REVIEW : The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye

The Crown's Game - Evelyn Skye
Publisher : Balzer + Bray
Release Date : May 27th 2016
Genres : YA, Fantasy
Pages : 399
Rating : DNF

Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia—and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakhs threatening, the tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.

And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the greatest test an enchanter will ever know. The victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death.

Raised on tiny Ovchinin Island her whole life, Vika is eager for the chance to show off her talent in the grand capital of Saint Petersburg. But can she kill another enchanter—even when his magic calls to her like nothing else ever has?

For Nikolai, an orphan, the Crown’s Game is the chance of a lifetime. But his deadly opponent is a force to be reckoned with—beautiful, whip-smart, imaginative—and he can’t stop thinking about her.

And when Pasha, Nikolai’s best friend and heir to the throne, also starts to fall for the mysterious enchantress, Nikolai must defeat the girl they both love…or be killed himself.

As long-buried secrets emerge, threatening the future of the empire, it becomes dangerously clear—the Crown’s Game is not one to lose.

 I usually don't like writing reviews about books I DNFed but for The Crown's Game, I had to. This book is my biggest disappointment of the year.

It was one of my anticipated release: Two enchanters fighting to death to be the Imperial one. I expected a fantasy version of The Hunger Games, full of twists, tension and questioning but all I got was an unecessary love triangle, fancy languages, boring character, slow pacing... It's a fight to death for heaven's sake.

Oh and did I talk about instalove ? The biggest pet peeves I have in a single book. That was just too much for me.

I didn't even understand why there were so many perspectives. Pasha (the royal heir), his sister, sometimes his father, Vika and Nikolai (the enchanters), their mentors... When the characters are boring, their perspectives aren't going to be transcending;

"For the winner of the game, there would be unimaginable power.
For the defeated, desolate oblivion.
The Crown’s Game was not one to lose."

She could have added "until you see how hot the opponent is". Because of course, when someone tries to kill you, you won't even try because of his/her pretty face. Makes sense.

I really tried to get through this book, but even the "twist' (if we can call it that) the author tried to do resulted in... Nothing. I didn't gasp, or widen my eyes, I just wondered when I was going to finish this freaking book.

I don't want to be mean or anything but if The Crown's Game is a fantasy, A Song of Ice and Fire is a children's book. Fantasy is all about creating stuff but I have the feeling that a lot author thinks YA should have cheesy sentences and clichés. Adding french and russian won't make it particularly good.

The author missed out on the plot. Her idea was very good (though not that original) but it had nontheless a lot of potential. But she drowned it. And put me in a reading slump.