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A review by loverofromance
Cruel King: Special Edition Print by Rina Kent
5.0
Cruel King is the first book in the Royal Elite series. And after reading the "Legacy of Gods" series or the books that have been released so far, I knew I had to binge on the parental's stories and I knew that it started with the Royal Elite series. I absolutely adored this book, it was so much fun and one of the best "Bully" romances that I have ever read. I will say that this is a dark romance, it has a possessive alpha male, and these two really battle it out but I absolutely adored it. And the "CHESS" references were brilliant, now I know why the parents in the kids books were so obsessed with Chess haha It makes so much more sense now.
I really enjoyed this book, and even though the pacing in the middle felt slightly slow at times, I truly couldn't get enough of this pairing and was curious to see where the author would take this romance. I absolutely adored the forbidden themes in this one as well, and we also see some other connections being built into the first book of the series. Even though this one was YA, it didn't feel YA at all, it felt like an adult romance, which is probably why it worked so much for me. Normally YA won't work for me, but because felt the characters felt more mature, it didn't bother me. I enjoyed the setting in modern day England and the British references that was really delightful, but I had to remind myself this wasn't an American based romance haha. I will say that Rina Kent has a certain writing style, that you need to give a chance. It took a few books for her style to really work for me but now I can't put her down and I just want to indulge in her backlist.
The romance itself in this one was truly magical, with a blend of intensity, deep emotion and so riveting from beginning to end. There are plenty of tropes that are mixed into this story. We have a bully romance, enemies to lovers, forbidden love, anti hero alpha male. artist nerdy heroine, abused heroine even has a cinderella feel to it at times. I did enjoy the blend of the tropes and seeing so many depths that are delivered within the relationship. And it just didn't feel like your typical bully romance either. It just felt like it had so much more to the story than that.
Overall I had a blast with "Cruel King" and I can't wait to explore the other books in the series and this world that Rina Kent has created, because I can tell you that I am addicted and am thirsting for more on what she delivers!
I really enjoyed this book, and even though the pacing in the middle felt slightly slow at times, I truly couldn't get enough of this pairing and was curious to see where the author would take this romance. I absolutely adored the forbidden themes in this one as well, and we also see some other connections being built into the first book of the series. Even though this one was YA, it didn't feel YA at all, it felt like an adult romance, which is probably why it worked so much for me. Normally YA won't work for me, but because felt the characters felt more mature, it didn't bother me. I enjoyed the setting in modern day England and the British references that was really delightful, but I had to remind myself this wasn't an American based romance haha. I will say that Rina Kent has a certain writing style, that you need to give a chance. It took a few books for her style to really work for me but now I can't put her down and I just want to indulge in her backlist.
The romance itself in this one was truly magical, with a blend of intensity, deep emotion and so riveting from beginning to end. There are plenty of tropes that are mixed into this story. We have a bully romance, enemies to lovers, forbidden love, anti hero alpha male. artist nerdy heroine, abused heroine even has a cinderella feel to it at times. I did enjoy the blend of the tropes and seeing so many depths that are delivered within the relationship. And it just didn't feel like your typical bully romance either. It just felt like it had so much more to the story than that.
Overall I had a blast with "Cruel King" and I can't wait to explore the other books in the series and this world that Rina Kent has created, because I can tell you that I am addicted and am thirsting for more on what she delivers!