Kingdom of Blood and Spirit by Trish Beninato and Riley Hunt

 Book Blurb

One cruel Queen,

Four Fae Princes,

A human to save, or doom them all.

Nineteen-year-old Samantha just wants to survive long enough to escape to a life of freedom away from the dangerous sickness that plagues the mortal lands and the Church of Flame.

But be careful what you wish for.

Tragedy strikes and the sickness takes her father. With his passing, the church comes to claim her. She turns to the one person she has left, her teacher and godmother. Only to find a bracelet left by her birth mother slapped onto her wrist.

And she falls right onto a fruit cart belonging to an ogre and finds herself in a land she once thought to be nothing more than a myth.

Faerie.

Tasked with finding a male named Niall and told to stay far away from the wicked Queen, instead, she ends up in her clutches, facing down a queen hellbent on breaking the veil to her realm and enslaving mortals.

Alliances are made, and destiny is set in motion.

The fate of two realms is in the hands of Sam, but all she wants to do is go home. Except, the wicked Queen has other plans. She ties Sam’s life to the angry, devastatingly handsome Prince, Killian. A bond that cannot be broken.

As lies and secrets are unraveled, Sam has to make a decision: will she stay and fight, or will she go home?

This book is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, J. L. Armentrout and Holly Black.

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Review

This tale begins with one heck of a bang, immediately grabbing the reader's attention as conflict practically explodes from the pages. Tyranny and betrayal is where we start, and then we're introduced to a world of hardships as a sickness plagues the lands.

Emotions like our racing hearts, fluttering stomachs and the euphoria we felt with one another was not theirs to take. Yet, they still demanded that we relinquished these base emotions for their judgement. 

Samantha is an unusual character who doesn't seem to fit in with the townsfolk. Determined to live freely with her forbidden love, her stubborn nature rises quickly, and it becomes clear she has the ability to swallow her fear. Her heart and mind remain rebellious against the power sweeping across her homeland, but she doesn't know how best to beat it back either.

Wait, you aren’t luring me out here to do nefarious things to me are you?” I forced a playful tone into the words, but I knew there was a hesitant strain in there that he didn’t miss.

As we get to know our main character, greater conflict consumes her life, forcing her into hiding in a world unknown to her. She meets a cast of characters that soon capture the reader's heart as she learns what she can about the realm of the Fae. Danger, corruption, lust, and love, all entwine to create a tantalizing tale that hooks the reader's attention easily.  

I had lost my mind because it felt good to have control over him- to be this close and feel him under my body, to stare into his amber-flecked hazel gaze with the same need I had deep inside of me meeting his. 

Some of the foreshadowing was a bit stronger than I'd like, showing me what lay on the horizon a bit earlier than I'd expect, but the finale held all the awe I wanted to feel, leaving me eager for book two and disappointed in the wait to get my hands on the next novel. This book played with my emotions, bringing me to tears a few times and making me laugh aloud at times as well. 

Recommendation

For fans of Sarah J Maas, fantasy, Fae. There are some strong,

possibly triggering scenes, so if you avoid sexually triggering content,

then pass this one up. Otherwise, I'd highly recommend this book.