The Crown's Fate by Evelyn Skye Review

 Hello Friends :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I want to thank you all for joining me for another book review here on The Preppy Book Princess.

I haven't really been reading much fantasy as of late. I have enjoyed many Christian titles within this genre, but I've found the newer secular releases to be much too dark for my liking.

That being said, I recently had the chance to read the second book in a young adult fantasy duology, and after enjoying the first book, I was looking forward to trying the next.

Keep reading below to find out what I ended up thinking about it.

The Crown's Fate by Evelyn Skye:

Source: Bought for Myself

Publisher: Balzer and Bray

Publication Date: May 16th, 2017

Genre: Young Adult Fiction/Fantasy

Series: The Crown's Game

Synopsis:

Russia is on the brink of great change. Pasha’s coronation approaches, and Vika is now the Imperial Enchanter, but the role she once coveted may be more difficult—and dangerous—than she ever expected.

Pasha is grappling with his own problems—his legitimacy is in doubt, the girl he loves loathes him, and he believes his best friend is dead. When a challenger to the throne emerges—and with the magic in Russia growing rapidly—Pasha must do whatever it takes to keep his position and protect his kingdom.

For Nikolai, the ending of the Crown’s Game stung deeply. Although he just managed to escape death, Nikolai remains alone, a shadow hidden in a not-quite-real world of his own creation. But when he’s given a second chance at life—tied to a dark price—Nikolai must decide just how far he’s willing to go to return to the world.

With revolution on the rise, dangerous new magic rearing up, and a tsardom up for the taking, Vika, Nikolai, and Pasha must fight—or face the destruction of not only their world but also themselves.

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

I haven't been reading too many secular young adult books as of late, but after reading and really enjoying The Crown's Game, I definitely wanted to give this one a try. The ending of the first book had me completely blown away, and I couldn't wait to see what else Evelyn Skye had in store for these characters.

After finishing this one, I have to say I'm feeling pretty neutral towards it. It's an alright story, but definitely not as good as the first was, and I'm not sure it really answered my questions, or seemed necessary to the first in the way it was written.

What I Liked:

I loved how rich the history and setting is in this series, and so many passages literally seem to come alive on the page with the vivid way they are described. I also really enjoyed Evelyn Skye's writing style, and the majority of the story was able to keep me effortlessly engaged. 

I liked the set up of the takeover plot, and how Pasha and Vika are unsure who to trust amidst everything going wrong around them. Vika and Pasha have both grown so much as characters from the first book, and I loved how they both have to learn more on how to stand on their own two feet. Pasha needs to learn what he truly wants from his future, and how to do his job without having his sister do it for him. Vika needs to realize that not everyone is going to love her for who she is, and the passages of her having to change society's notions on magic use were exceptionally well done. 

What I Didn't Like:

I personally am not a fan of the love triangle in this series, and I wish it hadn't dragged on the way it did. I wasn't a fan of the way the whole thing plays out, or the reason it ends the way it does. I think having it have been about a friendship with a romance only between two of the characters would have made for a much stronger story.

I didn't enjoy Nikolai's character in this installment at all. I understand the changes in his character were not necessarily his fault, and were often out of his control, but they just didn't seem to line up with who he was from the first book, and the resolution to that part of the story didn't seem to make a lot of sense.

I also have to comment on the fact that many things are mentioned that I thought were going to play a big part of the story, and that wasn't the case. Take for instance the "king catfish." It's a big ordeal when people's belief in the magic causes him to come into being, but then nothing with his story is ever truly an important part of the plot. I thought that was slightly weird and nonsensical, and it just felt unnecessary to have it included.

Lastly, I have to state that this one felt a whole lot darker than the first book, and I wasn't particularly comfortable with reading certain passages. It's still a fairly decent book, but I could have done without some of the information, especially when pertaining to Nikolai's mother and the various ways she's come to keep herself alive.

Final Rating: 3/5.

All in all, I'm glad I took the time to finish this series, but I don't think it'll be a reread for me anytime in the future.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)

This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.