Omg!! This book was soo good. It reminded me of why I started reading and why I love it so much. The magic and the characters were everything. I just love this book and now I need to go buy the finished copy.

Maralyth is a vine yards daughter who has magic and ends up being kidnapped so she can take over Perin Faye as queen. Alac is the spare and a second born prince to the king of Perin Faye. He would love to work on a vineyard. His brother is getting married and his father gives him an amulet to keep him protected until his brother can create a heir. Maralyth comes to the castle and the two get to know each other. Will she be able to over throw the king and his children without getting attached to Alac?
I really liked the relationship between Alac and Maralyth. I do feel like there could have been more magic and not so predictable. Still a good read.

Ok could this cover be any more beautiful?? I love it so much!! The story itself also did NOT disappoint. I believe it is released now so definitely give this one a read if you can, I loved it

I was looking forward to finishing this book, but it was archived and is now not currently available from my shelf. I was enjoying it from what I got to read, but I can’t give this a proper rating/review since I didn’t get to finish it.

WOW!! I love this book so much that I had to buy a hardcover copy right away. The story is just fantastic and so original. Of course the cover is beautiful too.

I do very much highly recommend this book.

My Review:⭐️⭐⭐⭐/ 5 stars

Another book with such a beautiful cover! This is what I consider a nice “pocket-size” YA fantasy book. Some of the epic fantasy novels are SO long, 500 pages + and tons of details and world building. However this is a little over 300 pages, and skims the surface on the descriptions of Perin Faye. It tells the story with a duo POV between Maralyth, a vintner’s daughter who has secret magical powers, and Prince Alac Thungrave, the spare heir, who has watched dark magic surround his father, King Selmar and brother Cannon. Those with magic are in line for the throne, whereas the Thungraves stole their magic a hundred years ago. Maralyth is kidnapped and coerced into usurping the king as the rightful heir to the throne, but in turn meets Prince Alac who she develops feelings for.

The story was really delightful for how short the book was - a great introduction to someone just trying a fantasy genre. It reminded me of a CW version of Game of Thrones. I wish there was more to Alac and Maralyth -and could absolutely see this being a series instead of a standalone.

Thank you to Tor Books and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

This was surprisingly good for a rather generic YA fantasy romance.

Boehme managed to make her characters and their love story believable by letting them both acknowledge that they had know each other only for a short time.

A further plus: it's a standalone that delivers a solid story in less than 350 pages.

I came across this book on NetGalley and was fortunate enough to get an eARC in exchange for an honest review. The Stolen Kingdom follows Maralyth who goes on a whirlwind adventure full of magic, princes, princesses, and hidden/secret identities.

I’m going to be honest and say that it took me a while to actually start and read this book. But, when I did start it I ended up finishing it in one night. I went to bed a like 4AM. The book just sucked me in and I wanted so badly to know how everything played out and how it would end. Why is Mara the way she is? Is she going to end up with the dashing second prince? And will she survive when her secret gets out? What is to become of the kingdom that they’re all fighting over?

I absolutely loved the world that Jillian created and the uncertainty of how Mara’s life will be like and the role Alac Thungrave, the second son to a king played in all of it. You can see the war going on internally with each of these characters. Not only were they battling their own thoughts about their own lives but, when they meet and Mara’s secret gets out they now battle their feelings for each other and the future of Perin Faye. This made these characters feel real to me. We don’t get the happily ever after where Mara and Alac rule together and I like that. It leaves room for them to grow as a couple and as people.

I gave this book a rating of 3/5 stars because while I was in love with the world in which it was set and the characters I was presented the start was just to slow for me. I couldn’t immerse myself into the story from the get go and had to MAKE myself keep reading (which btw I am very happy I did). Secondly, I was confused and thrown off by the presence of a winery and why it was so important. It just felt a bit forced in the writing and strange. Perhaps it could have been symbolic of something bigger but, I have yet to see it or understand it. Nevertheless it was a good read and I do recommend it.

If you like worlds with secrets, magic that shouldn’t be with who its with, princesses who didn’t know they were princesses and dashing young princes then I suggest you give this book a try. And if you understand the importance of wine and the winery please tell me because it really did just make no sense to me.

I love fantasy books, I really think the storyline had potential but for me, it missed some things. The world-building was lacking, not expecting a huge description but a bit more to really get into the world, the secondary characters were undeveloped and I really wanted a romantic connection but that want was felt a bit flat as well, I know it's a YA but the emotions I wanted to feel weren't as strong. The story was entertaining so I read it all, it's standalone, the blurb intrigued me enough when I got the book, I think if it's a bit reworked it would be a better book. That's just my perspective, but also I've been reading very well-written fantasy novels lately, and perhaps comparing even unconsciously had me rating this way. The audiobook was narrated by Kirby Heyborne and Suzy Jackson and I think it was better than just reading it, they both nailed their characters.

