A review by bribreez
A Kingdom of Blood and Betrayal by Holly Renee

adventurous emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

*Check content warnings before reading.

4.25⭐️/ 3-4🌶️

I’m going to keep this review short and simple (never thought I’d write that, but oh well). This book started off with the continuation of the cliffhanger from the first book, and very much saw Adara coming to terms with her feelings for Evren, but also feeling conflicted about the truths she was exposed to. In the first book, Adara fought against the reality her life was going to be with Gavril, but also the growing connection with Evren. Evren and Adara’s connection came to fruition especially with the grand reveal of the two of them being mates. If you love the fated mates trope, then you’ll enjoy that trope in this series. Throughout this book, I got to see the Blood Court and much like Adara, I was surprised by how beautiful and not desolate and dark as I originally imagined. Evren was loved by his court and its citizens and it extended to Adara when she arrived. I especially liked seeing Adara learn to control her new found powers, train alongside Thalia and Sorin. Meeting new characters was nice and gave a bit more insight into those close friends that Evren had. 

While this book was good, I will say I did feel like there was a bit back and forth between Adara being mad at Evren and then almost making up to then return to being angry at him. I’m not saying Adara didn’t have the right to feel angry over the events that transpired, but at times it did seem overdone when things could have progressed even more in the romance department. That being said, when it came to the romance, things definitely progressed and hey, the spice was always a nice added touch. When Adara finally made up with Evren and accepted being his mate, was when I started feeling hopeful for the two of them. Although, famous last words for me since, just as things seemed to be settling down, Adara and Evren were smacked with the message of Gavriel coming to the Blood court for Adara. As if things weren’t bad enough, the plot twist at the end of this book showed Adara finding out the long held secret of someone she never knew was STILL ALIVE! Ahhh! Needless to say, there was another cliffhanger and I needed answers pronto! Compared to the first book, this was still a good book but at certain points it left me wanting more. I’m still going to continue this series, just might take a small mini break in between. As a whole, I would still say this series is a great choice when wanting to read a fantasy romance, but not with the whole long series feeling that other books have. A fast paced, fantasy romance with magic, some politics, and a spicy romance between mates, and ta-da a good story to read!