Crystal Storm by Morgan Rhodes - ESSENTIAL

Rhodes, Morgan  Crystal Storm (Falling Kingdoms, #5), 379 pgs.  Razorbill, 2016 (Penguin).  $18.99  Content: Language: PG-13 (39 swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG-13.  

Amara has killed her whole family and currently reigns over all of Kraeisha.  Amara has married the wicked King Gaius so she can also reign over all of Mytica.  Unlikely alliances are formed between Princess Cleo and Prince Mangus as well as Jonas as they all try to save Mytica from the larger threat of Amara.  Together they work to find the kindreds so they can gain magical power and help to gain control.  Prince Mangus’s sister, Lucia, tries to right her past wrongs and one of Amara’s dead family members makes a comeback.  All of the rulers are brought together and have to put aside their pasts so they can save the land they have all given up so much for.  

This is a cliffhanger!  I love this series and how well the world is crafted.  I love the characters and their history with each other and this novel takes an interesting turn by having them work together.  At this point it’s impossible to read the books out of order or the reader would be completely lost, but it’s worth reading the whole series.  The violence can be disturbing as Amara is a ruthless killer involving torture, alluding to being skinned alive and being buried alive.  

MS, HS – ESSENTIAL.  Reviewer, C. Peterson.