Reviews - The Princess Crown

147 reviews for:

The Princess Crown is a great addition to the Princess Trials Trilogy and had me on the edge of my seat eager to turn the page to find out what happens next. This book wraps up the trilogy beautifully while planting the seeds to have me begging for more from this author.
The revolution has begun and it’s nothing at all as to what Zea had pictured. Zea has been pushed out by the hostile queen who will do whatever it takes to claim the power of the throne. Now, the Harvesters have begun to take over everything and there is death and destruction everywhere. Chaos reigns and the question arises from the flames...who will survive?
This book grabbed me, just like the ones previous, and I devoured this book. When I had to put it down I literally sat around wondering…what’s going to happen next?! This book is full of thrills, tension, and drama. There are so many twists and you just don’t know who’s going to turn around and stab you in the back. Zea is facing so much in this book. The author makes it so easy to forget that this character is only 16 years old. The push and pull in this book at times as me wanting to literally rage at the characters. LOL! Yeah, that’s a good book right there.
There are some expected moments in this book, but what makes it even better is that the characters are expecting it, too. This author does a good job at giving you predictable moments, but making sure that it doesn’t take away from the overall storyline. I also love that the author gives readers an “epilogue” so to speak. Then hints at a new series!!! GIMME!!!
I have enjoyed this series so much!!! There is so much goodness in this dystopian ya novel and if you aren’t reading this series then you are honestly missing out. This author, Cordelia K. Castel has written a truly amazing series and I can’t wait to read what she writes next. I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars.

beilygutierrez's review against another edition

5.0

This series took me on a emotional rollercoaster. It’s a great series but if you want to read just be prepared for all the plot twists the author throws at you. Super happy with how it ended

hannahmae04's review against another edition

5.0

When I tell you I sobbed.... I sobbed at the end of this book. Castel is incredible and I just want to re read this series over and over again. This is the best book series I have EVER EVER read. This book is my favorite of all time ever.

geenahnola's review against another edition

3.0

*Insert Gordon Ramsey meme*

Finally some good effing pacing.

The Princess Crown concludes the saga of Zea-Mays Calico's victimization in the sadistic nation of Phangloria.

I was worried about this book's pacing when I began to read. The Princess Games had an overwhelming amount of stuff going and it only succeeded in leaving me exhausted. This one was a major improvement. Each event was fleshed out in a satisfying way. Even more important: Zea and Kevon's relationship was actually redeemed.

In the last two books I just didn't buy any chemistry between them, nor could I understand why they would fall in love when they barely communicated. While I still contend that the beginning of their relationship was awful writing, here it kind of magically improved and I am so happy about it. Turns out all we needed was for Kevon to be angry at Zea and for Zea to finally have a mental breakdown where she gets sick and tired of being blamed by literally anything. She was such a doormat in Princess Games, that was genuinely satisfying to see her get sick of it and assert herself, especially in front of Prince Kevon. It gave their chance to genuinely develop and it was probably my favorite part of this book. Yeah, it kind of gets ruined when the argument resolves itself when Zea simply admits she loves Kevon, but everything that came before that was excellent.

Unfortunately this book has some major issues that did not allow me to rate it higher. First and most egregious, it has some very glaring typos and continuity errors. Sometimes names were mixed up and words were straight up gibberish. It almost makes me wonder if this book was not edited or proofread beyond what I presume the author must have done before it left her hands. I can deal with an error or two, but this had too many. If the author and publishers don't care, why should I?

I also disliked that certain characters were introduced and never seen again. We don't know what happens to Vitelotte, for example. Did I really care about what happened to Vitelotte? Not really, but if you mention her at the beginning of your story, it's reasonable to expect to find out what happens to her at the end. And this really is indicative of a major flaw of the series overall: there are just too many damn characters to keep track of. I have no recollection of Troy and the others being in the previous books. Did we really need the inclusion of Georgette? She could've easily been cut out and literally nothing would have changed.

I'm glad I can finally move on with my life and leave Zea behind. Despite my bellyaching, I actually really enjoyed this series and would recommend it to anyone who wanted a YA guilty pleasure read and does not mind something terribly derivative of the Hunger Games and The Selection.
There's apparently a sequel that centers Zea and Kevon's son Calix coming out in May (Princess Purge, I think it's called). As far as my interest in it, we'll see. If I can read it through Amazon Unlimited or Prime, maybe.