Theme: A romantic fantasy that shows the trials of true love, duty to your crown and accepting who you are.
Nature of Review: I was given an ARC to review via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Release Date: The Witch King, the third and final novel in the Witch King Trilogy, is set to release September 16, 2019. It is available on Amazon in ebook format only.
Warnings: Talk of sexual assault, captivity, abuse and slavery. Sexual content, language, violence.
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Kyr is the son of one of the most famous warriors in the land, and is destined to marry a Princess for the safety of his people. Kyr believes his duty to his people is above all else, even his own happiness. But Kyr can’t help but wonder what will happen if his betrothed finds out his darkest secret: that he is the only known male witch in history.
Ciel is a slave, born and raised to serve Kyr’s future wife. But when the Princess runs away with her true love, Ciel is left to pick up the pieces. Even if it means dying for her Princess.
But Kyr needs Ciel in order to trick their families into believing the Princess ran off with Kyr, to give the pair time to find her and bring her back. As they journey to find the Princess, they face trials that will change the fate of their kingdom, and test Kyr and Ciel’s relationship with the people they love, and each other.
This story, although set in a fantasy world with an impending war, is primarily a romance. Which I absolutely loved, since I’m a sucker for adorable romance. The tension between Kyr and Ciel starts early, focusing on their connection during the entirety of the story, with the world and their responsibilities being the conflict for the first half of the book.
I was so in love with their growing love, and enamoured with their humble romance and then growing to love each other, flaws and all. This was in every sense of the word a story about these two characters.
So, around 60%, when the true action started (as is expected with the conclusion of a trilogy), I felt a little lost. The connection that I enjoyed so much in the first half of the novel was gone in the midst of war and action. It was a dropping point for me, going from these character’s journey of discovery to a war with all these other characters and problems building on them.
This is where the other books in the series, which I have not read, would have come full circle. But I just found myself wanting to know the end as opposed to enjoying the story at this point.
There were also some transitions that were confusing, where I did not know when Kyr’s POV and Ciel’s POV switched over, and sometimes it switched in the middle of a paragraph or scene. But other than that, the writing and world building was enjoyable and carried the story well.
Overall, I found this story to be a romance genre first, fantasy theme second. I absolutely loved the first half for this reason, and was disappointed when it switched near the ending.
If I had read the first two books, maybe the ending would have been more satisfying to read about, and maybe I’ll have to pick them up to know what happened before Kyr and Ciel. But I enjoyed this story, and it’s a good read for anyone who enjoys easy reading and romantic fantasy ebooks!
Bookish Bex 