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A review by the_ya_assassin
The High Crown Chronicles, Volume 1 by Jodi Gallegos
4.0
*3.5 stars*
This book was surprisingly good. I had no idea what was in store when I entered the contest for it on Instagram, but I'm glad I did.
"The High Crown Chronicles" promised to have a confusing web of politics, a little romance, a fiery queen, and epic battles. It delivered all four of these things nicely.
At first, the writing was very stiff and formal. I almost stopped before the first 20 pages just because of it - I didn't like the style at all. But I forged on, and as the plot continued the wording changed to being just informal enough for me to enjoy the rest of the book.
The book is all about the fiery queen, Malory. She was promised to be the Queen of Devilshire from a young age, however, everything changes for her in a span of one death. The High King dies from a mysteriously quick illness (which I saw the source of almost immediately) and the High Crown is up for grabs pretty much. Malory's father, the King of Devilshire, engages Malory to the ex-High King's son, Jamis. She is thrust into a new country (Allondale) and her father's schemes to get the High Crown. At first, she only pretends to love Jamis. After a few weeks of being with him before their wedding, she grows fond of him. They marry, and nothing really happens for a few chapters. Esmond, a knight who's like a brother to Malory, comes to Allondale to warn Malory about the threat coming from Devilshire, but they are caught and Jamis is furious - Malory's brother spread lies that Malory and Esmond were lovers (which isn't true) and Jamis has Esmond arrested and Malory locked in her room. Dennard, Jamis's bodyguard, hints that Esmond was executed. Her father also dies mysteriously from an illness during her time in her room. Malory's brother was the conspirator that orchestrated all of these events so he could become High King. He secured alliances from two of the other countries and attacks Allondale. With the help of the Fairlees, Malory and Jamis are saved and taken to the forest, along with most of the innocents in the castle. A couple days later, Malory's sister and Esmond show up in the forest. Jamis and Malory's bond is finally reconnected during their stay with the Fairlees. Soon, the Fairlees catch wind of the enemies army and they prepare for battle. During the battle, Esmond and many innocents are killed, but the opposing side loses many of their own as well. The end of the book leaves us with Malory and Jamis repossessing Allondale's castle and securing it against further upcoming attacks.
As I said, it was a good book and I can't wait for the next book to come out in Winter 2020!
This book was surprisingly good. I had no idea what was in store when I entered the contest for it on Instagram, but I'm glad I did.
"The High Crown Chronicles" promised to have a confusing web of politics, a little romance, a fiery queen, and epic battles. It delivered all four of these things nicely.
At first, the writing was very stiff and formal. I almost stopped before the first 20 pages just because of it - I didn't like the style at all. But I forged on, and as the plot continued the wording changed to being just informal enough for me to enjoy the rest of the book.
The book is all about the fiery queen, Malory. She was promised to be the Queen of Devilshire from a young age, however, everything changes for her in a span of one death. The High King dies from a mysteriously quick illness (which I saw the source of almost immediately) and the High Crown is up for grabs pretty much. Malory's father, the King of Devilshire, engages Malory to the ex-High King's son, Jamis. She is thrust into a new country (Allondale) and her father's schemes to get the High Crown. At first, she only pretends to love Jamis. After a few weeks of being with him before their wedding, she grows fond of him. They marry, and nothing really happens for a few chapters. Esmond, a knight who's like a brother to Malory, comes to Allondale to warn Malory about the threat coming from Devilshire, but they are caught and Jamis is furious - Malory's brother spread lies that Malory and Esmond were lovers (which isn't true) and Jamis has Esmond arrested and Malory locked in her room. Dennard, Jamis's bodyguard, hints that Esmond was executed. Her father also dies mysteriously from an illness during her time in her room. Malory's brother was the conspirator that orchestrated all of these events so he could become High King. He secured alliances from two of the other countries and attacks Allondale. With the help of the Fairlees, Malory and Jamis are saved and taken to the forest, along with most of the innocents in the castle. A couple days later, Malory's sister and Esmond show up in the forest. Jamis and Malory's bond is finally reconnected during their stay with the Fairlees. Soon, the Fairlees catch wind of the enemies army and they prepare for battle. During the battle, Esmond and many innocents are killed, but the opposing side loses many of their own as well. The end of the book leaves us with Malory and Jamis repossessing Allondale's castle and securing it against further upcoming attacks.
As I said, it was a good book and I can't wait for the next book to come out in Winter 2020!