Book: Crown Me Dead by Liv Zander
Reviewed by plotdrunk
Rating: 5/5
I loved this book despite the mild gore. The FMC Elara is a gravedigger's daughter who is unimpressed by almost everything, unflappable, and takes no shit from anyone. Her attitude is giving "I dig graves and handle dead people all day every day, I'm not going to be bothered by this" and it felt so genuine and unique. I loved her and her dry humor immediately.
The world really pulled me in from the start. With the premise, I expected a dark setup, but it actually twisted around and became a much more touching and interesting story than just breaking the curse. Adding in the mysterious Vale provided another layer of mystery, tension, and will-they-won't-they that I loved. Vale also served as a really interesting foil to the King. The juxtaposition between Elara trying to force herself into intimacy with him and trying desperately to ignore her feelings for Vale were so delicious, and it gave a new angle to what could have been a typical love triangle.
And then... the twists. The turns. I was a little surprised but understood when they thought Vale was the Kael's half brother, but the ending?? I think I actually gasped out loud. I love when a book can genuinely surprise me, and this one really did. There really wasn't anything I didn't like about this book: the pacing was great, the world was immersive enough to draw me in, the tension was high, and the characters were three dimensional and interesting. Easy five stars!