To Kill a Kingdom (2018)
Written by: Alexandra Christo
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 352 (Paperback)
Publisher: Square Fish
Why I Chose It: At this point almost everything I find to read I discover at work (the bookstore) first. Same goes for this one. Unfortunately at the time this one was due to be sent back to the publisher, but the tentacles wrapped around the cover — one of them with a knife — caught my interest enough to open it up and read the summary. Thus it was added to my never-ending To Read list.
The Premise:
Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most — a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen and or remain a human forever.
The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby — it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good — but can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy?
No spoilers.
Discussion: The funny thing about this is that it fell into my lap at the perfect time. A lot of books, once they hit my To Read list, never make it further than that (at least for a long while). But not only had I recently finished Our Bloody Pearl, but I also visited the library to check out The Shape of Water, where I then checked out Jaws on a whim, with this title arriving for me to check out a few days later. At the time it was summer, and I’d essentially dunked myself in the ocean. Fitting, considering I live in the middle of the country and that’s the only way I’m getting there.
I don’t doubt that this story is a take on The Little Mermaid (Disney version). What with the Sea Queen and all her powerful tentacles and wielding an almost-godlike trident, all the siren singing, and forcing Lira to become human and take a prince’s heart…although that last bit is meant to be taken literally. Even the names Lira and Ariel are similar; very musical sounding (Ariel sounds like aria, and lira is an actual instrument). Lira’s name could also easily just be “Ariel” scrambled and with the “e” thrown out. But do I care? Nope.
Retellings are common, and Disney’s versions are not the end-all, be-all of fairy tales, especially when their versions are based on even older versions. For example, in the original The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen, the mermaid is fated to dissolve into sea foam — which is what happens to these sirens upon death. So there’s a little bit of everything happening here.
Alexandra Christo has done well here because Lira is ready to tear Elian’s heart out at pretty much any given moment, so you wonder just how these two are going to end up together. Granted, you’re not sure that’s the end goal, but you’re 99% certain it’s going to happen (I didn’t realize this was technically YA until writing this review; I’d stumbled upon the book in the regular Fiction section of the store). Given how Elian doesn’t have time for Lira’s shit and Lira wants to rip his heart out of his chest, plus the fact that they’re constantly murdering each other’s people, there’s a bit of a hurdle there that keeps you wondering.
The story is solid, and I had a good time learning about the world these characters live in (I’d like to see more of it, honestly). Apparently there are a hundred different kingdoms, ranging from Elian’s, whose city is almost entirely comprised of gold, to an icy cold one featuring literal ice princesses. There’s magic and old goddesses and a lot of ground to cover — another reason I didn’t think Lira’s tale was going to be confined to one book. I started to panic as the end was obviously getting closer and the story was running out of pages. Given where we were in the world (nowhere near the ocean…where the Sea Queen was…and who needed to be defeated), I kept wondering how the hell this was going to resolve itself. It really did start to look like there was going to be a second book I didn’t know about, but right at the edge of everything the big finish reared its head, and in a way I hadn’t expected at all. It’s great for anyone looking for a single story to read rather than find themselves in yet another series. I have absolutely nothing against a good series, but sometimes a girl just wants to read one book, start to finish, no cliffhangers or second/third one to obtain.
I enjoyed all the characters that appeared on the page; their actions, words, and desires all fleshed out perfectly. The Sea Queen is an outright bitch, using awful methods to keep her sirens in line. Lira is afraid of (almost) nothing, with her smart-mouth comebacks and willingness to go into dangerous situations. Elian is the classic ready-to-chuck-his-crown-out-the-window type, wanting the open ocean and adventure instead. People ready to make sacrifices for one another and the things they love and believe in. Just good, fun fantasy stuff all around. If you like action, you’re going to get it. If you like a bit of subterfuge, you’re going to get it. If you like romance, you’re going to get a bit of that, too. Suddenly I feel like the grandpa in The Princess Bride: “Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles!”
Er, no giants though.
In Conclusion: If you want a fantasy book set in and on the sea (with a few side quests) that dabbles in action, adventure, romance, magic, and more, it’s a great option. I’m sad it had to go on the return shelf because it’s one that’s quite enjoyable, and I wonder why more people aren’t talking about it.
As someone who grew up with and absolutely loved The Little Mermaid (Disney’s, obviously), this sounds absolutely fascinating!