I'm trying really hard to let myself DNF this. There's no reason I should suffer through something that isn't enjoyable just to finish it for the sake of finishing and I'm trying to make my brain accept that. I'll be returning the book to the library ASAP (because of course it's a library book, I knew I didn't want to waste money on what was probably not going to be a good book) so that it's out of sight and hopefully out of mind. Now, my other issue was how anticlimactic, unsatisfying, unimpressive and disappointing the entire plot was. Yes, there were good parts and many questions were answered, but there was no big conflict, no drama, no action, no big battle, no pinnacle anywhere. Everything resolved quite easily in my opinion. I wanted to be on the edge of my seat, dying from agony, but instead I was bored out of my mind. Wrath was reduced to a character whose only important trait was that he is hot and wants Emilia. All the complexities the first two books hinted at were simply ignored, and we were subjected to scene after scene of him and Emilia having sex in the most unfortunate of times. I’m so annoyed. The first half of this book was going pretty strong. The plot was getting convoluted, but I wasn’t reading for that (😏), so I kept rolling. but im so glad im finally done with this series, it was a mess lmao. and i will be waiting for the spin off💅🏻

i know i sound like a blithering old granny but, as someone who read SJM in her youth starting a series that started off YA then gradually became NA (without me having a clue), i would have liked some warning💀 Kingdom of the Feared gave me all of this, but spoiled it with a familiarity, a steadiness I wasn't ready for. After that, I'll dig out all the Kerri Maniscalco's books I haven't read, and binge on them like there's no tomorrow. there was nothing. truly, this book is more so about explaining all the ominous shit that happened in the first two books. Emilia puts the pieces together (or is blatantly told what happened), and every mysterious encounter she’s previously had now makes sense. which was a relief, to be honest, because it did answer some questions that previously really bugged me😭 but this meant there was no actual plot for this book. The Barnes & Noble Exclusive Edition features a unique cover and contains a spicy bonus chapter from Envy's point of view.I'll begin by saying that this series started out strong. The first book was excellent. The second was less so, but I thought it was just a bridge type of sequel in a trilogy, so I didn't mind that it was overly long and that nothing important seemed to happen. I thought the second book was just setting up an epic ending, and I was excited for it. Tell me every dark desire, Emilia. Every fantasy you wish to come true. And I vow to make every one of them happen.”

Writing sequels worthy of a spectacular first book mustn't be an easy job, but if there's an author I know would accept the challenge and ace it, it's Kerri Maniscalco.tw/cw: blood depiction, getting blood for magic, kidnapping, captivity, murder, death, grief depiction, violence, war themes, and abandonment. Fortunately I found that things do improve about halfway through as the various plot threads are given a chance to settle and the overall pieces of the puzzle start to come together. I had some issues with how things wrap up, but before I get into spoiler territory, can I just touch on the spice level for this one? Good god. (Sorry, I mean devil.) Despite much of the book being set in a literal frozen hellscape, the author really turns up the heat up this time around. You can expect an abundance of [redacted] being put in [redacted] and then even some [redacted] getting [redacted]. I'm sorry in advance if this bunch of nonsense will be full of typos and incongruous, but it's late and I've been awake since 2012, but I just finished this book and I can't start another one or do anything else really, without putting down some thoughts, first)

Tell me every dark desire, Emilia. Every fantasy you wish to come true. And I vow to make every one of them to happen.” Kingdom of the Feared marks the conclusion of the trilogy and it's always bittersweet to bid these characters farewell. I have to agree with those reviewers who said this book felt different and that the plot was a tad all over the place while also getting lost amidst too much smut, at the same time. I also felt really overwhelmed by how things concerning the stratospheric build-up the author's been crafting around Emilia's identity eventually ended. I forgot to mention Emilia got on my nerves a lot. Not just because of her sex-crazed state, but because I felt like she was trying too hard to be tough and badass. I don't quite know how to explain it. She just gave off weird vibes the whole time. don’t even ask me what happened in this book…because i don’t know. i feel like i lost a lot of my initial interest during the wait for this book and i didn’t remember much of what happened in the previous books so 😭😭Emilia’s scenes with Vittoria were without a doubt the best part of the book. i really grew to love and understand their bond, and it’s not a simple one which im really glad Maniscalco portrayed— they were at each other’s throats one minute, while being adorably sisterly the next. it was wonderful. One of the things that I loved the most about this series is that the general setting and the characters reminded me of one of my favorite trilogies, The Worldwalker by Josephine Angelini, and the whole atmosphere gave me major Constantine meets and have a threesome with ACOMAF vibes; it basically was a mix of a lof of pieces of media I simply adore, with the addiction of an original plot and an enemies-to-lovers romance to die for.