The Queen of All That Dies by Laura Thalassa Review

Title: The Queen of All That Dies 

Author: Laura Thalassa 

Synopsis:

In the future, the world is at war. 

For the last decade, King Lazuli of the Eastern Empire has systematically taken over the world. No one knows much about him other than a series of impossible facts: he cannot die, he has not aged since the conflict began, and he wants to rule the world. 

All Serenity Freeman has known is bloodshed. War has taken away her mother, her home, her safety. As the future emissary of the Western United Nations, the last autonomous region of the globe, she is responsible for forging alliances where she can. 

Surrender is on the horizon. The king can taste it; Serenity feels it deep within her bones. There is no other option. Now the two must come face to face. For Serenity, that means confronting the man who’s taken everything from her. For the king, it means meeting the one woman he can’t conquer. But when they meet, something happens. Cruelty finds redemption. 

Only in war, everything comes with a price. Especially love.

Review:

I absolutely loved this book! I couldn't put it down, and read it in a day. The setting, characters, plot and writing were without a doubt amazing and well thought out. The characters and setting were richly detailed and in depth. I fell in love with Serenity and her tragic life and position. She was a great character,  and had the most difficult life. She deserved so much more than the life she was dealt. But then the book I loved wouldn't exist.

I felt bad for Serenity when she realized she was only included in the treaty meetings to tempt the king. However, I loved that she fell for him in her own way. I even loved the fact that it wasn't a head over heels type of love but a tragic, necessary,  forced , and ultimately consuming love for her. Because this is the man who is ultimately responsible for the pain and suffering inflicted on her. He does redeem himself and it is obvious he loves her for her, not because she is supposed to be forbidden.

King Lazuli was an interesting character.  I'm still not sure if I totally like him yet but I am hopeful that I will like him even more when more books come along. I don't think he is the monster that Serenity has made him in her head but he is no saint either. It's obvious that he has his own issues and motivations and I hope they get explored more in the future book because he still doesn't seem quite 'human' yet.

I thought that the setting for the story was great! Ms. Thalassa did an amazing job in the contrast of the Eastern Empire and the Western United Nations. The differences between the two were so immense you could really see and visualize the economic difference between the two and the personality of the inhabitants of each.

Honestly this book reminded me why I loved dystopian books so much. I would give it five stars any day of the week. I can't wait for next year when the new book comes out!