Once a Shieldmaiden for her beloved kingdom, now Princess Reyna Darragh is nothing more than a captive of the exiled Shadow Court. The shadow fae believe in strange visions that foretell of the upcoming war. If Reyna helps them, they will win. If she refuses, their realm will fall.
The High King gives her an ultimatum. She must become his warrior, or he will kill Princess Eislyn. Reyna has no choice but to kneel to the cruel king. She would do anything to save her sister, even fight by the side of her former lover. The one who betrayed her.
Meanwhile, the plague-like Ruin continues to spread throughout the lands, destroying everything it touches. Faced with danger on all sides, Reyna fights to protect everything she holds dear: her sister, her kingdom in the north, and her own shattered heart.
Jenna Wolfhart spends her days dreaming up stories about swoony fae kings and rugged blacksmiths. When she's not writing, she loves to do CrossFit competitions, rewatch Game of Thrones, collect Taylor Swift vinyls, and drink far too much coffee.
Jenna has always had a passion for writing, books, and publishing. Previously, she worked for an academic publisher in New York and then completed her PhD in Librarianship, focusing on young adult fiction.
Jenna now lives in England with her husband and her two dogs.
What was that ending?! Oh my God, the last 30% of this book had me in a chokehold, and the epilogue raised goosebumps on my skin.
The world-building grows, and gods come into play, battles, action, death, danger. A great war looming on the horizon. Betrayals. More magic.
The political intrigue and what's happening with the courts make me unable to trust anyone, except Reyna, Lorcan, and Eislyn. And even with them I'm not so sure after that reveal at the end.
If you like books that focus more on the plot and the romance is just in the background, this one's for you.
Just when you think that some of the conflicts are starting to resolve, the author jumps right in, knocks you on your butt and makes it all heartbreaking again! Frustrating, but brilliant and incredibly addictive. By the end of this book, my heart was breaking for EVERYONE. 😮😭 There's so many ups and downs in Kindom in Exile, it's a wonder their world hasn't modernised to the point of roller coasters. In this second instalment of the Fallen Fae series, so many plots were twisted, turned around, then set off in another direction. It was quite refreshing having so much unpredictability. There were less pov's in this book, which was great because we were able to go deeper into important character's actions, motivations, thoughts and feelings. Hope the wait for Keeper of Storms isn't as long, really want to dive back in to Reyna and Lorcan.
I didn’t get enough Thane in this one. I’m really disappointed about that. Reyna and Lorcan spent a lot of their time screwing while Thane and Eislyn remained missing. Some parts I’m so engrossed in and others, I’m extremely bored or annoyed. I don’t know how I feel about this series. I read reviews saying Thane isn’t in the majority of the rest of the series and that sort of makes me not want to keep reading. Oh and that he and Eislyn won’t be together as she ends up with someone named Lir? I mean really? Anyway, I’m not sure if I’ll keep reading these or not.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This book is steeped in non-stop action and several twists. As the mysteries start to unravel, you begin to see the big picture. Some things are beginning to fall into place and some...just aren't yet. Eislyn can't catch a break with who she chooses to trust. I feel bad for the girl. And Reyna made an impossible choice and still came out on the wrong side. Lorcan just seems to always get the short stick as well. I really wanted him to get the one thing he wished for. I liked that this book didn't jump around as frantically as the first book. I was able to sink into the characters more and I felt like each POV was offering something to the story besides filler.
So much action in this book it hardly ever stops!! This book sucks you further into the lore which I love. I also enjoyed seeing a lot more character growth as well. I don’t want to give any spoilers so I can’t say much more. Action packed, some romance (but a heavier focus on the plot and action), a well thought out story, and questions answered.
I will say again, Reyna reminds me even more of Aelin and I’m definitely curious to see what happens in the next book.
I know I read this in like a day. I was supposed to be working but read all afternoon instead lol.
Oh My God!! ... wow ... after reading the first book I couldn't help myself but to read this one straight away... I could barely put the book down. It follows straight on from the first book and delves even more into my favourite character Lorcan. The additional characters in this book are great too and the snippets of what's happening to other characters in the world alongside the main characters is proving a very effective way of adding to the plot sequences... roll on the 3rd book I seriously can't wait!! ... im off to read Prince of shadows now to read more about Lorcans story whilst I await the next book in this series!!
