I was so not ready for this to be over!!!!! Seriously so good and that ending!!! Kathrynn Ann Kingsley never disappoints!

Thank you NetGalley & Kathryn for the Arc!!

From the beginning this book had me hooked, the world building was just enough and not too much, the plot was very engaging and I’m conflicted about how i should feel about Aon….

I’m a big fan of Kathryn. This was a fast paced, dark, and fun read. The main character was a breath of fresh air for me.

So this is a super quick, fast paced read that I enjoyed quite a bit. The main character is so unserious which was actually kind of refreshing, a lot of the time with fantasy it’s very high stakes with a lot of emotion which I love but it was also nice to read from the point of view of a sarcastic fmc who just doesn’t seem to take any of it seriously. I liked the fmc however it did seem as though her and her male best friend just had zero loyalty to each other and honestly put themselves first a lot of the time which fair enough who can say if they were getting chased by a monster we wouldn’t run as fast as we could and leave our friends to fend for themselves. There was no romance or spice in the book but throughout the book it was building, I feel like the foundations for a good spicy romance were definitely there which will come to fruition in the next book maybe. I would recommend this book for a quick fun read, trigger warning though there is some gore which did make me feel a little sick.

The world building is amazing. The plot hooked me in IMMEDIATELY. It’s a dark fantasy, kidnapping, monsters/shifters, kings/queens, mortals/underworld, and morally grey mmc filled book.

Lydia is a mortal that is kidnapped by a king of the underworld in an attempt to increase their population. They have a ritual that turns mortals into monsters if they have been marked/chosen. Lydia and her friend wake up with the mark one day and are taken against their will. She then undergoes the ceremony but instead of turning into some type of creature like everyone else, she remains human.

Aon is a powerful king who is asleep, but for some reason a strong bond between him and Lydia begin to form out of the blue. They call for each other i’m their dreams and she becomes the reason for his early rising. However, he is a ruthless and brutal king who everyone fears. He is known for his horrific torture methods.

Aon is completely unhinged but obsessed with her. He has his own twisted way of showing he cares for her and I can’t wait to start book 2 to see more of him and Lydia. The book ends with a cliffhanger just when the action is starting.

First, thank you to Second Sky Publishing for allowing me to read the ARC of the revised version of King of Flames by Kathryn Ann Kingsley.
Second, not only is Lydia a strong FMC, but she is hilarious. Her comments and thoughts had me laughing from the very beginning. With this being a dark romantasy book, the humor is a nice offset.
I have not read the original version of King of Flames, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. There is a lot of world building in this book, but it is needed, as it is unlike any other world I have ever read about. Under is a one-of-a-kind world with more dark beasts and monsters than I can count.
I am very much looking forward to the second revised book, King of Shadows, to be released later this month and to dive deeper into what will happen with Lydia and Aon.

I really enjoyed this book! It grabs you right from the beginning. I liked that it was a different fantasy premise than most books as of late. The story felt very new and fresh, while still maintaining the fantasy elements that I love. Lydia is a great FMC, headstrong and not afraid to speak her mind. Aon is still very much a mystery, and the ending of the book let me wanting more! On to read the next one!

I received this book as an ARC. It had an interesting premise but I didn’t find myself compelled to be excited while reading it. I was not particularly intrigued by an of the characters, nor did I fully understand the whole crux of the story. I don’t think I’ll pick up the next book

Human girl is selected to be apart of a sacrifice at random by a “monster” world. Human girl sees weird masked guy in her dreams. Definitely a dark themed story of a demon king that has done terrible things but some how is probably a tortured soul himself. Even though it’s labeled as steamy this is as steamy as a hot coffee. It’s also incredibly short. I felt like I was missing information to fully piece together the potential story the remaining books will figure out.

Loved this book so much. I rated it 4 stars because it really transported me to another dimension. The dimension of Kings of Flames. I recommend everyone to read this book.

Lydia is having an unfortunate day. First. She woke up and found a tattoo she has no recollection of getting. Second. A corpse at the morgue tried to murder her. And now third? She’s totally being hunted by strange creatures hell bent on capturing her. Her mantra? Act now, panic later, but later never seems like a safe time to panic. And with one kind hunting her and the other trying to kill her. Lydia is in way over her head.

This book is short. It’s hard to even give a synopsis because I don’t want to spoil anything. I have read a few other books by Kathryn Ann Kingsley. The Maze of Shadows series is my favorite, and this book will definitely appeal to people who liked that series.

