(Gifted) BOOK REVIEW: Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron #QOTD: What was one of the best books you read in 2019? As it’s the last day of 2019, I figured it’s time to reveal my favourite book I read this year, and it is hands down Kingdom of Souls! It’s based on West-African mythology, and the world-building is very rich and detailed, which is one of the main aspects I look for in a fantasy book. The downside of this is that the first 100 pages are a bit slower, and sometimes all the names you are introduced to are confusing, so my advice is to take your time as you read it, and don’t try to remember it all. As you continue reading, the most important terms are repeated and explained in more detail. And I promise once you’re into the story, you’ll want to stay up until 3am to finish reading it! Inevitably, I ended up comparing this book to Children of Blood and Bone, which ended up letting me down a little bit after it was hyped up so much. In comparison, I feel that Kingdom of Souls deserved the hype that Children of Blood and Bone received. Where CBB was a bit predictable, Kingdom of Souls had a number of twists and turns I didn’t see coming! In short, if you’re looking to start 2020 off with a great fantasy read, I suggest you pick up a copy of Kingdom of Souls! Synopsis: Born into a family of powerful witchdoctors, Arrah yearns for magic of her own. But each year she fails to call forth her ancestral powers, while her ambitious mother watches with growing disapproval. There’s only one thing Arrah hasn’t tried, a deadly last resort: trading years of her own life for scraps of magic. Until the Kingdom’s children begin to disappear, and Arrah is desperate to find the culprit. She uncovers something worse. The long-imprisoned Demon King is stirring. And if he rises, his hunger for souls will bring the world to its knees… unless Arrah pays the price for the magic to stop him Thank you @harpervoyager_uk for sending me a review copy of this book! #kingdomofsouls #renabarron #harpervoyager #fantasybooks #fantasylit #fantasyliterature #bookstagram #bookreview #bookrecommendations #johannasreviews #fictionbooks #booksbooksbooks #beautifulbooks #bookcover #bookworm https://www.instagram.com/p/B6vbKl0AMC3/?igshid=q5jsriuki3yt