The Fiery Crown by Jeffe Kennedy (Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads)Published by St. Martin's Publishing Group on May 26th 2020
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Romance, Romantic
Pages: 320
A queen and her rebel prince turn from enemies to lovers while evil forces plot to destroy them in this lush romantic fantasy.
Following The Orchid Throne, Conri and Lia’s marriage of convenience has turned into an uneasy alliance. If only the two leaders could agree on something. Driven by revenge, Conri wants to attack Emperor Anure before the tyrant gets to them first. But Lia needs to keep Calanthe safe, and refuses to sacrifice her kingdom. Their ongoing battle for control has built up tension they’re both more than happy to release in bed, the only place where they find common ground. But Conri and Lia are developing deeper feelings for each other that are complicating matters. In the second book in the Forgotten Empires trilogy, Conri and Lia find their loyalties torn, and with Emperor Anure’s threat growing, will they be able to risk everything with each other before it’s too late?
The Firey Crown is book two in the Forgotten Empires books by Jeffe Kennedy and if you are looking for a fantasy with some romance included, you might consider checking this series out. As a book two, I’ll do my best not to include any spoilers for this installment, but I can’t promise anything for book one.
This book picks up shortly after book one wraps up. Conri and Lia are trying to figure out how to navigate their new marriage right along with figuring out who the other is…and it’s not very easy when despite their shared enemy, they have slightly different ideas of how to get to their shared goal.
The story makes a lot of progress in this installment as both Conri and Lia face off with Anure and come to realize what is really most important to them. I thought Kennedy did a great job of not only showing the conflict Conri and Lia had with Anure but also between themselves. They continue to battle each other as Conri wants his revenge and Lia is determined to protect Calanthe and neither can see yet how to do both.
As Lia and Conri begin to open up, they start to learn more about each other, and it was nice to get more background on both. Lia’s background and connection to Calanthe becomes a bit more clear and I found it to be a piece of the story that makes this fantasy unique.
The secondary characters continue to help drive the story forward.  Ambrose is still a bit of a mystery but I’m hoping the next book gives us a bit more. In addition to this, there was plenty of action and enough of the sexy times to make me call out the romance aspect. It is very clear that Lia and Conri do not have a problem connecting in that arena.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and will pick up the next book when it comes.  If you’re looking for an adult fantasy, consider checking this series out. It’s a fairly quick read, has an interesting story, and solid characters whose stories will keep you turning the pages.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy in exchange for an honest review.
About Jeffe Kennedy
JEFFE KENNEDY is an award-winning, bestselling author who writes fantasy, fantasy romance, and contemporary romance. She serves on the Board of Directors for SFWA as a Director at Large.
Her most recent works include Prisoner of the Crown and the upcoming Exile of the Seas, from her high fantasy trilogy from Rebel Base books, The Chronicles of Dasnaria, in the same world as her award-winning fantasy series The Twelve Kingdoms and The Uncharted Realms. She is a hybrid author, and also self-publishes a fantasy series, Sorcerous Moons. Her books have won the RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2015, been named Best Book of June 2014, and won RWA’s prestigious RITA® Award.
She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with two Maine coon cats, plentiful free-range lizards and a very handsome Doctor of Oriental Medicine.
Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com, every Sunday at the SFF Seven blog, on Facebook, on Goodreads and on Twitter @jeffekennedy.
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