12/6/2023 0 Comments To kill a kingdom series![]() I like the moral ambiguity and parallels between the two main characters. Despite their being opposing forces throughout most of the novel, I somehow sympathized with both Lira and Elian. The characters of To Kill a Kingdom vary in their memorability and the impact they leave on the reader and story. Not every author has the writing abilities of Tolkien, but I would have liked Christo to attempt creating her own languages for the story. However, after reading the aforementioned review, I realized the author only clarified the differences in dialogue tags rather than the actual dialogue, stating which language the characters spoke. Because I don’t speak the language, I initially thought Christo made a decent distinction between languages in the book. The kingdoms’ names also come from Greek words. The characters of the novel sporadically speak poorly constructed Greek disguised as various fictional languages. The only kingdom that derails from this literal name pattern is Midas, which is named after the legend of King Midas whose touch turns everything to gold.Ī fellow reviewer who speaks the native tongue has pointed out Christo’s flippant use of Greek within To Kill a Kingdom. Pagos = ice, Kleftes = thieves, Eidyllio = romance, etc.). Christo also stereotypes the mentioned human kingdoms, their only attributes being the literal translations of the kingdoms’ names (i.e. All the author reveals to the reader is the distinction between sirens and mermaids, the fact the Sea Queen rules over all of the Diavolos Sea, and a few societal rituals revolving around mating and aging. Less than ten chapters and a handful of expositional flashbacks paint the magic system, social hierarchy, and politics of the underwater society. The lack of sirens and world-building disappointed me. ![]() Due to the dark story elements, I expected a less straightforward plot. The reveals held no element of surprise and felt anticlimactic. The indistinguishable time frame made the story drag in the beginning, and the suddenly increased action rushed the ending. Why does the Sea Queen choose the Winter Solstice as the deadline for Lira to take Elian’s heart? Considering the lack of snow in every kingdom besides Pagos, I couldn’t tell how far away the solstice was. Nonetheless, Christo forgets to heighten the stakes of the narrative. Simply put, To Kill a Kingdom‘s main storyline is that of murder, betrayal, and our royal protagonists choosing their own paths. The writing primarily caused my zoning out, but the plot played a role too. I continuously rewound chapters of the audiobook due to the numerous times I disengaged from the reading. Substituting these lackluster descriptions for personification and stronger verbs would have brought Christo’s fantasy world to life. Christo uses an excessive number of similes and linking verbs throughout the book, blurring the imagery’s clarity. Sadly, the execution of this portion of the novel weakens the narrative. The strength of To Kill a Kingdom‘s story relies heavily on Alexandra Christo’s writing. *Since I listened to the audiobook, some names and places may be misspelled.* She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good-But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy? Review (Minor Spoilers): When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby-it’s his calling. The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever. ![]() To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most-a human. ![]() Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. July 2nd, 2018 – July 8th, 2018 Rating: Format:
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |