ARC PROVIDED IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW

This is my first Kerri Maniscalco, though I’ve been intrigued by Jack the Ripper which I will read soon, but I was so surprised to be addicted to the writing and the story as well. I was really taking my time because I didn’t want it to be over and wait for *sigh* an entire year for book 2. I love everything in this book, although I wish the romance was more developed as well as the description (action, fight, things like that). I wanted—needed more scene with Wrath because I just love him. He wasn’t what I thought he would be (except at the end).

I was excited for book 2 up until the end because I feel like there’s going to be a love triangle. I may be wrong, which I really hope because I hate love triangle and it’s a direct DNF for me. But I say that I "feel like" because I don’t know Kerri Maniscalco and I don’t know if love triangles is her thing, which I really hope is not since Audrey and Thomas are endgames. But if book 2 ends up being a love triangle, I’m sorry but I’m out, which again, I wish I’m not because I NEED EMILIA AND WRATH TOGETHER. I WONT REST UNTIL IT HAPPEN.

***Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. The expected release date is October 27, 2020.***

🎃🎃🎃🎃
3.5 - 4 stars

I LOVED the "Stalking Jack the Ripper" series by Kerri Maniscalco, so I was VERY excited to find out a new series was to be released. Imagine my surprise (after a particularly crappy day at work) to receive an ARC ❤️.

For me, just about everything in the story was perfect for this time of year...creepy settings, witches, princes of Hell, you name it.

In a strange twist of irony, I believe that I enjoyed reading about the various princes that were introduced in the story more than the main female lead. Obviously looking forward to the next book to see where the story leads.

Kingdom of the Wicked is set in Sicily in late 19th century. We meet Emilia and her twin sister Vittoria, who are witches following a long tradition in their family. From birth on they have been inducted to protect themselves by charms and wards to avoid falling into the hands of the wicked princes of hell. Something they’ve heeded nearly always. Nearly always. When her twin is killed Emilia feels responsible. She raises a demon to help her find the killer and take her revenge on him, but she is in for a surprise.

Her ally soon turns out to be one of the seven princes of hell himself. Do I need to spell it out for you how close the two of them might become? Or will she keep holding up her torch for her childhood friend turned monk?

You might think it is a bit predictable. It is, but it has a very inventive magic system and the world building is executed quite well. If you like Kerri Maniscalco’s writing, you’ll certainly enjoy this first in a new series.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of KINGDOM OF THE WICKED in exchange for my honest review.

I've read works by Kerri Maniscalco before so I went into Kingdom of the Wicked with high hopes and I am glad to say that I was not disappointed! The story of the witch twins who happen to be part of a long-time-coming prophecy immediately caught my attention...witches, sexy wicked men, talk of light and dark, demons, angels, and more...HELLO, how could I possibly say no?!?!

I dove in headfirst into this novel and didn't come up for air the entire time. I read it in a single day, no regrets, and immediately put it on my highly recommended list. Kerri always has a way of creating characters you can instantly fall in love with and even those you wish you could be. I saw that in Emilia and I wanted nothing more than to be sucked into this world of magic with her. I really loved the concept of The Wicked and the story behind the Gates of Hell and Horns of Hades, I was fascinated and am eager to learn more about how this will play out moving into book two!

Let's talk about the ending for a second...because, like, what the heck Kerri!!! Watching that percentage on my kindle go from 97, 98, 99, and hitting 100 so quickly when I knew there just had to be more killed me!! It ended...boom,...done...left me hanging by a single branch off the cliff and I have so many mixed emotions going on I may need therapy until book two is released. Kerri tugs at those heart stings then tears them out with her final chapter...and now I am left utterly hungover and needing more.

I cannot express how eager I am for book two and I know this will be an instant buy for me when they are released because this was THAT good!!!

Rating rounded to 4.5 stars.

I’ve never read a book by Kerri Maniscalco before, and I was really excited to finally try one. I was certainly not disappointed. The writing was comfortable and natural, and I found it easy to get lost in the story.

The story is set in Sicily, at some unspecified point in the past. Emilia and Vittoria are twins, and hide among the humans, avoiding threats like witch hunters and the Wicked, who are princes of Hell to be avoided at all costs. So when her twin sister doesn’t show up for her shift at the family restaurant, their overprotective and superstitious Nonna goes a little overboard with her suspicions, especially since other witches have recently been killed in the area. Emilia isn’t *too* concerned, since Vittoria is the wild child of the family. But when she finds her sister’s mutilated body, she is consumed by an overwhelming desire for vengeance that leads her down a dark and dangerous path. As she became wrapped up in her quest, she stopped doing all the things she used to do, and stopped working, stopped spending time with her family and friends, and even seemed to cut ties to her family in order to hunt down whoever was responsible for her sister’s death.

