Tear Down the Throne by Jennifer Estep – Dual Review & Giveaway

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Description:
Crown princess. Clever spy. Powerful mind magier. Gemma Ripley of Andvari is all those things–and determined to stop an enemy from using magical tearstone weapons to conquer her kingdom.

Gemma’s quest for answers leads her to a trade Summit between the various kingdoms. Among the other royals in attendance is Queen Maeven Morricone of Morta and her son, Prince Leonidas–Gemma’s charming and dangerous nemesis.

Gemma knows that Maeven always has a long game in motion, and sure enough, the cunning queen invokes an arcane tradition that threatens the fragile truce between Andvari and the other kingdoms. Despite her best intentions, Gemma once again finds herself thrown together with Leo and battling her growing feelings for the enemy prince.

When a series of deadly attacks shatters the Summit’s peaceful negotiations, Gemma realizes that someone wants to tear the royals down from their thrones–and that this enemy just might succeed.

 

Barb’s Review:
Tear Down the Throne by Jennifer Estep is the 2^nd book in her Gargoyle Queen series.  I am a big fan of Jennifer Estep, and I couldn’t wait for Tear Down the Throne; I am happy to say I am loving this series.

Tear Down the Throne picks up where it left off in the last book, with Gemma back home in Andvari. Gemma has recovered from her injuries (scars still remain), which her evil enemy Milo inflicted on her.  But nothing stops Gemma from continuing spying on Milo, as well as Maeven, to learn what they are up to; especially with Milo’s use of the tearstone.   Gemma always has her friend Reiko, who is also a spy, with her when they investigate; I really liked how close Gemma and Reiko were.  Slowly, Gemma learns to use her magical powers, which begin to increase.

The annual Summit is upon us, with all royals from various kingdoms gathering to make trades.   Gemma knows she will come face to face with Queen Maeven Morricone of Morta, as well as her evil son, Prince Milo, and Prince Leonidas (the man she truly cares for), whom she feels betrayed her during her capture. Determined to ignore Leo, Gemma knows this will be heard, as they both have strong feelings for each other; the caveat is that they are both from warring kingdoms.   I really loved Gemma and Leo together, and prayed they would find a way. 

Queen Maeven is up to her old tricks, and invokes an old tradition that threatens the fragile truce between all other kingdoms. This will also push Gemma and Leo closer together, even if she continues to deny her feelings; they begin to work together to try and see what Milo is planning, to destroy his mother, and assume control of Morta, and all kingdoms, including Andvari.

What follows is an exciting, tense, wild last half of the book that had me on the edge of my seat.  Gemma was an amazing heroine, as she continues utilize her growing power, especially against another dangerous enemy.   The wild crazy climax was a thrill a minute, with all their lives in danger and me holding my breath to see if she would survive. At one point near the end, with her life on the line, Gemma rises up with help from her loyal gargoyles and friends.  To say too much more would be spoilers. I will say this was non-stop action from start to finish, with magic, mystery, political intrigue, suspense, mystery, and some surprises along the way.

Jennifer Estep has given us another fantastic story, filled with, magic, mystery, betrayal, espionage; as well as a slow burn romance that beings to opening move forward.  Tear Down the Throne was so very well written by Estep, which is no surprise, as I love all her books. I cannot wait for the next book.  If you enjoy fantasy, you need to start reading the Gargoyle Queen series, which you should start with the first book, Capture the Crown.

 

Sandy’s Review

TEAR DOWN THE THRONE is the second instalment in Jennifer Estep’s adult, GARGOYLE QUEEN dystopian, fantasy series, a spin off from the author’s CROWN OF SHARDS series. The Gargoyle Queen trilogy focuses on the secondary characters originally introduced in the Crown of Shards series. This is twenty-nine year old, Andvari Princess Gemma Ripley, and Mortan Prince Leonidis Morricone’s story line. TEAR DOWN THE THRONE should not be read as a stand alone as some of the events in the current time line are as of a direct result of the events in book one CAPTURE THE CROWN but the author does recap some of the history and background using memories and reflections.

