The Queen of All that Dies

The Fallen World #1

by Laura Thalassa

This is a previously-published edition - ISBN13: 9781942662044

In the future, the world is at war.

For the last decade, King Lazuli of the Eastern Empire has systematically taken over the world. No one knows much about him other than a series of impossible facts: he cannot die, he has not aged since the conflict began, and he wants to rule the world.

All Serenity Freeman has known is bloodshed. War has taken away her mother, her home, her safety. As the future emissary of the Western United Nations, the last autonomous region of the globe, she is responsible for forging alliances where she can.

Surrender is on the horizon. The king can taste it; Serenity feels it deep within her bones. There is no other option. Now the two must come face to face. For Serenity, that means confronting the man who’s taken everything from her. For the king, it means meeting the one woman he can’t conquer. But when they meet, something happens. Cruelty finds redemption.

Only in war, everything comes with a price. Especially love.

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, New Adult, Dystopia, Enemies To Lovers, Science Fiction, Post Apocalyptic

325 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 2015

About the author

Found in the forest when she was young, Laura Thalassa was raised by fairies, kidnapped by werewolves, and given over to vampires as repayment for a hundred year debt. She’s been brought back to life twice, and, with a single kiss, she woke her true love from eternal sleep. She now lives happily ever after with her undead prince in a castle in the woods.

… or something like that anyway.

When not writing, Laura can be found scarfing down guacamole, hoarding chocolate for the apocalypse, or curled up on the couch with a good book.

Never want to miss a release? Sign up for my newsletter HERE

Like to discuss my books? Join my Facebook fan page HERE

Official Site: http://www.laurathalassa.com/
Newsletter:
https://laurathalassa.myflodesk.com/newsletter
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraThalassa/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LauraThalassa
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurathalassa/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/laurathalassa/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+LauraThalassa/
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Laura-Thalassa/e/B00DN9YA3S/
Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/LauraThalassa

Reviews

[Helen 2.0 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh gosh. It's that time of the month again.

Unpopular opinion time, that is!


Queen of All that Dies takes place many years in our future, after one man aggressively took over the entire eastern hemisphere and is on the verge of defeating the Americas in nuclear war. King Lazuli is ruthless and rumored to be immortal.
The main character, Serenity, is an American ambassador sent to Geneva to talk/seduce/coerce the king into granting her nation favorable terms of surrender. She soon discovers that option #2 is her best bet. This book is primarily a love story between Serenity and King Lazuli.

Serenity
For a romance main character, Serenity is unique in that she is cast as a villain. A violent, trigger-happy, unreasonable villain. She watched her mother die at 8, killed her first men at 12, joined the army at 15. Because the book is narrated in first person, we get full evidence that Serenity sees herself as a cold-hearted monster. We also get confirmations from her at times brutal actions.
However there are traces of irritating YA lead in her, well showcased in a scene where she puts on a dress and makeup:

I realize for the first time in maybe ever that I'm pretty. It's a shock, and not a pleasant one either.
In war, beauty is a curse - it catches your enemies' attention, and you don't want that.

Another annoying trait of Serenity's is her hot-and-cold attitude towards everything. She changes her mind completely, on huge issues like her feelings towards the king and the two nations, in a matter of seconds. I'm not sure if this was due to inconsistent/sloppy characterization by the author, or if Serenity was meant to be a fickle as all hell.

King Montes Lazuli
The king is an interesting character. He's an objectively awful person on cosmic scales; he's ordered innocent civilians killed, let people starve and die of sickness by the millions when he could have helped, and built himself lavish palaces while his nations' economies crumble. There is no redeeming this man.
Montes is clearly evil, but that side of him is difficult to catch in QoAtD because he's so busy fawning over Serenity. The book sports a serious case of One-Sided InstaLove. Here's a quote from the first time the king catches sight of Serenity from across the room:

The world doesn't stop moving, the room doesn't go quiet, but I swear something inside me just broke and reformed the moment she turned her devilish eyes on me - and that's the only way to describe those eyes of hers. Devilish. She's a wicked soul, through and through.
Just like me.

So it takes one look for Montes to become borderline obsessed with her.
One Sided InstaLove isn't automatically a dealbreaker for me. There are cases where it actually enhances a romantic plotline. For example, when one character experiences love-at-first-sight but the narrative doesn't reveal this fact until after the couple has come together; this way the romantic suspense and the will-they-won't-they excitement is preserved. Jeaniene Frost in Halfway to the Grave does this fabulously well.
However, in QoAtD Montes instantly admits to being enamored with Serenity, which takes all the fun out of the process of falling in love.

The Romance - light spoilers below
Finally we arrive at the Central Issue of the book.

We are the epitome of dysfunction. We are miserable human beings. And yet, when he laces his finger through mine and I feel the thrill of contact, that tiny flame of hope I carry around flares up.
Anything's possible. From darkness to light, war to peace - hate to love.
We're two monsters who might not be so monstrous after all.

I'm a big sucker for enemies to lovers romance stories. From the blurb and the reviews, this seemed like an original twist on that trope. But this plot features a distinct power imbalance between Montes and Serenity, where Montes holds all the cards and Serenity is forced to play for the sake of her people.
So may I warn all prospective readers: there are several instances of dubious consent, bordering on non-consensual smut in this book.
Montes is strongly interested in Serenity and her body. Serenity is under an enormous amount of pressure, from her country, her own moral instincts, and Montes himself to give in. It's clear from the dialogue in the book that Montes feels he can do whatever he likes to Serenity, no matter her feelings about it.
Within days of meeting her, he corners and tries to kiss her:

"Are you going to let me kiss you?" the king asks.
"Does my answer even matter?" I flick my gaze up to his.
"No, not when you're looking at me like that."

Here is the happy couple's conversation about Serenity giving Montes her virginity:

"I'm not a nice man," he says.
"I couldn't agree more," I say.
"This is happening tonight."
My throat works. "I know."
"Good."

Serenity later mentions that the thought repulses her.
When they finally get down to it, she is still clearly unwilling!

A stray tear streaks down my cheek. "I hate you," I say to him.
"You won't always feel that way," he says, thrusting into me.
"I will. I swear it."
"Give it up," he growls, pushing into me harder.

No matter how I look at it, I can't interpret these scenes as romantic. Montes comes off far too rapey to be romantic. It doesn't matter that Serenity eventually falls for the king, or that her "traitorous body" responded to him all along. It's still clear that Montes has no concept of consent, and that doesn't endear him to me as a love interest.

-

SOOOO there you have it. I didn't enjoy this book even though most of my friends loved it.

[Ivie dan Glokta · Rating 1 out of 5]

For the first time in my life, I can say I felt embarrassed while reading a book.

In my time I've read some nonsense, but the sheer ignorance the author displayed in “The Queen of All That Dies” was cringe-worthy to say the least. It came to that point where I couldn't even laugh at it anymore. What made the entire experience bad was all the opportunities the author had but missed to research some points that she chose to incorporate as vital elements of her story. What made it worse is the fact that majority of those were common sense.

If you ever wondered how to write a cheesy fluffy romance novel, then try to unconvincingly disguise it as politics and intrigue, thus proving you are absolutely clueless about either subject, then by all means, read this book, it will give you some excellent pointers.


The world has been divided to eastern and western hemispheres by a horrifying nuclear war. Serenity Freeman is living in the burned, barren landscape of the Americas. She lives underground in a kind of military base, with a handful of other survivors. Food is scarce, there is no sunlight. A true post-apocalyptic world. You get the gist of it, now listen to this....

She is an ambassador's daughter, and in the new world order where every move could mean the difference between life and death , the author chose to apply ancient distribution of power; inheritance, rather than merit as Serenity is called to attend with her father a meeting with the dreaded King Lazuli to negotiate the surrender and survival of an entire hemisphere. I thought OK, maybe she's a badass, highly educated diplomat with mad fighting abilities. The author simply chose to say this, “Next to my father I've learned useful skills.” - what those were, we never discovered. Another thing that stunk to high heaven was the described condition of Canada and Central America. As the author said herself, the things are so unsettled and dangerous there and a ruling government was non existent. Yet, here is this irrelevant girl, surrendering a territory nobody has any control over. It goes so far to say to the reader to disregard her father who happens to have experience as a diplomat, and simply focus on her, because she's speshul and beautiful, and stuff, that on it's own would be enough to dazzle a conquering force......

Seems legit.



In the midst of all of this incredibly clever stuff , the author launches herself in thinly veiled backhanded praises of just how beautiful Serenity is. She is so malnourished from hunger everybody is suffering from, yet her friend feels sad for her and the look of her hipbones and her collarbones sends them into a grief fest. Never mind that her friend is starving just like she is. Just so we know our MC is super thin guys. The supporting cast keeps subtly hinting how pretty she is, while she selflessly laments her life by having to wear a dress in front of the King, because she is above and beyond superficiality. Oh, and she has a scar, so I guess we were expected to believe she is above vanity as well. To all of those still not getting it, this is the part where the author pretends that by pretending not to like all the frilly, trivial nonsense our MC is actually displaying a sign of incredible depth of character. And, if you wish to continue reading this novel, this is the part where you pretend to believe her.


But fuck it, even that isn't bad on it's own. It's the science....

Most of the developed countries on this planet possess nuclear weapons. Most of the undeveloped countries possess them also. There are a shitload of nukes around, and no matter how turbulent our world becomes, or how violent, nobody ever seems to use them. Why do you think that is? Majority of third-graders out there have an idea. The times of 'Little Boy' are far behind us and most of today's weapons measure in yield up to fifty times more. One single blast from those things and the fallout would encircle the entire Earth in a matter of days. If more then one bombs would detonate we would face a nuclear winter, engulfing the planet in a cloud of smoke that wouldn't lift for decades. Nuclear blasts and radiation are apparently magical in this book. A bomb strong enough to level DC goes off, our heroine survives it in a basement, not a bomb shelter....but a basement. She steps outside after a couple of hours with no ill effects whatsoever, she simply strolls away. Many more bombs detonate, across TWO continents covering one half of the globe, razing the soil, making the atmosphere toxic, and our heroine simply prances around in a dress and heels, waiting for a flight over to Europe. No hazmat suits, no precautions, no Geiger counters, no decon, nothing.

On top of being magical, the radiation is extremely polite too, as it stayed where it was originally dropped, as Europe continues on with life unscathed, and lush as always. As our Serenity says, the sky is even bluer there...


Just think about it... This colossal stupidity is the backstory of the ENTIRE novel. I mean, ignorance on a subject is easily rectified by a little research. If you don't feel confident enough, perhaps don't feature the elements of that subject as carriers for your story. Some time spent with Google at least could save you a shitload of embarrassment.

Example: Dunning–Kruger effect
The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias wherein unskilled individuals suffer from illusory superiority, mistakenly assessing their ability to be much higher than is accurate. This bias is attributed to a metacognitive inability of the unskilled to recognize their ineptitude.

As David Dunning and Justin Kruger of Cornell University conclude: "The miscalibration of the incompetent stems from an error about the self, whereas the miscalibration of the highly competent stems from an error about others."

Did Wikipedia just send you to the BURN UNIT? Oh Yes, I think it did.


It seemed to me that she was simply too lazy to look anything up, she just tossed all that in there as fluff until she had the chance to focus on the romance. If that is the true case, don't try to sell this novel as something it's not. I simply couldn't go trough this story with a straight face, because the author tried to portray serious characters going trough an incredibly hard life, by saying things that make no goddamn sense at all. Cringe....just cringe..

PS:
Aw hell, i just couldn't keep it in....King Lazuli??? As in Lapis Lazuli??? I kept imagining a smurf. It made those scenes hilarious where she was silently pissed at him. I mean what was she going to do? Choke a smurf? smh...

[Christine Wallflower & Dark Romance Junkie · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 +++ STARS!!!

Imagine a future where the world is at war. There is only one ruler. There is no democracy. You either yield to the king or you are his enemy.

Serenity Freeman, is a child of war. All she's ever known is the fight for survival and that her enemy and that of the WUN is King Lazuli, the man responsible for her mother's death and countless others. She's a soldier and it's all she knows, but her father is the emissary of WUN so she's always known that someday she would have to play a part in forging allegiance.

First of all the WUN (because you're probably thinking what the heck is that) is the Western United Nations, territory that King Lazuli has not yet conquered. Although it's a wonder that he would like to because it's war torn. After waging war for a decade, the land is riddled with radiation. It's in the water and in the earth. Cancer is the norm for the people who live there.

Back to the story. Serenity and her father are sent to King Lazuli's territory to begin peace talks. The west is dying, the people are dying and they finally realize that surrender is the only way to move forward. When Montes, King Lazuli sees Serenity, he knows he must have her. And before you roll your eyes no it's not insta-love. You have to understand the type of person Montes is, he has waged wars with the east and west and he always wins. He's a conqueror and he's used to getting his way. And no he's not a alpha jerk, he's ruler of the world and he rules it with an iron fist. He also has a vulnerable side though, because I don't think he quite realised the impact of his actions. The lives he ruined. He never saw the results of his greed until he met Serenity

My gaze moves between his eyes, his dark fathomless eyes. "You can't make someone love you," I say.
"I don't need you to love me."




My Montes minus the beard and the tattoo

Now lets take a moment and give this girl a hand of applause. She's feisty, she's strong and she doesn't take shit from anyone, including King Lazuli. In a nutshell, Serenity Freeman is a kick-ass heroine. I think some might call her abrasive but just remember she's probably the best soldier the WUN has and because of that she's had to deal with men feeling intimidated by her strength. Yes she's attracted to Montes when she first meets him, but she never forgets that he's the man responsible for the death of her beloved Mother.

"You want to see compassion? Fine." I take the hand pressed against my shoulders and kiss his knuckles.
"I've now kissed the hand of my mother's killer."
Before he has time to react to my chaste kiss, I bring my other hand up and slap him.
His head whips to the side. "I'm also a vindictive bitch," I say.

Now did I mention that this is a hate/love romance? A lot of the hate coming from Serenity mind you, but still. Serenity fights her attraction to the king so hard. I think I would too even though he's looks are to die for.

The king leans in so that he can peer into my eyes.
"Are you alright?"
I hold up a finger, and he patiently wait. The nausea passes, and I begin walking again.
"What was that?" he asks.
"It's my bodies reaction to you."
"I'm glad I leave you short of breath."
"Don't flatter yourself; I was trying not to barf."

Now before I bore you anymore than I already have let me say this. The Queen of All That Dies, is thrilling tale filled with suspense, love, hate, passion, lust... and I'm trying to think of more words. It was an awesome read and totally vanquished my book slump only to leave me with yet another one! You should read it!



**************************************

PRE-REVIEW



I need a moment. This book was fucking awesome!!! But I have a problem... The next book comes out January 2016?!?!?!

Dear Miss Thalassa

I suggest you drop all current projects immediately and write The Queen of Traitors. Please.

Kind Regards
A rabid fan.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 devilish stars



The world is at war. For Serenity she has known nothing but that, everything has been taken away leaving her with nothing. With her role as the future emissary of the Western United Nations, she must come face to face with the man responsible, the man who is feared above all, the boogey man King Lazuli of the Eastern Empire. She is a pretty lie, a soldier disguised as a lady and the perfect distraction for the King.

“You’re evil and deceptive,”

“And you’re a kindred spirit.”

It's scary when you meet the one person you should hate, should despise, but find yourself meeting your match. In her position at the King's side, she threatens the very existence of what the King has stood for. Choosing to fight with her words versus her fists, she weaves compassion into his heart as he shows her the true meaning of absolute power.

He has the same dark soul I do; he knows and embraces my sins, and I’m learning to accept his. I know he is dangerous to be around— dangerous to love— but my heart doesn’t seem to care.

Realizing she can do more for the people as Queen, she gives her self freely to him. Beneath the anger and the hate, a feeling of desire, of camaraderie, amusement and worse of all...compassion.

“We’re the rulers of the entire world; we can do whatever it is we want.”

“But I still want to punch you in the face.”

“My queen has never heard of angry sex. I think a woman like you would enjoy it.”

When the world is turned upside down, and you realize that wrong is right, and right is wrong, you get to know who your true enemy is. A union that was carefully planned, has become stronger than anyone has ever imagined, it puts their lives in danger with only one way to survive. It's a wicked wild road ahead and they have no idea who they are messing with.

The Queen of All that Dies simply put is an amazing read. It was a tale that just pulled me right in, with so much power and so much growth, their story moved me. Serenity is a bad ass, she is one you wouldn't want to piss off, she does what she knows is right using whatever means necessary. The story is told from her point of view, so we become very familiar with her, feeling things as she would and living each moment with her. Through her we get to know the King, he is a mystery to us in the beginning but in the end we understand him on a deeper level. Every man has a weakness and his is Serenity, she makes him be a better man and to see such a man like him give way to her is beautiful.

One thing I love to see is a strong man fall to his knees, all in the name of love and respect. But it isn't a one way feeling, he softens her around the edges, letting her be who she needs to be and supporting her any way he can. Their relationship is a balance between love and hate, and that in it of itself was enough to keep me glued to the pages, but there is so much more. The added nuances of it being a dystopian novel with a touch of fantasy, it gives us an adventure and mystery with the political alliances. The ending has a WOW factor, one that made me rush out to read the next one, their story is far from over and one would say it really only has just begun. Definitely a recommended read to all my friends who love a robust fanatasical story.

[Cece ❀Rants, Raves &Reviews❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happens when a Control Issues King falls in love with a Oppositional Defiant Disorder Rebel?

This fucking book!!



This is a fast paced captivating apocalypse fantasy with rebellions, traitors, and assassinations. And these characters' dynamic was.. intense to say in the least. It was this push and pull -- the chemistry literally burning off each page

King Montes Lazuli is the Undying King who manipulated and monpolized his scientific knowledge right into taking over the whole world that is now finally surrendering to him



Montes was by far my favorite character because of how perfectly developed he was. A morally grey character sinister, ruthless, cruel, arrogant, impulsive with carefully calculated plans that are suddenly thrown in a wretch when he meets another beautiful monster

Serenity was an interesting POV --- meant to be emissary for peace, she is *quite* defiant, and violate. She yeets any sense of preservation to pick fights with literally the most goddamn poweful man in the world

“You want to see compassion? Fine."
I take the hand pressed against my shoulders and kiss his knuckles.
"I've now kissed the hand of my mother's killer."
Before he has time to react to my chaste kiss, I bring my other hand up and slap him. His head whips to the side.
"I'm also a vindictive bitch," I say.”

The constant struggle of a Rebel torn between a rebellion that sacrified her and the very system she has been fighting against that belongs to a man that would burn the world for her

“It should never have been this way....
I stare into the king's eyes. I am Isolde, I am Juliet, I am Guinevere.
I am every one of those idiots because I've fallen for the king.”

They are both fucked up in their own unique way which made this a disturbing but fascinating book because each character was so MORALLY GREY yet constantly tried to be self-righteous with each other. it was fucking hilarious.

“No, I’m just stating a fact.” I have to coax my voice to sound normal.
“Just like you hating me is also you stating a fact.” Montes replied.
“Exactly.”
“Good,” he says. “Now I know that you have absolutely no idea what a fact is.”
My mouth drops open, and he uses that opportunity to lean all the way in and kiss me.”

damnnnn boiiii

Their clashing yet drawn to each other, the sass, the moral dilemmas, the fucking insanity of it all just made me want to read more!

My main critique was the locational settings which worked against the desired danger vibe.

I know it was meant to reflect how Montes has isolated himself away from the horrors of this world's reality but the whole time I was grasping for more of the outside world, which was pretty limited to Serenity's flashbacks or rants. I just felt like the castle location was cool ... for a time but i want these bitches thrown into the danger !

which makes me excited to see how Serenity will react in the sequel

“I know I’m someone powerful, someone dangerous. A grim smile tugs at my lips despite my current circumstances. I know I’m not afraid of pain or death. And these men and women? They should be afraid of me. Because whoever I am, I am violent, and I will be having my revenge.”

Overall, I read this because its of how much I love Rhapsodic by this author and I can confidently enjoy I really enjoy this book but on a different level. It was dark and disturbing both the general setup that has lowkey 2020 vibes with disease, war, and power hungry leaders... *awkwardly laughs*

But the way this author connects the audience to Montes and Serenity was friggen brillant. So I would definitely recommend giving this a try if you enjoy some morally grey characters with an alpha king use to getting his way and a rebel who is fucking sick of being manipulated.

[Melissa Baez · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

So, I really won't be able to write a review. As we speak I'm doing this on my cell when I should already be on my way out.

Just going to put a few things out there that irked me...

The age difference honestly creeped me the heck out. The thing is, I never really give it any thought. I mean I constantly read about vampires or some sort of immortal that lives centuries to end up dalling in love with a 20 year old but for some reason, probably because this isn't a paranormal, it creeped the living daylights out of me. At one point I did get over it, but still.

The writing... While I can honestly say it was never boring or bogged down on stuff that doesn't matter-interesting even- its read like fanfiction. Now, maybe that's just me, but the actions and monologues felt really amateur. Not that that's bad or anything but it was a slight turn off for me.

As for the romance, I don't get it. I got the hate and maybe even the attraction but the reason as to why he must have her or why she fell in love just completely flew over my head. There was no chemistry, at least none that I could see so it ended up falling flat. There was also that one scene where I was just like, NO!! I just wan't comfortable with it.

Also, the whole radiation-nuclear-bomb thing? Yeah, how about NO.

So in the end, not a bad book but just amazing. I still might read the next book cause the ending wss interesting enough.

[Rachel E. Carter]

Agggh, thank you Paige for recommending this book:D

This book is NA and reads like a fast-paced version of Hunger Games meets Shatter Me (not all aspects, obviously, but close!). It definitely has that kind of excitement (and a villainous love interest), and it was addictive as hell. It was also highly quotable. I don't think it'll surprise any of my friends on here that I adore a good love-hate and/or villain-hero relationship and this book was no exception.

Here are a couple of my favorite lines:

"Time to dance with the devil."

"I could have you killed for what you've said to me."
"You won't."
"Oh, and why is that?"
"Because I amuse you."

"You're evil and deceptive."
"And you're a kindred spirit."

My only small issues were this:
1. The first sex scene I did not like that the king went ahead and had sex with Serenity when she still wasn't wanting to. I get that he attracted her and made sure she was turned on first but I just wish he had waited. It felt a little too alpha (which others may enjoy).
2. Serenity falling in love so quickly. It seemed a bit too quick for me, because her father just died and Lazuli is supposed to be this crazy enemy. Still, it was by no means instalove.

And that cliff-hanger??? I love how it is literally leaves everything up in the air. You just know Serenity is going to think Lazuli is her enemy again and be brainwashed by the resistance.

[Maditales · Rating 1 out of 5]

Since I wasn’t having any good luck reading romance I thought “hey let’s read some of the fantasy books I have. Maybe there will be a good one” WRONG I WAS WRONG.

If you want to read a book about a 19yo girl that gets forcefully married to the King that’s actually 60yo (in a body of a 20yo Bc of some youth potion) then this book is for you.

I can’t believe how fast this book turned bad. I wanted to read about a strong willed woman that would take over and hopefully kill the evil king in his sleep because no he isn’t “morally grey” he’s actually evil.

Yeah sadly not… spoiler they “fall in love”.

This is basically the summary of the plot:
- she gets forced to marry the evil king that killed her family
- she doesn’t want to marry him and hates him
- he kissed her multiple times without any type of consent
- he forcefully sleeps with her on their wedding night even though she clearly didn’t want to

And to elaborate: in the book the behavior is excused Bc her “body reacts and enjoys it”
Yeahhhh that’s not how consent works so fùck off

[Elise ✘ a.k.a Ryder's Pet ✘ · Rating 3 out of 5]

⋰⋱⋰⋱⋰⋱*Mixed Feelings*⋰⋱⋰⋱⋰⋱

Second re-read:
**CONTAINS SOMEWHAT SPOILERS**
I decided to re-read this book in order to finally get myself to finish this series. Yes, you read that right - I have yet to read the last book. So to make myself catch up with it again, re-reading it seemed like the right choice. The book centers around Serenity Freeman (19), who is the future emissary of the Western United Nations, the last autonomous region of the globe. Meaning she is responsible for forging alliances where she can. Now, she's gonna meet the King who killed her mother, and is responsible for millions of lives lost. Expecting to end up in a body body, she's surprised to find that the King can't takes his eyes off of her, and that's when she suddenly understand why she was sent.

“My father killed himself,” the king finally says. “Died at the hand of his own gun. And like you, he was the last family I had.”
I stiffen in the king’s arms.
“Why are you telling me this?”
The king touches my temple. “You have that same look in your eyes he had. It’s been there from the first moment I saw you. And I fear both he and you know a secret I don’t.”
I watch the king for a long time, my throat working.
“We do.” Never had I imagined my life leading me here, to this moment. Yet now that I’m here, I wonder if there is a beautiful design to things.
“Then tell me what it is,” the king says. Those intense eyes are fully focused on me.
He doesn’t know; he really has no clue when it’s quite obvious. It’s the secret he continually hides from.
“Everything that lives must eventually die.”

Overall, while it's still a good read, I got some problems with it that I didn't have before. Like the second we find out the truth about Montes... he kind of looses his edge. Then there the fact that if he's so darn powerful, how come it feels like he got no power when people keep being able to attack him and Serenity? Also the back and forth about how Serenity feels for Montes, got annoying real quick. Though for example the age difference doesn't bother me anymore. That being said, I still enjoyed reading it, but it's definitely going down in rating. Oh and it seems like I have a thing about reading this book in January....

Other Characters:
→ King Montes ‘the Undying King’ Lazuli, of the Eastern Empire. Serenity thinks the king is in his mid thirties. King Lazuli, however, has been conquering countries for nearly thirty years. Is most likely in his 60's.
→ William ‘Will’ Kline, the general’s son. Becomes the head of the western chapter of the Resistance at the end of the book. Montes had him killed.
→ General Chris Kline, Will’s father. The leader of Serenity's country. Montes had him killed after Will turned traitor.
→ Ambassador Carl Freeman, of the emissary of the Western United Nations (WUN) and Serenity's father. Carl gets shot and killed by Marco at 38% into the book for refusing to sign the peace treaty in which he would sign Serenity away to Montes.
→ Lisa, who owned a wedding dress shop before the war, is now the the residential seamstress since her husband and the rest of her family moved in to the bunkers where Serenity has lived for 5 years.
→ Marco, the liaison between Freeman and the king. He shoots himself to save the King's secrets at the end of the book.

The world we knew is nothing like the one I live in.
But none of this, none of it was so costly a price as the one we eventually paid. Somewhere along the way, my people lost the most precious thing of all.
Hope.
Well, most of us lost it. Most, but not all.

Quick basic facts:
Genre: - (New Adult) Science Fiction - Dystopia (M/F).
Series: - Series, Book One.
Love triangle? - No.
Cheating? - No.
HEA? - No.
Favorite character? - King Montes Lazuli.
Would I read more by this author/or of series? - Sure.
Would I recommend this book/series? - Sure.
Will I read this again in the future? - Umm I don't think so.
New Rating - 3 stars.


Re-read:
Ah man, I think, perhaps, that I loved it even more the second time around :O This comes actually as a shock to me. I adore Montes and Serenity is pretty awesome with her ass-kicking ;) Love them! I simply cannot wait for the next book which is only 3 more days away.


First read review:
NOOOO!! FUCK, HOW CAN YOU END THE BOOK LIKE THAT, LAURA?! I WANT MORE NOW!!!
As everyone knows, (if they know me, ofc) I LOVE hate-love relationships, and when I realized that 'The Queen of All that Dies' had that, I was A L L in! + Serenity was a complete kickass heroine :D The book was great, and I cannot wait for the next one.


*MIGHT CONTAIN SPOILERS*
You're probably wondering why I didn't give this a full five stars and the reason is that:
1. King Lazuli may have been responsible for killing thousands of people, however he, himself has never ever killed anyone himself.. Though he's all coldblooded and cruel, he lost a bit of that.. how do I say this? Bad boy image, perhaps? I don't know why, but I have a thing for really, and I mean REALLY bad boys... so I was hoping King Lazuli would be a really bad one..
2. As King Lazuli and Serenity get more and more close, King Lazuli seem to be getting, softer and losing his...cruelty and his power in a way.. He losing his 'touch'.
3. The age difference... 19 and mid-30? Couldn't either he be younger or her be older?

All in all, this book was awesome and I recommend it to everyone who loves hate-love relationships, war, blood, kickass heroine, alpha male, women who doesn't take crap.. ect..
Rate: 4 stars.

[enqi ☾⋆˚*̣̩✩ · Rating 2 out of 5]

🎧✩˖°🌷✨ PRE-REVIEW ♡
It let me down 😭😭 But I'm still curious to see what happens in the next book

UPDATE | 18.08.24
In such a bad slump that nothing can keep my interest for more than a couple of pages... But I will persevere!!

🐋🐚☾⋆⁺₊ PRE-READ ♡
I'm so excited for this one!! I've been reading Laura Thalassa's romantasy books before the genre became popular ✨✨

[Rachel L · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars!

“Once upon a time we were innocent, and then we were not.”



