Review of Kingdom of the Cursed (Kingdom of the Wicked #2) by Kerri Maniscalco
“Tell me,” he whispered, his voice sliding like silk over my flushed skin. “What?” My own voice came out breathless. “I am your favorite sin.”
– Kingdom of the Cursed
Kerri Maniscalco
I devoured this character-driven sequel to Kingdom of the Wicked
Synopsis
After selling her soul to become Queen of the Wicked, Emilia travels to the Seven Circles with the enigmatic Prince of Wrath, where she’s introduced to a seductive world of vice.
She vows to do whatever it takes to avenge her beloved sister, Vittoria… even if that means accepting the hand of the Prince of Pride, the king of demons.
The first rule in the court of the Wicked? Trust no one. With back-stabbing princes, luxurious palaces, mysterious party invitations, and conflicting clues about who really killed her twin, Emilia finds herself more alone than ever before. Can she even trust Wrath, her one-time ally in the mortal world… or is he keeping dangerous secrets about his true nature?
Emilia will be tested in every way as she seeks a series of magical objects that will unlock the clues of her past and the answers she craves…
One sister.
Two sinful princes.
Infinite deception with a side of revenge… Welcome to Hell.
Review
You know that feeling you get when you finish a book and all you can think is ‘I absolutely loved this’ and ‘give me the next book now’. Yeah, that sums up how I feel about Kingdom of the Cursed. Is this the best book I’ve ever read? No, not at all. I feel like some little details didn’t make sense and the plot felt a bit lacking. But I still really enjoyed the story and characters and devoured this book. And that’s what makes reading so amazing. The feeling a book can give you even though it wasn’t perfect, that’s the feeling I want to feel for the rest of my life.
Kingdom of the Cursed is definitely way more character-driven than Kingdom of the Wicked was, but I liked it. I like Emilia and Wrath so much that Maniscalco could write literally anything about them, and I’d still be dying to read it. Their dynamic in this instalment was absolutely amazing. I loved the love-hate relationship we saw.
I also loved how we’re getting to know the other princes and are introduced to new characters in Kingdom of the Cursed. I also enjoyed seeing Emilia grow in this book. She’s trying to avenge her sister and has to sacrifice pieces of herself to find answers.
It sometimes did feel like I was one step ahead of Emilia. She is still trying to figure things out and trying to connect the dots, while the reader already kind of knew what was going on. It is quite pleasing when Emilia figures things out.
Maniscalco really wants to shift the series from young adult to new adult and does so by adding explicit scenes. I do like this shift, I must say. I feel like most authors classify their books as young adult because that’s what’s expected from them, even though what they’re writing isn’t ya at all.
I’m so looking forward to the third and last book in this series – Kingdom of the Feared. I feel like Kingdom of the Cursed paved the way for a thrilling conclusion. I can’t wait to learn what happens next!
Would I recommend it?
Yes, definitely! I already really liked Kingdom of the Wicked, but liked this book even more.
Rating
9,5/10
Details
Trigger warnings
Sexism, sexual harassment, alcohol consumption, drugging, mind control, blood & gore depiction, murder, torture, grief
Representation
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Genre
Fantasy (young adult/new adult)
Pages
448
Publication date
October 5th 2021
Publisher
Hodder & Stoughton
About the author
Kerri Maniscalco grew up in a semi-haunted house outside NYC where her fascination with gothic settings began. In her spare time she reads everything she can get her hands on, cooks all kinds of food with her family and friends, and drinks entirely too much tea while discussing life’s finer points with her cats.
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