SOME BACKGROUND: Sixteen years earlier, Gemma Ripley lost everything including the ability to control her magic the day Queen Maeven declared war on her family, killing her mother, and destroying her heart in the process. As Gemma’s ‘mind magic’ becomes more powerful than she could have ever imagined, our heroine struggles to forgive and forget, knowing she will one day have to destroy the people who destroyed her life, including the man that she loves.

NOTE: If you have not read book one, there may be spoilers in my review.

Told from first person perspective (Princess Gemma) TEAR DOWN THE THRONE continues to focus on Princess Gemma Ripley as she tries to uncover the truth behind the mining and disappearance of the magical ‘tearstone’ in Mortan territory. Weeks earlier, working as a spy, Gemma went undercover in enemy territory but found herself imprisoned and tortured by the Mortan family, a direct result of betrayal by the man she once loved, Mortan Prince Leonidis ‘Leo’ Morricone. With the approach of the yearly Summit, a gathering of Royal families and Kingdoms, Gemma knows she will have to face her torturers and the man she once loved but our heroine will be blindsided when Queen Maeven demands Gemma enter into a marriage with her son Leo, a marriage that would unite two powerful Kingdoms. When Gemma refuses, Maeven invokes the ‘Ungerian Gauntlet’, a series of challenges that will prove her son Leo is a worthy suitor but Gemma suspects Maeven is sentencing her son to die, a ‘legal’ murder to be enacted in front of hundreds of people. All is not well within the Kingdom of Morricone, as not only is Gemma a target of several assassination attempts during the Summit but so too, is Queen Maeven and Prince Leonidis. Meanwhile, Prince Leonidis’ brother Crown Prince Milo, who is a prime suspect in the numerous attempts of assassination against our story line heroine, has been conducting a series of experiments, years of experiments that will directly affect someone close to the Ripley family. What ensues is Prince Leonidis attempts to win the Gauntlet as Gemma begins another investigation into the attempts on her life, and Queen Maeven’s desire to invoke the Gauntlet, only to realize betrayal comes from more than one Kingdom, and from within, as well.

Once again , the world building is intricate, complex and detailed. The story line and premise is familiar and similar to the author’s CROWN OF SHARDS series, as well as her ELEMENTAL ASSASSIN series including the use of ‘elemental’ magic, corresponding characters and history, powerful metal and stones, violence directed at the story line heroine and her family; Gemma’s rag tag team of warriors and friends, and the evil Maeven and her dysfunctional family whose goal is to ultimately rule and take over every territory and Kingdom, while destroying Gemma and everyone she loves.

As per my previous review, there continues to be an overwhelming use of the words purple (71 times) and violet (54 times) pertaining to the Mortan Kingdom’s Royal colors, eye color, and world as a whole.

TEAR DOWN THE THRONE is another intriguing story of betrayal and vengeance, power and control, family and friendships, relationships and love. The premise is captivating but the ongoing use of real world / modern day vernacular is distracting; the characters are charismatic, magical and powerful including fellow spy and dragon shifter Reiko Yamato, gargoyles Grimley (Gemma’s familiar), Fern and newcomer Otto, and strixes Lyra (Leo’s familiar) and Violet; the romance struggles in the face of betrayal and issues of trust; there continues to be no perceived palpable or discernible sexual attraction between our story line couple but saying that, dystopian and urban fantasy ‘style’ story lines do not necessarily focus on the love connection or romances which are often behind the scenes or tertiary to the main story line, although there occasionally is a ‘love match’ for the leading characters.

 

Jennifer is graciously offering an ARC paper copy of Tear Down The Throne to ONE (1) lucky commenters  at The Reading Cafe:

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8. Giveaway open USA only

9. Giveaway runs from May 2 – 7 2022