In the future the world is at war and America is losing the fight against the king. Serenity has only known fighting and horror since she was a kid, and is among the soldiers in the WUN army. Her country is losing the war, and Serenity is sent with her father to make peace agreements with the king. From there it becomes clear she is meant to be an offering to the king, and he likes what he sees.



“What you choose to do with all that anger is your business. But you can’t control the world; someone will always be there to wrong you. It’s your choice to let it go.”

This is a book I've been meaning to read forever (sorry I took so long Christine) and now finally did. I loved it! An incredibly compelling story, I fell in love with this book right away. It’s just so refreshing to read something different than everything else that’s out there. I had been in a huge book slump before reading this, and this wonderful book pulled me out of it!

It’s rare when you find a near future dystopian romance that completely sucks you into its world. I felt like I was really there, in the barracks, in the palace. Like a movie playing before my eyes. Giant high five to the author for world building, it’s not an easy feat and she completely nailed it.

And now I get to the man who makes me and Serenity question our morals and sanity. Montes. The King.



But like seriously, I do. Ruthless, cunning, evil. And yet the compassion he showed Serenity, the love he had for her. Damn I wish I could marry this crazy messed up dude LOL.

Anyways, this book was amazing and unlike anything else I have ever read. If you find yourself intrigued, take the plunge and read this book!

“It should never have been this way. My comrades turning on me, my enemies saving me. But worst of all, I should never have felt anything other than hatred for this man, the king, Definitely not this, this warmth that thaws my soul.
I stare into the king's eyes. I am Isolde, I am Juliet, I am Guinevere.
I am every one of those idiots because I've fallen for the king.”

[Aisling Zena · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

Why did I take so long to read this?! Exceptional writing that pulls you in a world full of grey, nothing is black and white. And our heroine has a spine of steel trying to do what is best for her countrymen. Not what's right or wrong but what is best while navigating her own ambivalent emotions. Clever writing that delves within our heroines psyche but also humanizes the evil king that wants her. If you enjoy dystopian, you should definitely give it a try.

[Lucie V. · Rating 4 out of 5]

✅Gorgeous cover
✅Badass main character
✅Funny/snarky conversations
✅Enemies-to-lovers
✅ Arranged marriage
✅Morally grey characters
✅Fast-paced compelling story
✅A lot of action

I NEED THE SEQUEL RIGHT NOW. 😍

“You want to see compassion? Fine.”
I take the hand pressed against my shoulders and kiss his knuckles.
“I’ve now kissed the hand of my mother’s killer.”
Before he has time to react to my chaste kiss, I bring my other hand up and slap him. His head whips to the side.
“I’m also a vindictive bitch,” I say.

Serenity lives in a dystopian version of our world, where King Montes Lazuli rules over the whole world, except the Western United Nations (America). Forced to surrender for the good of the remaining population, Serenity and her father are sent as emissaries to broker a peace treaty with king Lazuli. That’s when Serenity realizes that she’s been sent as alluring eye candy instead of a valuable diplomat, and the worse thing is that the strategy works, and now she’s left with a tough choice to make: remain free and see her countrymen perish, or sacrifice her freedom for the good of her nation.

“What was that?” he asks.
“It’s my body’s reaction to you.”
“I’m glad I leave you short of breath.”
“Don’t flatter yourself; I was trying not to barf.”

I’m a sucker for hate-to-love relationships, so I was already half in love with the book just after reading the summary, and I was not disappointed. Serenity’s hate burns bright, and she is not afraid to speak her mind and can be quite feisty. I still also enjoyed the dialogues between Montes and her very much. There is also sexual tension between them, and some hot smutty scenes so I can’t complain! The only thing is that I would have liked for Serenity to hold onto her hatred and anger for a little longer maybe, I find that she “switched sides” a little quickly.

“Just so you know, you’re not frightening at all in the morning,” he says, smirking. “You look like a pissed-off kitten.”
“Say that again, and I’ll castrate you with a butter knife.” His lips quirk.
“Ah, lucky me to have such a blushing bride.”
“Isn’t it bad luck to see me before the wedding?” I ask, folding my arms over my chest.
“What, you think our luck can get any worse?” the king says, raising an eyebrow. He has a point.

Montes is a very interesting character because he is so well developed! He is morally grey, ruthless, arrogant, and impulsive, yet all his plans are wrecked when he meets Serenity. I also love the fact that he is more complex than the usual villain seeking money and power. We got to see a little of his backstory, and I would be really interested to learn more about his motives in the next book. Both Montes and Serenity have their own issues (meaning: they're both fucked up), and it made this story so much more interesting in a disturbing, yet very compelling way. Serenity's sass and violent side are amazing. I really love how she just got fed up with being manipulated by everyone and basically just told everyone to fuck off. 👌


Follow me on Instagram 🙂

[Paige Bookdragon · Rating 5 out of 5]

FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK

Ever had a good book that makes you wanna slap the people around you because the emotions are just too much?

No?Well, maybe that's just me being violent.Anyway.



WHAT IS THIS BOOK?!



Seriously. Why isn't this book more popular?! This book totally rocks!

We have a world in war. A king and an emissary's daughter. She hates him,he loves her. An almost star-crossed love story.


The story:
The world is at war and the every place in the world is ruined.(This is a dystopian novel, so of course that's given.) Radiation everywhere and food and water is hard to find that people are starving to death.

There was a time when obesity was the losing battle our people faced. Not so anymore. As soon as food become scarce, curves become coveted.

Serenity Freeman was tasked to face the King for a peace treaty. She practically hates him which is totally understandable seeing he started a war that killed her mom and all the people she cared about.But King Lazuli , bless his heart, has a different opinion for Serenity.

...and on his arm I see her.

The emissary's daughter.Serenity Freeman.

The world doesn't stop moving, the room doesn't go quiet, but I swear something inside me just broke and reformed the moment she turned her devlish eyes on me-and that's the only way to describe those eyes of her.Devlish.She's a wicked soul, through and through.

Just like me.

See? Totally love it.



Thoughts:

I looove this book. The writing was superb.The characters were perfect and totally no idiotic stunts the H/H pulls. What more can you ask for?

The King:

We have a King who was rumored to be undying and who doesn't aged ever since the war started.

He's even more handsome than the pictures I've seen of him. Black wavy hair, olive skin, dark eyes, sensual lips.But it's more than just his features;it's how he wears them. Like he is something regal, something you want you want to draw closer to.

It's not fair that evil can wear such an alluring mask.

I love him. He's the type of character that makes you wonder if he's being a closet good Samaritan or he's just a pure tyrant like what everybody thinks. He loves a good banter with Serenity and he cares for Serenity like a true care-bear.

And he absolutely knows how to make a girl's heart flutter.

Finally he speaks. That first moment I saw you," Monte says," I felt a jolt right here," Monte places a hand over his heart" and I knew with a certainty that you were mine."

Serenity:

A Badass with a capital B. I have a reputation of hating heroines who doesn't do their characters well so color me surprise when I honestly liked Serenity's character. If there's one thing that I loved most about her is that, she doesn't pretend shit.



And she's not afraid to speak her mind. In which she fail as a diplomat. Fortunately, that's one of the reason why the she caught the King's attention.

"I don't bite." No. I say, "you kill."
"So do you, soldier."

The Romance:
We get it that she hates the King at first. But the romance between her and the king is EPIC.

