This was a horrible story .... not a horrible book but the story I found horrifying since we have what amounts to an innocent thrown to the wolves except in this case given to a monster to wed for court strategy and intrigue. I usually go to bed around 10pm, I stayed up until almost 2 AM reading this horrible and addicting story .

The book moves very slowly for the first 50% or so which makes me hope it does not take the track of her "Sorcerous Moons" series which dragged the reader along at a snails pace and usually left them not much farther than they began. The thing here is that you have to know some of the intimate details of her life to understand why she is so clueless and ignorant of so many things, she was meant to be that way since women had but one purpose in this society, at least at the palace level.

Once we have the wedding the book becomes a horrifying tale and Jeffe Kennedy spares us the vast majority of the horrors with just enough info that we know this man is a monster and life with him will only end in a painful and macabre death.

So once we have the reader sucked into near tearful state wanting to see some redemption/justice for our heroine, we get a small breath of freedom plus a full view of the levels of treachery and betrayal involved in her whole life.

About the time we think we are going to get some actual positive scenes the book ends but by any logic I have to know that the next book somehow has to allow her to train and must get some education since she cannot even count, she has no education other than what a concubine/princess needs and she has zero fighting skills but she is VERY mentally toughened by her life so far.

So I wait on the next book and hope to see our princess rise from the ashes and get some much needed revenge and justice but I have to assume this will be dragged out over at least 3 books and I hope not more since we are on book 4 in the "Sorcerous Moons" series and still have no idea where the end is or when.

4 Stars for what I hope will be an addictive series and the writing a bit less verbose.

Parts of this can be very disturbing as Kennedy sets the stage for the next books in the series. We see Jenna as a pampered Princess who has learned the meaning of fear and we follow her as she has to break free of her upbringing to save her life. It is hard to read everything that happens to her and know how unprepared she is to break free. Everything is set up for what will happen after Jenna breaks free and we see her on her way to a new life. The next books should be very interesting.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

Wonderful! I made the mistake of reading the negative reviews before I started in on their book, so I was hesitant. None of my fears came to pass! This may be a spin off, but I didn't feel I was missing anything. Yes, there was plenty of world building, and perhaps it wasn't action packed, but that was part of the whole feel of the book, of being a woman in this society. This was an incredibly well crafted story of characters,who are meant to evoke emotion, not all of which will be pleasant. Because that isn't life. I can't wait for the next installment!

Raised to endure any pain or physical abuse and keep secrets to the death, Jenna has been groomed to be the perfect Imperial Princess of Dasnaria. She's never seen the sunlight and has never left the isolated secret garden, the seraglio, where she, and the other princesses, have been raised. It's clear that Jenna is smart and curious as a young child but as we see her grown-up her education in the ways of a princess (aka obedient wife) begins. Essentially, the women of the seraglio are training her for a life of servitude in her eventual role as a wife. And so when that day comes that she will be wed Jenna leaves her small enclave to meet her soon-to-be-husband who is cruel and vicious beyond all measure. Thus, Jenna begins to plot how to escape. With no education on life outside her small world, no resources, and still in pain from her husband's beatings, she must find a way to save herself from her fate.

Straight up fantasy (no romance here) and dark, dark, dark this book was slow moving for the first 40%. After that point, the book progressed quickly and it kept my interest, but the first part was a slog.

Jenna is an interesting character. She is smart, kind, and empathetic. Eventually figuring out that she is not learning about the same things her brothers are, she confronts her mother about her lack of education and her ability to go "through the doors". Her mother is NOT having that and punishes Jenna in a way that sets the stage for the rest of the book. Jenna is in for a life of pain and her mother is determined to convince Jenna that her body is just her flesh, that her mind must stay sharp for a larger cause. Because of her mother's training and her anxiety over who is listening or plotting her demise, Jenna has a great amount of internal conflict. On the outside she's a rock, inside she's just like everyone else, though: scared, nervous, and full of self-doubt.

This book is part of a larger world that Kennedy is setting up but it can be read as a stand-alone. If you can make it through the abuse, this book really is incredibly satisfying. Even with the slower pace at the outset, I'm hooked on Jenna and am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Absolutely jaw dropping. Don't get this expecting a romance though as its disturbing and really delves into the darker side of power and corruption. The first in what's clearly going to be a heart breaking trilogy and I can't wait to follow her journey.

Jeffe Kennedy is now offering us a new fantasy series and as I usually enjoy her stories, I could not wait to get into this one.

