I received this book via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.
The Orchid Throne by Jeffe Kennedy Series: Forgotten Empires #1
Published by Macmillan on 2019-09-24
Length: 379 pages
Reviewing eARC from Netgalley
Rating:
Reading Challenges: #NGEW2019, 2019 New Release Challenge
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Welcome to the world of Forgotten Empires from award winning author Jeffe Kennedy that begins with The Orchid Throne.
A PRISONER OF FATE
As Queen of the island kingdom of Calanthe, Euthalia will do anything to keep her people free—and her secrets safe—from the mad tyrant who rules the mainland. Guided by a magic ring of her father’s, Lia plays the political game with the cronies the emperor sends to her island. In her heart, she knows that it’s up to her to save herself from her fate as the emperor’s bride. But in her dreams, she sees a man, one with the power to build a better world—a man whose spirit is as strong, and whose passion is as fierce as her own…
A PRINCE AMONG MEN
Conrí, former Crown Prince of Oriel, has built an army to overthrow the emperor. But he needs the fabled Abiding Ring to succeed. The ring that Euthalia holds so dear to her heart. When the two banished rulers meet face to face, neither can deny the flames of rebellion that flicker in their eyes—nor the fires of desire that draw them together. But in this broken world of shattered kingdoms, can they ever really trust each other? Can their fiery alliance defeat the shadows of evil that threaten to engulf their hearts and souls?
If you’ve been missing Rhysand and Feyre, the Night Court, and the realm of Fae, The Orchid Throne by Jeffe Kennedy is for you! To say I loved this book is an understatement. I devoured it! This book has something for everyone and is a must-read for fantasy fans. Following the story of two very different people, The Orchid Throne sets up the world of the Forgotten Empires, hooking the readers with its lush fantasy, political intrigue, and steamy romance.
Euthalia is the Virgin Queen of the island kingdom Calanthe. She will do anything to keep her people safe from the mad emperor, including sacrificing herself in marriage to him. She has a plan, not a good plan, but a plan to bring an end to his tyranny. Guided by the magical orchid ring her father left in her care, Euthalia walks a fine line of keeping the emperor and his emissaries happy while planning treason in her mind. That is her waking world. Her dreams are plagued with a wolf, tearing down everything she’s ever loved, leaving her beloved island blood soaked.
Conrí is the wolf of Euthalia’s dreams. The former Crown Prince of Oriel, Conrí is now a slave in the vurgsten mines. Building an army of slaves, he escapes. Now known as the Slave King, Con wants only one thing: revenge. Revenge for his family, his people, and his home, and he will have it or die trying. A prophecy about the abiding ring leads him to Euthalia’s palace. But will the Virgin Queen help the Slave King defeat the emperor once and for all?
I loved the writing style of this one. Beautiful, vivid descriptions paints the landscape of Calanthe in the reader’s mind that isn’t easily forgotten. I felt as if I could smell the flowers and feel the warmth of Calanthe’s sun as I read. The chapters alternated between Euthalia’s and Conrí’s POV. I enjoyed this aspect more than I thought I would. They are very different, and it allows the reader to get to know the character’s separately before they are together. It also had me shipping them before they’d even met.
Overall I loved The Orchid Throne. Lia and Con are fascinating characters, thrown together by fate, and bond by their hatred of the emperor. I cannot wait to read more about their adventures and scheming. If you are a fan of fantasy and don’t mind a little romance, I highly recommend this as your next read!
About Jeffe Kennedy
Jeffe Kennedy is an award-winning author whose works include novels, non-fiction, poetry, and short fiction. She has been a Ucross Foundation Fellow, received the Wyoming Arts Council Fellowship for Poetry, and was awarded a Frank Nelson Doubleday Memorial Award.
Her award-winning fantasy romance trilogy The Twelve Kingdoms hit the shelves starting in May 2014. Book 1, The Mark of the Tala, received a starred Library Journal review and was nominated for the RT Book of the Year while the sequel, The Tears of the Rose received a Top Pick Gold and was nominated for the RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2014. The third book, The Talon of the Hawk, won the RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2015. Two more books followed in this world, beginning the spin-off series The Uncharted Realms. Book one in that series, The Pages of the Mind, has also been nominated for the RT Reviewer’s Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2016 and won RWA’s 2017 RITA® Award. The second book, The Edge of the Blade, released December 27, 2016, and is a PRISM finalist, along with The Pages of the Mind. The next in the series, The Shift of the Tide, will be out in August, 2017. A high fantasy trilogy taking place in The Twelve Kingdoms world is forthcoming from Rebel Base books in 2018.
She also introduced a new fantasy romance series, Sorcerous Moons, which includes Lonen’s War, Oria’s Gambit, The Tides of Bàra, and The Forests of Dru. She’s begun releasing a new contemporary erotic romance series, Missed Connections, which started with Last Dance and continues in With a Prince.
In 2019, St. Martins Press will release the first book, The Orchid Throne, in a new fantasy romance series, The Forgotten Empires.
Her other works include a number of fiction series: the fantasy romance novels of A Covenant of Thorns; the contemporary BDSM novellas of the Facets of Passion; an erotic contemporary serial novel, Master of the Opera; and the erotic romance trilogy, Falling Under, which includes Going Under, Under His Touch and Under Contract.
She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with two Maine coon cats, plentiful free-range lizards and a very handsome Doctor of Oriental Medicine.
Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com, every Sunday at the popular SFF Seven blog, on Facebook, on Goodreads and pretty much constantly on Twitter @jeffekennedy. She is represented by Sarah Younger of Nancy Yost Literary Agency.
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