Summary: The breathtaking sequel to The Princess Will Save You in the Kingdoms of Sand and Sky duology — a brilliantly-executed YA fantasy homage to The Princess Bride
To stay together forever, Princess Amarande and her stableboy love, Luca, must part: Amarande to reclaim her kingdom from usurpers, and Luca to raise a rebellion and find his destiny. Arrayed against them are all the players in the game of thrones for control over the continent of The Sand and Sky. Facing unspeakable betrayals, enemies hidden in the shadows, and insurmountable odds, their only hope is the power of true love...
~Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Tor Teen for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!~
*This is a spoiler-free review, so you can read it even if you haven’t read the book yet!*
"Survive the battle win the war."
My rating: 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
【Note: As I mentioned in my review of the first book here, I do not know the story of The Princess Bride, and my review is based solely on the book.】
Characters
Princess Amarande:
I really enjoyed reading about Princess Amarande in the first book and I’m happy to say that I enjoyed her character just as much in the sequel. She’s everything I’d want in the main character: fierce, determined, clever, loyal, loving, and brave.
Luca:
Luca had a lot more character change in this book and he had his own role aside from being Amarande’s love interest which I really liked. The book mostly focused on the princess, but Luca had his own story too, which later merged with Amarande’s into one.
Tallifer:
I know that Tallifer was one of the supposed “villains” but I couldn’t help but like him. He didn’t seem that evil, and even if he did he was evil in a clever way, which showcased his abilities. Also, he just seemed like a good companion to travel with because he has so much knowledge but he’s also fun to be with. I loved reading his dialogue because oftentimes he was either being sarcastic or laughing at a joke of some sort. Another thing I like about him was how complex his character was, since in this book we got to learn a lot more of his perspective.
This book was also filled with strong female characters, including Geneva and Queen Inés who were both very clever, powerful, and bold, but also evil, proving that women have the ability to be evil too. Most of their actions were in the name of destroying the patriarchy which I partly liked because it shows why they had to do all these evil things. They were women and therefore not allowed to rule on their own without marrying, and since they wanted power, they were forced to kill multiple people just to claim the throne that belonged to them in the first place.
Plot
The plot is fast-paced without being confusing and it hooked me from the start. There was never a part in the book where I felt confused or wanted to stop reading.
This book focused less on the romance and traveling side of things and more on the adventure and political side, which I really enjoyed. Each chapter brought the plot forward and it was filled with twists and turns which kept me guessing right up until the end. Just when I thought I knew what would happen a new piece of information was revealed giving the readers more knowledge and carrying the story forward in an unexpected yet perfect way.
World-building
The world-building was full of rich details and it made the world seem very real and intricate. Each of the four kingdoms of Sand and Sky had their own customs and features and stories. We didn’t get to see all of this history and culture but we did get enough for the plot to make sense.
Last Thoughts:
The ending was a bit open as if there was more to come and at first, I was worried that would be the end, but I searched online and I found out there will be a third book called “The King will Kill You”!! If you want to check it out, look at this link!
You can find this review on Goodreads here! https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3706669637
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