A bit more action than the first two books. Had a rushed ending. The romance was still the weakest part of the novel.

A princess now a Queen, her true love finally reunited, but an old enemy still seeks vengeance and with more people questioning her place as queen and her relationship... soon Princess Amarande will have to fight tooth and nail for what is hers. Having escaped a forced wedding, killing the man who would take everything from her, and rescuing her beloved Amarande has finally made it out alive and is back in her kingdom and has been named Queen. Yet her murderous mother still lives and the man she thought she killed has survived and both are intent on taking away her kingdom. It does not help that the other kings and rulers in The Sand and Sky are holding fast onto the patriarchal laws and are intent on dethroning Amarande and denying her relationship with Luca. With enemies gathering all around, war on the break, and the fact that both Amarande’s people and Luca’s people and the council would oppose their relationship and union, Amarande and Luca will do anything to protect their kingdoms and their vow of love to each other. This was a beautiful ending to the trilogy, filled with adventure, romance, complicated relationships, politics, and so much more. The relationship between all the characters was so well fleshed out and the romance and relationship between Amarande and Luca has been a shining star in the series, both of them love and support one another, they believe in each other and are pillars of strength for one another. I adored reading this trilogy and have been so lucky to get to read the arcs of these books. Thank you so much, I highly recommend this series for fans of romance and adventure, for fans of a story that would combine The Princess Bride and Game of Thrones, and for fans of stories with strong female protagonist and sweet love interests as well as complex villains.

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tor Teen for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

I would like to thank #netgalley for the opportunity to read the eArc of #TheKingWillKillYou by #SarahHenning.
I have to say I loved the book. It kept a nice brisk pace while still giving characters their special moments. My heart aches for Ferdinand in this book and all he has to struggle with in terms of both mothers Koldo and Geneva. Luca and Amarande’s relationship continues to grow and they finally find themselves at a satisfying conclusion but an unexpected one that will change the Sand and Sky forever.

What I Liked: Luca and Amarande’s love is as unwavering as ever in this third installment of the Kingdoms of Sand and Sky. This is refreshing because many books would drive conflict by having the inevitable couple fight or face betrayal before ultimately coming back together. This book stays true to their love and the power they can wield together.
They start out on the precipice of everything ready to work out. Luca has defeated the fake Warlord and is ready to heal his country, Torrence. Amarande is now Queen of Ardenia without the stipulation of having to marry and can finally serve her people. They vow to stay together as they work towards progress for their people.
That all changes when it is revealed that somehow Price Renard is back from the dead and he carries the vote to keep the Patriarchy and the ancient rules intact so that Amarande cannot rule her country. Then the other newly appointed kings agree that it is too dangerous to have Luca and Amarande marry and unite their power. Amarande is completely frustrated at the stonewalling she is receiving due to her gender and not her abilities.
They must also face that her mother is determined to keep her power as Warlord in Torrence and plans to kill Luca. Surrounded by loyal friends, Luca and Amarande must face these roadblocks by outsmarting and outfighting them. Their plan to defeat the Warlord and Renard comes with surprising tragedies that will keep you turning the pages to find out how it will all work out.
What Left Me wanting more: The fun references to the movie, The Princess Bride, was not as much a part of the story as it was in the first book. The themes of the patriarchy and the lack of a women’s self-determination became the main focus of this storyline making the action stall out a bit in places as Amarande dealt with the mental and emotional toll it was taking on her.
Final Verdict: It was fun to revisit these characters in this third installment of the series. It became more than just a fantasy story as it addressed gender inequality and stood up to the idea that ancient traditions no longer serving the people should be stopped.

Let me start by saying, I had super high hopes for this despite its predecessor being a little bit of a roadbump. Alas I can't say I loved it.

King starts off where Queen left off with our happy couple taking their thrones. Or so it seems. King's whole premise is the defense of those crowns and trying to justify that they are deserved by both Luca and Amarande. Basically, it initially feels like its going to be a tale of convincing their peers that they are both mature enough and seen as the rightful heirs by their respective peoples. Then it takes a weird turn that I feel like it never recovered from.

If you have read the previous novels, you know that a certain someone returns from the dead. Like, majority of their blood supply was on the floor and they were starting to decay, dead. While this could have been amazing, it felt a little like the author just didn't want to expand on another person in order to have a villain

Once again the scenery is frequently changing and well fleshed out. Partially because it is the same scenery from the previous novelks, but hey, why change a good thing

The battle scenes were for the most part, fantastic. Was a fave of mine killed off? Yes. But was it done in a way that made me not so mad about it? Also yes. I feel that any time Henning writes battle on a grandiose scale, they are a winner and her streak doesn't come to an abrupt end here.

But speaking of abrupt endings, after much chasing of certain people around the countryside and planning to make everything right, King's ending was less than desirable in my opinion. It felt rushed once the final pieces of the puzzle were in place with the final battle to the HEA taking around 40 pages (as far as I can tell from the egalley). With so much else happening in the lead up, I wanted a bang where instead I got a pop and then a fizzle.

Overall this is not a bad conclusion to a series that has otherwise intrigued me. Its full of action, adventure and treachery, but alas the experienced was soured due to some less than enviable plotting and an ending that felt a little unfinished

#TheKingWillKillYou #NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher of this novel for the E-Arc copy. I am rating this book based on my own personal opinion and was not given anything in return. I am not leaving a entire review because I read so many at a time that I physically cannot right now.

This book was absolutely fantastic. I've already added it to our list for order this year and will recommend it to students.

If I could review this book with a single word it would be “woah”. Cause one thing is damn sure I’m gonna re-read this book quite a lot. This book was so good. I was hooked on to it since the very beginning, all the plot twists literally kept me on my toe throughout my read and I loved every single minute of it. The characters were fun too. All in all, a full 5 stars read for me.

I’ve been following this series for a few years now and it’s safe to say that this was one of my most favourite conclusions to date. I really did end up loving this book way more than I expected to. I absolutely loved the first few books in the series, I was a little concerned at first but of course henning managed to evaporate every concern I had left. 5/5 stars!

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 conclusion to The Kingdoms of Sand and Sky young adult trilogy does not disappoint. Surprises keep everyone off balance and treachery abounds, but Amarande and Luca stay true to themselves and each other. Along with family and friends, they battle for peace and the prosperity and happiness that follows. Always.