Publisher: Berkley Publishing,  March 11, 2025

Format: ebook

Pages: 416

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary (From Goodreads):

A heart-pounding romantasy following a rebellious princess who must compete to the death against her siblings for the crown to ensure justice, while fighting her feelings for her country’s most powerful enemy by debut author Alexandra Kennington.

Revna is no stranger to struggle. As the only member of the royal family without a magical ability, she is seen as an embarrassing mistake to her kingdom and a blight on her family tree. Luckily, Revna has found family in other outcasts in her kingdom. But when her two closest friends’ lives are put in danger, she is determined to save them by any means necessary, no matter the cost. The Bloodshed Trials—a competition where the last sibling in the royal family standing takes the throne—might just be the ultimate price.

Revna turns down her arranged marriage and commits to competing for the throne only to be kidnapped by the mysterious and terrifyingly powerful Hellbringer, the general of her country’s greatest enemy. He has the ability to rend souls with the flick of his wrist and is every inch as intimidating as the war stories say he is. But Revna wonders if there may be some humanity left in him—especially when he reveals there are other parties who want her on the throne for their own furtive reasons.

My Review:

Thank you Berkley Publishing for the copy of this book.
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Read if you like: enemies to lovers, trial competition for the kingdom
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Revna is the only member of her family not to have been born with magical powers, so she is considered to be “godforsaken.” But she wants the chance to compete in the Bloodshed Trials against her brothers in the hopes of becoming queen and saving others like her. Her kingdom is also at war and they struggle to face a man known as the Hellbringer, who can kill a person by simply closing his fist.
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This was a fast paced, plot driven novel that had a lot happening, so it is easy to get sucked into the story. I liked Revna and I liked the enemies to lovers romance. This was quite a violent book, so be aware, but I am excited to see what happens next!