Emilia quickly becomes involved in dark magic, and crosses paths with Wrath, one of the Wicked. There’s an unexpectedly hot sexual tension that builds between the two enemies as they’re forced to work together. I was also pleasantly surprised by how funny the book was. There were plenty of spooky elements involved in the story as well — witches, demons, princes of Hell, magic, murder, and mystery, making it a perfect read for the month of October, without being too scary. Additionally, since the family owns a famed restaurant, the descriptions of food were descriptive and sounded so delicious that it made me crave Italian food to the point where I couldn’t keep reading without ordering some! So be prepared to get hungry when you start reading this.

I cannot wait to read more of this series, and I’m hooked on Kerri Maniscalco’s writing. It had an authentic Italian flavor, not just the food, but the family environment, the language, and the customs. This book hasn’t even come out and I’m already so ready for book 2!

This was one of the best books I've read all year and I need the second book immediately!
The story took no time in getting started, within a few chapters it jumped right into the action and from then on I was completely hooked. I really struggled to put this book down while reading.
If you love the enemies to lovers trope you will be completely obsessed with this book just like me! I'd also recommend reading this if you're a fan of The Cruel Prince or Caraval. Actually, I just recommend reading this full stop. It's a fantastic book.
I've been meaning to the read the author's other works for a long time now and have moved up Stalking Jack the Ripper on my tbr list because I really love this author's writing, it's so powerful and descriptive. I was really impressed by how she conveyed such strong emotions through the beautiful writing.
The ending was everything I was hoping for. All the pieces of the puzzle came together and it everything clicked into place. I was left shocked but seriously impressed by that final sentence.
So yes, I gave this book 5 stars because it's incredible. I really recommend preordering a copy before it's out on the 27th of October!

This book just did not do it for me. It definitely wasn’t horrible, and there were some aspects that I thoroughly enjoyed, but overall it was not the reading experience I was hoping for.

First of all, the romance. I was very much hoping for another swoon-worthy romance like Audrey Rose and Thomas Cresswell, but I was just not into this at all. I’m not even sure if we’re supposed to ship these two characters, because…I felt nothing. I think a huge reason why the romance wasn’t convincing was because honestly, the characters just weren’t that interesting.

I really didn’t love any of the characters. The MC, Emilia, made quite a few foolish decisions. The love interest, Wrath, was such a basic ‘cold, closed-off, and broody’ YA boy that it almost made me roll my eyes.

The magic in the book is very unoriginal. There is nothing new or unique brought to the table, and the concept of magic and witchcraft is not expanded at all. I was hoping for something more interesting, but I didn’t really enjoy the role that it had in the story. The book suffers a lot from telling rather than showing. For example, we kept being told how ruthless and dangerous and deadly Wrath was, but he didn’t really do anything particularly bad. He wasn’t even really mean to Emilia. If anything, she was more mean to him.

There were a lot of inconsistencies in the plot. I thought the overall idea of the story sounded very promising. A young woman being driven by the need to avenge her sister: I was so excited to read about that. Unfortunately, it fell flat for me. However, I did really like the writing style. The descriptions were extremely vivid (the food!) and the story was very atmospheric. I think this is a good October/fall read, and if someone really enjoys witches I think they could potentially really enjoy this story. I enjoyed the beginning, and was extremely interested as the story was just starting out. However, I started losing interest towards the middle and then never really got it back.

Thank you to JIMMY Patterson Books for sending me an ARC via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
5/5 stars.
I loved everything about this book. I loved the plot, the characters, the magic, the descriptions of food, and the atmosphere that hung over it all. It was dark and creepy, but it also had moments of light.
Emilia is such a strong character. I liked how the author gave us insight into her grieving process because it made it more realistic. Her emotions bouncing around, and the way that she would be feeling happy and then she would feel guilty because she didn’t think she should be happy were heartbreaking moments. I also loved Emilia’s relationship with Wrath (the banter!) and the way that it evolved.
Wrath is one of those characters that I absolutely love. From the first moment he was introduced, I knew he’d be one of my favourite characters of the book, and I was not wrong. Everything about him is exactly what I love in my dark not-hero characters. I liked seeing the different sides to his character throughout the story, and I’m eagerly awaiting the next book so that I can get more of Wrath.
The plot moved really well in this book. I thought the pacing was realistic and it kept everything moving forward at a good pace. The ending felt like it picked up because things started to happen and I couldn’t put the book down.
Overall, if you like dark mystery books with witches and demons, some wonderful banter with an enemies-to-lovers tension behind it, and a strong female character who is grieving and trying to solve a mystery at the same time, I’d recommend checking this one out.

