This was a thoughtful fantastical debut from the author and there were many elements that I enjoyed of this. The fact that it was a series meant there was lots to get your teeth into and it produced a very fulsome narrative and storyline.
The storyline and characters encouraged the reader to reflect on gender roles and responses to powerful women and engaged with the sociopolitical context around women ruling or holding high positions in states and kingdoms.
Although there was a lot packed in which made the story diverting and absorbing, at times things felt rushed - particularly in the epilogue which tied the story up too quickly for me.
I also thought there was a lack of context to foundational elements of the 'world' that the story was set in such as the lack of information on the shadow realm.
I think more on the history of the 'world' and kingdoms - particularly concerning the presence of magic would have made the story easier to follow at times as I felt I was filling in gaps myself without knowing if my assumptions were correct.
A good, compelling read overall.

I absolutely loved the mystique and fantasy element in this book. What was a nice surprise is that it was four stories in one books and the two main characters are mentioned throughout.. It reads kind of young but that didn't really bother me one but but because so much was going on. The two main characters, Lucinda a sorceress princess and Matthew prince commander and there paths are joined in chance encounter. Lucinda is afraid of her powers because she can't control but once she does,,, wow she becomes a badass!

I did not expect to like this story as much as I did and highly recommend it as fantasy read.

Thanks to Netgalley, Lisa M James and the publisher for free copy after publication.

Available: 2/20/20

Strong Female lead of color who happens to have magical powers, coupled with a handsome knight who fights by her side. Oh yah, and let's add some ancient spirits bent on revenge.  You really go on a journey with these characters and I enjoyed every moment.

So it wasn't immediately clear to me that this book was four stories in one.  It looks like each story was previously released separately and now the author made a compilation so readers can see the story beginning to end without purchasing additional books. I quite liked it! Even though it's four stories, I found it to be a quick read and the story is very fast paced.  It has a fairytale feel to it, with clean language and even adult situations were handled with care, which I personally liked.  It's one of those stories that parents and teenage kids could both read, discuss, and enjoy together.  There's action, a mystical romance, and secret betrayals all compiled into a magical fantasy world.

•I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.• This is a really enjoyable book. Written for a younger audience than myself, I think, judging from the simplistic writing, but that’s okay! It’s perfect for younger readers, and even myself as an adult enjoyed the story. It has magic, mystery, all the classic tropes, done in its own unique way. I like that it’s a whole series in one... The cover is gorgeous, the world building is interesting, and the best part is having a woman of colour as the main character, that’s something so exciting. I enjoyed the characters and their development. This book may be a little young for me, but it’s definitely a good read for a younger audience!

Writing epic fantasy and world building is tough. On the one hand you want to build a world that feels real, that your characters can inhabit, but you don't want the minutiae to overwhelm the story. Particularly if what you are aiming for is a sense of myth, of a broad complex plot heavy story where the price of wheat in the kingdom is less important than a capricious sorceress starving an entire kingdom. I started The Fifth Kingdom relatively agog at its stripped down world. There are four kingdoms, North, South, East and West. There was briefly a Fifth Kingdom, ruled by a green eyed witch Queen (wither Queendom) which was destroyed with her hubris in a grand romantic tragedy, but a prophecy says she will rise again. So some kings, queens, princes and princesses knock about over four sub novellas playing and replaying a grand tragedy. Its 50% narrative, 50% the two lead characters (the resurrections of the old myth) being pissed off by being trapped by the narrative. And it felt like such a throwback that I rather enjoyed it. Magic has no rules (as it shouldn't), the mechanics of building a Kingdom from scratch totally ignored. If you were a serf, if it wasn't for the annoying starving bit, you'd probably watch all of this nonsense with a jaundiced eye and get back to - well it is unclear what everyone does on a day to day basis in these kingdoms. But then the same can be said of Arthurian myth - they don't exactly bang on about quality of life for the average peasant beyond saying how much they loved their King. Beyond some lands being hotter or colder, and the protagonists being dark skinned, there isn't much detailed description here at all.

Sometimes all you need is a half decent narrative drive, and the rest will follow. In the authors afterword she says how long this story has been sitting on her, since she was a child, and there is a childish naivity to the overall story which flits between fairytale and myth. But that just means it is out of step with current fashion (and there is much here that a close reading might take apart).