun intended. Once the climax came around and sh*t hit the fan, I fell in love with this book and all my hesitancy was knocked aside replaced with awe and joy not many books are able to invoke. Lira and Elian from the start are both shall we say villains. Villains To be completely transparent, for about 80% of this book I was conflicted. I wasn't overly blown away and I was engaged enough to keep going, I just felt like something was missing. I stand corrected because that last 20% hooked me, no pun intended. Once the climax came around and sh*t hit the fan, I fell in love with this book and all my hesitancy was knocked aside replaced with awe and joy not many books are able to invoke. Lira and Elian from the start are both shall we say villains. Villains pushed into these rolls by circumstances outside their control. Each of their species has been at war so long, they are led by nothing but hatred.
Lira is the Princes' Bane, a ruthless killer known to savagely rip the hearts out of a new prince for her collection each year. I mean she has a damn collection under her bed. She hates humans and the world they're from. Of course once her EVIL (and I mean EVIL) Sea Queen of a mother turns her into a human, Lira gets an inside look at her greatest enemy and comes to see that all the Hatred that ruled her life wasn't truly real nor was it her own. Her mother for Lira's whole life has been nothing but an abusive psycho. Honestly that's putting it nicely. What I didn't like about the story was much of the deceit about who and what she was but having finished I see how perfectly everything worked out and how it had to happen the way it did. Lira had to learn on her own how much she had been lied to and basically turned into a vicious killer that no person let alone a child should have to be.
Elian personally wasn't a favorite of my by any means but damn if I didn't grow to love him. I should have been more expectant with Elian. It's shared a bit too often how promiscuous he is and I mean hello, he's a pirate, he doesn't live like a nun. I personally think I was a bit too hard on him as I was reading and I can say gladly that I fell for the scally-rag. Like Lira Elian had a lot of lesson learning and growing to do. He has also led this life so long and known so many who've fallen to the sirens of the ocean, that him accepting Lira or giving up his purpose was not going to be easy nor was it. This book was more of an evolution of their characters. Both had to grow individually before they could ever come together, either as friends or eventually lovers. Elian is a Prince who only wants to be a pirate, he has no need for power or a title. All he needs is his his ship and his crew (who respect him in a loyal and un-testable way not many kings or queens are able to invoke in their people.)
This story is also a very loose re-telling of the Little Mermaid. Lira may have red hair but that's pretty much where her and Ariel's similarities end. I think the author did a phenomenal job building this world and story-line. I was engaged throughout and did often find myself surprised which is nice because no one wants a predictable read. I really enjoyed this story I only wish their was an epilogue or a more romance novel type ending. We get a HEA don't get me wrong, I'm just never satisfied without a full life story breakdown after the events of a story lol so don't listen to me ;) ...more

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Mar 26, 2020 Kim rated it it was amazing

What a great story!! It’s from a dual POV: Lira, siren Princess who is most well known for being a prince killer, and Elian, prince of Midas who prefers to be a pirate and kill sirens than be the future king. The tale intertwines their paths and throws traditional fairytale romance out the window.

I loved all of these characters. They felt relatable without falling flat. Their quick witticisms had be laugh out loud and the connections between characters were well brought to light. Not just the 2 ...more

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Apr 02, 2019 Cindee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: perks-uno-shelf

I really loved this book it was the best fairy tale retelling of the little mermaid I have ever read not that I have ever read one the best and more true to other kinds of tales of sirens. I really liked that sirens were depicted as vicious killers that live for power I really liked how Lira changed as the story progressed. I really liked the characters especially Lira and Elian and loved how their romantic relationship developed I liked that it was slow rather than having a fast romance. I real ...more

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Aug 09, 2018 Klancy Hoover-Davis rated it really liked it

My guilty pleasure is reading books about mermaids and sirens, so I was very excited to read this book.

I liked the world-building that was included in the book. The text explains the legends surrounding the war between humans and sirens: how the goddess Keto died and how her death spurred sirens to steal the hearts of humans in retribution. I loved how the legends ended up being true in the end. Mostly because the final battle between Lira and the Sea Queen was an intense display of magic! The ...more

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Jun 18, 2018 Keri (BooksWithKeri) rated it it was amazing

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Personally, I love retellings, especially retellings that are made darker than the Disney versions of the stories. This is a Little Mermaid retelling but with a brutal heart stealing siren and a pirate, siren hunting prince, and I loved every moment of reading it.

