A review by thisistaylort
The Trouble with Kings by Sherwood Smith

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

I don't even know where to begin - I stayed up until 3am to finish The Trouble with Kings so we'll blame sleep depravation. I've already decided that I'm going to have to reread it immediately to catch all the things I missed the first time.

Of all the Sartorias-deles arc books, this one is the least connected. There's one mention of Marloven Hess, but that's it. No mention of Remalna or Crown Duel at all. While they both share an enemies to lovers storyline, it's not fair to compare the two otherwise. The Trouble with Kings is delightful and does just fine by itself.

If I get through this one alive, you'll regret the outcome.

It probably took me longer than it should have to realize who the MMC was. I mean, how do you go from a quote like that to him going out of his way to bring her instruments, the exact opposite of the treatment she experienced in Garian's hands? Next, we have our heroine admitting that she prefers life in Lathandra to life at home. But just when you think we're getting somewhere, we find out that Jason's secretly engaged to another princess and wearing her ring for the last nine years.

I thought of Jason wearing that ring over his heart for nine years. I remembered it hanging blood-smeared against his flesh that terrible day on the mountain.

As a romance reader, I felt like the author was playing with us! She also hinted at other tropes like older brother's best friend (Altan). And then there were all these mentions of how hot Markham was. I know it's too risqué for her style, but was I was like, "Are we going to get a threesome?!"

Eventually, the MMC's intentions became clear. At least for us the reader. I don't know why, but I just love it when the FMC is completely oblivious to how the MMC feels for her.

Also remember Garian brandishing Jewel as a lure to get you, but through you he wants to get a me.

I mean, how much more clear could he have been?!

Aside from all the romance, we got plenty of life lessons as well. Sherwood Smith mentioned that she placed a heavy focus on politeness - "Because when I was young, we were told that Ladies Make Nice . . . the problem was, life didn't always make nice back." so I was primed to be on the lookout for those instances in the book.

I really enjoyed Princess Flian's character development throughout the book, especially when juxtaposed with Princess Eleandra. For the first time, she begins to question the treatment she receives in her position versus that of a servant. She also, starts to consider their thoughts and feelings as individuals. Eventually, she takes the initiative to learn some self defense. By the end, she is stepping in avert potential social or political crises.

A couple of other themes shared in common: I mentioned it in my review of Crown Duel/Court Duel but once again, we have another female bully in Gilian. And while it wasn't stated as clearly as in the Inda or Time of Daughter books, there's a clear demarcation of civilized societies (Carnison) and more barbaric cultures (Ralanor Veleth).

Stayed tuned for more insights once I've done a proper reread.