What a great fantasy read! The world that Boehme has created is SO full of life and mystery. I was sucked in from page one and couldn't put it down.

The Stolen Kingdom is a captivating story full of mystery and intrigue. A well-written story with an enjoyable plot, stolen magic, and a sweet romance.

Trying as hard as i could but i just could not get into this one and i really wanted to like it. the world building was nice and i enjoyed the characters i got to meet but something about the story was not pulling me. but that doesnt mean this book isnt for you, it just wasnt for me.

We meet Mara, the daughter of a winemaker, who finds out she is the long lost heir to a stolen kingdom. She has to keep her magic a secret while she plots to steal back her kingdom. However, she meets Prince Alac, the man she must get rid of in order to take back her kingdom and become queen. But there are some unexpected twists and turns that make gaining her kingdom back that much harder.

The story was interesting and Mara was a well developed and entertaining character. However, Alac was lost in the mix and didn't stand out much in the story. He was easily forgotten. There were also so many details throughout the book that it bogged down the story. Details are great for building a unique world, but too many details just make reading harder.

Mara and Alac's romance was instant love, but I didn't feel like it worked. They seemed to have more a friendship or platonic love and forcing them into a romantic love didn't do them justice. I would have liked to see them get through their journey and had a different outcome to their relationship.

Overall, the story was decent and Mara was an incredible character, but their were some issues with the development and arc of the story and characters.

2 stars.

The only way I can really sum up this book is..... ordinary. All powerful girl who finds out she's royalty, insta love between two people because "she's so different" and tyrannical ruler. I feel like this book was more formulaic then anything else. It followed to formula well, don't get me wrong, but it was nothing new.

The Stolen Kingdom is a wonderful new YA fantasy novel great for anyone who loves this genre, and is especially sophisticated that it's great for adults as well. This is an Enemies to Lovers romance, lost royalty, wine laden drama that I was completely absorbed in. I binged this book in just over a day.

I personally don't like 1st person POV, but Boehme did a fair job at it that it wasn't overly cheesy sounding. What stands out most about the writing to me is the pacing; the action and character development is paced so steadily that it was particularly pleasurable to binge. The beginning jumps right into introducing the characters, setting, and conflict then in continues right on towards all the next steps. The ending is so satisfying and cozy; I was left wanting for nothing. I read so many series, it was nice to read one novel and be satisfied with it in itself.

The main characters are believable and likable! I was invested in them. Their arcs and the action is predictable, even from reading the synopsis you can imagine exactly what this book entails, but I enjoyed that. I may have guessed the end results but the journey there was an adventure!

I love the vineyards and wine talk. I loved the consistent character typing. This is an excellent novel! It's not short but it never felt drawn out like how I felt with Vow So Bold and Deadly, etc.

Thank you TorTeen and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I can't wait to have this one on my physical shelves too!

This one unfortunately just wasn't for me. The writing was okay but I just couldn't get into the story and ended up not finishing it. While it was an intriguing premise, for me it was something about not being able to connect emotionally with the characters in the way that I needed in order to keep reading.

“It was hard, in the dark, to tell friend from enemy.”

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thank you to Tor Teen and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The Stolen Kingdom follows Maralyth Graylaern, the daughter of a vintner living in her mother's shadow, who has no idea she is one of the only two known living and direct heirs to the Dallowyns. The Dallowyns were given magic to rule their kingdom justly, and Mara has no idea of her responsibilities until she is forcibly thrown into a plot to overthrow and murder the current rulers, a bloodline of dark magic users. Unfortunately for her, the spare prince Alac Thungrave is far from the evil and cruel man she imagined him to be. Will love, duty, or generations-long feuds win in the end?

This book was a lovely read! I enjoyed the dynamic between Mara and Alac, but I especially loved the friendships in this story as well, such as Alac and his guard Tucker or Mara and her half-brother Nestar. I also really enjoyed the side characters, even Prince Cannon and his betrothed Ellian. All of the characters had their own unique voice! My only complaint is that Alac's perspective seemed almost... too modern for a historical fiction? Some of his phrasing/dialogue pulled me from the story.

I still thoroughly enjoyed myself reading this, would read future works by the author, and would be excited if this ever had a sequel!

