Review By Ronny
The Inadequate Heir is another great installment in The Bridge Kingdom series.
Favourite Quote:
“Because I’ve seen enough death to last me a lifetime, and if I have my way, I’ll never be the cause of it.” His eyes, rendered colorless in the darkness, regarded her steadily. “ And just because Valcotta is Maridrina’s enemy doesn’t make you mine.”
Book Synopsis:
A soldier raised as heir to an empire, Zarrah is motivated by two truths. The first is that the Veliant family murdered her mother. And the second is that her pursuit of vengeance will put every last one of them in their graves.
The Endless War between Maridrina and Valcotta has raged for generations, leaving thousands of Zarrah’s people dead and countless more orphaned. So when she’s given command of the contested city of Nerastis, Zarrah is prepared to do whatever it takes to destroy the Maridrinian forces who oppose her. And to kill the Veliant prince who leads them.
Yet a chance encounter with an anonymous, and handsome, Maridrinian causes Zarrah to question whether the violence she’s perpetrated is justice or a crime. And as she continues to meet the nameless man each night, she finds common ground – and fiery passion – in his arms.
But when identities are revealed, Zarrah must decide whether to embrace a chance at peace…or march to the drums of war.
Review:
I’ll admit it took me a bit to get into this book, which has more to do with one of my reading pet peeves than the actual story or writing. I absolutely hate it when books in a fantasy series change MCs. This happened in the Cursebreakers and Iskari fantasy series, both of which I couldn’t finish. So, the fact that I was able to finish this book and want to read the next one tells you how good the storytelling is in this series.
In this book, we move away from Lara and Aren’s story and turn to Zarrah and Keris, two characters whom we met in the previous two books. We have been teased with brief glimpses of Zarrah and Keris, and the moments when these two characters are on the page have had me wanting to learn more about them and this mysterious connection between them. What’s interesting about this story is that it is unfolding during the time the first two books are also unfolding. We know what big events are going to happen and what outcomes are going to occur, but now we get to see them unfold from a different perspective and how events in this story affected how these bigger events played out. It kind of has this Avengers world-building feel to it. Everything is connected and has a purpose. The fact that everything works so seamlessly, and the expansion of the world-building in this book complements that in the previous two, is a testament to how talented Danielle is as a fantasy author. Everything is so well thought out. She continues to create a world that is vast, interesting, and engaging. As a reader, I never felt lost or overwhelmed with world-building information.
The overall story is interesting. We are exploring a whole new area of Danielle’s world. In the previous two books, the Endless War between Maridrina and Valcotta has been mentioned; we know it is one of the factors that drove Lara’s father to seek to take over Aren’s kingdom. In this book, we see this conflict on the ground as we witness mini hostile skirmishes between Maridina and Valcotta, and the innocent civilian casualties that result. The hostility between these two kingdoms runs deep, but because this war has been going on for so long, many are fighting over something that they truly don’t understand. The reason why the war started has been muddled with fear, hatred, and falsehoods (or propaganda) told on both sides. So many soldiers are just fighting because they have been brainwashed to hate their “enemy”. Obviously, there is a lot of politics and court in this story. This situation is also the perfect set-up for an enemies-to-lovers romance. Zarrah and Keris are true enemies, but the hatred they should feel towards one another isn’t there. What follows is a series of secret meetups in which it becomes harder and harder to deny that something is between them. But of course, things are immensely complicated. Keris is the last son and heir to the Maridrina throne, and the person Zarrah has sworn to kill.
Aren is a different sort of hero. He is a scholar at heart and doesn’t want to fight. Those around him think he is useless, a bookworm, and truly is an inadequate for the Maridina throne. But we learn pretty quickly that this is an illusion that Aren has created because he doesn’t want the throne or to be a part of his father’s violent plans. Aren is also a strategic planner (a character trait I love), and he cleverly navigates his father’s court, silently moving “chess” pieces to help achieve his goal: freeing Zarrah, who has been captured. I liked his character; he’s a more intellectual, broody hero. Zarrah is also an interesting character. What drives her is this need for revenge against the Maridrina king. She is also the niece of the queen of Valcotta. She finds herself also thrust into Valcotta’s court politics and begins to learn that not all is what it seems. Neither character necessarily needs to grow as an individual. Their growth comes in the form of learning to trust one another.
There is a heavy romance presence in this fantasy. As I mentioned, fans of enemies-to-lovers will love that sparky tension between Zarrah and Aren. But what really heightens the romance between these two is that forbidden secret element. They truly have to hide their feelings for one another, and their meet-ups are done in secret, because if they were ever found, the consequences would be dire. I love it when the stakes are so high. That element of danger just makes the romance more addictive and delicious. The spice level is also heightened in this book, compared to the previous two books. So, for those who like their fantasies on the spicier level, enjoy.
The Inadequate Heir is a heart-pounding and gripping fantasy and another great installment in The Bridge Kingdom series.