Check out my review on my bookstagram page (alli_the_bookaholic13) next week! (Oct 18-24)

OH MY GOD



*Thank you to the author and NetGalley for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

<b>4.5 stars</b>

Holy COW

I <b>loved</b> this

I mean it sounded good, but it seems to be a regular occurrence whereby I am thoroughly <b>SEDUCED</b> by a books blurb, only to then be left <b>REELING</b> in disappointment

but oh baby this book did NOT disappoint

I have yet to read Maniscalco's previous series, Stalking Jack the Ripper, which is on my tbr but I may just have to boost up to the top of my list because this.was.freaking.GOOD YALL.

I went into this with zero expectations and was left totally and pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. ALSO it was so much sexier and darker than I anticipated and I cannot WAIT for the sequel. It has been a long time since I've read the first book in a series that left me dying to get the next one which isn't even out yet. This is gonna be a loooong wait. What am I supposed to do now?

I loved this book. It took be like a day to read this book. It was that great. There is murder mystery and magic with demons so it was very interesting reading he story. Mostly the book follows Emilia who is the not the adventures twin, but her world is turn upside down when her twin is killed by something supernatural, so to find who murdered here sister se summons a demon or one of the prince of hell who has his own agenda for helping her. The end of the story was so good, that I can’t wait what will happens in next books, the story and the characters are very interesting. This book is a great read and one of my favourites of the year.

This was a perfectly creepy October read. Having read the author’s Stalking Jack the Ripper series, I knew I was in for a treat, but this story takes it to a new level. Witches, curses, demons and princes of hell - it all makes our old-school vampire love stories look like child’s play. This is the first book in a new series, so naturally our heroine doesn’t know who to trust or if she’s making the best choices, but she’s kick ass and I can’t wait to follow her on her journey.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

From the moment I saw the cover for A Kingdom So Wicked I knew it was something I needed to read. I was already a huge fan of the authors but with the alluring cover and amazing description, I knew it would be the perfect read for October and it's so gratifying to know, I was 100% right!

This is filled with all the good stuff. Curses, demons, angels, mystery, a tiny bit of romance, family bonds, magic and of course all things supernatural.

Truly a delightfully dark read perfect for this time of year, for fan's of the genre, fans of the authors and will surly make new readers for the author, instant fans as well.

This was the perfect October read. It has witches, demons, curses and so much more.

I really enjoyed Emilia and loved seeing her grow into her power and confidence.

I like that she is not perfect and makes mistakes and has moments of weakness, but always dusts of her dress and gets back up.

Wrath, well. He was a bit hard to judge, he seemed nice enough but we really don’t know much if him, other some of the thigs he does and we see from her eyes. But we really don’t know what he is up to and what he really does. But I enjoyed him for the most part.

I actually enjoyed all the princes of Hell, or least the ones we have met. Yes, they are not nice but hey, they are princes of Hell after all.

I also like the “who done it?” murder aspect gave it a bit more of a mystery feeling.

We get a little of everything in this book, mystery, romance, action and some twists and turn.

Some of the things I saw coming early on, but I still super enjoyed and it had my heart racing a few times.

The ending? I didn’t see that coming, well at least not that way but I’m super excited for the next book in the series and this series in general.

I rate it 4 ★ as some parts were a bit on the slower site in the beginning.

"Why do villains always wear black?"
"Better to hide the blood with, witch."

When Emilia's twin is murdered, she goes down the path of darkness to find her vengeance.

Really, that's the whole book. Some witty banter between enemies to lovers...just so.

Bottom line? The story is good. It's unpredictable in plot, though the enemies to lovers thing is glaringly obvious from the beginning. It truly is difficult for a person like me to NOT be able to predict exactly what will happen next. But I just did not buy the dynamic between Emilia and Wrath. I can’t put my finger on it, but their dialogue doesn’t always make sense. She beats him too easily in conversation and it seems too contrived. Like the author is desperately trying to sell the enemies to lovers trope. And she almost does...almost. Just not quite.

It occurred to me while reading this that just once I’d like to read about a witch human male that meets a badass female who knows SHE is the most lethal predator in the room. Just once. Maybe I’ll write that book. One day. But I digress.

