Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Harper Voyager for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.25 stars

I want to begin by saying that I did enjoy this book. I thought the plot and characters were intriguing and I am interested in continuing the series to see what happens. However, I did have numerous problems that caused my rating of the book to go down.

Within the first couple of pages I noticed that while this is sorted into the adult/general fiction category it read more like a YA novel or the very beginning stages of New adult. It took me out of the story a few times because Gemma and Leo would make certain decisions that seemed like ones that teenagers would make, but then I was reminded that the book states that they are 28-29 and 30-31, respectively. Were the characters between the ages of 19-23 the inner monologue and decisions they made would have been more believable. That being said having read the whole novel I understand that including torture scenes and adult situations alongside explicit language made this an adult novel, however we are seeing more and more "adult content" included in books intended for younger readers that I think if the ages were changed the story would make a little more sense.

My other two major problems go together. I had issue with the magic system and the amount of power the characters had. Starting with the magic system I was very confused as to how it all worked and how people obtained their magic. In the book it seemed like everyone had some sort of power but it didn't explain why or how. In addition there was no explanation on how any of the magic worked. In fact, there were a few inconsistencies in whether magic could be used in front of others without them knowing that Gemma was a mind magier. In one instance Leo and Gemma are communicating mind to mind in front of so many people and in another Gemma doesn't want to call out to him for fear that someone would notice the magic. I am willing to be slightly lenient of this since it is a sequel series of a series I have never read, but I still think there should have been an explanation on how it all worked in this book. My second issue is that until the very end of the book the magic that Leo and Gemma have seemed to be unlimited and have absolutely no strain on either of them. They could go for endless amounts of time and still have the same magic. This seemed highly unrealistic and its not really addressed until the end of the book. My only other issue in this book was the instalove that occurred. Of everything in this book I think the romance was one of the least developed thing and was major instalove which I don't like.

Overall, I did enjoy this book and will definitely be reaching for the next one to see where the story goes. Also, strange side note but the food in this book looked so good and made me want a chesses and apricot jam sandwich.

TW: torture, blood, gore, abuse, child abuse, attempted sexual assault, death
My vlog on Youtube will go out July 2 and my June Wrap up will go out on July 8th.

Good start to the series! It took me a minute to get invested in this book. I haven't read the other series so I was kinda lost in the beginning but I pushed through and really started enjoying the story. Love the idea of spoiled princess having a double life as a spy and I liked this different type of magic that I havent seen before. You know it's a good one when you feel hatred towards the characters enemies! I'm just disappointed that it looks like I have to wait a year for the sequel!

This book is a new series set in Jennifer Estep's fantasy world. While there were some moments I felt like I didn't fully understand what had happened, and wanted more explanation it didn't truly dimish my experience reading. It took a while to get used to the world and the coutnries and the politics involved, but that was nothing compared to getting used to the magic and gargoyle pieces of this world.

As far as main characters go, a princess spy is the dream and this story lives up to that dream. I loved not seeing her become a spy, but that she already was one and totally capable on her own when we meet her in chapter 1.
I feel like for the full experience you will want to read the other books series in this world, but if you are jut looking for a princess/spy then you can skip to this one and have a great time.

Capture the Crown by Jennifer Estep is the 1st book in her new Gargoyle Queen series that is set in her previous Crown of Shards series. We meet our heroine, Gemma Ripley, who is a princess of Andvari; where she is considered a sweet but pampered princess. What people do not know is that Gemma is also a spy, much to the dismay of her father and grandfather.

She sets out in disguise, acting like a miner, in her search for who is stealing tearstone from the Ripley mines; she brings her guard/friend Topaca and her, lovable gargoyle, Grim. When she befriends one of the female miners, she ends up helping to bring a wheelbarrow of tearstones to a dangerous man, who wants the tearstones for leaders of Morta, enemies to Andvari. Trying to keep quiet, she notices a former frenemy from the Seven Spire Massacre days (Crown of Shards- now many years ago), Prince Leonidas (Leo) Morricone of Morta, being held prisoner. When those who kidnapped him try to kill him, it will be Gemma who will save his life, and help heal him.

