Kingdom of the Feared ♦ Kerri Maniscalco | Review

After reading the first two volumes of the trilogy Kingdom of the Wicked, I eagerly picked up Kerri Maniscalco’s Kingdom of the Feared. The book came with twists and turns that I didn’t expect. But unfortunately there were also disappointments, because I expected a lot more from Emilia as a strong protagonist.

Emilia is reeling from the shocking discovery that her twin sister, Vittoria, is alive. But before she faces the demons of her past, Emilia yearns to claim her king, the seductive Prince of Wrath, in the flesh. Emilia doesn’t simply desire his body, she wants his heart and soul—but that’s something the enigmatic demon can’t promise her.

When a high-ranking member of House Greed is assassinated, Emilia and Wrath are drawn to the rival demon court. Damning evidence points to Vittoria as the murderer and she’s quickly declared an enemy of the Seven Circles. Despite her betrayal, Emilia will do anything to solve this new mystery and find out who her sister really is.

Together Emilia and Wrath play a sin-fueled game of deception as they work to stop the unrest that’s brewing between witches, demons, shape-shifters and the most treacherous foes of all: the Feared.

Emilia was warned that when it came to the Wicked nothing was as it seemed. But, have the true villains been much closer all along? When the truth is finally revealed, it just might end up costing Emilia her heart.

Two curses.
One prophecy.
A reckoning all have feared.

And a love more powerful than fate. All hail the king and queen of Hell.

Kingdom of the Feared ♦ Kerri Manscalco

Opinion

In Kingdom of the Feared, some questions that came up when reading the first volumes were finally answered, even at the beginning of the book. I really liked that.
Also, the criminal case, which happened in House Greed, which initially seemed so irrelevant, wasn’t that unimportant in the end, although it could certainly have worked without it. But it created a bit of tension.

Because Vittoria, Emilia’s sister, became less and less of an enemy, but in order to continue to portray her as a villain, she had to be accused of a crime. Of course, this only reinforced the conspiracies and intrigues between the different houses of sin.

The Prince of Envy surprised me. While I didn’t really like him at the beginning of the book series, I have to say that he had a great character development behind him. That’s why I’m also looking forward to the announced spin-off series, which will appear in the course of the year (2023) and will probably deal with the remaining sinful brothers.

To be honest, what really bothered me was the relationship between Wrath and Emilia. Although Emilia made me more upset. Not only did every encounter between the two end up in sex — don’t get me wrong, I like it when things get hot and spicy — but that was just too much for me. Because sex doesn’t equal romance and love, but that’s what Emilia demands from Wrath, that his whole heart beats only for her. When I then look at all the things he has done for her so far, and she still thinks he doesn’t love her because he can’t say it out loud because of the curse that’s on him, she went through the entire story with a cold closed heart.

It was also disappointing that in Kingdom of the Feared, a book full of sins and vices, the author relied too much on the role of a moralizer for Emilia. Heck, she’s the Goddess of Fury, but all she does is spread forgiveness in the realms of hell. How the heck does this have any connection to her House of Vengeance? Or the House of Wrath she wants to join? It was all totally illogical to me. It wasn’t convincing to me either.

In the end I was satisfied enough to rate the book with 4 stars because the criminal case was interesting. Unraveling the various influences on the curse that hung over Wrath and apparently all the other Princes of Hell was intriguing.

[rating-report]

Conclusion

If Maniscalco had relied a little less on sexual acts and more comfortable togetherness between Emilia and Wrath, then I would have been more understanding of her sacrifice as a goddess. But her selfishness in terms to his affection, combined with the whole plot, struck me as unbelievable. Only the breaking of the curse, the subplots and supporting characters could convince me to give Kingdom of the Feared a 4-star rating. Also, the fast pace and very fluid and detailed writing style by Kerri Maniscalco was enjoyable.

But I did miss the explanation within the plot why the book is called Kingdom of the Feared. Neither Emilia nor Vittoria could give me the feeling through their actions why they are so feared.

Kingdom of the Wicked – The Trilogy

About Kerri Maniscalco

Kerri Maniscalco grew up in a semi-haunted house outside NYC where her fascination with gothic settings began. In her spare time she reads everything she can get her hands on, cooks all kinds of food with her family and friends, and drinks entirely too much tea while discussing life’s finer points with her cats.
She is the #1 NYT and USA Today bestselling author of the Stalking Jack the Ripper series and the forthcoming Kingdom of the Wicked.

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