The Kingmaker (All The King’s Men Duet #1) – Kennedy Ryan

Genre: Romance
Pages: 344
Release Date: October 27, 2019

𝙋𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧. 𝙋𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣. 𝘽𝙚𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙮𝙖𝙡.

𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗔® 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱-𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿 𝗞𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗱𝘆 𝗥𝘆𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝗰 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴’𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝗻 𝗗𝘂𝗲𝘁.

Raised to rule, bred to lead and weaned on a diet of ruthless ambition. In a world of haves and have nots, my family has it all, and I want nothing to do with it.

My path takes me far from home and paints me as the black sheep. At odds with my father, I’m determined to build my own empire. I have rules, but Lennix Hunter is the exception to every one of them. From the moment we meet, something sparks between us. But my family stole from hers and my father is the man she hates most. I lied to have her, and would do anything to keep her. Though she tries to hate me, too, the inexorable pull between us will not be denied.

The Kingmaker is not at all what I thought it was going to be. To be honest, I’m not exactly sure why I decided to buy the novel without reading the synopsis and assuming the novel followed a royal family, a plot I’m not overly enthusiastic about. Fortunately, for me, The Kingmaker is an incredibly poignant romance that has nothing to do with the stereotypical royalty.

The Kingmaker is told in three parts with time jumps in-between. Ryan takes the time to develop her characters and their attraction to each other through the first two parts, thereby making the third part best of the three.

The chemistry and angst between the main characters, Lennix and Maxim, are off the charts. The angst and smoulder between these two would have set the pages on fire had I been reading a paperback.

Lennix is an incredible protagonist. She’s headstrong, fierce, and wicked smart as she fights for the causes most important to her. Though Lennix is a virgin, Ryan doesn’t make Lennix naive or sexually inexperienced. The trope of experienced love interest and inexperienced protagonist is one I despise immensely. I’ve deducted star ratings from novels for using this trope. Ryan’s use of the trope and Lennix’s heritage as an indigenous person plays a key role that enhances the trope and made me appreciate it all the more in this novel.

Maxim is the perfect balance of aggressive alpha male and sweet without being overbearing or a doormat. He’s intense in all the right ways.

“A riot is the language of the unheard.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about Lennix’s heritage in this review. Lennix is part of the Yavapai-Apache Nation and is an advocate for indigenous rights as the novel opens up with a powerful protest scene. Lennix’s heritage plays a large role in who she is as an individual and the decisions she makes. Lennix makes this novel the success that it is. Diversity is a strength, not a weakness.

There is a huge cliff hanger at the end of The Kingmaker. I was not expecting it since I assumed the second novel would follow Maxim’s brother. I was wrong and I can’t wait to get more of Lennix and Maxim! The Rebel King releases November 18, 2019!!

Overall, The Kingmaker is an incredible romance with a poignant message about climate change and inequality. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone!

 

Have you read The Kingmaker? What did you think?