Dang we speedran the enemies to lovers to enemies to lovers. I genuinely was hoping for a really slow burn of the second iteration of enemies to lovers because I love slow burns and they are especially torturous in enemies to lovers, but also can you imagine all the angst from the previous enemies to lovers??? OMG it had the potential to be so freaking good. Anyway, the ending of this book has left me confused AF but in a like a good way. I need to know what happens next but I've been so busy with life that I literally haven't had the chance to read at all. And I'm guessing life is only going to get busier for a bit. Hopefully I can read the rest of the series soon cause that ending was a doozy.
The battle between the Courts continue while an unknown force lurks in the corner. I swear this series just keeps getting better and better! There's too much going on in the background—brewing destruction, plots of alliances and seemingly impossible quests that Eislyn, Reyna, Lorcan and Thane have to go through all on their own. Everything in this book is mindblowing. My feelings are all over the place. I feel bad for the deaths of quite a few likeable characters but I guess it can't be helped.
AHHHHH!!! It's a must read for the lovers of faes, lore, battling kingdoms and a strong and daring woman as the protagonist.
A little dry and perdy standard to everybody vying for the main throne but it's a fun lead and I'm enjoying the twisties so far. Wolfhart apparently has no qualms about killing people and I appreciate that in a fantasy novel. War is brutal and the story properly reflects that. Slightly more spicy than book 1 but still fairly soft.
This book was amazing from start to finish. Reyna is one of my all time favourite characters.. she is feisty, Smart, strong, she does things for herself there is not a damsel in distress bone in her body. If you are looking for a series with a kick ass STRONG female MC this is definitely the series for you. The story is also told from a few POV’s and it add so much.. if help you know what’s going on in other kingdoms, and how everyone is feeling. If you like Sarah j Maas or Holly Black, again this is definitely a series for you. It’s just packed full of action, honour, humour, new friends, old enemies and has romance to boot.. like triple hot factor. An absolute MUST read, I loved every page
A stunning daring and action-packed masterpiece of fantasy that plays with your heartstrings and leaves you guessing till the end. I couldn’t put this book down from the beginning with so many twists and turns I never knew what was going to happened next. It was suspenseful and thrilling! I’m dying to see what happens next!
“Black and white was always easier to see than the murkiness of grey.”
We’re back to the mysterious world of Tir Na Nog. We are introduced to new characters, ideas, worlds, and the plot only thickens in book 2. I love Reyna and Lorcan! They are such a wonderful couple and great characters on their own. Definitely a favorite couple in any YA book. There are a lot more romantic moments in this one than the last, so be aware of that before reading, but they’re oh so delicious! So much is going on in this book and it is paced perfectly through all of it. There are still multiple POV’s, which is still not my favorite, but this story flows pretty well from one to the other, so it’s not as jarring to switch around. Eislyn has grown on me a lot! She finally finds her voice and wants to make her own decisions and her own mark in the world. I’m excited to see how she continues to evolve. I can’t wait for the next book and the continuation of this exciting, romantic tale! I don’t want to wait to find out what happens!
I liked this book a lot better than the first, maybe because this time around I actually new more about the ruin and the dynamic between the different courts. There was a lot more action which I throughly enjoyed and I also loved seeing what would happen between Lorcan and Reyna.
I still wasn’t a fan of the multiple point of views, I found Mariel boring, Thane boring and especially Eislyn mind numbingly boring. Though I do understand why they were necessary for the furthering of the plot I still didn’t like them.
The revelation that the Ruin had been created to kill Reyna and that she had been tricked by the magic voice in the pool was actually kind of heartbreaking. I mean she literally gave up Lorcan and for what?
Also Glencora’s ominous warning at the end about Reyna and Eislyn killing each other? I can hardly believe it but it will make for an equally great book I hope.
1st reading: More compelling than the first book, probably because I've finally become invested in some of the characters. There are a few of them that I still don't feel much for, though I'm sure I'm meant to by now (Eislyn, for one). The writing is good, although the author's apparent dislike of using contractions often makes it feel stilted. Also have to wonder what was the point behind us starting to like Vreis - and Eislyn realize she wasn't really in love with Thane - when the author merely planned to have him killed. I get that he was a catalyst for Eislyn to finally recognize that everyone - apart from Vreis - has been shielding her from the truth and for her to start believing she can do things for herself, but what a waste of a potential love triangle.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This book was so good. SO much happened and it is wild. When Meredith got shot my jaw literally dropped and I had to stop reading for weeks. I was not seeing that coming. Shook. But man it was such a wonderful idea to have people stay at the town Lorcan is from for displaced people in the Shadowland.
The twists in this book were unreal. I made a prediction of Lorcan and Reyna being able to still be together but with the death of a ton of characters- I’m just not sure that’ll be true. I’m just at a loss for how this book will end. I can’t wait to read the next one.
