Review: The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen
“I will be the next Queen of Ithicana. And I will bring the Bridge Kingdom to its knees.”
The Basics
Title: The Bridge Kingdom (The Bridge Kingdom #1)
Author: Danielle L. Jensen
Published: 2018
Publisher: Context Literary Agency
Pages: 340
Format: Paperback
Genres: Fiction — Fantasy, High fantasy, Romance, Fantasy romance, New adult
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Book Synopsis
Falling in love with him was never part of the plan. Ever since she was torn from her mother’s arms as a child, she has been trained to do one thing: infiltrate Ithicana so that she might learn the country’s secrets and ensure its demise. When she is sent to Ithicana to marry its king under the pretense of fulfilling a treaty between her country and his, she has every intention of carrying out that plan, but her resolve begins to crumble as she grows closer to the king and begins to care for him and his people. Will she follow her heart and betray her own people, or will she remain loyal to her country and condemn the people of Ithicana to certain death?
My Review & Overall Thoughts
TLDR: Do you like slow-burn romances? Enemies-to-lovers trope? World building? If yes, stop what you’re doing, and add this book to your reading list.
How are more people not talking about this book? It is one of the best fantasy romances that I have read in quite some time. Not only does it have a well-penned romance, but it also features lifelike characters and a richly imagined world. In short, The Bridge Kingdom checks all of the boxes for a riveting read.
From its very first sentence, The Bridge Kingdom draws you in with a visually enticing description, and it secures its hold on your attention with a jaw-dropping moment at the close of the opening chapter. From there on out, the plot only gets better. Action, suspense, and deception are added the mix, giving rise to a number of heart-pounding scenes. If you are anything like me, you will be fighting the urge to flip ahead and see if everything works out okay. And let’s not forget about the romance, which is part and parcel of the story. It is a slow burn, and it features one of my favorite tropes: enemies to lovers. Plus, the chemistry between Aren and Lara practically jumps off of the page, such that you cannot help but root for them to get together.
Next to the romance, the world building is this book’s greatest strength. Jensen has created a lush, intricate world. She has painted a picture of not only how the world looks but also how it functions. The political landscape of the realm is described, as are its societies. It is a vast world, and only a fraction of it is explored in depth in this book, which makes me excited for further exploration of it in subsequent books.
The final feather in this book’s cap is its exceptional cast of characters. Lara, the protagonist, is a strong and nuanced character, and over the course of the book, she demonstrates tremendous growth. She is also fallible, and her lapses in judgement make her feel all the more lifelike. After all, an integral part of being human is making mistakes. Complementing Lara is Aren, her supposed enemy and husband. He does not shine quite as brightly as Lara, but as a romantic interest, he does just fine. He brings out the good in her and also challenges her to reexamine her assumptions and beliefs about the world. Plus, like any man worth his salt in a fantasy romance, he is handsome, honorable, and knows how to wield a sword, among other things ;) The secondary characters are equally laudable. They are a diverse array of individuals with distinct personalities and defined roles in the story. One of my biggest pet peeves is when a character has no real purpose in a story and is only included to serve as a type of filler – fortunately, no such characters are found in this book.
The not so good
The ending leaves you hanging, but lucky for us, the sequel, The Traitor Queen, is already published. So, no long and painful wait to see what happens next.
Overall
From a well-crafted and imaginative world to memorable characters and a slow-burn romance, The Bridge Kingdom has everything you could hope for – and then some – in a fantasy romance. I cannot wait to continue Lara and Aren’s story in The Traitor Queen.
Have you read The Bridge Kingdom? If so, what did you think of it? Let me know in the comments section below!
