Tori's Review: The Usurper by Rowena Cory Daniells

Now a slave, Piro finds herself in the Merofynian Palace where, if her real identity is discovered, she will be executed. Meanwhile, Fyn is desperate to help his brother, Bryen, who is now the uncrowned King. Bryen never sought power but now he finds himself at the centre of a dangerous resistance movement as the people of Rolencia flee vicious invaders. How can Byren defeat the invaders, when half his warriors are women and children, and the other half are untrained boys and old men?













Obtained: Author
Genre: Fantasy
Series: King Rolen's Kin
1. The King's Bastard (book review)
2. The Uncrowned King (book review)
3. The Usurper

My Rating:  

My Opinion:
THE USURPER, book three in the King Rolen's Kin series, and, much like its predecessors, is chock full of drama, action, and adventure.  The only difference is that, due to my attachment to Byren, Fyn, and Piro, I was much more invested with what happened to them this time around.  I was so attached that I tried to prolong ending the book for two days, which is why this review is being posted on October 1st.

THE USURPER picks up where we left off in THE UNCROWNED KING; the kids are still coping with the loss of their kingdom, the loss of their brother, and the loss of their parents.  Everyone blames themselves.  Each sibling is convinced another is dead.  Lots of good old angst.  Then people start getting reunited, and characters start acting a bit brash and start getting arrogant, and we, as readers, are shipped off to different lands.  (Yes, the stark difference between the first two books and the final book is that, while we do spend some time in Rolencia, it is not the only country we read about).

The romantic in me squealed in happiness.  There's lots of sexual tension in this book, and each character seems to have someone they're attracted to (whether or not they admit to this attraction, however, is another story).  I think Byren's attraction is purely lust, whereas, I feel bad for Fyn.  The "intended" pairing I found most exciting was Piro's.  I'm still not entirely sure why, I think it's because I was more mentally prepared for it, thanks to book two.

I loved what happened to Palatyne.  It was so fitting and it made me grin/cackle.  I wasn't expecting that to happen, which made the scene even better.  He had it coming.  I find with most authors that the final battles are usually anticlimactic; there's so much buildup that I can't help but anticipate a mind-blowing fight scene.  Upon reading those final battles, I usually feel let down.  Not the case in THE USURPER.  I think I was too surprised to feel disappointed.

It was also nice learning more about Isolt, who we only briefly hear about in the past books.  I thought she was a brat initially, but I think Piro's perspective definitely influenced that opinion.

I am so incredibly sad to see this trilogy come to an end.  At this point, I'm not entirely sure if Rowena will write any other books as a followup, but I'm hoping she will.  She leaves the ending open-ended.  So open, that if there isn't a fourth book, I will be enraged beyond belief.  There's enough covered to satisfy the reader for this book, yet, if you're hooked on this series like me, you'll be upset that there wasn't more.  Highly recommend checking this series out if you're looking for a fantasy fix.

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• Paperback - 496 pages
• Price: $7.99
• ISBN 10: 1907519076
• ISBN 13: 978-1907519079
• Released: September 28, 2010
• Rowena's Website
• Buy it via the Publisher
• Buy it via Amazon