I'd never much cared for those epic love stories I'd heard growing up-Romeo and Juliet, Tristan and Isolde, Helen and Paris.All couples who'd placed love above all else; I thought the whole lot of them were idiots.But the way the king is looking at me...now I can see why so many loved those stories.

Yeah yeah. She get's confused at times but you can't blame her for feeling that way. She have known the King as the villain and knowing the real him is bit disorienting.

We're two monsters who may not be quite so monstrous after all.

But the scenes. Megahd

I stare into the King's eyes. I am Isolde, I am Juliet, I am Guinevere. I am every one of those idiots because I've fallen for the King.

But wait a minute.

THE ENDING THE ENDING THE ENDING THE ENDING THE ENDING THE ENDING!!



I need a moment..

[Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

UPDATE! THIS IS ON KINDLE UNLIMITED OR $2.99 ON KINDLE. THERE IS ALSO A GIVEAWAY FOR IT ON GR SO DONT MISS OUT ON YHIS AWESOME BOOK!

OMG! I loved this book! It is so full of action, suspense, love, hate, and so much more.

**SPOILERS**

King Lazuli rules the Eastern Empire and he has been waging war with the Western United Nation (WUN) for almost 15 years. Serenity Freeman is on the WUN side of the war and she is a soldier. Her part of the country is dying from starvation, cancer from radiation poisoning, not to mention just the war itself.

Serenity's father is an emissary for the WUN and she is an apprentice. He taught her from a young age to use and gun and how to fight. She had her first kill at twelve years old when she killed not one, but 4 men who were going to rape her. Sounds like a good kill to me! Her mother was killed when she was younger when the King dropped a bomb near their house. She wants nothing more than to see the King dead.

There is something strange about the King, you see pictures of him being shot and seemingly dead but he never is, I wonder what it could be :)

The WUN decide to try a peace treaty with the King because they are not going to survive any other way. They send Serenity and her father in as negotiators, they both dread this as none have ever come back alive. They pretty Serenity up in dresses and make up, to her dismay, to try to win the King over. They never in a million years believed it would work, but it does. The King is smitten right away with Serenity, he falls in love with her and can't believe it. She cusses him out at every opportunity, telling him what scum he is and has hit him a few times. This would have resulted in anyone else death but the King can't bring himself to hurt her, he sees a lot of himself in her.

Some bad things go down, some really bad things, but she ends up being married to the King and finds herself falling in love with him. She traded herself for her countries life. He gives her all the demands on helping her people that she makes.

There is just one big problem, Serenity is dying. Can the King save her with his technology? You have to read to find out.

I have to say this book just rocks. It never stops, not once. I could hardly put it down. The way Serenity is so tough and giving the King a run for his money is classic! I love it!


THEN ENDING! TALK ABOUT A CLIFFHANGER! I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE SECOND BOOK IN 2016!

www.melissa413readsalot.blogspot.com

[Jennifer Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 Stars

[V. A Court of Wings and Ruin is NEW ADULT/EROTICA but Goodreads editors won't tell you to include it in the choice awards · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a real winner! I enjoyed so much The Vanishing girl, but I thought this was better. Review to come.

[Ashleyjo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is honestly one of those books that most readers will see in black or white and either love or hate, which is ironic because the theme of the book is how both emotions can exist so significantly within the same relationship.

Anti-hero To The Extreme

Most readers actually like the alpha male character who is a gigantic ass about everything and everyone except for his woman, right? It's the hit man who kills but is a-okay because he saves and loves one woman... The biker who runs drugs and guns but is a-okay because he loves one woman?

Some readers just all out hate the anti-hero character - period. Others... Well, it's easy for readers to accept such a character because the context is small in nature and scale and the victims usually never discussed in depth.

But, what happens if the context is worldwide vs a biker gang or mob? What happens if the victims are millions vs a few who are easy to imagine as deserving anyway?

What happens if the dynamic looks more like...



Or




Set Up

The King has taken anything and everything he wants from the world, Serenity included. Yet, she's the one person he feels has something to offer him that he can't take - true companionship. He's killed millions and left the rest to sickness and famine. Who could love a monster?

Serenity is the indirect product of the King. Her life has been scavenging, hiding, fighting, & sacrificing. The King has taken everything from her - her parents, her future, her health, her soul. She should hate him. She does hate him. Who could love such a Monster?

Characters

I get Serenity.

"There will be no honor to my sacrifice. Women who have filled the role of temptress have always been looked down upon."

I almost didn't read this book because a lot of reviews judged her so harshly, and, in my opinion, unfairly.

" I was more likely to punch someone in the face than I was reasoning with them."

She's mentally and physically strong. She's a fighter, a solider, a diplomat. She's smart. She isn't blinded by loyalty when she thinks the course is wrong. She's self-sacrificing but still values her life. She's jaded by the world, but hasn't written it off. She's a balance of right and wrongs that I can understand and empathize with.

"Where evil is avenged with more evil. It will never be enough to remedy the world."

Oh, and she's a sarcastic little tart;)

The King : " How do you think I came to rule the world?"

Serenity : "You're an asshole, and as an asshole, you've done a lot of asshole-ish things - including marrying me. That's how you came to rule the world."

I don't envy her plight, but I do get it.

"I am Isolde, I am Juliet. I am Guinevere. I am every one of those idiots because I've .....

The King is not so cut and dry for me.

"It's not fair that evil can wear such an alluring mask."

I want to hate him. I do hate him. Yet, I also feel something else for him that I can't quite put my finger on.

"...to cut you up then kiss the wounds he inflicted."

I can easily see him through Serenity's eyes - the lust, the hate, the resentment, the wonder, the compassion, the need, the confusion, the care.

Yet, I still have a very difficult time separating the man from the King, the lover from the killer.

Still, yet, I can easily imagine him cutting his own hand off before he would allow a moment of hurt to touch Serenity.

The dynamic makes me really ponder historical relationships, such as Eva Braun and Hitler.

Plot

"Wrong is right, and right is wrong."

Bottom Line

Excellent writing. Excellent plot. Excellent characters.

That said, I don't think everyone will get this or appreciate it because it's the extreme of the anti-hero plot.

Off to see how book two goes:)

[Pavlina Read more sleep less blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Omg I had to listen to Christine sooner..This book was so good!!!it was unique and different!! I read it in less than four hours and now I need to start the second soon!!

[NAT.orious reads ☾ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 STARS, as surprised as you are ★★★★✩

This book is for you if… you’ve not yet found a book of the Stockholm-syndrome-induced-Romance that fits your taste but are still willing to give the genre a try. (Let's not talk about how weird that desire is in general.) I was SO ready to be all judgemental about this book but my will had to face defeat far quicker than I’d like to admit.

⤐ Overall.
Strictly speaking, The Queen of All that Dies does not sort itself into the genre of dark romance. However, if the relationship between the love interests is determined mainly by one abducting/buying the other in a trade, the groundwork is pretty solid in my eyes.

Naturally, I was ready to bash this book like a pinata. But the slow shift of both Serenity's and her superiors' alliances was extremely intriguing. I loved how the line between good and bad began to blurr until it seemed to be barely there anymore. Although, undoubtedly, Montez is the evilest man in this game of thrones, others come quite close which is the reason I was so hot and bothered for his and Serenetiy's relationship to develop.

If I had to pick one thing I deeply disliked, I'd definitely say the most unbearable aspect of this audiobook was the excrutiating French/Swiss German accent the narrator chose for Montez. I can see where the reasoning behind that might be coming from. Thing is, this accent is about as sexy as a date in between the confinements of an insect farm. In case my - admittedly, imperfect metaphor/simile - doesn't quite catch: NOT SEXY. NOT AT ALL.