Alexandra Christo’s writing is wonderfully immersive. She describes settings and people and creatures in such vibrant ways that it is really easy Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Personally, I love retellings, especially retellings that are made darker than the Disney versions of the stories. This is a Little Mermaid retelling but with a brutal heart stealing siren and a pirate, siren hunting prince, and I loved every moment of reading it.

Alexandra Christo’s writing is wonderfully immersive. She describes settings and people and creatures in such vibrant ways that it is really easy to imagine what these places and people look like. She is also good at getting the emotion across. Part of the story involves the main character, Lira, growing into who she really is rather than the person she has been perceived to be, even by herself, and you could really see those moments of indecision and realisation as the book went on.

Christo wrote the book from two points of the view – our siren, Lira, and our prince, Elian. The point of view shifts wasn’t obvious at first since there was no indication before the chapter started nor was there any pattern to it, so you mostly noticed shifts through setting changes, but as the book continued on, the distinct voices of these characters became stronger and telling them apart was a lot easier.

The two points of view really worked in this book as both characters come from two drastically different backgrounds, both having to come to different realisations, that if it had only focused on the mind of one character over the other the story would have been a lot weaker.

The character of Lira was strong, brutal and downright badass at times. Her character development across the book was great as she overcame her prejudices and what she thought she always wanted. It felt real and genuine and in terms of stepping out from her mother’s oppressing shadow, she was quite relatable.

I loved Elian character. Maybe it’s the idea of the pirate prince but his personal conflicts were so interesting to read about. There was so much he had to deal with on a personal level in the course of this book that it just made me want things to work out for him, as a pirate, as a prince, as Lira’s future consort. I would definitely want another book just based on Elian’s exploits as a pirate, both before the events of the book and after – especially because this would mean I get to read even more about Kye and Madrid.

As for the relationship between Lira and Elian, it has what every relationship needs – chemistry. They fit so well together in terms of experiences, wants for themselves and having to deal with the weight of other people’s expectations. Their banter was sarcastic and humorous. Neither bowed to the other because they cared about each other, they were aware of their own strengths as well as each other, which is what made them strong enough to defeat the big, bad Siren Queen.

Downfalls of the book are limited – I can only think of two. The fight scene towards the end of the book was quite drawn out, difficult to pinpoint in places, which meant the climactic scene was, at times, layered with confusion. There was also a limited amount of world building in comparison to the amount of history that the story actually hinted at. It was like just the brushing of a surface so you get just enough information, but the teasing hints just make you want to find out more and, since the foundation of a few plot points is this worldbuilding, it would have been nice to read, however, I am aware this could have slowed the book down drastically.

Overall, To Kill A Kingdom was a wildly entertaining book with fantastic characters. I want more of the world and more of the characters. I enjoyed Alexrando Christo’s writing style, and I can’t wait to read her future work!

(Full review on my blog: https://bookswithkeri.wordpress.com/2...) ...more

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Sep 05, 2019 kia rated it liked it

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Sep 07, 2023 Butterfly2507 rated it did not like it

Shelves: dnf-d

DNF'D.

BORED OUT OF MY MIND.

"perfect for fans of leigh bardugo and sarah j maas" ... bro ... both of them could write better books with their toes than this. ...more

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Mar 29, 2020 Jenn rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Better than expected

I was both excited and skeptical about this book. I wasn't sure what to expect, but when I got into reading it I was pleasantly surprised. I noted hints of the little mermaid take but with enough twists and changes the it a something else. I enjoyed Lira's tale, but wanted a little more of the adversaries from the lovers banter. I wanted to see her have a little more internal turmoil or the protected having to fight more than they did. But it was a good fun boo to read, I'd r ...more

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May 16, 2018 Kaitlyn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, pirates

Reread - 25/05/2020
Love love love the dynamic between the two main characters
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BRB I'll just go to a corner and scream how much I love the book ...more

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