I really enjoyed this story . I am a fan of Jeffe Kennedy as a author and her other novels . If you have not read her work , you must settle in , because her stories unfold.
This is the first in a series of forgotten realms. It is told in the beginning as you would hear from a fairytale. In the beginning a simple man destroyed magic , rose above his station and became a emperor. Magic is no more . Or at least forbidden.
Queen Lia has been betrothed to the emperor since she was a young girl . She has had many years to play the political game of cat and mouse. Lia just wants for her people to be free and her fate untied from the emperor.
Conrí is the former crown prince , now a slave ... a slave king. All he wants is to build a big enough slave army to overthrow the emperor.
Can these two leaders set aside life to find love .. and perhaps a new beginning.

Okay... I have to say that I have such mixed thoughts! I couid not push past twenty one percent. I really tried! I would read and read, then set it aside, pick up and finish other books then go back to this. In a world filled with books, you should never struggle through one. I found the main characters to be lacking. They were unremarkable, I could neither relate nor cheer them on. They were unlikable. The world building was this huge presence that when presented along side with the lackluster character development, was frankly overwhelming. The synopsis was so very promising and intriguing! The cover is gorgeous! I think for me as a reader, I crave to be drawn into the world I'm reading! Most especially if it's a fantasy world, I want to exist amongst the pages and take the journeys as the characters do. This was unfortunately very forgettable for me! I want to take a moment to thank the publisher for allowing me to read this! It was an honor. Also, I must insist that this author really has a very unique idea! It wasn't written badly, it just needs a fine tuning! It needs more character depth, less surrounding descriptions and more of something special to keep the reader riveted to the pages.

The Orchid Throne is the first book in the Forgotten empires series by Jeffe Kennedy. This much-awaited title continues Jeffe’s tradition of creating an exciting new mythos full of strong female princesses/queens and barbarian warriors.

This book introduces her highness Queen Euthalia of the island kingdom of Calanthe. She has worked her entire life to keep her people free and her mystical abilities secret from the mad tyrant who rules most of the known world. Guided by her magic, Euthalia plays the political game with the emissaries of the emperor. She knows that she has to save herself from her fate. But in her dreams, she sees a man, a man in wolf’s clothing with the power to build a better world—a man whose spirit and passion is as fierce match her own

Conrí is former Crown Prince of Oriel and is known as the slave king. After escaping from the mines where he was held prisoner he has built an army to overthrow the emperor. City by city has fallen under his assault, but to truly succeed and defeat the mighty emperor he needs the fabled Abiding Ring. The ring that Queen Euthalia holds so dear to her heart.

Queen Euthalia wants nothing to do with him. However, when the danger ratchets up Conri and Euthalia must put aside their differences, build upon their chemistry and desire to fan the flames of rebellion. But the question is whether their union can defeat the shadows of evil that threaten to engulf the world

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC

What a wonderful mesmerizing read! I absolutely adored this book. My first time reading a book by Jeffe Kennedy. Well done.

This is a fantastic story that keeps you interested and intrigued. Having never read this author I was impressed with the story and I hope there's a continuation coming soon.

4.5 stars easily. The world building and tension between the main characters in this book is hot, hot, hot. Lia and Con are destined for each other. She, trying to save her homeland Calanthe at all costs, has run up against his desire to end the evil empires rule who is destroying their world. She's made some terrible compromises with said emperor to save her realm, but when Con appears on her shores, he just may offer the key to fix the path both of them are on. Magic, steamy sex, and a killer plot all made this such a good read! My only meh was the ending. It was so abrupt. I would have liked a little more closing, but since this is a series, I'll just have to read the next to find out!

This Dual POV is steamy. It is an adult or upper young adult for sure. It gives you two royals on different sides of a battle that may have more in common than you think.
The world building is beautiful and I wish there was more descriptions of what everyone, everything, and all the parts consisting of it. There was a lot of show, not enough tell.
The characters were relatable as much as a fantasy could be. I liked the slow building to them finding themselves to be more alike than they thought

There were several things about <i>The Orchid Throne</i> by Jeffe Kennedy that really struck me, some in good ways and some in bad. This was a book that I was actually incredibly excited about, having fallen in love with the plot the moment I first read its synopsis. A deposed prince following a prophecy that would allow him to exact revenge on the man who destroyed his kingdom and a young Queen doing everything she can to protect her people from the tyrant who destroyed the rest of the world sounded like a fascinating story. It sounded especially exciting when it became clear that the prince would need this young Queen's magical orchid ring in order to complete his quest.

