Someone please tell me how am I supposed to live, laugh and love after that ending? Because wow I’m flabbergasted and thirsting for more. Never in million year did I see that ending coming. I really loved and enjoyed it, can’t wait enough for the next instalment already!

Rise of the Vicious Princess is a YA fantasy (that could also be enjoyed by middle-graders unless the series gets racier) about Charis, a princess who is raised in her mother's shadow to be as ruthless, calculating, and cutting as her mother.

Charis has been her mother's right hand and trained to keep her focus honed on running the kingdom and never trusting or loving anyone. Her father, the king consort, is a sweet and affectionate parent in contrast to her mother's expectations of her accomplishments. After her mother is injured severely, Charis is expected to step in her mother's shoes to fulfill the bulk of her responsibilities and is assigned a new bodyguard, Tal, as a precaution. Charis and her trusted circle, which consists of her bodyguard and twin cousins, must determine which neighboring kingdom is sinking all of their ships as well as who is the traitor on the inside behind multiple assassination attempts. Her bodyguard saves Charis' life more than once and willingly trains her in a secretive fighting style, leaving Charis more and more dependent upon him.

The book is fast-paced with lots of action and has the most horrid cliffhanger. As I eagerly await the sequel, I highly recommend this book for any collection that includes YA fantasy.

Rise of the Vicious Princess is a fantastic ya fantasy that sucked me in from its first pages. A story with dynamic characters and setting, as well as a ton of political intrigue and unexpected revelations, the story follows Princess Charis Willowthorn, a formidable young woman and heir to the throne. Conditioned from a young age to rule, Charis’s mother is unrelenting in her demands and expectations of Charis, and Charis proves she is up for the challenge. Though only seventeen, she is a strong leader, and she faces many difficult challenges. I love her take-charge personality, her diplomacy, and her intelligence.

“Be smarter. Strike harder. Never falter, never waver, never break.”

Charis’s father is the opposite of his wife. Kind and loving, he shows Charis that there is more to life than becoming Queen. I love his gentle way and his unwavering love for his daughter. They have a close relationship, and they bring so much happiness to each other, which Charis doesn’t really have with many people. I think Charis’s father knows she needs someone in her corner, especially after some tragic events occur near the start of the story. That’s why he assigns one of his guards to Charis.

As I mentioned before, the story has a ton of political intrigue, and Charis spends much of her time dealing with the effects of a long-time war, potential new dangers and enemies, and traitors in her midst. It’s never a dull moment for Charis, and she must always be on guard as she tries to figure out how to end the war peacefully, stop all of the killing and destruction, and find out what is happening to all of the ships that seem to have been destroyed by an unidentifiable enemy. Charis is determined to solve the mystery, end the war, and prove her worth to her mother. It makes for a super intense and dramatic read, and the story goes in several unexpected and fascinating directions. Luckily, she has her newly appointed guard Tal to help her maneuver through all of these complicated and potentially dangerous situations.

The romance is one of my favorite parts of the story, which will come as no surprise. I adore a swoon-worthy romance, and this one had all of the elements I love. With a little bit of angst, a lot of pining, and fantastic banter, this couple challenges each other in the best of ways. They also have major enemies-to-lovers vibes, which is one of my favorite romance tropes! I love how their relationship progresses and how they slowly begin to trust and rely on each other. They have great chemistry, though after some of the revelations in this book, I’ll be curious to see how they handle their secrets and feelings of betrayal, not to mention what their future holds.

I couldn’t put this book down! The characters, the romance, the political intrigue, the fantasy elements, the family drama – all of it was entertaining, immersive, and gripping. And that ending! My word, it’s so intense and heart-wrenching, and several secrets are revealed that could change the trajectory of Charis’s journey. I can’t wait to read the next book!

Special thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you to the publisher and author for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review (all opinions are my own).

The book definitely started off with a bang slowed down and then cliffhanger….readers you have been warned. This was a great book from CJ and I absolutely need the second one out. If you like her other books you will like this one she’s a princess that doesn’t need anyone to save her and a girl coming into her own :).

