I recently received an ARC of Eden Conquered, which prompted me to read Dividing Eden in preparation for the sequel. If you’re interested in that, come back to my blog next week for a review on the sequel.
Carys and Andreus are twins who both have a claim to the throne. When Eden’s King and crown prince are mysteriously assassinated, the line of succession becomes unclear. Carys and Andreus must undergo the Trials of Succession to determine who is to be the next leader of Eden. The Trials of Succession will not only determine who is next to rule, but will also test the bond of Carys and Andreus.
The concept is interesting (at first), but the overall presentation leaves a lot to be desired. The story is told from two POVs, Carys and Andreus. The twins are conveyed as inseparable, super close, and they would do anything to protect one another. Three days into the trials; however, someone is able to drive a wedge between them and turn them against each other without any problems. Super big inconsistency right there.
For me, Carys was a much more interesting character than Andreus. Andreus was boring and just unlikeable, which I guess he is supposed to be unlikeable...but not this unlikeable I suspect.
I liked that romance was not the forerunner of this book. I’ve recently been reading a good amount of books were it is a major theme, and it was a refreshing break for me. Something that seemed unnecessary for me, and didn’t really do anything for me being in the book was the concept of magic. I’m not 100% on how it is going to play out in the sequel, but the prophecy of one of the twins being a curse to Eden, and one being pure of light was interesting (like maybe it could’ve just been a symbolic curse based on the way the cursed twin ruled). But then magic comes into the picture out of nowhere towards the end of this book, and it just seemed unnecessary.
Overall, this book was presented poorly, and sprinkled with unnecessary magic, but I’m curious to see how the struggle between both Carys and Andreus plays out. I look forward to checking out Eden Conquered.
