REVIEW PROVIDED BY: Kelly
NUMBER OF HEARTS: 4
Crush the King follows Queen Everleigh and her friends into the annual Regalia Games and what could possibly be their final stand against the Mortans.

Wait... What.... No..... I need more pages.... *frantically clicking kindle for the next page*. This was my original reaction when I finished Crush the King.

I did enjoy this book very much but wanted more. More pages, more story, more Sullivan. I was not ready to leave yet. But I am thankful after the major angst from Protect the Prince that there was not that level of angst again. My poor heart couldn’t have handled it again.

Crush the King was a bit slow moving for me. Great story but slow. I was happy with how much Everleigh has grown over the course of these three books. And truly loved her ability to play the long game and how each piece of the puzzle fell into place.

It took me a bit to regroup and realize that this trilogy is over. But I am really, really hoping that there will be spin offs and that the publisher will realize that there are so many more stories that need to be told. I love the world that Jennifer has created and hope that we will get to come back to Bellona again soon.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Edelweiss, NetGalley & Harper Collins/Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

This series has been amazing! It's one of those that you are really sorry when it's over. I loved how the lead character, Evie, has been able to rise to the challenges of becoming the queen. Evie choses to stop playing defense and go on the offensive. It was great to see her make her own choices and how she ultimately deals with the threats was beautiful. She survives the constant threats to her life and the lives of her friends. Her friends are all different and have their own histories that are woven into the story well. I really liked that there was romance but is wasn't the graphic kind that you see so often these day. It was a satisfying ending. It ends with triumph and hope for everyone's future. I wish there was more! Maybe a spin off? Hint hint?

How to describe this series... I had stockpiled the entire trilogy in ARCs from work because a coworker thought the first one looked like it might be my speed and finally started reading the first book the day the third one showed up on our shelf. The entire series is totally bonkers but in a very fun, "you have to keep reading!" kind of way. It's a YA fantasy except the characters are old enough that they can have guilt-free steamy sex scenes. I had many, many problems with the story -- the heroine has been told her entire life that her magic is worthless but her ability is a sense of smell so strong she can SMELL EMOTIONS??? like uhhhh if you're going into politics that kind of seems like... obviously the best magic ability? Forget throwing lightning or her actual secret secondary magical ability, which is to control other people's magic, she can SMELL WHEN PEOPLE LIE TO HER. Come on. Also her love interest is supposedly a grown man but throws a literal temper tantrum when, *after he has told her that he will never be with her, ever, stop asking*, she arranges a political marriage for herself, which... whatever, men are babies, news at eleven. And all the political maneuvering is telegraphed a mile in advance. Yet, at the same time, these books are incredibly entertaining! They got me out of a reading slump and kept me going for several long commutes! You'll know when you're in the mood for ridiculous fantasy with a lady in leather trousers on the cover; save this series for that moment. I think any Sarah J. Maas fan would be delighted to give these a try.

When I stated this series I thought there would be a lot of books to it; however, it feels as if this is a trilogy. Like many of Estep’s other books I could not put this one down. She has magic through her words to make me keep reading. I felt that Evie has grown each one of these books more and more, developing into a character that I love and am proud of. I love the world, the characters, and the ending. If this is the end, which I feel it is, I enjoyed the series and know that Estep has more amazing works to come.