I was completely immersed into the world C.J. Redwine created. Princess Charis is the type of MC I love to read. She is strong, determined, and inquisitive. Charis finds her kingdom under attack and a guard that Charis can not stand and that she thinks is ruthless is forced to protector her. They are given close accommodations. This enemies to lovers story had me swooning. With new creatures and a world lush and intriguing. I already want to dive back in and the ending has me needing the sequel like yesterday. This book has a major twist at the end that I never saw coming. A definite 5 star read!

I really enjoyed this book! I have read most of Redwine's other books and also enjoyed those immensely, so I'm not surprised I enjoyed this one as well. It actually felt quite different from her other books, but was still very engaging. I actually teetered on 4 stars through much of the book as some parts were definitely a bit slow. However, the ending, while I had predicted many elements, came together so nicely and has me so excited to read the next book, that I am bumping it up to 5 stars! I wouldn't say that it was predictable, I just had a few suspicions pop into my head early in the book that turned out to be correct. I thought it was well written and crafted together quite well. I grew to like Charis more, as the story progressed and we learned more about her. I really liked Tal from the get go and throughout. The other supporting characters were engaging as well. This book fits the niche well and reads like many in this genre, with more court politics added in, but it was really entertaining and a fun read! I'm excited to find out what comes next in Charis's story as learn more about the big reveals revealed at the end of this book!

The first in a duology, ‘Rise of the Vicious Princess’ follows the story of Charis, the heir apparent, on a mission to uncover the source of alarmingly increased amounts of attempted regicide happening with the castle; whilst also searching for an end to the long, drawn out war that has left scars on all kingdoms involved. With questions regarding who she can or cannot trust, she navigates a political minefield alone with only the consistent presence of her newly appointed bodyguard, Tal, alongside her. Charis is confident, compassionate, witty, vicious, and smart. She’s a well rounded, accomplished heroine and the author also does a great job at highlighting that people who seemingly have it together the most are often struggling within. Tal is the perfect snarky, laid-back foil to Charis’ high strung personality and their well written dialogue often had me chuckling. In fact, the entire novel depends more on dialogue than exposition to move the plot along; something I personally find more interesting and engaging. This book has many twists that will keep you guessing until literally the last page. All this to say, pre order ‘Rise of the Vicious Princess’ and thank me later.

I received this book from NetGalley. I absolutely loved this book. The main character Charis was strong, and intelligent while learning how to grow. The plot was intriguing and had great twists. If you like political fantasies filled with romance and adventure then you need to read this book..

While the summary of this book reads like an action packed adventure, it is a little misleading. Much of this novel is about the political intrigue surrounding the royal family and the relationships the princess has to deal with. This is NOT a criticism, but merely a redirect of perception from the blurb to how the novel unfolds. If you like political thrills, this is perfect!

Charis is a strong female lead, showing unwavering leadership in the face of a mother who has done nothing but raise her to rule the country after her - unfortunately, not everyone agrees! Charis has to face challenges at every turn, and doesn't really know who to trust. At 17, being pushed to be a ruthless leader by her mother and dealing with the fact that her beloved father's health isn't the best, she is determined to do what it takes to save her country and her people...

This is a great first novel for a series - I am a little disappointed to go back and see this is a duology only. The description of the world and the settings feel very epic - I hope the author reconsiders and chooses to keep the world she has created for a liiiittle bit longer past the two books! I am very much looking forward to the conclusion!

I absolutely loved this book! It was so interesting and full of plot twists that I love. I was never bored throughout this book and the author did a great job creating interesting and unique characters. This is a book that I will reread over again and again. Great book!

This book about a princess coming into power after her mother is attacked had me pretty excited. However, it ended up being far too political for me. I found myself terribly bored with this book. I think it's well-written, but this book is definitely not for me.

Thank you to the publisher and @NetGalley for the E-ARC copy of this book. The rating of this book is entirely of my own opinion. #NetGalley #RiseoftheViciousPrincess

The summary make you think it'll be a more fast paces than it is. I liked the political intrigue and slow burn natural progression of the relationships. The romance we so good! The smuggling doesn't happen until over half way through the book. Once I came to terms that it wasn't going to happen anytime soon I really started to enjoy it. The balance between action and romance was superb! While definitely more of a princess book than a pirate one it was a good read all around.THE ENDING shook me!