A lot of books use a kiss as a weapon. To kill, to hypnotize and I am sure many other things. Kiss of the Royal is another books like that. The main character in Kiss of the Royal sees her kiss as a weapon, not as something of love. Was this an interesting take of a kiss as something more than a kiss? I read the book and today is my spot on the blog tour.

Kiss of the Royal

by Lindsey Duga

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Release Date: July 3, 2018

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Synopsis:

In the war against the Forces of Darkness, the Royals are losing. Princess Ivy is determined to end this centuries-long conflict once and for all, so her new battle partner must succeed where the others failed. Prince Zach’s unparalleled skill with a sword, enhanced by Ivy’s magic Kiss, should make them an unstoppable pair—but try convincing Zach of that.

Prince Zach has spent his life preparing for battle, but he would rather be branded a heretic than use his lips as nothing more than a way to transfer magic. A kiss is a symbol of love, and love is the most powerful weapon they have—but try convincing Ivy of that.

With the fate of their world on the line, the battlefield has become a testing ground, and only one of them can be right. Falling for each other wasn’t part of the plan—but try convincing their hearts of that.

 

BOOK LINKS

• Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32173635-kiss-of-the-royal
• Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Royal-Lindsey-Duga/dp/1640631836/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1520598738&sr=8-1&keywords=kiss+of+the+royal+lindsey+duga
• Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/kiss-of-the-royal-lindsey-duga/1128128065?ean=9781640631847
• Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Royals-Kiss-Lindsey-Duga/9781640631830
• Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/kiss-of-the-royal
• IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781640631830
• iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/kiss-of-the-royal/id1324088099?mt=11

REVIEW

Cover This cover is gorgeous!! The little elements like the sword and the different shadows. Combine that with the pink elements and wow! Kiss of a Royal could be a coverbuy for many people!

Plot As I said in the beginning, the kiss is used in many ways in books and movies. Ivy is a princess and from what we read very powerful. Her Kiss is something that could solve many problems. The Evil Witch is causing a lot of problems for her people and she wants it to end. There is a problem though, she needs a partner. Ivy hasn’t had the best of luck with partners, but is determined to get one more to finish this once and for all! Zach comes along and Ivy knows his skills and her Kiss could stop a lot of things. Zach has other ideas though. He is determined to do everything without a Kiss. To him a Kiss is something you do with someone you love, it’s not a weapon. As they head off to battle together, this becomes an issue. Ivy is determined to get her Kiss and solve all of their problems. Zach is determined to show Ivy there is more to a Kiss and that they can win using their swords.

This story started off strong and very interesting. To a certain point it’s not nothing new in the sense of a Kingdom having to go to war again something evil. Except this author has given in an unique turn. The Royals have a Kiss that can help with battles, healing, etc. As long as they have a partner that is Royal, they can make things happen. I loved how dedicated Ivy was to her Kingdom. No matter what she was planning on fighting with or without a new partner. There were definitely elements of humor in this story and it was fun seeing Zach and Ivy annoy each other. For me this book was centered a bit too much around Ivy and Zach’s relationship. While reading I definitely understand why, Ivy does start realizing her people’s way, may not be the only way, but I wish we would’ve gotten a bit more background information. In the beginning more is told over the Evil Witch and the Dragon they have to beat, but that wasn’t enough for me. I would’ve loved a bit more worldbuilding, that eventually does pop up later on in the book. Kiss of the Royal has a few plot twists I didn’t see coming or really expect while reading. I loved that I didn’t see it coming. Kiss of the Royal is also amazing in the sense that we really see the characters change. They both become more open minded and willing to listen to the other. In the end, working together and maybe realizing not everything you learned is true, helped in a big way. I definitely recommend this book and hope that this author gives us more books!

Characters Ivy is a stubborn one. She knows she wants to fight for her people and will do it alone if need be. At first I thought she was rather arrogant thinking this way, but once we meet her mother it all makes sense. Ivy really only wants to prove to her mother that she is worth it. Getting her approval is something that she really wants whether she would admit it or not. Ivy is talented and strong and knows to be able to do what she wants, she needs Zach. In the beginning she is a character who only believes what she knows and any other information must be wrong. I loved that this slowly changes during the story. Ivy starts to open up to other ideas and history and realizes not everything she knows is the truth. She faces the fact she may be wrong and still tries to fix things in a different way. Ivy is a character who learns a lot during her journey with Zach. A Kiss may not just be used a weapon. It could be so much more.

Zach seems like an arrogant Prince who thinks he is the best at everything. In many ways this is true, but we do find out that he really fought for it. When his mother died, he had to find a way to prove himself and he did. Zach is a believer in true love and didn’t even want a partner. Ivy seems to make him want to protect her, so he ends up being her partner. One thing he won’t budge on is the Kiss. No matter what, he will not use it as a weapon. At first this kind of bugged me, if it can help them out, why not just kiss? In the end I’m happy he stuck to that. I got to learn so much more of how his people saw things and could completely understand. Zach is actually a very sweet, brave character who just wants to protect his people and the ones he loves!

Brom is Ivy’s page and while we don’t find out a lot about him, he is my favorite character I think. He knows Ivy through and through and will call her out on things when need be. Instead of being just an employee, they are family. Brom can tell something is going on just by the way Ivy looks at something. All he wants is her to be safe. I wish we would’ve seen more of this character at times. I get that he isn’t really a main character, but during their journey, it sometimes felt like the author forgot about him.

TOUR SCHEDULE

Of course, I am not the only spot on this tour. Some other amazing blogs participated as well. Click here to check out the rest of the schedule!

GIVEAWAY

There is also a giveaway along with this tour. You have a chance to win a copy of Kiss of the Royal. This giveaway runs from June 25th to July 10th.

Click here to enter the giveaway.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lindsey Duga is a middle grade and young adult writer with a passion for fantasy, science fiction, and basically any genre that takes you away from the real world. She wrote her first novel in college while she was getting her bachelor’s in Mass Communication from Louisiana State University.

 

Other than writing and cuddling with her morkie puppy, Delphi, Lindsey loves catching up on the latest superhero TV show and practicing yoga.