I really think the book just needed a better edit. There seem to be scenes that have either been eviscerated, or were never properly hashed out. Things that happen so quick I had to go back and reread to make sure I didn’t miss something because it happened without enough description. Every action scene lacks enough detail to make me invested in it, to be captivated by it. If anyone ever wants me to edit a book, please! I will! It destroys me to see such potential that just doesn't quite make par.

And in the end it was terribly unsatisfactory. This book breaks my cardinal rule of a series book. I don’t mind ending on a cliffhanger, but no part of this story is complete. This book is short because it is not it’s own story. It cannot stand alone and should not be sold alone. Bleh.

3/5, massively overhyped and underedited. But with enormous potential. Someone please send me the next one to edit and not to review!!!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC! Wow, this ending! I have to read the next book as soon as possible! This is the perfect Halloween read. Maniscalco spins a tale about witches, demons (sexy demons!), even Vampires and werewolves. Join Emilia as she searches for her sister's murderer and finds herself pulled deeper and deeper into dark magic and her families secrets. This was a thrilling ride and, like I said, I can't wait for the next book!

Firstly let me just say thank you to Netgalley and James Patterson Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I requested a copy never believing I'd actually be granted access and I squealed like a pig when I received the email.

I'm a huge fan of the author's Stalking Jack the Ripper series so when I read the description of this book earlier this year it quickly shot to the top of my anticipated reads list.

Emilia and Vittoria are twin witches living and working with their family in historic Italy. They do their best to keep their witchy ancestry hidden from the locals.

Emilia visits the local church one night to retrieve a forgotten item when she finds her sister brutally murdered with a prince of hell standing over her sister's body. This sends her on a journey of forbidden dark magic.

The story was beautifully written. I was sucked in from the very first page to the very last. It's dark, it's wicked and it's even a little bit romantic. It's exactly what I look for in October.

The main characters were well developed and relatable. That being said, the supporting characters barely did just that, support. I would have enjoyed more interaction between Emilia and her family. How did her family account for her going from always around and very involved to frequently missing? Repercussions of her actions have an affect on members of her family and it's mentioned in passing.

I cannot wait to see where this story goes after that ending!

Also maybe don't read this book on an empty stomach? The descriptions of food are numerous and detailed.

Very enjoyable story with an atmosphere that kept me drawn in. I'm almost always a sucker for human/non-human pairings, so the tension between Wrath and Emilia was great.

There were a few times the wrong name, a misspelled word, or a confusing passage made me pause and reread a few times, but I expect/hope those errors will be corrected in the final copies. I did call a couple of the "big reveals" early on, so the story is a bit predictable in some ways. I also had a hard time trying to figure out when this story is set; there's mention of the Inquisition, but not much in terms of how recent/long ago it was in relation to events.

Overall, I did very much like the story. There are things I wish had had more prominence, especially when they're bombshells to Emilia as well as us readers, but given how this installment ended they'll hopefully be explored more in the next book.

Also, that dress scene was lifted straight out of Legend and we all know it 😂

Hot demon princes, tattoo magic, underworlds, witches in Italy, and a high stakes murder mystery. Need I say more?

Concept: ★★★★★
Characters: Besides the main character being more dumb than fully believable? ★★★★
Pacing: ★★★ 1/2
Enjoyment: ★★★★★

Kingdom of the Wicked comes out on October 27, 2020!

Emilia di Carlo grew up with her twin, Vittoria, on tales of witches and demons. Their grandmother raised them to learn about their witch bloodline and magical abilities and taught them to fear the devil and his seven Wicked princes—because there's nothing more dangerous to a witch and her kind than a demon. And there are no demons more powerful and deadly than the Wicked.

Emilia takes—what she thinks as metaphorical—cautions to heart, and she thinks her twin does too.

But then Vittoria is found brutally murdered. Turns out there have been a string of young female witch killings throughout Italy, and Vittoria is the latest victim. As Emilia reels from the loss of her other half, she starts to realize that maybe Vittoria didn't take their grandmother's warnings as seriously as she did—and maybe those "stories" of the Wicked demon princes have more than a grain of truth in them.

With vengeance and blind need for justice in her heart, Emilia decides to follow in the steps of her sister and deal with the devil in order to find out the truth.

But Emilia has never summoned a demon before. To put it bluntly, her summoning doesn't go exactly as planned. Instead of a random, everyday demon from Hell...Emilia finds herself face to face with her nightmares: it's one of the Wicked demons himself, Wrath. In all his gold-and-smoke tattooed glory.

And she may or may not have bound them together more permanently than she intended. Wrath is, to say the least, pissed.

Now bound together, Emilia and Wrath are about to discover the truth behind Vittoria's murder and get WAY more than either of them bargained for.