The author presents us with a world where women are only an incarnated object. Besides, they have pushed the vice to the point where, from birth, they are locked up in a place where they will not leave until the day when they are to be married. It is an extraordinary place where everything is done so that they are as content as possible, thus avoiding that they develop a critical spirit. Everything is done to make them beautiful and docile. They have never met a man other than their brothers or half-brothers when they were very young. Even their father is excluded. But here, Jenna is a little different from the others. She always wanted to go out and discover the world, see what all can not. Unfortunately for her, when she discovers her future husband, he is far from what she had hoped for. It could even be her worst nightmare.

I really liked this first novel. It’s very different from what we usually find. It’s a pretty dark story, quite difficult even if not everything is shown and that the author has kept the most violent scenes for her, leaving us to put words on what she does not say. We discover a heroine who changes, who evolves, who wants a freedom that she can not have. We hope, we cross our fingers very hard so that Jenna finds a solution, so that she gets out of this infernal cycle, that she realizes that there is a whole world to discover.

Yes, it was an interesting first volume and I can not wait to see what will happen to the young woman afterwards.

Prisoner of the Crown is the first novel in Jeffe Kennedy’s high fantasy series, The Chronicles of Dasnaria which follows Princess Jenna as she fights against the patriarchal society of Dasnaria for both her freedom and her life.

The Chronicles of Dasnaria is a spin-off of the Uncharted Realms series and the Twelve Kingdoms series. Unlike the books in those series, Prisoner of the Crown is not a romance and deals with some themes that some readers may find confronting such as sexual, physical, and emotional abuse.

I was expecting for more to happen in this book however after reading it, it seems like Prisoner of the Crown is more of an origin story for Jenna, as it deals exclusively with her upbringing and then escape from her arranged marriage.

Jenna is the eldest child of Emperor Einarr Konyngrr and his first wife Hulda and has had an incredibly sheltered life sequestered in the seraglio, not even knowing what the sun looks like. Women have no rights in Dasnaria, a society where women are either a wife or ‘bed-slave’, and it’s common for men to take multiple wives.

When Jenna is married to an older man – Rodolf, King of Arynherk – whose previous 4 wives all met with an untimely demise, Jenna is hesitant yet prepared to do her duty. Until it becomes clear just how vile and abusive he is and exactly how he earnt the nickname ‘Bloody Rodolf’.

Jenna’s only hope is her younger brother, Harlan (who you will recognise if you have read the Twelve Kingdoms series) who is determined to help Jenna escape.

“I wanted to laugh and weep, both. Hestar had to know about Rodolf. My mother and father both knew, too. I had my family and that same family would wed me to this man whose wives had all perished. The ladies of the seraglio might be insulated from much of the outside world, but we were not deaf and dumb, not fools. The wives and higher ranked concubines lived better lives than most, but even they suffered occasionally from an outburst of lust.”

Jeffe Kennedy has done an amazing job creating the world of Dasnaria and I cannot wait to see more of Jenna’s journey, which will continue in Exile of the Seas (expected release date; 4th September 2018).

Prisoner of the Crown releases 12th June 2018.

Review goes live on June 5 and will show up on Goodreads sometime later.

In a Flutter: Interesting journey
Fluttering Thoughts:
Worldbuilding: Yessssss, Dasnaria! I’m a total fangirl of the Twelve Kingdoms world, and this one is such an interesting setting and culture!
Characters: Jenna is a character I loved dearly instantly. I could tell who she was and what the basic story would be because of Harlan’s involvement and knowing what I do from reading pretty much the whole world of the Twelve Kingdoms. Even expecting what would go, it broke my heart to go through the story. But I knew the basic idea of where it would go, so it didn’t break my heart without giving me hope. Had I not known where it would go, I might have experienced a bumpier ride, because this isn’t a romance (at least, not yet, from the blurb and etc), so I had no reason to think there would be a happy ending.
All of that made me love Jenna all the more, and I admired her dignity and elegance in the face of pain.
Plot: This is not a romance, but a story of surviving abuse and making your way to freedom. It’s heartbreaking, but beautiful.
Writing: First person, past tense narrative, Jenna’s POV. Loved her voice.
Curb Appeal: Cool cover, hooking blurb – insta-buy author name for me, anyways.

I recommend Prisoner of the Crown to fans of stories about surviving abuse and rich fantasy worlds with awesome culture.

