Throne of the Fallen (Prince of Sin) Paperback – August 6, 2024

Somehow, Kerri Maniscalco managed to do it again! I didn’t think it was possible to accomplish here what she did in three books of the Kingdom of the Wicked trilogy, especially in only one book, but she absolutely did! This managed to have twists, turns, and a romance plot within it that somehow had the same impact and surprises as Wrath and Emilia’s story did. Throne of the Fallen is all about Prince Envy, and the human artist he meets, Camilla. Envy has been roped into a game. With his court and his demons on the line, he’s playing to win and will do anything to do so. Camilla gets wrapped into the game, but has secrets that rival his. When the game begins, the two find themselves stuck with one another, and quickly find themselves playing another game—one that finds Envy’s one night only rule being tested.I was so happy to return to this world! I loved Kingdom of the Wicked and was so excited to be back with these characters. This book opens up the world a lot more. We not only see other aspects of the Shifting Isles, but we learn about the fae and their lands, and we visit the vampire’s land and meet the Prince who tried to kidnap Emilia. But there’s a lot more focus on the fae than I’d expected! It was great though, the Unseelie were wicked and cruel, and the past Envy had with them was delved into, finally revealing what happened to him. While Camilla has her own past with them, one that she wants to keep buried.The secrets and lies were very familiar! I’d loved how much I was shocked by the twists in the first trilogy, and this book manages to give just as many surprises. Camilla’s past leaves us with a lot of guesswork at first. Her own thoughts in her POV don’t give a thing away. While Emilia couldn’t remember her past, Camilla has merely buried hers so deep down, she refuses to even think of it. As the game progresses, we learn bits and pieces, and things begin to slot together. Still, I was so deep in the world I didn’t really think about it, just reading as fast as possible to take it in as quickly as I could, and didn’t totally put it together. So I was shocked once more when all the revelations hit! Kerri manages to weave everything together perfectly, so it all makes sense looking back, but if you’re not looking closely, you’ll completely miss it the first time!The game that was developed was also thrilling to follow. Envy is stuck playing this game because of a mistake he made many years ago. He’s blamed himself ever since, and cut himself off from letting anyone in. Emilia was able to see it when she and Envy were locked up together, and we delve into all of that here. But the game is being devised by a brilliant game master who not only loves chaos, but has a grander, much worse plan in mind. Everyone involved are pawns to him. Envy has to follow the clues and riddles laid out in time, while ensuring no other player wins. Trying to pick out other players along with unscrambling the riddles and clues, was so much fun! Poor Envy wasn’t having as much fun, especially when his entire court was on the line. They are falling apart, completely loosing themselves to madness. Tearing their own families apart and not even realizing it. Envy has to somehow protect them, expending his power, while also racing to win and save them.All the while, he’s distracted by the artist he’s shoved together with. His first clue being having her paint a hexed throne. She refuses, leaving him baffled. But he’s determined, and her denying him repeatedly only leaves him more interested. Camilla, meanwhile, refuses to paint a cursed object, yet finds herself not only drawn to Envy, but caught in a scheme by a human lord that leaves her with little in the way of options. When Envy discovers this, he finds a way to get her help, yet the game master requires her to tag along after. Envy is distracted by her, but trying to keep focused for his court’s sake. The two of them have the fun flirty banter I love. And as we go along, and leave the humans behind, more of Camilla’s true nature comes out. Showing her to be a perfect match for Envy. Just as good at games and playing as he is.They continually find themselves in terribly dangerous situations, and stroking Envy’s sin makes him more powerful, giving us tons of wonderful scenes of the two being jealous. I loved seeing how jealously powers him, and how the two were so perfect at inciting it in one another. Both are trying to protect themselves and their hearts from the other. Trying to convince themselves they don’t care deeply. But the heart doesn’t much care what someone wants. And they continually try to save one another. When we get to the climax, I was thrilled with how things eventually work out. It was surprising and yet perfect for these two!I loved getting into Envy’s head and seeing more of him. His relationship with Camilla is wonderful, and the game here was thrilling to follow. We get to see more of Sloth here too, which was really cool. Along with the vampires and fae. And we get to see Wrath and Emilia again! They were teased several times and I wasn’t sure we’d get to see them, so it felt like a real treat when we eventually did! I feel like Kerri managed to cover so much here, in much less time than she had with Kingdom of the Wicked. The economy of storytelling here was just fantastic. So much was fit in and it all felt natural to the way the plot unfolded. I can’t wait to see what comes next for this world. There are so many hints for the rest of the brothers. Each of the Wicked having their own potential storylines. Pride and Lucia (and Vittoria), Gluttony and the reporter, and now I want more of Sloth as well! Whoever is next, I will definitely be racing to read it as soon as it comes out. I loved everything about both of the stories we’ve gotten so far!

