Kingdom of the Wicked
Fantasy, Teens
Jimmy Patterson
October 27, 2020
Audio
12 hours and 6 minutes
Two sisters.
One brutal murder.
A quest for vengeance that will unleash Hell itself...
And an intoxicating romance.
Emilia and her twin sister Vittoria are streghe - witches who live secretly among humans, avoiding notice and persecution. One night, Vittoria misses dinner service at the family's renowned Sicilian restaurant. Emilia soon finds the body of her beloved twin...desecrated beyond belief. Devastated, Emilia sets out to find her sister's killer and to seek vengeance at any cost - even if it means using dark magic that's been long forbidden.
Then, Emilia meets Wrath, one of the Wicked-princes of Hell she has been warned against in tales since she was a child. Wrath claims to be on Emilia's side, tasked by his master with solving the series of women's murders on the island. But when it comes to the Wicked, nothing is as it seems....
Narrator: Marisa Calin
Kingdom of the Wicked is the first book I’ve read/listened to by Kerri Maniscalco, and I can’t wait to continue with her work!
In Kingdom of The Wicked, twin sisters Emilia and Vittoria are both raised to know that they’re magic is a secret to be kept from non-magical humans. There are too many people who would distrust them, and potentially hurt them. The bigger danger to them both are the evil creatures of Hell. To keep them safe, they’re taught to keep their protective amulets around their necks at all times. Once Emilia finds her sister Vittoria murdered without her amulet, Emilia begins a dark path of vengeance while trusting a prince of Hell for help.
Wrath, Prince from Hell, is not quite what he seems.
Throughout the story, Emilia tries really hard not to trust Wrath. Yet, Wrath is always the one saving her from the near death predicaments in which she finds herself. It doesn’t hurt that he’s sinfully attractive (pun intended). No one expects evil to look so beautiful. I found though that without any mesmerizing good looks to see, I was also trusting Wrath. There’s several other princes in this book and by comparison, those princes are what we’d expect from Hell.
While searching for Vittoria’s killer Emilia has to accept some hard truths about herself and her family.
It’s not long before Emilia realizes there are secrets about her family, and their protective amulets, that are painful to learn. What may be the hardest for her to accept is that her twin had secrets. Very dangerous secrets. Unlocking Vittoria’s diary leaves Emilia with many questions and not enough answers. It’s easy to see that if the sisters had both trusted each other a little more, they may have had an entirely different outcome. Instead, we’re on the hunt with Emilia for someone, or something, that killed her sister, and hasn’t stopped targeting other witches ever since.
Kingdom of the Wicked is the first in its series and it does not disappoint! The day I started this book, I could tell it would be a 5-star story. I ordered a replica of Wrath’s dagger before I knew whether I even liked Wrath (check out the creator @geek_and_artsy_bookish). Turns out that was a great decision on my part because I’ve since bought Kingdom of the Wicked in print, and can’t wait to continue this series.
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Kristin lives in the PNW with her husband, and three kids. She loves to read YA fiction, fantasy, and romance. She enjoys a few side-hustles, including creating bookreels/booktoks for authors. The only shows she watches are re-runs, and if she’s not reading a book, she’s listening to one.