It's time to wreak havoc on the Kingdom of the Wicked.

My thoughts:
So, first off, WOW. As someone who's read and enjoyed this author's first (completely unrelated) series, I thought this book showed a massive leap in writing maturity and plot complexity. Don't get me wrong, I loved the Stalking Jack the Ripper series for its drama, medical stuff, and fun—but Kingdom of the Wicked is something else. It's clear that Maniscalco is honing her craft and exploring new storytelling in this, and I LIKE it.

The strengths: worldbuilding, concepts, push-pull relationship between Wrath and Emilia, unique magic system and take on the "underworld" trope, and the larger plot hinted at for future books to come.

The weaknesses: There's really only one major flaw from my perspective, and that's Emilia herself. This book fell into the trap of making the main character too dumb to be believed for the first half of the book in order to allow for the plot unfold in a very particular series of events—and it's too on the nose. Emilia makes extremely illogical, dumb, and borderline childish decisions for the sake of plot development, and that stung a bit to me as a reader. With such a beautiful concept, world, and plot, why did we need Emilia to stumble about like a bull in a china shop? She does get much better in the second half—so that makes me think this issue will be fixed in the second book—but still.

Overall, amazing book and one of my all-time favorites of the year. Definitely check this one out!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Huge thank you to JIMMY Patterson Books and Negalley for providing this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Kingdom of the Wicked is my first venture into Kerri Maniscalo’s writing. I have always been super intrigued by her Stalking Jack the Ripper series, but I just haven’t gotten around to it. Gotta love that never ending TBR! Now that I’ve read Kingdom of the Wicked I am definitely hooked on Kerri’s writing.

Kingdom of the Wicked tells the story of Emilia and Vittoria di Carlo, twin witches who live nineteenth century Sicily. The twins spend their days hiding in plain sight and cooking at the family restaurant . . . until Vittoria is brutally murdered. Emilia sets off on a journey full of dark magic and ends up teaming up with Wrath, one of the Wicked princes of Hell.

Kingdom of the Wicked is a solid 3.5 star read for me. It was an exciting story full of action, mystery, and magic. There are parts I loved and parts that I thought were just ok.

My favorite part of Kingdom of the Wicked is the setting. It is simply stunning. Seriously go google pictures of Palermo, Italy and your jaw will drop. Maniscalco did an excellent job with her descriptions and truly painting a picture of the scenery. I have been to Italy, but just Rome and up from there. This story made me want to visit Sicily and Southern Italy. Simply stunning!!

This is also true for the food! My mouth was literally watering with all of the amazing food descriptions. Everything sounded so delicious! I love how Maniscalco seamlessly wove in food and cooking to the story. I feel like I really understand how much cooking is a part of Emilia’s life!

One super random thing that I loved about Kingdom of the Wicked is the mention of the card game Scopa. My mom is 100% Italian so all of our family gatherings are VERY Italian. Members of my family have been playing Scopa at every single gathering since I can remember. I never actually learned to play, but I totally associate Scopa with my family. It was so fun for me to see the game mentioned!

Another thing that I really loved about Kingdom of the Wicked is the Wicked! I am fascinated by the Princes of Hell!!! I was hooked from the second Emilia meets Wrath. He is such a great “enemies to lovers” trope . . . dark, mysterious, and a bit evil! My only complaint is that I want more of him. I feel like we got very minimal actual interaction between Wrath and Emilia. I want more!!! I have a feeling that the sequel will have lots more! And the other demon princes were so sinister! They make great villains!!

And now for the not so great things . . . my primary complaint about Kingdom of the Wicked is the pacing. Everything happened very quickly and felt super rushed. To me, it feels like not a whole lot actually happened in this book. This goes along with wanting more of Wrath and Emilia interactions. I just wanted more, but everything seemed rushed. My other issue was that the plot was fairly predictable. I guessed who the murderer was almost immediately and I also could see Emilia’s journey coming from miles away. That being said, I still really enjoyed the plot. It was exciting, mysterious, and definitely captivating! This was a super fast read and I really enjoyed it!

Kingdom of the Wicked ends on a pretty big cliffhanger. I’m keeping this review spoiler free so all I’ll say is that I am excited to see what Emilia has up her sleeve in the next book! I’m definitely excited to explore more of the Kingdom of the Wicked.

KINGDOM OF THE WICKED WILL BE RELEASED OCTOBER 27TH BY JIMMY PATTERSON BOOKS!

Absolutely loved this book. It’s different her her previous series, a little more grown up and darker. I can’t wait to read the rest of this series.