Everything comes to a head in the last volume of the Royals series. Hartley is struggling with amnesia from a car accident that left Sebastian in a coma. She is befriended by manipulative rich bitch Felicity, who pays Kyle to pose as Hartley’s boyfriend–they and other students try to convince her she was a slut. Her parents have taken her back in, but something is off, and she’s not cognizant she was living estranged from her family due to her DA dad’s shady dealings. Meanwhile, irrepressible, immature but warm and caring Easton Royal seems to be the only warm, steady presence in her life.

The novel plays out in some parallels to the romance between Elle and Reed’s, along with some outrageous and over the top melodramatic plot points. Easton’s character growth is most satisfying when it comes from a place of his wanting to evolve and not someone trying to force change upon him or fix him.

Like other unputdownable books in the series, this gritty new adult dramatic romance featuring high school students is fast-paced, and details of wealth, abuse, addiction, extravagance, and privilege are both fascinating and eye-rolling.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #CrackedKingdom from #NetGalley.

Once again, another fun book in this series, and a great end to the Royals. Filled with all the drama, angst, spice, and suspense, I loved how it all ended. I’ll definitely be sad to say goodbye to the Royals, but look forward to more by this author!

*many thanks to Berkley romance, and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

2.5 Stars

Easton and Hartley have more drama and obstacles to contend with. The fall took Hartley’s memories and she struggles with her feeling for Easton. He has to make sure he doesn’t slide backwards into his normal toxic behavior now that there are so many dangers lurking around them.

This has to be my least favorite book in the series. I have mentioned multiple times that this series is over the top and it went so far over the top that I couldn’t hang on. The author made every single ploy so outrageous that I had to question the characters in the book.

The book picks right up where the last one left off. Hartley now has amnesia and she can’t remember anything. She is surrounded by multiple snakes and she doesn’t trust Easton. Why should she? I don’t know why she is back in school and walking around like everything is okay when she doesn’t remember anything. Seems a bit farfetched.

Then there is the convenience of adding “Kyle” to the story. I didn’t understand adding another character at this stage but the author did and he didn’t have a real purpose. I felt like the author needed to work on some of the unnecessary details she threw in the story. This book didn’t need any fillers for sure. Callum is nowhere to be found while one of his sons is in a coma. The parents continue to be all over the place. The author wraps up the Steve issue very conveniently. The same fashion she did with Hartley’s father.

Overall, this series had a great run. If you want to read drama, suspense and spiciness, then I recommended reading the entire series.

~ Samantha

This was a great conclusion to the series. Hartley's life has been a series of ups and downs since meeting Easton Royal. She has enemies everywhere and needs to watch her step. This proves challenging when a car accident steals her memories and she realizes she can't trust anyone, not even, Easton Royal, the guy she feels drawn to who promises her that everything will be alright. Without her memories to rely on how can she trust anything he says? Especially when every instinct is telling her that the boy is trouble and chaos follows him everywhere. Easton is desperate for Hartley to remember but she thinks it might be better to forget. Yet, somehow she can't seem to stay away.

Entertaining characters, engaging plot, questionable antics, emotional story line... all my favorite things in a read. This writing duo can do no wrong, from beginning to end their Royals have captivated every bit of my attention. I really hope there is more to come for these Royals!! Highly recommend!

I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving my honest and unbiased opinion.

What a journey. I absolutely love this series! The drama is…chef’s 💋

I’m not normally a fan of plot lines that include the amnesia trope, but this one really worked, in my opinion.

Easton Royal really pulled at my heart strings. He’s like a golden retriever but deep down inside he’s twisted up and miserable. I like that the heroine, Hartley, doesn’t “save” him, but instead inspires him to be a better version of himself.

The ending seemed a bit rushed. I would have liked a bit more of Easton and Hartley finding their footing as a couple after the dust settled a bit. There was a set up for another book or two for Sawyer and Sebastian, the twins. I REALLY hope that we get their story. From what I’ve gathered the authors don’t have any plans right now to give them their HEA. They believe that Sawyer and Sebastian deserve a story, so hopefully we will get that. The series doesn’t seem finished or at all complete without it.

4.5⭐️
Cracked Kingdom is the fifth and final book of The Royals series. I’m so sad that this series is over! It’s so addicting and I didn’t want to stop reading it. I’m not ready to say goodbye to this family. Cracked Kingdom picks up where Fallen Heir left off. I have loved Easton from the beginning of this series and couldn’t wait for his story. I have a better understanding as to why he is the way he is. And Hartley is the sweetest! Loved her character and she is perfect for Easton. I enjoyed the angst and suspense in this book and am glad to see these two get their happily ever after. I do wish there was a bit more to the ending as it seemed a bit rushed. And I would love to have the twins and Gideon’s stories.

Amnesia plots are a hard sell for me, but there’s just something about these books that makes you devour them. This is not a stand-alone and the series needs to be read in order. I’m just left wondering if we’re ever going to get the twin’s story?

Thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the chance to review.

I'm happy I read this one. Was it terrific? Nope. But it was much better than the last one and fleshed things out a bit more for me.
This book picks up where the last one left off (so, yes, do not read this one without reading that one because you will be totally lost). But in this book we get no only Easton's POV but also Hartley's, which is what made this book much better than the last one.
The plot thickens with Hartley losing her memories, and Easton struggling to let her gain new ones while not influencing her past.
Easton is a bit different in this book than the last one. More controlled, not such an ass, not so out of control. I still didn't love him. These last two books ruined him for me, and not in a good way. As for Hartley, it was nice to get her POV. In the previous book we only see her through Easton's eyes, and it was hard to really get to know her. This book shows you a different side of her, which definitely made for a better story. Their relationship is interesting but it goes from zero to hot without much build up considering she does not remember them together in any way. Ella wasn't as prominent in this book as she was in the last, so I didn't get to see if the authors changed her for the better (since she was a much less strong character in the last book). And I still do not like the way the authors portrayed the twins. I'm baffled by why they would take them from sweet and quiet to jerks who mouth off. It was such a switch from the first three books.
The writing was better in this book than the last. I'm not sure how the authors write together and what parts they choose to contribute to but I can see Kennedy's hand in this much more than the last book. I still found tons of plot holes that drove me crazy. Plus phrases that, if they had researched, would not have been so wrong. I believe these errors are really due to poor editing. I really expect more from loving Kennedy's other books but this does not deliver that (which is true for pretty much this entire series).
The pacing was pretty fast, though I did feel a struggle at some points to really continue reading.
Overall, better than the last and wraps things up. But that last part with the wedding was really unneeded, in my opinion. I think 3 stars is generous for this book but since it was much better than the last one, I had to rate it higher.

The series has problematic elements that didn’t need to be there.

It gripped me and refused to let go. Erin Watt knows how to create tension, and for all the nonsense, none of it felt unexpected or surprising.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

Erin Watt did it again folks!!! A perfect finale to a lovely, scorching series! While I didn’t love this one as much as Fallen Heir, I still had a good time following along with the story. I hope Erin Watt continues on with this series, even if it’s in the form of a spin-off, because I can’t stop thinking about these characters!! I promise you, if you want a nitty-gritty, spicy, drama infused, toe-curling read, then immediately pick this one up. You won’t regret it!