The Elf King, Raife Lightstone is the most powerful of all healer throughout the lands of Avalier. He’s been warned by his council that he must take a wife and have heirs within the next year. Or he will be removed from the crown. Raife has a rough history he struggles with. But somewhat unwillingly , he goes in search of a queen.
Kailani, half elf / half human. She gets caught and must pay a penitence. Kailani has an abundance of determination that knows no end. But doesn’t know what her future will hold as she bound for the Elf’s kingdom to serve out her punishment. This series is a great fantasy that is easy to follow along but still kept me up late at night reading.

Well I enjoyed this book alot more than the first. Kailani seems to have a good head on her shoulders but still so stubborn. Seems like a common theme. Raife is very hot/cold as to how he treated Kailiani. Enough to give you whiplash. The story was good and I think the trauma Raife suffered was well written. Although, as with the first, I am more drawn in by the Night Queen. Can't help but wonder about her motivations. I wasn’t sure if i was going to continue the series but I am glad I gave this book a chance. It was a quick read and was ok.

Rating 3.5 stars
*I received a review copy from NetGalley for my voluntary and honest review

First and foremost, thank you to NetGalley, Leia Stone and Bloom for allowing me this RC. All review opinions are my own.

I really wanted to like this. I loved the premise: a young woman taking out a loan to help her sick aunt even knowing she wouldn't be able to pay it back. She is sold into slavery for her debt and then purchased by the Elf King. Her job is being assistant/food taster for him.

This book is riddled with holes and questions and inconsistencies. The FMC is 19yrs old, yet had to be told by the Elf King she's an empath. Wouldn't she know that by now? You're literally taking in other's emotions. We're told she speaks multiple languages and is so smart, yet she seems incredibly naive to the world around her.

Her relationship with Raife is so shallow. Of course, they need to fake marry for Raife to keep his kingdom so there's that trope for fans of it. However, these are the most bland protagonists I've ever read. There should've been this deep trauma the king was experiencing from the death of his entire family however it was just him throwing a bunch of mixed signals. Every interaction between the two was so surface; there could've been at least one deep conversation. My whole take-away with this relationship is I just want her to grow a pair and have some self-respect. She let's Raife walk all over her like a doormat and she's literally happy to do that.

The FMC, Lani, discovers she's "blessed" meaning she can take others' magic, which for an elf, that kills them. She discovers this during a battle in which she goes face-to-face with a woman that has terrified Kings and entire countries and gets close enough to breathe in her magic? Even suspending a ton of disbelief for a fantasy/romance, this whole thing just doesn't make sense. Coincidentally, she ends up commanding this army against this queen...19yrs old and yet she can lead an army? And then....that's it. The battle was a few pages, Lani sucked in the evil queen's magic and that's the end. It was very anti-climactic.

Further, there was no development of Lani's magical abilities. That was disappointing because if it had taken that avenue, this could've been saved a little. There was also no discussion of her ingesting the evil queen's magic. Wouldn't she have those powers now?
As far as spice goes, it's a half a pepper because there was really non to speak of. There was a ton of kissing but everything else was somewhat inferred.

Because of all the plot inconsistencies and lack of development, this wasn't for me. However I do appreciate the free copy!

While I absolutely loved The Last Dragon King, this one here didn't quite hit the same way. Kailani felt like she had so much potential, but took a backseat to Raife and his emotional and romantic issues. I understand that this is a series about the Kings finding their loves, I just think this one felt incredibly <i>rushed</i>.

The positives are I did enjoy getting to know The Elf King and I love a good fake dating/marriage of convenience too. The building story for the entire series is also gaining momentum, and I am so ready to see how it all ends. I do hope we see a little more of Kailani later in the series. She seems like she missed her little bit in the spotlight.

The Broken Elf King is a quick and satisfying read, especially for those who have read the first book. I do recommend that you finish book one before jumping in to TBEK since that is necessary for the world continuation.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Bloom Book & Leia Stone for an advanced copy. The entire Kings of Avalier series is available now.

This is the one I was waiting for. I really wanted to know more about Raife, we knew he wanted revenge and I just knew his backstory would be dramatic. What made it better was Lani. The way she attracted the ling by her intelligence was inspiring. Lani being the leader of the army at the end against the human queen was also iconic. I think this one was more character driven for me and I enjoyed that. I’ll be waiting to read what’s next to defeat the human queen, every time we learn something about this conflict so I know it will get better.

Absolutely amazing and unable to put down! Sooooooo much better than the first book in the series! I hope I can find time to read the next ones in the series and that the Evil Queen gets dealt with.