I will say, I am confused how everyone seems to get to places so quickly. Unless maybe I missed the parts that discuss the timeframe.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
reyna and lorcan deserve to have their dream life together
my only real issue is that there are many different povs in this book and in no strict order - this wouldn’t be a problem usually but because there is so much going on with the different courts, their politics and wars and each pov characters being mostly separated from one another and on their own path (apart from reyna and lorcan who were together most of the time and thank god) it felt too easy to lose focus on certain elements of the story and what is going on.
eislyn’s and mariel’s pov in particular was not interesting to me while i kept forgetting about thane (i’m very sorry😭)
How can I like a person who always chooses power and revenge over anything else? I ho back and forth over this question but I always root for her when she is fighting.
I was annoyed at her petty squabbling with Lorcan and wished the author wouldn't have gone there but, thankfully, it didn't last long.
I see where the story is headed and I'm not sure it will end well but I'm too curious not to read the next book. I hope it doesn't take a year to be released.
What a wild ride. I just finished the book and my feelings are HURT. I must chase the HEA ending... and I hope it does exist in one of these books. The world building is insane.. the books are long and filled with so much detail and complexity.
Sometimes reading this installment was enveloping and other times I felt like I was sagging and had to push myself forward. So definitely something to be prepared for.
I am truly impressed with the expansive world Jenna Wolfhart has build here and I am now beginning the next book...
Dnf 77% The idea for the story is amazing, but execution? Terrible. I can’t connect with characters. There is just action, expected twists and no emotions. Like it’s a world inhabited by robots. 7 different povs instead of providing more complex story just reveal secrets which should be hidden for a bit more. Everything is revealed and it’s not exciting to the reader when character learn about it half a book later. Relationships and romance fell flat, awkward and boring. Won’t be continuing the series.
This series just keeps getting better with each book and I cannot wait for the next book in the series. So many characters that are evolving and so many deaths that you wouldn't expect. I almost feel like I'm reading a book by George RR Martin in the sense that you never know who will prevail and who will die. Definitely some unexpected turns in this book. I can't wait for more.
That's what this book is! A home-run! Perfectly imperfect! Brilliant! I love this story, these characters... and this WORLD??? OMG the world building is AMAZING! This is definitely a series fans of Sarah J Maas, Jennifer Armentrout, and Amelia Hutchins would LOVE! If you're looking for a series, look no farther!! However, I will give you one warning... Jenna is giving George RR Martin a run for his money 💔
Really enjoyed this series so far, the book was great. But I’m upset that vreis was killed off! I was starting to hope that him and eislyn would become a thing. She was starting to realize maybe her feelings weren’t as strong for thane and vreis was so good for her . It got me all hopeful for a cute little romance between them two and then bam, he’s dead . I’m like wtf. That was very disappointing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The five stars here belong to Lorcan. He has been emotionally tangled and used and your heart goes out to him. His strength is the only thing that remains consistent. You might rail at Reyna for the first 40% of this book. She's not the same as the steadfast Reyna in book one. As expected both good and evil are killed in this book and intrigue reigns over all.
Jenna Wolfheart has written a wonderful story in this continuation of the Fallen Fae Series. The writing is well done and moves along at a rapid pace. The descriptions of the scenery and action is excellently done. The dialog is well done and believable. I couldn’t put this book down. Can’t wait for the next one.
One piece of advice - don't get attached to the characters because not all of them will survive. There are parts of the story that have a heavy emotional toll. There is so much scheming going on behind the scenes. The last third of the book really ramps up your anxiety.
Three stars only because I gave the first one 2. This one was an improvement after the first book. There were actually parts that were page turners. But then, there were still several sections that were completely skipped. I never read the POV of Mariel at all and I only skimmed over Thane and Eislyn's parts. Tarrah became an interesting character but towards the end I got sick of her, too. I appreciate the mystery of Nollaig and I'm curious to know who she is but not enough to keep reading this series.
Author was still too descriptive in some areas and then not descriptive at all in others. Also, the sex scenes are awkward and a bit of a let down since she does a good job of amping up the tension. But then it falls flat. I don't need a super descriptive sex scene, but something less anticlimactic would be nice. Some of the plot twists towards the end are weird but not too far out there.
Reyna is by far my favorite in this series. She is strong, independent and does what she wants no matter what anybody thinks. Her and Lorcan are the best couple.
I cannot wait to start the next book to find out what happens with them and where their journey will lead.