I absolutely loved the Kingdom of the Wicked series and am honestly a little disappointed in myself for putting this one off for as long as I have. With that being said, I really enjoyed this one but didn't love it as much as the original trilogy. I think Emilia and Wrath are just different LOL. With that being said I LOVED the setting in this one. We were in a quaint town and then ended up descending into a new House of Hell- Envy's. I liked the dynamic between Envy and Camilla- I love it when there are rules set up that you just CAN'T wait to be broken. Envy's were no different. This felt very Bridgerton to me. Very high society with balls and intrigue and drama. I liked the introduction to other isles and creatures in Hell. Looking at you vampires. I liked Camilla's character a lot. You couldn't help but be intrigued by her. I knew the whole time there was some major secret at play but did NOT see the actual secret coming at all. I also liked Envy's mysteriousness. I loved how all of the princes are brothers and care about each other and needle each other, but they also understand that being a prince of Hell is cutthroat. No weakness can be shown. I liked the ins and outs of the story and the journey that we got to travel with these two. I did absolute LOVE the spice scene but was kind of sad that we only got one major one LOL. Overall though I liked these two together. It was like the saying "when you know, you know, and these two knew that they were for each other. I liked how their magic played well together.Camilla has one mission right now, and that is to get back her freedom. By any means necessary. Except this one. She will not paint a hexed object no matter how much it will help her. But she finds herself backed into a corner. An unwilling participant in a centuries old game. Which is how she finds herself working with Envy, a prince of Hell. Why does he have to be so attractive? Why does she have to feel this way with him and not other men? Why does HE of all people have to be her guide through this game? But Camilla has a secret that no one can know. She decides that she will play this game to her advantage and help Envy out as much as she can. Because the more she is around him and his house the more she realizes all is not as it seems. The closer she gets to the end of the game, the crazier the adventures become all the while she is trying and failing to protect her heart. Envy has made it clear he is a one nigh man- no more. But after they spend their night together Camilla finds herself pushing his buttons to see which one of them will cave first. Before they can though, her secret is revealed and she hopes beyond all hope that Envy cares for her as much as she cares for him. She knows it looks bad, but she just needs to explain. If he will listen.Envy is on a clock. He has to follow the clues and be the winner in order to save his House from this curse that has been a plague for so long. Which is how he finds himself above ground at an art gallery trying to convince this human woman to paint a hexed object for him. There is something about her though that catches his eye beyond normal. He feels like there is more to her than meets the eye. At first she says she will not help him, but then things change and here they are. Back in Hell trying to beat the clock and save the day. The more he is around her though the more he realizes how drawn he is to her. The more he wants to know her secrets. The more he wants to protect her from all that is happening in his world. He has one rule and that is one night only. But after the night he spends with her, he finds himself wondering if he could do more. With her. But now he knows who she is, and he really doesn't know what to believe anymore.I loved jumping back into this world with all of the teasers for the stories to come. I loved how many creatures and fun adventures were in this story. It took me a minute to warm up to Envy- he was kind of a jerk from the beginning. But it was all a front. I loved how much he cared but also how scary he could be. I loved the dynamic between the brothers and the glimpses we got of Emilia and Wrath. I am looking forward to continuing this series and watch all of these princes meet their matches!