Review- Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

Falling Kingdoms

Morgan Rhodes

Release Date: 400 pages

Hardcover: December 11, 2012

Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin)

ISBN: 1595145842

Source: ARC form the publisher

Rating: Loved

Goodreads/Amazon/Barnes & Noble/The Book Depository

From Goodreads.

In a land where magic has been forgotten but peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest is simmering. Three kingdoms grapple for power—brutally transforming their subjects’ lives in the process. Amidst betrayals, bargains, and battles, four young people find their fates forever intertwined:

Cleo: A princess raised in luxury must embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of a magic long thought extinct.

Jonas: Enraged at injustice, a rebel lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country impoverished—and finds himself the leader of a people’s revolution centuries in the making.

Lucia: A girl adopted at birth into a royal family discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.

Magnus: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, a firstborn son begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword...

The only outcome that’s certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?

 I've seen this book compared to Game of Thrones, like it’s The Game of Thrones for YA crowd. At first I was like no way because I love GOT and I didn't think that comparison could be true but, then I read Falling Kingdoms and this book was epic! So I could see how some would compare the two.

Morgan has written a High Fantasy tale that will take its rightful place among some of the best High Fantasy for YA written! This story has so many twists and turns, magic and treachery, and is told from multiple POV’s. I will admit there’s such a big cast of characters that it was a bit confusing at first and, I had to keep flipping to the beginning of the book to where the cast is written out by land. Also her world building is fantastic. Oh and don’t get too attached to any of the characters you never know who will live and who will die. I actually became quite attached to a few(Magnus especially he was a tortured soul that just happened to be drop dead gorgeous and I fell hard for him!) and I won’t say if they survived or not.

I could ramble on about this book forever but I would be getting into spoilers and y’all really need to read this one for yourselves. I am dying to get my hands on book 2!

I chose a passage that I loved to share with you all.

He reached down to take her hand in his. “I was so worried about you.”

Cleo was surprised that he’d drawn so close to her. “I know.”

“You could have been killed.”

“Theon, I wasn't thinking straight.”

“Neither was I. And neither am I at this very moment.”

She looked up at him just as he captured his mouth with his and kissed her deeply.

This was not a chaste kiss of friendship. This was a kiss of true passion, such as she’d only dreamed of before. Her heart leapt in her chest and she wrapped her arms around him to pull him closer. When it ended, he stepped back from her, his eyes steady on the ground, a deep frown creasing his brow.

“My humble apologies for that, princess.”

Make sure to go grab this one when it comes out or pre-order it from the links above! I will definitely be buying my copy to add to my High Fantasy shelves!