Book Review: Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of Crown of Shards
Publisher: Harper Voyager (October 2, 2018)
Length: 416 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
I’d never read Jennifer Estep before Kill the Queen, though I’ve often seen her name spoken of highly among readers in urban fantasy and paranormal romance circles. As a result, I’d long been curious about her work, so when I first learned that she was venturing into epic fantasy with a new book described as a royal revenge story about a female gladiator, I was instantly intrigued.
Kill the Queen follows Everleigh (who prefers going by Evie), a minor member of the Bellona royal family. Seventeenth in line for the throne, she mostly passes through the halls of the palace as an afterthought or ignored all together, especially ever since she and her cousin the crown princess Vasilia fell out. People are also dismissive towards Evie because she doesn’t have much in the way of magical power, though secretly, she is glad for the lack of attention—the better to hide her true talent, which is an immunity to magic.
But then one day during a foreign dignitary event, the power-hungry Vasilia finally shows her hand and together with her co-schemers, they unleash a coup on the unsuspecting court. The queen is killed, along with all those in attendance so there would be no living witnesses to Vasilia’s treachery. Thanks to her secret power though, Evie manages to survive her cousin’s magical attack. She flees to a gladiator school, taking refuge with the troupe there after they agree to take her in and train her in the ways of fighting. Not knowing whom to trust, Evie decides to lay low, until it becomes clear she must stop Vasilia from using her stolen crown to plunge the kingdom into war.
While trope-laden and not terribly original, this book nonetheless provided plenty of enjoyment. I think it says a lot about Estep that she was able to carry the story using the strength of her writing skills alone, giving me such a good time that I was willing to overlook all the glaring clichés. Much of it was due to Evie, whose charming personality and voice hooked me right from the start. An unlikely heroine, she’s a forgotten royal orphan with a special hidden talent that just conveniently happens to be the key to saving an entire kingdom—in other words, her character is as stereotypical and formulaic as you could get. And yet, it did not bother me as much as I thought it would. Like I always say though, tropes are popular for a reason and they only become a problem if not written well, and thanks to the author’s natural and flowing prose, her protagonist was immediately granted a high “likeability factor” which kept me reading.
I also thought world-building was on the sparser side, due in part to the lack of fine detail and description one would usually find in an epic fantasy. The book felt very streamlined in that regard, keeping background information to a bare minimum. There’s both a positive and negative to this approach. Of course, I would have delighted in getting more detail about the magic systems or the history behind the setting, but in doing away with lengthy explanations, the story was able to move along at a good clip. There’s also the book’s audience to consider, as Estep was probably aiming for an epic fantasy with enough crossover appeal to her urban fantasy and paranormal romance fans. Subsequently, you have a very readable book told in an easy and sassy style, with just a light touch of romance that did not feel too overbearing.
If Estep’s goal was to write a highly accessible and entertaining high fantasy, I would say she succeeded. At the end of the day, Kill the Queen was a surprisingly good read, despite the story’s overall predictability and heavy reliance on well-worn tropes. While hardcore epic fantasy readers will likely find the plot too simplistic, the world too shallow, and the characters too paint-by-the-numbers for this novel to be truly engaging, for those of us who do not mind something a little lighter and fluffier—or just want to kick back with something fun—this will do the trick nicely. Highly recommended for gladiatorial action and palace intrigue, with potential for the series to grow over time.
The BiblioSanctum 
It seems that even with well used tropes and light world building you had a great time! Adding to my TBR 😉
LikeLike
Those are the best kinds of books 🙂
LikeLike
She sounds like a solid writer, I’ve never read her either. I missed out on this ARC at Comic Con but this sounds like a series I’d enjoy.
LikeLike
It’s a good start. I’m glad I finally got to read her!
LikeLike
You’ve convinced me – plus gladiators! Oh hell yes.
Lynn 😀
LikeLike
I know, right? I’m a sucker for gladiators 😀
LikeLike
Hmmm, you did like ti despite those things that has worried me. I wonder now
LikeLike
Yeah, I was okay with a lot of the tropes. And you know how picky I am, so if I can deal with them, you’ll probably be fine, lol!
LikeLike
Great review, Mogsy! I’ve read her work before and I like her bouncy writing style – I do get a tad weighed down by some of the worthier epic fantasy reads, so this one sounds ideal for the shallower types like me:))
LikeLike
She does indeed have a bouncy style! It is so easy to get into. Definitely helps if some of the bigger doorstopper fantasy epics bog you down, like they do for me. It was nice reading something lighter for a change!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I couldn’t agree more, Mogsy:)
LikeLike
There is that old adage about the existence of a limited number of stories to be told, so it’s hardly surprising when we find the same elements in many of the works we read – still here it would seem that the writing makes all the difference, therefore proving the truth about the idea that the storyteller is the one who can make or break their own story. Added to my “wanted” list, and thanks for sharing! 🙂
LikeLike
Yeah, there were so many tropes here that have been done to death, but Estep’s writing definitely made all the difference. It was just so easy to get into, it’s impossible to have a bad time!
LikeLike
Seeing as how her other series is so long I’ll probably never catch up, maybe I should give her a try with this one. It does sounds like a good read.
LikeLike
I feel the same overwhelming sense when I look at her other series, knowing I’ll probably never catch up! So when I saw this was a series starter, I jumped on it!
LikeLike
Loved your review! I am a big fan of Jennifer Estep’s writing and I enjoyed Kill the Queen just as much as her Elemental Assassin series. I’m glad you liked it as well.
LikeLike
I will have to check out her Elemental Assassin series! I’ve heard a lot of good stuff about it 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Call me a snob, but when a PNR writer attempts “real” fantasy, I don’t even bother to try it.
That being said, I’m glad this worked for you and I hope you can enjoy some of her other stuff if you ever feel the need.
LikeLike
I definitely know what you mean! personally, I can’t stand PNR but when a solid writer like Estep goes epic fantasy you know I just had to take a look 😀 I also doubt she was aiming for the epic fantasy crowd with this, I have a feeling she only writing for a particular audience, like maybe the small slice of the PNR fandom who might possibly be tempted to check out something “Game of Thrones-like” 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hmm, I think I may add this one to my list. I have never read any of her stuff before but this does sound entertaining and I like tropey stuff on occasion. Great review!
LikeLike
Absolutely, if you’re ever in need of a popcorn-y read, this one would be perfect!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m certainly curious about this one and have enjoyed the author’s work before. I’ll probably read this at some point.
LikeLike
I hope you get a chance to check it out! I know I’m curious about her other work now!
LikeLike
I have heard a lot of Jennifer too. This does sound like a good one and I enjoyed your great review.
sherry @ fundinmental
LikeLike
After reading this, I can definitely see why Jennifer is as popular as she is!
LikeLike
Pingback: Mogsy’s Bookshelf Roundup: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads | The BiblioSanctum
Pingback: Book Review: Protect the Prince by Jennifer Estep | The BiblioSanctum
Pingback: Book Review: Crush the King by Jennifer Estep | The BiblioSanctum