The Bridge Kingdom
Danielle L. Jensen
Genres: Enemies to lovers (swoon), Political Intrigue, Romantacy (kind of).
A desert. Sand. Heat. Dry and desolate. Isolated. An island where it never stops raining. The land is lush and green and wild. Snakes roam just as freely as house cats. What do these two places have in common? A beautiful and fearsome assassin and queen.
Listen listen listen. Danielle Jensen is genuinely one of my favorite authors right now. She writes such powerful FMC and her take on Lara is heart-stopping, jaw-dropping, and I am completely obsessed.
The book follows "Princess" Lara and her many sisters who are all the same age due to a king who over-procreates. All of the sisters have different mothers. The girls are taken from their mothers as children and raised in isolation from the rest of the world with only the support of one another and their masters and guards. MASTERS AND GUARDS. These young women are being raised to be wives and assassins.
Many years ago (about a decade or so) the king (Lara's father/sire) made a deal with the Bridge Kingdom that when his daughter comes of age she will wed the prince of their kingdom (his name is Aren). Through years of training, some sisters die and some go a little nuts but Lara realizes her father's plan. He will kill all but one because he can't imagine having 12 daughters that he brutalized and trained to be assassins having the freedom to take their revenge. I'm not saying he's right... I'm just saying he's not wrong.
AND LISTEN- Lara loves her sisters deeply but she is a poison expert and wants to survive. You do the math. Through her own espionage and talents she proves that she is the best of the assassins and the best of the sisters. She ultimately is chosen to marry Aren in the Bridge Kingdom. She uses her tools of seduction, poison, womanhood and her abilities to kill to bring her closer to Aren with the hopes of overrunning the kingdom and ultimately conquering it for her father.
As with every good love story... nothing ever goes according to plan. Falling for Aren was not her father's plan but the years of isolation and affection actively work against him. Instead of raising and honing a weapon, he did something far greater and more dangerous. He sharpened the blade and gave a beautiful young woman the tools and education to take over the world if she chooses to. Imagine if all of the sisters were still alive.
Except, we find out that they are. Lara had refused to kill her sisters... she only poisoned them a little.... Creative, passionate, and affectionate to a fault Lara plans to reunite her sisters and beat her father and his oppressive kingdom. Unfortunately, she has to destroy her love life and her new home to do it.
This is one of the sleeper books that crept up on me. I devoured it and fell in love with Lara. Some of the story is a little cliche but by far the women are all unique in their own right. I love when women write women because some are kind, some are fearsome, some are righteous but they are all women.
Out of 10 I give this entire series an 8.5.
Out of 5
Enemies to lovers: 5 Political Drama: 3 Emotional Depth: 3 (Lara starts out too dense for me to feel anything real for her) Atmosphere: 5 Would I recommend it? Hell. Yes. Reading experience? High stakes and pure escapism. ADHD friendly? Sure but only if history and politics are one of your interests
Who is this for? The Bridge Kingdom is for the girlies who fixate on historical dramas, love a slow burn, consider themselves to be fierce and a force to be reconned with and sometimes are afraid of asking for a helping hand.
Core themes: Feminine Rage, found family, trauma and healing, power/politics/betrayal, and healing those ties that you broke, learning to trust
Not smutty but some sex and steam.
This book made me feel everything from a deeply rooted love for my own sister to a very powerful lust for my man. Ithicana and the Bridge Kingdom became a home to me. The structure of the communities and the love they felt for their leaders and one another made me feel like this is a place that I could belong... a place that would accept me.
The plot was beautiful but the scenery will stay with me forever. Danielle Jensen is beyond good at what she does and I will be reading and re-reading this book until the bindings break. If you love Throne of Glass and Celeana then Lara and her Bridge Kingdom are for you.
