The Queen's Wrath: Zalig: Book Two

by Karlee Berrios

In the wake of a life-changing betrayal, Elva finds herself country-less, hopeless, and unfortunately for Kairon, reckless. Fueled by vengeance, she vows to destroy those responsible for her abandonment, starting with the remorseless king himself, no matter the cost.
As their tumultuous clash unfolds, Kai discovers just how deeply her fury brightens his world, relishing in her blurring the lines between vengeance and justice.
Things take a drastic turn when Kai and Elva are accosted by new threats, forcing them to work together once again. An unexpected journey to Havrik, the kingdom of Syrens, sends them both spiraling into unfathomable mysteries.
Now, the wicked king and his favorite captive, along with their allies, must unravel deadly plots and secrets hidden long ago.
While traversing through new discoveries and old hurts, Elva has to decide if she can forgive the king, or if their differences will tear them apart, dooming not only themselves but the very fabric of the world around them.
The Queen's Wrath is the second installment of the Zalig Trilogy, a Dark Romantasy series brimming with hidden magic, enigmatic villains, and scorching chemistry.

337 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 21, 2025

About the author

Karlee is a paranormal romance author who loves the unconventional, anti-hero love interests. She creates characters who are deeply flawed portrayals of trauma, the kind of character readers will be able to see themselves in and feel a little bit less alone. Of course, along side that, she lives for love stories. The dirty kind, obviously.

She lives with her husband and daughter in Arizona, soaking up the sunshine as much as possible when she's not stuck in her fantasy worlds.

Reviews

[Adrianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this continuation to this trilogy. The plot moved along at a steady pace and the ending has me ready for book 3 already!

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so utterly obsessed with Elva and Kai, I don't think I'll ever get tired of this series.

The Queen's Wrath is the second book in the Zalig series. It picks up pretty close to where The Horned King left off. This book is the ultimate "will they, won't they" and I've never shipped a couple so hard. There's political intrigue, LOTS of flirty banter, male pining at every turn, more corpses, scheming...a great amount of scheming, page-turning spice, and enough twists that you'll be gripping your book with two hands!

Your favorite strangers to enemies to lovers couple is BACK. After the events of Book 1, Elva's trust in Kai is waining and of course, their attraction to each other is making it difficult to stay mad enough to not envision jumping his bones in the throne room (which she does do...). However, our boy Kai WORSHIPS Elva and honestly, I couldn't stay mad at him either! Karlee blesses us with a healthy amount of love, comfort, and heartfelt moments accompanied by so much spice that I'm wondering if any surface in the castle will be safe by the end of this series.

Overall, if you are looking for a spicy romantasy, and you haven't read The Horned King...I'm questioning what you're doing! Go read this series and thank me later! I absolutely adore everything Karlee writes and I'll be (im)patiently waiting for the next book in this series.

Thank you Karlee Berrios for gifting me an ARC!

[Sierra Gephart · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Tension Filled Stars!!

A huge thank you to Karlee for sending me an eARC of The Queen’s Wrath! The story picks up right where the first left off. Elva is mourning the loss of a friend while also trying to wrap her head around the fact that her country was able to part ways with her so easily. She finds herself lost for where she belongs.

Kairon is battling Elva’s upset feelings towards him while wanting to find the cause of the horrible black sludge that is fielding its way across his country. He never gives up on winning Elva over; taking her on dates, having her help with strategy for other countries, and opening up to her more so she sees a different side of him.

Also, CAN WE PLEASE NOTE THE CHEMISTRY AND TENSION BETWEEN ELVA AND KAI???? It was undeniable and Elva never stood a chance.

The two find themselves working with unlikely allies to weed out the traitors that have infiltrated the castle. The Queen’s Wrath leaves off with a surprising twist that will have you wanting book 3 right now!

[Alyssa Scheltema · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay so first off, Karlee has this uncanny ability to absolutely destroy me with every book she’s written and The Queen’s Wrath is very much ✨not✨ an exception to that fact. I have highlighted so many parts of this book, which is crazy for me.

TQW is the second book in the Zalig series and follows Elva and Kai’s journey. Through all of the secrets, betrayal and corpses, we get to see a bit deeper into the world that they live in and conquer so wonderfully.

I am obsessed with Kai and how willing he is to show Elva just how deeply he adores and cares for her. He is the epitome of “I hate everyone but her” and is not afraid to show her. Elva had to go through so much and even though she’s still learning who she is and who she wants to be, she has no issues putting on the show and faking it til she makes it.

Honestly, if I could, I’d rate it a 6🌟

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was already a fan of Kai and Elva but I grew to love them even more with this book. the chemistry between these two grew spicer. They may have started out as enemies but by the end of this story, they had become more like lovers. Kai is so patient and kind with Elva. He truly won my heart. I love these two together.

Things really pick up in this next installment in this trilogy. There was a lot more happening and the story moved at a faster pace. This book added more to the overall story progression. I can't wait to see how it all ends with in the final book.

[Danni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so excited for this book and it did not disappoint. I’m just upset I have to wait to see what happens next. Ugh- I am begging for more.
Kai is my favorite. I couldn’t hate him no matter what he did. Even when he was trying to be cruel, I didn’t care. I would have fallen into his arms and forgiven everything. The back and forth with him and Elva had me in a choke hold. Will they/wont they? Should they/should they not?
The ending is really where it shined the most though. So much went down. I thought I knew where things were headed, but I was so wrong. It was so good.

[Brittany Duncan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book destroyed me.

When I read the first book I really loved Elva, Kai, and Raya. The second book in the series gives insight into why Kai is the way he is but I love the way he only loves Elva. I don’t want to spoil anything so I will just say that I wasn’t expecting that plot twist with Raya.

I am looking forward to third book in this series because I was not okay with that cliffhanger.