Imperial Princess Jenna is the firstborn daughter of Emperor Einarr Konyngrr and his first wife Hulda. She has spent the majority of her life sequestered behind a seraglio’s gilded walls. Jenna diligently prepares for the day she leaves the seraglio and marries the man her parents had chosen. However, her betrothed is not what she expected. Can Jenna endure her husband’s mistreatment long enough to escape? Or will he be her doom?
I have been curious about Jenna’s story since her part in THE EDGE OF THE BLADE, book two in THE UNCHARTED REALMS. She is such a remarkable heroine, who demonstrates such growth towards the end of the story. I adore how Jenna uses her abuse to counsel her impressionable younger brother to treat women better. But, what I admire the most about Jenna is the sacrifices she willingly makes to keep her sisters from sharing her fate.
PRISONER OF THE CROWN is book one in Jeffe Kennedy’s fantasy series, THE CHRONICLES OF DASNARIA, another spinoff from her THE TWELVE KINGDOM books. The story surprised me. I expected a fantasy romance like the author’s prior books; however, this story has absolutely no romance in it. It does touch on violent triggers, especially domestic abuse against women. I like how the author delves into Dasnaria patriarchy culture and seraglios’ politics.
I already fell in love with Harlan, the hero from THE TALON OF THE HAWK, book one in THE TWELVE KINGDOMS series. His steadfast determination to help Jenna made me love him even more. However, I wish I could say the same about Kral, the hero from THE EDGE OF THE BLADE, book two in THE UNCHARTED REALMS. I am glad that he changed from this story to his.
PRISONER OF THE CROWN is a heartrending tale of a princess’s harrowing journey to escape her sheltered and privileged existence. I like how the entire story is written in Jenna’s perspective. I cannot wait to read the continuation of her future journeys.

Prisoner of the Crown, the first of a new book series by Jeffe Kennedy, the Chronicles of Dasnaria. It is set in the shared universe of The Twelve Kingdoms and Uncharted Realms to other glorious series by Jeffe Kennedy. This book is NOT a romance. I’m going to say that louder for the people in the back. IT IS NOT A ROMANCE. Seriously. It is a very dark novel and a fantastic story of a woman coming into her power after being raised as a helpless pawn in the affairs of the Kingdom of Dasnaria. And I mean dark. We meet her as a young woman, raised in the seclusion of the seraglio. Written in the first person, we follow Princess Jenna’s growth as she matures and begins to understand her role as a pawn in a risky plot to wrest power from the current King. She experiences horrific abuse at the hands of her family and husband. What I love about this dark story is Princess Jenna. She is an inspiring character as she not only survives the abuse thrust upon her but thrives in spite of her family. A model of strength, intelligence, and a reminder that there are different measures of bravery.

As always with Jeffe Kennedy the book is well written and expertly paced with rich description and an intriguing plot. While this is the first in the book series the ending was satisfying. Be warned you will undoubtedly be ready to one click the next book in the series.

Prisoner of the Crown by Jeffe Kennedy is the first book of the The Chronicles of Dasnaria fantasy series. However, what I didn’t know when picking this one up is that this is a spin off of a bigger series by Jeffe Kennedy, The Twelve Kingdoms. Not having read the rest of the books I’m not sure how much is missing reading this series alone.

The story in Prisoner of a Crown starts with Princess Jenna as a child being raised in what seems to the children as paradise, that is until getting a little older. As the children of the Emperor’s many wives grow older the boys start to learn the ways of a man and the girls begin to be taught to become a wife.

When Princess Jenna is of age she is promised off in marriage having always been told that she would become the first wife of a powerful man. The man chosen for Jenna by her parents however has had quite a few wives before her all having died at a very young age and Jenna’s marriage quickly turns into one of nightmares.

Starting off this fantasy read I have pretty high hopes for the book so you may wonder where it all went wrong. Well, the truth is the entire book really consists of just what the blurb says it does and there isn’t much more to it which was rather disappointing. What we have is page after page of world building putting the story firmly into a time when women were property and men ruled the lands but in my opinion this could be done in say 10-20% if not much more than that and move the story forward after that. Instead this ends where the actual story seems to begin so in the end I was just rather frustrated. Now I question whether or not to continue onward with the next book if the pacing is going to continue to be as slow as this start but the writing definitely had it’s merits so it would be a shame to miss what could turn into a great read from here on out.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I've only recently gotten back into reading fantasy after several years away. I must admit I was attracted by the unusual premise of this book (i.e. it was NOT the usual young man from humble background in small village goes on quest type of story line...)

Anyhow, I was hooked from the first page. It has been a while since I've had to lie/cheat & steal for time to keep reading a book--this was one of those times.

This was a book full of surprises. Every time I thought I knew what was going to happen, it didn't. Kennedy never took the boring or predictable route.

I was prepared for Jenna to be annoying--she wasn't. She was extremely sheltered and the way she behaved rang true. I liked how her actions were those of an inexperienced and naive young woman, but her character grew in the face of adversity.

Kennedy has a very clean style that somehow manages to leave you with the impression of having read something far more extensive. I think this book wasn't much more than 350 pp, but by the time I reached the last pages I cared for Jenna, her younger sisters Inge and Helva, and especially her brother Harlan. I even cared about some of the minor characters, like the blacksmith and his family, who you only get to meet briefly.

