Book Review

Kingdom of Shadow and Light

By: Karen Marie Moning

Dark Fantasy

4 Stars

From the moment MacKayla Lane arrived in Dublin to hunt her sister’s murderer, she’s had to fight one dangerous battle after the next: to survive, to secure power, to keep her city safe, to protect the people she loves.

The matter of who’s good and who’s evil can be decided by the answer to a single question: Whose side are you on?

Now, as High Queen of the Fae, Mac faces her greatest challenge yet: ruling the very race she was born to hunt and kill—a race that wants her dead yesterday, so they can put a pure-blooded Fae queen on the throne.

But challenges with her subjects are the least of her concerns when an ancient, deadly foe resurfaces, changing not only the rules of the game but the very game itself, initiating a catastrophic sequence of events that have devastating consequences and leave Mac questioning everything she’s ever learned and everyone she’s ever loved. Now begins an epic battle between Mortal and Fae, Seelie and Unseelie, would-be kings and would-be queens, with possession of the Unseelie King’s virtually unlimited power and the fate of humanity at stake.

From the exquisite, deadly gardens of the High Queen’s court, to long-forgotten truths found in the Sacred Grove of Creation, from the erotic bed of her enigmatic, powerful lover to the darkest, seductive reaches of the Unseelie kingdom, Mac’s final journey takes her places no human has been before, and only one human could possibly survive . . .

One who’s willing to sacrifice everything.

What a bitter-sweet this read was for me. A favorite series of mine, I revisit the Fever books when I need to curl up and get away. Having it come to end is both exciting and heartbreaking.

It was a good ending; everything tied up nicely (this is hard to review w/o spoilers. Just trust me). A stressful read, in the best way, I was gripped from the first page, heart shredded in terror at what might befall these favorite characters. Easily 60% of the book flew by as I raced to see where Mac and Barrons, along with the rest of the gang, would land. So many heart-wrenching, stomach drops along the way.

While I was very pleased with this read, I did think a few points might have been fleshed out a little more. A more drawn-out tete-a-tete with the villain, for one. Still, it was a satisfying ending, just a little too fast for me. This is a common complaint from me, though. I always want more!

I do feel the need to go back and re-read the previous Mac book. There were times I felt she was a little too impulsive; too reactionary. I feel like she grew out of that a bit from the last book, but maybe I’m remembering it wrong…

If you haven’t read the Fever series and love Dark Fantasy, dark romance, brooding males, strong females, and modern magical cross-overs, this series is for you. And you don’t have to wait like I did for the next books to come out! All 11 are lined up and ready.

Happy Reading! 🙂