Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes
Published: December 11th 2012 by Razorbill
In the three kingdoms of Mytica, magic has long been forgotten. And while hard-won peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest now simmers below the surface.
As the rulers of each kingdom grapple for power, the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed… and four key players, royals and rebels alike, find their fates forever intertwined. Cleo, Jonas, Lucia, and Magnus are caught in a dizzying world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances, and even unforeseen love.
The only outcome that’s certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?
It’s the eve of war…. Choose your side.
Princess: Raised in pampered luxury, Cleo must now embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of magic long thought extinct.
Rebel: Jonas, enraged at injustice, lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country cruelly impoverished. To his shock, he finds himself the leader of a people’s revolution centuries in the making.
Sorceress: Lucia, adopted at birth into the royal family, discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.
Heir: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, firstborn son Magnus begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword….
I have had this book on my TBR for ages now. I kept seeing amazing reviews for this book, but it always slipped my mind when I was buying new books from Amazon – however, I remembered one day and decided to buy it. It took me a while to read because I was ill, but I enjoyed it, mostly, when I got around to reading it. It was, however, slow in some places.
The beginning of this book had me gripped. I was not expecting it to start the way it did and for things to escalate as quickly as they did. I thought that, based on the beginning of the book, it was going to be epic. However, it began to lose its momentum, and then it regained it, and then it lost it again, so it was a bit of a mixed bundle.
Magnus was my favourite character. I mean, who doesn’t love a broody prince? I actually felt really sorry for him, even if there were moments where I wanted to slap him myself. I have high hopes that he will redeem himself… and hopefully fall in love with someone other than who is currently in love with! I mean… no!
Cleo was amazing. She was strong willed and always went after what she wanted. She didn’t let anyone stop her, not even the king, and she grows and changes along the way. I loved watching her change throughout the book and she started doing things for others and not just herself. I think her strong will and tenacity will get her pretty far within the series.
I enjoyed reading about the other characters, but they didn’t really make all that much of a lasting impression on me as a reader. I think the book was used to set things up and introduce everyone and everything rather than being plot or character based. I am interested to see what the rest of the series has on store for us!
I gave this book 4/5 stars. I look forward to reading the rest of the series!
Have you read this book? Did you enjoy it? Feel free to leave links and comments.
Lauren's Page Turners 
This is a great review, and I’m really glad you enjoyed this book as well. It’s been on my to-read list for a while now too and I still haven’t gotten around to it but I may have to pick it up soon because I keep seeing amazing reviews for it. It’s a shame the characters didn’t really make a lasting impression but hopefully that’s something that will improve with the second book! 😀
I think the book was more to set things up rather than for the plot or the characters. I also think there were so many characters going on it was a bit hard to keep up! Still, Cleo and Magnus were pretty cool 🙂
Hopefully there’ll be more of a plot in the second book then, and I guess it’ll be easier to keep up with all the characters as well. I’m glad you enjoyed it either way! 🙂
I’m looking forward to the second books when I get a copy!! 🙂
I really loved this book and read it earlier in the year but I just haven’t had time to get to the rest of the series but it was such a good book and I can only imagine how good the rest of the series could be.
I’m looking forward to reading the next book too! 🙂