I really loved the characters in this book. There was a lot of depth to their motives and what they thought was best for the kingdom. The main characters were particularly compelling in both their similarities and conflicts. I particularly enjoyed seeing how Maralyth navigated the court and how that shaped her opinions of the kingdom’s ruling class.

The magic was also well written and I enjoyed the way the details of the magic system and the kingdom’s history unfolded. A few elements were predictable but there were also some great twists. Overall I really enjoyed this story.

We start our story on a vineyard with Mara who has been bestowed with magic but told to keep it a secret. It’s told in first person and has two characters it flips between. Mara and the second prince, Alac.

The kingdom is ruled by Alac’s father, whom has taken over the magic that was stolen over a century ago, after his father passes and a failed coup, the magic is freed creating mayhem due to the magic turning on itself. Alac and Mara come together to fix things as best as possible and hopefully rid the world of the evil magic. There are some wonderful scenes within the gist of what I said, but to say so would give away such nice tidbits. My only complaint was it started a smidge slow, but that’s my thoughts only. Towards the middle of the book I became quite invested. But Alac was a bit easy to forget. I constantly wanted to call him the wrong name when I was thinking of the book. He didn’t stand out quite as much as I would expect him to for being a main character. All in all, not a bad read and I’d say it was pretty good. However I hope in the next book Alac grows a bit and becomes the character he should be.


*I was given this book from netgalley for free in return of giving a review of my thoughts*

The Stolen Kingdom is a standalone fantasy where you get a whole new type of magic and see how good magic can turn evil when it is in the wrong hands. It has been awhile since I have read a standalone fantasy story as I feel that they need more novels to fully get through the story. This novel managed to set everything up, provide an interesting story, followed by a conclusion all within a single novel. There is a lot that happens in the couple hundred pages that make-up this story and I found it very entertaining and satisfying, but I still wanted more at the same time.

Over 100 years ago, the Thungraves were given magic by the true magic holders as temporary holders. The Thungraves betrayed them and kept the magic for themselves and usurped the throne for themselves in the kingdom of Perin Faye. The corrupted magic was then passed from father to son as a Thungrave king would pass it on to his heir. Time passed and the newest Thungrave King now has possession of the magic and is preparing to pass it to one of his two sons who will be getting married and prepare to ascend the throne soon. Cannon, the heir, is following in their father’s footsteps and seems to have the same thoughts about the magic and the kingdom. On the other hand, we have Alac, the spare heir, who does not believe that his father’s rule has been beneficial to the kingdom and he question’s the magic and its need to be king. Alac’s best friend, and personal guard, Tucker, was a great asset to the story as I loved the banter and friendship between him and Alac. Tucker is there to support Alac, but I would have loved to learn more about him as he seemed like an intriguing character.

Maralyth is the vintner’s daughter with a hidden secret, she can do magic! She secretly used her magic to help the grapes ripen and for other uses to improve the world around her without getting caught. Her magic is discovered one day and she is kidnapped by one of the lords of the kingdom, Lord Nelgareth. It turns out that she is the true heir to the throne and she becomes part of the coup to take back the kingdom from the Thungraves. She has an incredible love of wine and it is proven time and time again throughout the book that she is very knowledgeable about the details of the winemaking process. She is a fairly level-headed and likeable character and the reader roots for her to succeed and find happiness.

The lords devise a plan to use Cannon’s wedding festivities as a cover to bring Mara to the castle and follow-through on their coup. While at the castle, Mara first meets Alac. The two of them have an instant connection and interest in each other. Slowly, they interact and get to know each other little by little. The only issue is that Mara had to lie about who she is to hide her identity and she also has to keep hiding her magic. The two bond over wine as Alac’s dream is to escape palace life in favor of making wine. I liked that wine was a bonding factor as it was a very unique topic that usually is not included in other novels. Alac wants to get rid of the dark magic and maybe Mara can be the key as she seemed to have knowledge about the subject. Although Mara knows that Alac’s remaining time before his assassination is short, she cannot help but start to have feelings for him.

This novel was very interesting, but I would have loved more pages added on in order to include more details and create more background to the story. This way the reader would be able to understand the terribleness of King Selmar and why it is so important to remove him from the throne before things could potentially become worse. The secondary characters seemed very interesting, but they are missing some backstory to help the reader connect to them. As the story moves along at a decent pace, it is both great and frustrating as I liked that every part of the novel had to do with the main story, but at the same time, I wanted more in order to connect to everything more. The writing was easy and entertaining as it was interesting to read about these two characters that are on opposing sides, while having the common purpose of improving the kingdom. A fun and entertaining read!

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, Macmillan-Tor/Forge, and the author, Jillian Boehme for an ARC to read. The opinions expressed are completely my own.**