Things will turn when Gemma herself is almost killed, only to have Leo find her and save her life. But he decides to take her to his home in Morta, to get healers to fix her. At first, she is upset to be in enemy territory, which if they recognize her, would endanger her life. Leo introduces her as someone who was robbed, and privately tells her he can take her back to where she came from, but Gemma decides this is a good opportunity to spy on their enemy. She is welcomed and meets Queen Maeve (our enemy from Crown of Shards), Delmira (Queen’s daughter), and later the evil heir to the throne of Morta, Milo (Maeve’s oldest son; who plans on a takeover of the throne). She ends up attending a party and a ball, dressed in Delmira’s wonderful finery, and at the same time try to find out information, as well as keeping her identity a secret.

Gemma and Leo begin to work together to see what Milo is planning, especially why he needs all those tearstones. A slow build attraction escalates between them, but though Leo has been great, she remembers his betrayal from all those years ago, and still does not totally trust him. When all hell breaks loose, Gemma is shocked when her identity is revealed, and she becomes a prisoner; unable to call Grim for help. Milo takes center stage, trying to prove he will do things his way, and take over the crown; though his powerful mother is still very much in charge. Leo, though upset, knows his family will hurt Gemma, he pleads with his mother not to kill her, but Gemma feels he betrayed her. We watch in horror, how Milo begins to torture Gemma, that had me holding my breath, as she suffered badly.

What follows is an exciting, tense, wild last half of the book that had me on the edge of my seat. Gemma was an amazing heroine (she was a mind mage), and finally realizing that she needs to use her full power in order to survive. The wild crazy climax was a thrill a minute, with all their lives in danger and me holding my breath to see if she would survive. At one point near the end, Gemma rises up and shows her strength threatening the enemy, with me cheering her on.

Estep has created a wild web of deceit, mystery, betrayal, espionage and filled with magic; as well as a slow burn romance that I expect we will see more of in future books. I did love Gemma and Leo together, but so much stands in their way. Beware of the torture scenes, they are strong. Jennifer Estep once again gives us an amazing start to a new series that has me waiting impatiently for the next book. Capture the Crown was so very well written by Estep, which is no surprise, as I love all her books. If you enjoy fantasy, you need to start reading The Gargoyle Queen series, especially this fantastic first book, Capture the Crown.

I've never read Jennifer Estep before and Capture the Crown sounded like an awesome place to start.

It's a spinoff of her Crown of Shards series, and although this book can be read as a standalone, I think it'd be better to read that series first. There were enough references to people and events from Crown of Shards that I felt I was missing out.

I was excited by the prospect of a heroine and hero close to my age; Gemma is 29 and Leo is 30/31. However, while I was reading, I had to keep reminding myself of that fact because they read close to a decade younger to me. That kept throwing me off throughout the book. In general, the characters were pretty one-dimensional.

The romance aspect also fell flat for me. I loved the enemies to lovers potential, but I was not feeling it between Gemma and Leo. Again, I think their ages were misrepresented here. They did not act how I expected people in their late twenties/early thirties to act, so their immaturity and downright awkwardness at times did not set well with me.

Another thing that bothered me was repetitive phrasing and word choices. There were multiple times where I swear I read the same sentence/paragraph in a short timeframe. I even double-checked....and I basically had.

The story itself got off to a slow start, but eventually it picked up and I was interested in what was happening in the middle. Unfortunately, I lost interest again by the end, and I don't think I care enough to continue with the series.

Side note: Queen Maeven was actually interesting to me. I was intrigued by her motives and would have enjoyed reading her perspective. (In fact, multiple perspectives might have done this story some good.)

***I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley.***

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.

Capture the Crown is the first in the Crown of Shards spin-off series, Gargoyle Queen. It’s not necessary to read the previous trilogy, as there is a time jump between the two and it largely follows a completely new set of characters. And just as I found that previous trilogy a bit uneven, although ultimately solid, I also find this one to have potential to be in a similar vein.

I really liked the duality to Gemma’s personality, how she plays at being a pampered princess, while also being engaged in activities as a spy behind-the-scenes. I enjoyed following her as she navigated cutthroat politics and sized up her enemies, each of whom provides compelling stakes.

And while it’s not the sole focus, there is a very prominent romantic arc. The transition of true enemies-to-allies-to-lovers she is immersed in with Leonidas is gripping and well-executed thus far, and I’m excited for what’s to come for them.

This seems like it will be an exciting new series from Jennifer Estep. If you love fantasy with strong romantic elements, you won’t want to miss this one!

Capture the Crown is the start of a new trilogy by author Jennifer Estep, set in the same world (but 16 years later) as her Crown of Stars trilogy, which began with Kill the Queen. I kinda loved Crown of Stars....sorta? I really enjoyed the first book, even if there was nothing truly great to recommend it - it's protagonist was just rather fun to read as was the plot, even if it never was anything truly special. And something about Estep's prose in the series just made it easy to devour each book incredibly quickly, even if I felt the second and third books were less interesting than the first one.

Capture the Crown features a new protagonist, Gemma, a minor character from the first trilogy who was merely a child, who possesses the telepathy and telekinesis magic (she's a "Mind Magier") and decides to use it not to be a proper princess, but a spy for her nation. Gemma's story is a lot of fun and features that same incredibly easy to read prose (I finished this in a day even though i did NOT mean to) as she winds up in enemy territory, falling for an enemy in a classic "enemies to lovers" tropes, and dealing with a ruthless web of royals and backstabbers to go along with her own malfunctioning power. Again, it's nothing special, but it's an excellent start to a new trilogy and I look forward eagerly to book 2.

Note: This is the start of a new trilogy in this world, but references are made to the prior trilogy, especially to an event at the start of Kill the Queen. Those are explained I think decently well to the point where readers new to this world can probably start here okay, but new readers may be a little confused as to the family references and whatnot, so I'm not sure how well this book will be for readers who didn't at least read the first book of Crown of Stars.
--------------------------------------Plot Summary--------------------------------------------
Gemma Ripley's reputation is that of a spoiled girl, a princess with interests in gowns and jewelry, and not serving her people or learning to rule the country, Andvari, that she stands to inherit. But secretly Gemma is a mind magier - capable of telepathy and telekinesis - and she uses her magic, as well as some subterfuge to try and act as a spy undercover to find out what wrongs are plaguing her country. Gemma is desperate to prove that she, a survivor of the Seven Spire Massacre 16 years ago through hiding and running, is not a coward. If only she could fully control her powers.

But when an undercover mission in a Ripley mine reveals that Andvari's mortal enemies, the nation of Morta, is stealing large amounts of tearstone, Gemma finds herself face to face with a childhood enemy: Prince Leonidas Morricone of Moria. Soon Gemma finds herself in Morta as Leonidas' guest, among a royal family known for its treachery and backstabbing, where one wrong move could reveal her identity and expose her to torture and death. But if Gemma can find out what the Mortans are doing with the tearstone, she could possibly save her country from another deadly war.

But the Mortan royal family is a pit of snakes, as Gemma knows fully well from the massacre that killed her uncle all those years ago. And yet Gemma can't help feel more and more attracted to Leonidas, even knowing how he once betrayed her as a child, and that he is in no way someone she can trust......
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Capture the Crown, like its predecessor trilogy, features the first person narrative of Gemma, princess of Andvari, who was a twelve year old girl in the first trilogy and now is 27/28. Gemma is haunted by memories of the opening event of that first trilogy, the Seven Spire Massacre, which killed most of the Bellonan royal family and did kill her uncle, and which she only escaped due to hiding under a table and then being taken away by allies of Evie, the prior trilogy's protagonist. To Gemma, that was a moment of cowardice, made only worse by what happened in the escape (slowly revealed through flashbacks), where those who helped her came into mortal peril because of it, while she herself was nearly helpless due to her lack of control of her power.

This drives Gemma to some pretty risky activities - namely moonlighting as a spy undercover inside her own country - which gets her in the danger that starts this book's plot. And it drives Gemma to refuse to take the opportunity to get out when she has the chance, because she is so desperate to prove herself not to be a coward, to be more than either the spoiled princess the world thinks she is or the scared child she remembers in her memory. And of course, there's her own malfunctioning power she controls with a special necklace, which limits her telepathy and telekinesis to limited levels...although it does nothing about a secondary power of having visions of the past that pop up at annoying times. Gemma is a fun new heroine in this way, as she tries bumbling to investigate the mystery of what the Mortan royal family is upto.

And of course she tries to avoid her attraction to Leonidas. Minor Spoiler Warning: This is not a quick and steamy romance novel. We do have some very classic enemies to lovers type tropes here early - healing the handsome antagonist! only one bed! But the plot is more of a slow burn, and will be a slow burn I suspect throughout this entire trilogy, since the Leonidas relationship with Gemma is distinctly not that of the Evie/Sullivan from the first trilogy. That book's romance featured a pair of outsiders who were always allies (after a rocky beginning), but had to deal with their own individual past hangups to get together. Leonidas is literally the prince from an enemy country, a country who deals with its problems with death, destruction, and torture - and he has suffered as a result. And while he is a much better person, seemingly at least, than his mother and siblings, he still doesn't blink an eye at killing those who might pose a threat. And Gemma can be just as lethal, but she doesn't really want to be, which takes this book in some directions that the Crown of Stars trilogy didn't quite go.

We also have some interesting minor characters, from Leonidas' sister who seems far too nice for a Mortan, to a fellow spy Gemma runs into in Morta and befriends, to the plotting conspirators of the Mortan nobility. Whereas Crown of Stars was very black and white in good vs evil, there's a lot of evil vs evil here, or shades of grey, even if I still wouldn't quite call this the most morally ambiguous of plot structures. And it works, and under Estep's prose, flows at a really great pace that will allow readers to blaze through this one quite quickly. The book reminded me a lot of Kill the Queen, which was the best of the first trilogy, and even if it still isn't anything I'd say is Must Read, it's a lot of fun and I'll definitely be back for the sequel.

This book was insanely good. I read this back in February, so it’s been a couple months, but even back then I knew with absolute certainty that this would definitely be one of my most favorite books of 2021! It was THAT good! I loved every second of it!

So this series is a sequel to Jennifer Estep’s previous fantasy series, Crown of Shards. It’s been a couple years since then and our main character in this book is a grown-up Gemma, who was only a child when we met her back in that series. Now, you don’t necessarily have to read that series in order to read/understand this one because Jennifer always does a fantastic job when it comes to recapping things from previous books. However, I think you should read it regardless because her books are great 😉 Lol. And I don’t know what it was about this one, but I think I loved Capture the Crown even more than I did the OG series, which is saying something! Lol. It was just great! I highly recommend it!

One reason I loved it is because of Gemma. She was very sassy, but she also had a strong sense of responsibility over her country, and I really loved that about her. I also liked that she put up this front as a ditzy princess—I thought it was hilarious! Especially because, in reality, she is very smart and actually moonlights as a spy. No one would suspect a princess 😏 I also found her powers to be very interesting. She’s a mind magier which means she has telekinesis and telepathy (among other things 😉), which is really cool... just not for her since she can’t really control her magic that well. One thing about Jennifer’s books that I love is that while these characters may have what seems like your average powers, the characters always use them in some very interesting and creative ways, and I always love seeing that! And Gemma was no different! She may not have full control of her magier magic, but she does find very creative ways to use her powers.

Another thing I enjoy about Jennifer’s books is the flashbacks! A lot of her books have this and I always enjoy the scenes because it gives you so much more understanding of the characters. In this case, the flashbacks always brought us back to what happened to Gemma right after the Seven Spires Massacre. I always did wonder what she went through after Evie saved her, so I was glad to have these scenes.

I actually went into this book not having read the synopsis because I just don’t have to with Jennifer’s books. I always know I’m going to enjoy them! All I knew was that Gemma was the main character and that she was an adult now and that she was doing some spying. That’s it. So imagine my surprise when Leonidas showed up! Which sounds dumb because he is literally mentioned right there in the synopsis 😂 I am an idiot. Lol. Anyway, back in the Crown of Shards series, we learn that Maeven (one of the bad guys) has a son, Leonidas. He was just a kid back then, and while he was the son of the enemy, he didn’t seem to be awful like everyone else in his family. Gemma had her reservations about the guy though, and not just because he is a Mortan, the mortal enemy of her country, Andvari. They have a past and it was really interesting to dive into that and find out what the heck happened. And while not-great things did happen back then, this Leo now... I love him! He was very thoughtful and sweet. And he did these little things for Gemma that caught her off guard and made me swoon 😍 It’s very surprising because of where he comes from and who his mother is. The Mortans are stereotypically thought to be just, I don’t know, evil. The now-Queen Maeven, Leo’s mother, was actually the one who orchestrated the Seven Spires Massacre and killed all of Evie’s family in the last series. So, yeah. I get why Gemma is iffy about the guy. But Leo was just the sweetest 🖤 I loved when they agreed to work together to figure out who had been stealing the tearstone and what they were gonna do with it. And seeing their relationship develop... and that sexual tension between them... it was SO good! I loved it! I am excited to see where their relationship goes after what happened in this book.

Oh and let’s talk about the action in this book, because Jennifer always delivers on that! I love it! Throughout the entire book, we got a lot of good action, but it was at the end of part one/start of part two that I remember being really giddy with excitement. Things had just gone down and Gemma just woke up to be in the not-best of circumstances. Just the idea of Gemma being in a place she's not supposed to be, undercover, made me very excited! Things could go wrong at any second! And then they did 😬 The climax... it nearly made me cry. The situation Gemma found herself in and then the repercussions of that... it was awful 😩 This whole last third of the book was really intense and I loved it! But at the same time, I really felt for Gemma, who I was really attached to at this point.

I could go on and on and on about how much I love this book, but I think this review is long as it is 😅 There is just so much I loved about this and I wish I could talk about every single thing, but I’d rather you guys read it for yourselves. It was amazing! I really loved the story, the uncovering of schemes, and all the fantastic action! I also loved the characters, especially Gemma and Leo... OMG I adore Leo! 😍 In Crown of Shards, you are shown what terrible people the Mortans are, but in this book.... Maybe they're not all so bad? At least when it comes to Leo. That was very interesting and I am excited to explore that further in the rest of the series! I cannot wait for the sequel!

Estep has been one of my favorite authors for years now, and this new series, phenomenal! Heart-stopping action drops from every single page.

What a fantastic read! This is a great beginning to this fantasy trilogy. I really enjoyed every page of this book. The characters are three dimensional and very likable. It was great getting to know Princess Gemma, mind magier and spy. Her adventure in this story kept me turning the pages. Prince Leo is a very interesting character. I loved immersing myself in all the goings on throughout the story. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

I received an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

If you have read the Merry Gentry books by Laurell K. Hamilton A Kiss of Shadows, and if you have been a fan of Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels series Magic Bites, then you will most likely love this book. Just be prepared to think of it not as an adult novel/series but as a young adult novel. Perhaps even a teen novel with a lot of swearing and sexy musings?

This book was filled with cliches and familiar ideas from other books, but I managed to ignore them. The characters, especially Princess Gemma, are shallow at this point, but I can see that she will grow with the next book. This is an excellent thing.

While I cannot rave about this book, I can say that I liked it enough to want to finish it and to want to see what happens next.

*ARC supplied by the publisher, the author, and NetGalley.

The world-building is pretty solid and the characters interesting, but my reading tastes might have changed because the slow burn of the plot and romance was a little frustrating.

I'm used to reading fantasy and paranormal romance where the relationship is on a lower simmer for the first few books while the characters kick ass and circle each other, but I just don't have the patience for it at the moment.

I really liked Gemma as a character. She was intriguing and pretty badass, but I'm not sure if I want to get invested in a series that will probably be ongoing with the same couple at its center.

Capture the Crown is the first book in the Crown of Shards spin-off series featuring two well-known characters. The Gargoyle Queen series will follow Gemma Ripley as she first acts as a spy for the kingdom of Andvari, uncovers sinister plots, and teams up (and maybe falls in love?) with an enemy to prevent a war.

Readers first met Gemma in Kill the Queen, when she was a young girl hiding under the table during the Seven Spire Massacre. She has clearly come into her own in the years since and when the book opens she is acting as a spy and looking into loads of tearstone that have gone missing from an Andvari mine. Her investigation leads her into danger and discovering that the kingdom of Morta is once again up to no good.

Her unlikely ally turns out to be Prince Leonidas Morricone, the second son of the ruler of Morta and a man who she once encountered while fleeing the enemy after the massacre. They have no reason to trust each other and a difficult history behind them, but after saving each other’s lives, they tentatively decide to work together to discover what Leo’s older brother is planning to do with all the stolen tearstone.

Most of this book is a set-up for what is to come. We get reacquainted with Gemma and Leonidas and settle back into the politics of this world. Morta is still the bad guy and Queen Maeven just as terrible as she was in the original series. This time though readers spend most of their time in the Kingdom of Morta and seeing the relationships between the royal family. Leo and Gemma do start to build what I think will be an eventual romantic relationship, although I do believe it will be something that doesn’t manifest until much later in the series. But the potential is there and I look forward to watching their relationship grow.

This was a slow read starting out, gradually picking up toward the end. It does leave off on a cliffhanger, but I expected that since I figured that this would at least be a three book series. I was very happy to get back to this world and look forward to the second book in the series and discovering what comes next.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Capture the Crown was so much fun to dive into! Now it has been a while since I've read a book by Jennifer so I will admit that freaked out when I got accepted to read this one. That last series I dove into was so freaking good that I went into this one with high expectations. Honestly, not disappointed by anything right now.

In it, you will meet Gemma. She is a princess and a spy. In the words of Hannah Montana.. she's got the best of both worlds. Maybe? Not sure. I will admit that she was a pretty interesting and likable character though. Plus the adventure that she went on was loads of fun. Definitely made this a page turner.

Oh and her love interest? Public enemy number one. Which, hello, I'm sold (again). Honestly, each and every one of her enemies were very intriguing. I just wanted to get to know them a bit more and explore their side of evilness.

With each twist and turn, I was constantly on the edge of my seat. I had no idea what was going to go down and that's what kept this being a fun book to devour. Even though the beginning started off a bit slowly for me. It definitely picked up before things felt like they were dragging.

In the end, I loved this book and can't wait for the next one to come out!

This is a sequel series to Crown of Shards. You will need to read that series before starting this one. I got tired of that series because Everleigh became too perfect. Yet, I wanted to give this book a try because Gemma is an interesting character, and the world is fascinating.

Gemma is trying her best. After the massacre that happened when she was a child, she's working on never letting people down again. Unfortunately, this means that she blames herself for the killings. This pressure she puts on herself makes her become a spy. As a spy, she saves Leonidas, the second prince of Morta, the kingdom that led the assassination. He takes her to Morta's capital, where she can find out what evil Morta is doing. Also, she has to fight her feelings for Leonidas. Their chemistry is gorgeous.

The pacing of this book is fast. Gemma stays for good reason but isn't blind to danger. Morta itself is perilous, but it's exciting with everyone having their own dangerous plot.

This book is clumsy with exposition, which happens in the first chapter. After the exposition is done, the book is an exciting ride.

This review is based on an advanced reader copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

This was a lot of fun. Her books aren’t exactly great classics of literature but if you’re looking for a light fantasy with a kick ass heroine her stories are a lot of fun. They get steamy but not super explicit so they lean more towards the plot and action than the romance. My one complaint with this book is the character ages for the main two characters was stated as 29 and 30. They really felt much younger than that…. Aside from that disconnect between the given ages and how old they felt from the rest of the story it was a good time reading this book and I look forward to to book two. She really does light escapism fantasy well.

Another series that will have me just grabbing each one that comes after it. I love that Estep creates very strong female characters and worlds. Capture the Crown feels a little like a blend between her Elemental Assassin and Crown of Shards series. This enjoyment into the series is a nice start to get the world built, the characters fleshed out some, and to get the story started. Unsure where the whole story will grow but it has a lot of potential.

I really enjoyed this book. It starts with great voice from the main character, and although it took a little while to get going (I like things to be pacey from the start), the story is really engaging with interesting characters. I would have liked more romance and hoping that element picks up in book 2..

This book had everything! I thought the world building was great. I really love the magic system. There were real-world themes and tropes that I thought were done really well. I wish I had read the other completed series in the universe first, but that is just a person preference. If you are looking for a lot of romance, this first book might disappoint. I feel like the romance will ramp up in the next book. I don't mind a fantasy without heavy romance because I love the magic of everything else.

I loved Capture the Crown, the first book in Jennifer Estep’s new A Gargoyle Queen series. The story follows Gemma, a princess/spy, who while on an investigative mission uncovers things that result in more danger and political intrigue than she ever imagined.

Princess Gemma Ripley has a reputation for being spoiled and pampered, more interested in gowns and jewelry than politics. She encourages this gossip and cultivates the persona of a glitzy, silly woman – anything to distract from the truth. Gemma is really a spy. While investigating who is stealing tearstone from one of her kingdom’s mines, she becomes an unlikely ally of Leonidas Morricone of Morta – her mortal enemy and the man she wants dead. I love Gemma! She is strong and fierce, independent and intelligent. She loves her family and her country, and she fights hard for what she believes in. Gemma also struggles with traumas from her past, which exacerbates her anxiety. She is well-layered and interesting, and I enjoyed the complexities of her character.

Leonidas is another great character and the perfect anti-hero. Not always honorable, trustworthy, or honest, his character is veiled in mystery, and I so loved trying to figure out his true intentions. He is so different from Gemma, who is fairly obvious in her feelings and motivations. Of course, Gemma’s life and family are very different from Leo’s. Unused to the support and love of family, Leo faces familial manipulation, threats, and even attempts on his life. However, Leo is different from most of his family members. He doesn’t possess the cruelty that many of the others do, and he tries valiantly to protect those he loves and cares about. I like that Leo is so well-layered, and I feel like there is so much more to learn about his character.

Determined to show Gemma that not all of his people are evil, Leo shows a deep love for his country. However, political intrigue abounds in his world, and it seems as if everyone has a scheme in the works. So many people are vying for the throne, and no one is safe. Gemma knows she can’t trust anyone, though Leo tries to convince her otherwise. There are so many twists in the story, and I was shocked at some of the turns of events. With murder coups, brewing wars, and a woman behind enemy lines, there is tons of tension and action. Plus, there’s the beginning of a swoon-tastic romance!

I am a fan of a good love story, and this slow-building, enemies-to-lovers romance is fantastic. Gemma and Leo have such a complicated and impossible romance, which reminds me a bit of Romeo and Juliet. Their families are enemies, and Gemma has despised Leo since he betrayed her when they were children. Gemma is slow to trust the mysterious and secretive Leo, even though she feels drawn to him for some inexplicable reason.

Because of his brutal upbringing, Leo struggles with intimacy. Like Gemma, Leo is slow to trust, but his feelings for her are strong. He resists them for many reasons, but this proves impossible. Things are not always as they seem, and the more this pair (especially Gemma) learns about each other, the past, and the present danger, the more they realize that their perceptions might be wrong. I love the tension between this couple. There are so many obstacles in their way, and it seems improbable that they could end up together, but I’m still rooting for them.

In addition to the layered characters and swoon-worthy romance, the world-building is immersive and interesting. I love the different animals, magic, and other supernatural elements that wove through the story. Gemma’s loyal gargoyle is fantastic, as is Leo’s feathered friend. They both have big personalities, and though they should be enemies, they actually seem to have a begrudging respect for each other. I can’t wait to learn more about the world, the magic, and the other supernatural elements and creatures in the upcoming books.

Though this is a spin-off of the Crown of Shards series, you don’t need to read that series to read this book. That being said, I loved this book so much that I’m going to read the Crown of Shards series next. I think this is a great book for readers who like fantasies with dynamic characters, immersive stories, tons of political intrigue, and a fantastic enemies-to-lovers romance. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series and am so thankful to NetGalley, Jennifer Estep, and Harper Voyager for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.