Which made the idea of Montez as the sexy overlord of the world appear very foreign to me. I might be going out on a limb here, but if one is able to conquer the entire world, I expect him to conquer at least some sort of standard English along side of it.


⤐ What’s happening.

‘‘You were able to kill him,’ Will said. You, a girl. That’s what he meant. Like owning a vagina made me inferior in some fundamental way.’

Serenity knows nothing but fight and kill. Her organisation of states - the WUN - is the last thing standing between the King Montez Lazuli and his regiency over the entire globe. When she is sent to negotiate the peace talks alongside her father, she realises two things:

1. her superiors sending her there was not out of shortage of adequate staff
2. she's not as immune to the man who killed her mother as she thought she would be3. her functioning as bait for the King to take in exchange for what the WUN want from the negotiations is working...

_____________________
4 STARS. Would stay up beyond my typical hours to finish it. I found some minor details I didn't like, agree with or lacked in some kind but overall, this was enjoyable and extraordinary.

[Carvanz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This book immediately pulled me in and held me, sometimes by the throat. There is so much here and all of it written in such a way that I felt as if I too were a part of this world along with Serenity. She is one hardcore heroine, raised out of necessity to be a soldier, trained to become emissary upon the death of her father. Her world is a dark and despairing place with little to no hope. And now her country is depending on her to negotiate peace with the man who is responsible for all the destruction she has borne witness to.

This story starts out fast and it never slows down. The romance here is heavily laced with action and political intrigue which resulted in a pulse pounding experience. Martes, the king, is such a multi-dimensional character. While I knew exactly what and who Serenity was, I hungered to know more about the king. We are given bits of his thoughts and through them it was apparent he was so much more than what is seen on the surface. My romantic heart thrilled at his almost instant want of the heroine, at his protectiveness of her. And yet, I screamed along with Serenity when truths about him were brought into the light. In the midst of all the turmoil was her feelings towards him which are muddled and confused. I sympathized with her completely.

This ends on one doozy of a cliffhanger. With some of Martes’ secrets revealed, there are still so many more things that these characters must find solutions for. Fortunately, all the books in this trilogy are now available and will be diving into book 2 immediately.

Read via Kindle Unlimited
Mostly heroine pov although there are some from the hero
Safe no ow drama – H not made out to be a manwhore; h is a virgin; om drama caused by a fellow soldier that the h grew up with – he leads the resistance
Triggers violence; attempted rape but only the mention of it having been planned – h prevented it from happening

[Mindy Lou's Book Review · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this! I really like reading books with kickass heroines and Serenity fit this role perfectly. She's a soldier fighting to right the wrongs done to her people, her family. She has a lot of hate towards the king and with good reason.

I loved how the king, Montez, wanted Serenity despite her hatred. Nothing she could do would push him away. I love that the king has a dark soul but still had the ability to treat Serenity like a treasure he would protect with everything within him.

I don't normally enjoy pushing away but I think having Montez's acceptance of her no matter how much she fought him made their verbal sparring exciting.

This is a very action packed story and yet the romance is very much the focus. While the king is a darker hero, I wouldn't say this is a very dark story. It does end on a cliffhanger.

I listened to the audiobook and would highly recommend it. Laurel Schroeder does a fantastic job of sucking you into Serenity's world and I didn't want it to end.

[Grace A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast-paced and highly addicting! I was hooked from page one till the end.
Serenity was exposed to war since she was a kid, and her father was one of the emissaries in her region. Her region was losing the war, and Serenity was sent with her father to negotiate a peace agreement with the king. Unbeknownst to Serenity and her father, she was part of the peace package. One thing led to another she married a king she absolutely loathed, and started questioning her allegiance, devotion, and loyalties.
Political plot aside, this story teaches us that war is a terrible thing, and brings out the worst in people. Finding and mending the broken pieces can be a challenge but when we find strength in each other it can lead to some redemption, healing, and maybe even 💝.

[Noël · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've read some crazy, ignorant stuff before, but never as bad as "The Queen of All that Dies." It was laughable to say the least. The author clearly didn't conduct any research for this novel, nor common sense, nor basic dystopian 101. I mean, I don't even know where to begin with this. I guess the writing is a good start.

Writing:
The writing was fine, if you enjoy fanfics. That's how it flowed to me. Like most fanfics, there's usually no logic or common sense when it comes to them. They're usually solely about the romance between the main characters, thus being the cause the authors', I guess don't see a point in world building or fact checking for their work. Now, I'm sure there might be a quality fanfic out there, but I have yet to read it.

Plot:
The plot sounded so promising to me. A war torn Earth, destroyed and ruled by a undying king, and a resistance that will stop at nothing to see him dead even going as far to use one of their own as a pawn in the game of power. Sounds cool, right? I was expecting some epic action scenes, a well written villain that I love to hate, and some awesome world building. What I got was some half baked killing scenes, a wimpy and spoiled king, and very weak world building. The author obviously didn't do any research for this novel because it made no sense. First off, Serenity lives dab smack in one of the areas a nuclear bomb was dropped, and some how, she's still alive. Any place that a bomb of that much power would land, would not be livable for a very long time, if ever. The air wouldn't be breathable, there would be too much radiation, and anything that once grew, would be incapable of doing so. It also wouldn't just effect one area, it would cause a catastrophe on most of the planet, if not all. Another thing that bothered me was a lack dystopian info. If something like a nuclear bomb or a tyrant king destroyed some place on this earth, I sure as hell wouldn't be walking around wearing dresses, high heels, and, makeup. Yes, Serenity actually parades around in this when she goes to meet the king all the way until the end of the book. Like, where did they even find the material and products and resources to even make that happen?! And I would think they would have more important things to think about. Like surviving. There was also things like working cars, limos, swimming pools, very advanced technology that has no science behind it, dinner dates that you would have in today's time and day, not in a dystopian world. So, basically I was a confused person during reading this novel.

Characters:
Alright, let's talk about my least favorite character; Montes.... the king of Geneva. He's one of the worst anti-heroes I have ever had the displeasure of reading about. He's suppose to be this heartless, cruel king that's killed millions of people without a second thought, but what he comes across as is a spoiled, creepy, psychotic, wimpy, possessive asshole that hides behind his soldiers' and they're not even soldiers! They're like his personal body guards. He also has killed millions of people... I can't justify him for that, I can't see how anyone could. He's a killer that makes other men do his dirty work and calls himself powerful. Then there's Serenity. I don't have much to say about her, she was an okay character, until she went and got Stockholm Syndrome her Montes because I'm not calling it "love" when it's anything but.

Romance:
The romance was terrible. First, he's like 60, okay? He just doesn't look it and usually I'm okay with this if it's in fantasy or something paranormal, but when he has to take pills to keep him from aging, that's a whole other ball park. That's creepy. She's only 19. Through the whole novel, Montes is always pushing and forcing Serenity into situations she doesn't want to be in. From the very first moment that lay eyes on each other "he just has to have her." *insert eye roll* and does he ever. Because he forces her to be with him. Serenity's feelings for the king range from hate and repulsion, but not love, maybe lust sometimes, but nothing that would give him the okay to force her to marry him, have sex when him when he can clearly see she doesn't want to, that her body and mind isn't in it 100% and she hasn't given her consent. She literally tells him she hates him during their sex scenes... this is rape and I'm not okay with it. If ones partner isn't it emotionally, physically, or mentally in it, you better step away, buddy. He's never hit her before, but there's another form of abuse and that's mentally and emotionally, the kind of abuse the king hands out to Serenity. So, yeah, I loathe his character and I loathe the romance between them when it was so sallow and wrong.

