Release Day Review – Kingdom of the Wicked (Kingdom of the Wicked, Book 1) by Kerri Maniscalco (3/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Length: 448 pages
Publisher: jimmy patterson
Release Date: October 27, 2020
ISBN-13 : 978-0316428460
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the Kingdom of the Wicked series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley.com
Rating: 3/5 stars
“Emilia and her twin sister Vittoria are streghe – witches who live secretly among humans, avoiding notice and persecution. One night, Vittoria misses dinner service at the family’s renowned Sicilian restaurant. Emilia soon finds the body of her beloved twin…desecrated beyond belief. Devastated, Emilia sets out to find her sister’s killer and to seek vengeance at any cost-even if it means using dark magic that’s been long forbidden.
Then Emilia meets Wrath, one of the Wicked-princes of Hell she has been warned against in tales since she was a child. Wrath claims to be on Emilia’s side, tasked by his master with solving the series of women’s murders on the island. But when it comes to the Wicked, nothing is as it seems…”
Series Info/Source: This is the first book in The Kingdom of the Wicked series. I got this book through NetGalley to review.
Story (3/5): I have kind of mixed feelings about this one. The story started out pretty slow and it’s one of those books that when you think back on it not a ton happened. However, once the story got moving (about 30% through) I did find myself drawn into this historical Italian setting with witches and demons, and found that this made for a decent Halloween read.
The story involved Emilia and her twin Vittoria who are Strega in hiding. When Vittoria is killed, Emilia accidentally summons one of the Wicked, a prince from hell named Wrath. With Wrath’s dubious help Emilia hopes to avenge her twin’s death while solving the mystery behind the murders of numerous witches.
Characters (3/5): My biggest struggle with this book (aside from the pacing) was how much I disliked our heroine, Emilia. Emilia constantly makes dumb mistakes over and over again and I found her very frustrating to read about. She always talks about how she isn’t the adventurous twin but she is constantly throwing herself into very dangerous situations with very little thought. She was my least favorite part of the story and I wanted to smack some sense into her many times throughout the book. Additionally, I thought her character was really inconsistent; almost like she was a bit crazy… at one point she’d be blushing in embarrassment and then she’d be throwing herself at Wrath. She’d desperately want to be saved and helped, but then would ignore everyone’s advice and run headlong into danger…it was just so…all over the place. It honestly just didn’t make a lot of sense.
Setting (4/5): I enjoyed the setting. This whole book seems to be set in a historical Italian village. I don’t remember the time frame really being mentioned but some of the surroundings make me think this is historical. I love the atmosphere of this small Italian town and loved how cozy and yet creepy it felt.
Writing Style (3/5): The writing style was okay but I struggled with some of the same issues I had when I read “Stalking Jack the Ripper”. The story moves a bit slow and the characters are inconsistent and hard to engage with. A lot of people really seem to love Maniscalco’s stories but they just have never really drawn me in….I always find them a bit lacking.
My Summary (3/5): Overall this was okay but not great. The story starts out pretty slow and I could not get over how stupid and impulsive our supposidly intelligent and timid heroine is. If you can get over the main character and her inconsistencies and flat out dumb decisions, it’s not a bad book. Some of the side characters, like Wrath and his brother, make up for Emilia’s craziness. I don’t plan on reading anymore of this series. Since this is the second Maniscalco book I have read that I have been so-so about, I don’t plan on picking up any more of her books in the future either.
