In TEAR DOWN THE THRONE, the second installment of Jennifer Estep’s Gargoyle Queen fantasy series, Crown Princess Gemma Ripley continues to fight against an insidious foe with plans to use tearstone weapons to conquer her kingdom. To that end, she continues to collide with handsome Prince Leonidas–son of her crown’s enemy, Queen Maeven Morricone of Morta.
(Note: readers should start with book one, CAPTURE THE CROWN. And though not necessary, the precursor series, A Crown of Shards, is outstanding and introduces little Princess Gemma and her world.)
At a summit with several surrounding kingdoms, Gemma is up against Queen Maeven and battling wits with Prince Leonidas, who is sly but not inherently evil, and who constantly keeps her on her toes as she’s attracted to him but doesn’t trust him.
Gemma and Leonidas have to work together to stop a plot to fracture the royals. Throw in their gargoyles and strixes, an assortment of clever and funny secondary characters, and a roiling plot that twists and turns, and the story is a delight that truly entertains.
The only issue with this story is that Gemma continues to make unwise decisions that get her captured or put her in danger, and Leonidas seems to always be there to save her. But the story is still fun even with a princess not quite living up to her potential. I just expected more from her after the last book, which I truly enjoyed.
A fun, fast-paced read with likeable characters and a rich fantasy world, TEAR DOWN THE THRONE is not to be missed!