I'll be honest, my excitement for this book waned somewhat as I began the novel. It was <i>incredibly </i>difficult to get into. The first few chapters are filled heavily with exposition and genuinely left me feeling as though each turn of the page was a chore I would have to force myself through. Wonderfully, though, as the plot moves forward, so does one's ability to engage with the story. About 30% in, I found myself rather quickly becoming immersed in a tale that I began to feel attached to. The characters were brilliantly intelligent and it was quite enjoyable to move back and forth between their minds.

And overall the story was enticing to the point that I actually found myself incredibly eager to finish, even staying up late into the night to get further through their tale. Looking back, I enjoyed the fast-paced nature of it all as I read it, but I feel somewhat annoyed by it now. I am back and forth on whether or not this book feels like insta-love to me, partially because there is a sort of distance between the two characters that leads you to believe they don't quite love each other yet, but rather are using each other for their own reasons. At other times they seem quite infatuated. The speed with which they were brought together was too fast and didn't really result in them getting to know one another at all.

It's an interesting place to be in, where several of the things I enjoyed are also things I did not like at all. And ultimately, I find that the fast paced nature of the story helped the novel as a whole by keeping my interest, but added some skeptical reluctance for me to appreciate the book as much as I might have otherwise. Ironically, as my reasons for avoiding most romances in the past has come down to my dislike for sex scenes in the novels I read, I actually did appreciate the way Kennedy portrayed both characters with their inexperience. As both were virgins, I found the realistic nature behind the awkwardness of them both a wonderful inclusion that I don't see often in stories like this. Even more, I appreciate that she taught him how to do things. That said, I still found myself wanting to skip those particular scenes.

In general, I won't say this is the best book I've ever read by any means. Though I liked the fast paced nature of it once the plot got rolling and I was past the first few chapters, I do feel as though some of it took away from the characters' ability to get to know each other. Thankfully, neither character is presented as being hopelessly in love with the other so I can forgive this bit quite a lot. I do think that the one thing this story has going for it the most is the characters themselves, who are all unique and well-written. Lia more than anyone is brilliant.

The novel is also set up for a sequel, which I wouldn't mind reading though I wouldn't be terribly upset to not pick up either. And ultimately, I think that sums up my feelings for this book. I enjoyed it, but I'm not in love with it.

<i>I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

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I was hoping to be swept away to an imaginary world and lose myself in a good story. Unfortunately from the info dump in the prologue to the extremely wordy style of the author, I struggled to get into this book. There are some good parts of the book and perhaps others will embrace Ms. Kennedy's style. It was not for me and I did not finish the book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the world that was built in which it took place. The strong characters that are introduced are not o kg memorable but interesting as well. I was very intrigued with the plot and found myself conflicted because I wanted to read as much as quickly as I could so I could see how the story was to u fold, but wanting to slow down and savor the delicious details as well! I look forward to more in this series!

3.5 out of 5 Stars

***ARC received from St Martins Press and NetGalley in exchange for honest review, opinions are all my own. Thank you!***

Okay, I'm going to be honest, by the time that I sat down to read this book I had completely forgotten what the synopsis of this book was. Even though I had only received it less than a week. When I started it I was almost certainly that maybe I had received a book I hadn't meant to request but that was the point that current me had to put trust that past me knew what she was doing.

Good job past me, ya done good!

There is a lot of backstory that gets presented right at the beginning that I both liked and didn't like. It gets told as someone telling a story so its less info dump and more here are the important parts. You get enough details that as the story goes on it doesn't need to rehash what it already presented. But it also presents you with a potential villain to look forward to that unfortunately doesn't really show up in this book. He is more of a shadow of a villain than an actual villain in this book. The book definitely sets up the series that he will be a bigger presence in the next book I just wish we had a little bit more of him.

I liked the characters but I especially liked Lia, she is a good balance to Conrí. They were both characters that had been shaped by the history they experiences, even if we are not shown this information. Which I wish we had gotten, this book feels more like it is setting up a bigger series than the first in the series. Plus it would have gotten us more information about the characters because as much as I liked the characters I think they have more room to grow into even better characters. Yet there is one thing that I really hopes continues is Lia strong sense of who she is and what she wants, even down to her own pleasure. Refreshing to a romance to have a female lead so comfortable and open in her sexual needs.