I thought Jenna's mother was a fascinating character. She is a horrible woman, but she isn't a cardboard cut out of a "bad guy." I got the sense she became that way out of expediency, not out of choice.

Yes, this is a dark fantasy: it is for grown ups and I'm glad the author doesn't pull her punches and pretty it up. I like to read nuanced, gritty, and hard-hitting books written for adults and this first installment in the Dasnaria series is certainly that. I don't think it would be incorrect to call this "grimdark" although Kennedy has a style as distinctively her own as other, equally dark, clever, & fantastic fantasy writers like Abercrombie. There were elements of the book that also reminded me of the King's Blades series by Dave Duncan--perhaps the world building or the deft handling of the latter half of the book. The spirit of the book is unique and grabbed/surprised me every bit as much as Glen Cook's first book in the Black Company.

I am officially a hardcore fan of this series and I have high hopes that this is the first of ten books!

This book was to die for. I couldn't put it down for a second as I read the whole book in one sitting.

I didn't expect to like "Prisoner of the Crown" that much; from the description, it just seemed a bit of fluff. And it is, but in a good way. "Prisoner of the Crown" is a half-story (there's no clear ending and I'll say that to help those who don't like to commit to a series) of a made-up kingdom that seems to have tropes from Southeast Asian court culture of the 1600s. (To be clear, it is NOT set in any real world place and the heroine from the information we receive, is whiter than white.) It's the story of the highest daughter of an emperor and what happens as she comes of age and ultimately is forced to marry. The book shifts from lush descriptions of jewels and gems (fun, I admit) to high adventure as it progresses. While there are moments where the heroine has some of the irksome can't-do-wrong qualities of Katniss from "The Hunger Games" and the lead in "Ready Player One," she's not always perfect and that I can appreciate. In short: "Prisoner of the Crown" was more readable and diverting than I thought it would be.

I loved that book very very much!
I am amazed at the writing of the author and I loved the action and the characters.
The first thing that got to me was the title and I immediately decided that I wanted this book ad that I wanted to read it ^^
I am not disappointed and I hope everybody else gets to enjoy it as much as I did.

#PrisonerOfTheCrown #NetGalley

This book was dark and depressing. I felt sorry for the main character and everything she went through. I am glad she worked on herself to get to where she could escape, but what a price to pay. And her family... well it is a very emotional read.

I received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

Love love love it.

Let's start with our main character, Jenna. Raised to be sheltered, taught to be submissive and groomed to be obedient - she was her mother's crowning joy. Which was the problem in the end.

Empress Hulda did her job too well - yes Jenna had no knowledge of the outside world, but Hulda taught her the importance of POWER. Having it, using it, not sharing it. Hulda taught Jenna that one day she would have power - a woman's power, but it was far more remarkable than a man's.

Except Jenna learns there is little in her Mother that would induce her to be kind towards Jenna. Jenna is just another tool after all.

I loved Jenna. I loved how she didn't make her choices in a rush. She understood the gilded prison she was trapped in, but didn't want to rush into an unknown world that she could fail in. Knowledge was the true power and Jenna wanted it all.

I appreciated how we got to see how Jenna's life was - while the story is told in the past tense (by Jenna from some future point in her life), our narrator doesn't gloss over her naivete or senseless moments. She's brutally honest.

While the story does take some time to develop fully (by almost the 50% point Jenna had only just met her fiancee and learned some awful truths about what life would be like) it's better for it. I suspect understanding Jenna's position and thought process will be crucial going forward.

All in all I'm VERY excited for the next book.

So I tried reading this book but I didn't like the heroine and I really didn't like her husband. Her brothers I liked only because they tried to get her out of the situation she was in but failed because she was hard headed. That being said I do want to try to read other works by Jeffe Kennedy as I liked the writing style. I did not finish this book.

This authors world building is absolutely jaw dropping and in this story we journey to Dasnaria which some readers might be familiar with. Brought up as the eldest Imperial Princess Jenna is the perfect puppet and unfortunately also a sacrifice. Ambition is everything in the gilded cage of the palace but Jenna looks forward to finally meeting her betrothed but he's not the man of any woman's dreams no Jenna is marrying a nightmare !
Don't get this expecting a romance though as its disturbing and really delves into the darker side of power and corruption. Perhaps there's less action than some of the authors works but you will hold your breath whilst clinging to the edge of your seat. If you love fantasy filled with heart and emotions then you won't be disappointed. The first in what's clearly going to be a heart breaking trilogy and I can't wait to follow her journey.
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair