Author: Eleanor Herman
Genre: Young Adult, High Fantasy
Source: Harlequin Teen via NetGalley
Release Date: 1 September, 2015
Goodreads
Imagine a time when the gods turn a blind eye to the agony of men, when the last of the hellions roam the plains and evil stirs beyond the edges of the map. A time when cities burn, and in their ashes, empires rise.Review by Nara
Alexander, Macedonia’s sixteen-year-old heir, is on the brink of discovering his fated role in conquering the known world but finds himself drawn to newcomer Katerina, who must navigate the dark secrets of court life while hiding her own mission: kill the Queen. But Kat’s first love, Jacob, will go to unthinkable lengths to win her, even if it means competing for her heart with Hephaestion, a murderer sheltered by the prince. And far across the sea, Zofia, a Persian princess and Alexander’s unmet fiancée, wants to alter her destiny by seeking the famed and deadly Spirit Eaters.
Weaving fantasy with the salacious and fascinating details of real history, New York Times bestselling author Eleanor Herman reimagines the greatest emperor the world has ever known: Alexander the Great, in the first book of the Blood of Gods and Royals series.
If I start off with the worst thing about the book: there were way too many point of view characters. There were at least five or six different POVs, and honestly, in such a short first novel in a series, it was too many. You weren't able to fully immerse yourself in one POV before being whisked off to another, especially when some of them hardly had any page time at all. For example, Zofia, the Persian princess who's trying to find the Spirit Eaters- she only had a few chapters which don't really integrate well with the flow of the rest of the book.
That being said, the main points of view: Alexander and Katerina, were very intriguing. I pretty much know nothing about Alexander the Great other than his name, and therefore can't comment on the historical accuracy, but judging from the author's note, the background seemed very thoroughly researched. This was quite well blended with the fantasy aspect of the novel, with a relatively well defined magic system. Katerina definitely had the most compelling plotline for me, with the mystery of what happened to her mother being a driving force for her story.
I feel like overall, Legacy of Kings was a little bit too ambitious in going for an epic historical fantasy. While it was still a decent read, it would have been better if Herman had focused on one or two characters, and perhaps added more POVs in later books.
Liked it
RatingsOverall: 7/10
Plot: 4/5
Romance: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
World Building: 3/5
Characters: 3.5/5
Cover: 3.5/5
