Blogger Wife Chat Review: Kings Rising – C.S. Pacat

Damianos of Akielos has returned.

His identity now revealed, Damen must face his master Prince Laurent as Damianos of Akielos, the man Laurent has sworn to kill.

On the brink of a momentous battle, the future of both their countries hangs in the balance. In the south, Kastor’s forces are massing. In the north, the Regent’s armies are mobilising for war. Damen’s only hope of reclaiming his throne is to fight together with Laurent against their usurpers.

Forced into an uneasy alliance the two princes journey deep into Akielos, where they face their most dangerous opposition yet. But even if the fragile trust they have built survives the revelation of Damen’s identity—can it stand against the Regent's final, deadly play for the throne?

In Kings Rising, the intrigue was even more present, the betrayals even more stinging, and the plot completely unpredictable. 

First of all, can I just say wow to this series? Kings Rising was very well done! The intrigue, the new fragile peace between Laurent and Damen, the betrayals. It was hard to catch my breath while reading. 

I couldn’t agree more, wifey. I couldn’t have anticipated how much I enjoyed Damen and Laurent’s story. It all was so well done!

Before we truly chat though, I have to mention that I felt a little unfulfilled with the ending. It was too abrupt for me, like maybe 20 pages more and I would have been satisfied. Did you enjoy the ending?

I, too, felt the ending was a little too abrupt. I liked how things ended up but I felt that a bit more – about 20 pages – would have made it more satisfying.

Kings Rising brought several characters we’d only met in passing, or in conversations to the front of the plot. I was surprised by Jokasta – she was both smarter (and more brutal) and somewhat more understanding than I had anticipated. Who surprised you the most?

I enjoyed getting a glimpse of some of the side characters we’d met previously in one way or another. I would have to agree that Jokasta was the most surprising though. I knew she had to be smart but her cunning was shocking. She impressed me even as she disgusted me.

As Damen and Laurent grew closer, they also somehow managed to keep some of their thoughts even closer to the vest, how did they do that?

LOL I’m not certain, honestly. It was probably done to protect the other or as a sort of self-preservation. 

There were even more unexpected twists and turns in Kings Rising. Was there anything at all you were able to predict?

Ha! That part of the ending?!? Yeah, Pacat did a wonderful job of keeping me guessing. I always wanted to believe the best of Laurent but he did make me doubt him at times.

I was stunned by how some characters switched their alliances so quickly, and still wonder at what truly made them make the choices they made. Do you think we would have survived in this world? (I don’t think so…)

I’d like to think that the characters saw something noble in the person they were choosing to ally themselves with. But in reality it probably had more to do with who they believed would hold the power. I did appreciate the change of heart the council had regarding the Regent though. And no, I wouldn’t have survived in this world. 

I have tried asking more questions here, but I end up spoiling things just by asking the question. So I guess I’ll just conclude with the fact that I love that we finally read this series, and that we could buddy-read it! It’s extremely well written. And the court politics, the differences in culture, even with neighboring countries, as well as the intrigue kept me at the edge of my seat for three full books.

You’ve done a great job at remaining non-spoilery, darling. I’m very happy that we buddy read this series as well. I’m so very impressed with Pacat’s writing, the intrigue, the gritty violence, the cultural differences…I was fully engaged the entire time. I hope she writes more.

About Linda @ (un)Conventional Bookworms

Linda is an English as foreign language teacher and has a Master's degree in English Language and Literature. She's an avid reader, blogger, compulsive one-clicker and a genre omnivore. Ever since she learnt how to read she has been seen with a book or two in her hands everywhere she goes.

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