I had a really great time reading this. I absolutely devoured it. It was hard to put down and I am beside myself that it’s over. I want the rest of this series like yesterday. I want more of Aon and Lydia. I want to know what is going to happen. I have questions and not enough answers.

Suffice to say. I enjoyed this. Not everyone is going to be a fan of this book, but if you like dark-ish romance or other things by this author then it’s a big yes. Just be prepared for a cliffhanger.

4.5 stars/5

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this arc. While it is immensely appreciated it does not impact the content of my review.

Fantasy
Book 1 of The Masks of Under
Cliff-hanger



Lydia is abducted and transported to a planet where everyone goes through a transformation ritual and becomes magical. When she goes through the process she is rejected by the Ancients and almost drowns in the magical pool, making it out barely alive and with no magic whatsoever.
She is secretly under the protection of a mysterious dark sadist who is currently asleep in his crypt until it is his turn to wake and rule. Aon is drawn to Lydia but he cannot decide if he wants to hurt her or protect her or both.

This is the most unpredictable book that I have ever read. If you are looking for a book unlike anything on the shelves at the moment then this is definitely the book for you. The author really thought outside the box and was very creative with this book, however, this book was not suited for me.

I did not like the male characters in the book at all, every one of them were repulsive and off-putting. The book ended too abruptly and even though I didn’t enjoy the book as much, I am curious to know what happens in book 2.


I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.
A huge thank you to Netgalley and Second Sky for this e-arc.

Well I didn’t love Lydia so that made this book kind of annoying to read. It also didn’t read as very “dark” to me. But i did love the world building though. I’ll probably still read the next book in the series regardless.

Sadly I did not finish this book. I feel like the story could be great and has a lot of potential but the writing was a total miss for me. This book is told in 3rd person pov and I feel it needed to be 1st with dual pov of the 2 main characters. I think that would greatly improve the book. The long sentences and chapters were also a turn off for me. Some of the sentences were so long and the wording was very off putting. Words were added or in the wrong place and it made the story very hard to read. I think the book also needs better world building as well. I made it over 50% in and was so confused with this world of Under. The book has great potential but it definitely needs a lot of editing.

I'm not one to read a story with no spice in it but this one had me hooked with it's incredible world building and interesting characters. It's a story like I haven't read before and I am definitely looking to the second story after that cliffhanger!!

Man this book just didn’t hit for me. I didn’t like any of our main characters, and the storyline just felt so off. Could not get on with this book at all, and just felt like it wasn’t the one for me.

In Under everyone belongs to one of the six ruling houses. Unless you’re Lydia, and all I can say is wow.

The whole concept is amazing and I can’t get enough. Lydia is a badass who doesn’t give up on fighting and I love it.

I was drawn into Kingsley’s world and ate this whole book up.

I am hoping for more spice in the other books as there was essentially none in this despite claiming to be even spicier than before.

Overall

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🌶️/5

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

I will start by saying I will read anything Kathryn Ann Kingsley writes at this point. Every time I see a new ARC come out I have to request it because I know I’m going to read it in one sitting and this one was no different.

I went into this with high expectations because I had just recently finished the Iron Crystal Series. I started this book and honestly had no idea what was going on in the beginning but once it got going I kind of figured it out. However I think it kind of added to the feeling of how confused our FMC was in the situation she was put in!

Lydia is a forensic autopsy tech and one day she wakes up with a strange tattoo on her…the next thing she knows she’s being hunted down because of the tattoo and taken to a whole other world of monsters and creatures. Not only is she in a strange new world but now she has attracted the attention of the King of Shadows and he’s not willing to let her go. Will she be able to find her way home or is she stuck in the Under for good?

I actually really loved this one and I can’t wait to read the next one! 4/5 stars for me and I would highly recommend this one.

This series has a ton of potential.

Lydia is an interesting character and I actually love her strength and grit. The world building was fascinating and I’m curious about how it will evolve.

That said, from the marketing, I expected more romance. I recognize this is book one and there is more to come but I found myself desiring more, especially with how the overview described the book.

I’d be keen to read book 2 to see how Lydia and her two dark kings develop.

What even was that? Definitely not the book for me. If this hadn't been an ARC via Netgalley I would've DNF'd. I truly hate leaving negative reviews but this was not enjoyable at all. Also, romance where??? Thank you, but no thank you.