In all I enjoyed this book and will be looking forward to seeing where it goes.

I, like others, struggled a bit at the beginning. I enjoy books of this genre so even if not reviewing would probably not have given up. I found the book dived into the story and the characters without pause and it took a while to untangle things. The story became much more interesting after a few chapters. The description of fantasy and romance intrigued me, I am not usually fond of romances but somehow this worked. I found the Island of Calanthe a fascinating premise and it is probably this that made me enjoy the book. I look forward to reading more.

Kennedy’s fantasy romance novels are usually a hit or miss for me. Sometimes I think she has a difficult time balancing the fantasy world building aspects and the actual romance. Still I always find myself drawn to her latest work even if the previous one I read left me a little cold.

I’d say this one is a good balance of romance and fantasy. I really liked Lia and I liked getting to know the world Kennedy created. This is one of her books I will recommend.

Sorry I did not finish this book. I will send a note to the publishers regarding this as I struggled reading the book.

Pluses: loved heroine and excellent worldbuilding

Minuses: more fantasy than romance, sluggish in beginning, slow paced at times, has difficulty connecting to POV as it switched a lot

Will definitely read more but this book didn’t quite work for me

Rated 4.5 Stars

The Orchid Throne is the first in a fantasy trilogy steeped in political intrigue, magic, adventure, action and romance. I thoroughly enjoyed it, the interesting and intriguing world, they characters and plot. I am eagerly anticipating the release of the next book in the series. I highly recommend it.

Obligatory disclosure: I received a free copy of this on Netgalley to read and review. That doesn't impact my review in any way.

Euthalia and Conri share this story with alternating points of view. She is the Queen of the last remaining “free” kingdom, and he is a former prince of a kingdom long gone but now known as the Slave King. He plots his revenge against the upstart emperor Anure, who savagely tore their world apart as he conquered his new empire. She tries to hold her kingdom together while stalling against the emperor who wants to make her his bride. This is a book that drew me in and caught my attention right away with the world and character building.

I’ve come to discover that fantasy romances are slipping into my reading more and more, and I enjoyed this one as much as I hoped I would. The characters and world-building are very detailed, and I could easily imagine them living in their world and the lives they lead. I also very much enjoyed the snark and wit within the dialogues of the characters. It kept me engaged and thoroughly entertained. I found myself being the person laughing on a plane and not regretting it. I very much enjoyed this story and as it ended I was left needing more! I will be reading the next book as soon as it comes out!

The main characters have a depth to them but there is also so much room for growth and character development in this story as it continues into a series. I enjoyed the detailed descriptions; it brought me closer to the characters, though I know that isn’t for everyone. I’m one of those who likes more description in novels and this one very well done in The Orchid Throne. I very much enjoyed this story and as it ended I was left needing more! I will be reading the next book as soon as it comes out!

I will say the first few chapters were hard for me to get into, but then it finally clicked. This is a bit different for me and more of a slow burn on the romance part. It is slowly paced, and with nothing to keep you entertained while waiting for the action. Another issue for this novel is that there is no clear distinction when going from one POV to the other. Leaves you wondering which character your reading from. I think that if the character development had been stronger then less justification would have been needed for their certain actions. The plot line is fairly typical of many fantasy/romance stories and while I'm fine with that, I do expect to see strong characters and powerful world building.

This novel seemed like it would be an epic fantasy, and the synopsis seemed promising. However, this book was not well-written. It seemed as if the author was telling me the story rather than showing. The characters seemed so detached that I could not connect to them. Still, the author is very creative and created a world. I recommend this for fans of Elise Kova.

I was provided with an ARC of this title from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Lia and Conri are meant to be. Even though they are strangers and enemies, their entwined destinies were written in the stars and the blood-soaked soil of their homeland.

Lia is betrothed to a madman. She keeps him from sealing their vows by rigidly protecting her virtue. Time is not her ally, and she knows Anure will soon claim her.

Then a rebel king lands in her domain. He has a violent history, a fearsome reputation, and a tenacity that intimidates her. She senses that he may be the key to saving her and Calanthe.

But she does not expect his unswerving loyalty, carefully hidden vulnerability or genuine affection. Conri is everything she never expected, and everything she needs.

This book has elegant banter, vivid characters, and an intricate plot. I became lost in the world and connected with the characters.