Conclusion:
I know this was long, but I had to get out all my feels, my raging feels. I don't recommended this book to anyone and caution you not to even touch it with a ten foot pole. But if you're looking for a published like fanfic, a creepy, rapey king, and a romance that makes you wanna gag, this is the book for you!

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

The war is over, and your enemy is now your husband...

Goh BLIMEY!! Laura Thalassa really knows how to sock it to you. The Queen of All that Dies was fantastic. I think her writing is original but it affects me in a different way to other stories. I find myself a constant observer. When I read a lot of my other books, I place myself in the heroine's position. I am fighting, working, dancing and living as the heroine. I live and breathe their lives from the first page to the last. When I read a Laura Thalassa, I can't quite step into the heroine's shoes. Her shoes are too big for me to wear. I can't be the strong, determined, kick arse...detached, mechanical and ruthless heroine I meet. I must stand at her side with my hands tied to my sides... watching, observing... hiding.

I found myself gutted by the situation Serenity was forced into. Serenity was a pawn. Serenity was a gift. Serenity must forsake her own happiness to end a war. She must knowingly walk into a trap, smile and graciously accept that she has been offered up as a sacrifice to end a war. Serenity has been handed over to a King, a King that is the cause of all her misery.

But, the murderer of many has a weakness. Turns out, all that was needed to bring about his downfall was Serenity.

It's a funny thing reading this book. You know that King Lazuli is the worst, most evil man on earth. He's killed a lot of people, ruined the world and the environment, all while living in the lap of luxury. It was hard to see only the bad though. Like Serenity, I see the touches of humanity, vulnerability and emotion he can't hide. There's passion in his eyes when he looks at Serenity. He will do anything to keep her safe and protect her from harm. He wants her love and he's doing everything in his power to get it. BUT...I have to keep reminding myself HE'S BAD!!

I am absolutely STOKED that this series is already out. For the first time EVER, I loved that this one had a cliffy ending. It ended in a way that left me hungering for more. It was interesting, I didn't see it coming and I was left thoroughly satisfied AND I DON'T HAVE TO WAIT FOR MORE!!!

If you haven't tried a Laura Thalassa, I suggest you get to it. Sure, they're a touch confronting and it's bloody hard work falling for the heroes, but her words are so interesting. The books I've tried so far has been excellent. They're fresh, interesting, thought-provoking, sexy and intriguing. Exactly what I look for in my reads. I'm looking for Traitors in The Fallen World #2

[Nazanin · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 Stars

The world Serenity knew is nothing like the one she lives in. The world is at war and people lost hope. Everything depends on her ability to negotiate with the enemy, The King. The King who can’t be killed, The King who caused the death of millions, and more importantly The King who has taken everything from her. But what is the cost of helping her nation? What should she sacrifice to be good enough to The King…?

This was my first read by this author and I enjoyed it, A LOT. The MCs are the way I like them. Serenity is the best challenge for The King. I like the way she treats him. Like that she wouldn’t back away from The King and the way she speaks to him! And about The King; he does what he wants when he wants to whomever he wants, he’s remorseless. One second I wanted to slap him or punch him and a second later I wanted to hug him, I was so overwhelmed by him!
Told in dual POV, 1st person, it’s the first installment in "The Fallen World" series and ends on a cliffhanger. It’s angsty with a touch of science but nothing major. There is action, war, love and betrayal… a good package! Overall, I had a good time reading it and hope you enjoy it as well!

Ps. Special thanks to my dear friend Sahar for this recommendation, you know how much I enjoyed it!

[Didi · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was really good! I loved it!

New adult dystopian romance, is what I'd call this. It was better than what I was expecting and had me glued to the pages. I loved seeing years of planned revenge wilt in the midst of new knowledge and the promise of love. Serenity was a soldier raised to hate the king and all he was responsible for destroying. The world as we know it no longer exists. It's fractured into the western and eastern hemispheres with all the countries either having surrendered or been captured by the Kings regime. Serenity lives in what was once the U.S, but now is part of the WUN--Western United Nations, encompassing north and South America. When she is sent on a mission for peace with her father, she senses the futile repercussions of meeting the man who now rules the world and controls her fear.

King Montes Lazuli is an enigma. He's shrouded in mystery and his life rumored to be immortal. But when he meets Serenity everything changes. What once was wrong becomes right, what once was ethical becomes questionable. I loved seeing both sides of the king. The side the world sees, as a ruthless leader, and the side Serenity sees, a compassionate and loving kindred spirit.
This is filled with action, betrayal, mystery and an unlikely romance. There were several times I was gasping over the turn of events. It was very stressful for Serenity to be raised a certain way then see all her closely held values come into question. I also loved seeing how the king was with her. He was in desperate need for someone like Serenity and watching him protect and honor her was sweet.

This of course ends on a mother cliffy! And then I see the sequel doesn't release till January 2016?! SAY WHAT?!
The book never dragged and kept me interested for every second I read. I can't wait to see what happens, I just wish it wasn't so far away!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know how to rate this book. The premise is so interesting and it's definitely a book you don't want to miss. It's one of the best enemies to lovers reads I had in a while. She is the daughter of a diplomat and somehow a rebel. He is her enemy, a tyrant, a king that might destroy her life and the world.

You can guess what will happen next.

This book is so enjoyable but I don't know how I feel about the sexual violence. On the other hand the chemistry between the MC's. Off the charts! I didn't sleep much to finish this book and the rest of the series.

Overall I think this is a great read.

[Susan's Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

So! I'm not into fantasy or sci fi, but once in a while, I don't mind the odd dystopian novel. The only draw-back is that this is a three book series. Inevitably, the amount of filler in each book just drags the story down. Things get repetitive, then I start to lose interest.

The first novel was pretty riveting, although Serenity's physical attraction to the brutal king could have been fleshed out a bit more to make it more believable. She sees her own brutal nature in him - we are told this repeatedly. However, once Serenity "did her duty" in order to save her country, the relationship aspect became a bit more believable: Serenity could see that the King was just as lonely (and ruthless) as she was. Somewhere inside that handsome shell, Serenity sensed that the King had some redeeming characteristics, which she intended on manipulating to her war torn country's favor. Serenity is no victim: she fully intends to use her position to end the war that is plaguing the world.

In the second installment of this series, Serenity started behaving like an emotional ping pong ball. She loves the Monster, she hates the Monster, and so on and so forth. I still managed to enjoy this story, but decided to give the final installment a pass almost half way through. Four hundred plus pages of more emotional ping pong? I don't think so.

This year, I'm trying to avoid addictive habits, and serialized novels involving the same main characters is one of those addictive habits I'm passing on in 2020. I might make allowances for a second installment, but I'm going to be very choosy in my lapses. Some things need to end: time to move on to another melodrama!

[Firstpella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Are you kidding me, this is great! It’s The Fever Series only with more of but less raunchy sex...which is too bad actually, more intense sex scenes could push this series to mass sales. Luckily all 3 books are already released since cliffys are no-no’s and this baby has a big cliffhanger as does the next story. Me thinks the King is going to be ultimately a pussycat - but isn’t that what makes a true Gama Hero, they lie down only for their woman.