Book Review: The Crownless King - by Kara Linaburg

Welcome, one and all!

Today I'm reviewing a very special book....and that's because is going to be published tomorrow! Eeeep! I'm so, so, so deeply excited for this! As the sequel to The Broken Prince, I've been waiting for this for over a year! Kara has made an incredible journey with self publishing, and I will continue to look forward to her books for years to come.

Ahem. Today is not about some strange date in the future, it's about tomorrow (yes, I understand that sounds so weird)! On to my review!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!

Note, this is the second book in a series, and therefore when reading it there will be spoilers to the first book, but in my review there are no spoilers for either.

Disclaimer: I got a free copy in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own.


The Crownless King - by Kara Linaburg:

Sabriel is the only lady in the Knights of Norcir, a group of Gifteds determined to overthrow the King of Sindaleer. She has known abandonment and loneliness her whole life and feels that her heart has hardened. On a scouting mission she has the option of killing a lad who would report them in an instance to the Guardians, a group that has sided with the King, but the idea of killing in cold blood is wrong to her. With so many people picking sides can she win the struggle of keeping her own mind and not be controlled or influenced?
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult.
Characters: 10! Wowza, guys, so, these characters are amazing. I wanted more of all of them! I love the struggles each of them face (whoops, I sound so cruel saying that, but INTERNAL CONFLICT for the win!).
My favorite: 
Hands down, 100%, Sabriel. I really loved having her as the main character! She has had to harden herself through the years and even with that the other Knights are always making fun of her and trying to prove that she will betray them, which would've gotten on my nerves so much sooner if it was me. I also liked having a few familiar faces of characters from the previous book throughout the chapters in this book.
Words: 9. There were no bad words. The only thing I thought was kind of funny was that in this setting with a very medieval vibe characters would say "shut up" and "shut it". This is just such a modern usage, it felt a little jarring. If it had been the words "quiet!" or "silence!" it would have felt more natural. But I really love Kara's writing style. It is just so gorgeous, right away I am wrapped in the world building like a warm blanket.

"Glowbugs blinked and played in the velvet darkness. Like stars dancing in the field, they hovered in the tall glasses, their white light breaking through the night."

Content: 8. There is smoking, drinking, and some suggestive things (shown as bad). There was a time when one character randomly took off his shirt which just made me stop and say, "That was weird". This has wars and battles so there are deaths and violence, sometimes graphic, but shown as bad. One of the things I loved so much about this book was a death (sorry, I'm sounding cruel again, but it's not like that!) and how it was handled.

"What in the name of destiny are you talking about?"

Originality: 9. I know it's a popular world building element to give people powers in fantasy, but I really like the variety of the powers of the Gifteds. I've seen some of these before but I like the dynamics carried through. I liked her uses of these even better than the first book, and the plot twists really surprised me!
Good For: People who have experienced loss or loneliness. Fantasy lovers.
Age Range: This is young adult so the characters are older, but that might not matter to younger readers. I would say 13+ because of all the talk of war and torture but it depends on each individual person and their tolerance level.
Overall Score: 9!
Worth reading?: Yes! While I liked The Broken Prince, this book spoke to me on a deeper level. The story was so creative and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It broke my heart in a few places and sewed it up in a new way.

"Little flames danced above her and she played with the fire, forming glowing butterflies that flitted around her..."

Will I read again?: Yes! Especially because it has been so long since I read The Broken Prince I can see myself reading them again close together and enjoying it even more.

Bonus thoughts:

I now want all of you to experience Sabriel's story, so go read it!

Find on Goodreads HERE.

Thank you to Kara for giving me an eARC of this book to review! The opportunity was amazing. Make sure you go over to her blog HERE and congratulate her on this second book!

Thank you as well to my little sister for helping me type this out when I had other things to do. Secretaries are the best!

And thanks to all of you for reading! What is your favorite fantasy book?

MovieCritic