Title: A Heart So Fierce and Broken

Author: Brigid Kemmerer

Genre: Young Adult Fiction

Publication: Bloomsbury Publishing

Publication date: 7 Jan 2020

Source: Review Copy

My rating: 4/5

Blurb (as on Goodreads):

Find the heir, win the crown.
The curse is finally broken, but Prince Rhen of Emberfall faces darker troubles still. Rumors circulate that he is not the true heir and that forbidden magic has been unleashed in Emberfall. Although Rhen has Harper by his side, his guardsman Grey is missing, leaving more questions than answers.Win the crown, save the kingdom.
Rumored to be the heir, Grey has been on the run since he destroyed Lilith. He has no desire to challenge Rhen–until Karis Luran once again threatens to take Emberfall by force. Her own daughter Lia Mara sees the flaws in her mother’s violent plan, but can she convince Grey to stand against Rhen, even for the good of Emberfall?

The first book in the curse breaker series, A Curse So Dark and Lonely, was released about a year ago, a modern retelling of the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. Following that, the highly anticipated sequel of the year, A Heart So Fierce and Broken was released today. I have had the privilege of reading an ARC, and I’m grateful to Bloomsbury IN for that. Without further ado, let’s get into the review.

Prince Rhen has found his true love and had finally broken the curse. But one cannot develop trust in a lie, at least not for so long, and that came true in Rhen’s case. His people had turned against him as they doubt his alliance with Disi was a lie. There is a half brother who might claim his right for the throne, but what’s worse than that is, he is a magesmith, the very word that kindles fear in Rhen. After all, that Lilith did to Rhen one cannot blame him for his fear.

Kemmerer is a master storyteller, and one could not agree more. There is magic in her writing that brings characters alive. I loved the world-building, character development and alternate point of views that give a better understanding of each character. Grey is one of the characters I loved most in book one, and A Heart So Fierce and Broken follows the story of him. We are also introduced to new characters like Lia Mara, Nolla Verin, Tycho, Iisak and few other minor characters.

Lia Mara is a compassionate, brave and intelligent princess of Shyl Shallow, the exact opposite of her sister Nolla Verin who is just as fierce and ruthless as their mother, Karis Luran. We are given more insight into the Shyl Shallow Queendom, it’s people, customs and infrastructure in this book. You can also see the romantic side of Scary Grey in this book, but to be frank I’m not very fond of this pair. Maybe it was because of the suspicious eye I had on Lia Mara in the beginning that she would somehow betray Grey. Even though she didn’t I couldn’t bring myself to trust her.

I expected more Rhen and Harper scenes but there was only a chapter in Harper POV and Rhen has made few appearances. There is no denying that Rhen’s actions made the situation worse, but the epilogue made it clear who was behind his actions and that twist was totally unexpected. Now we will have to wait for the third book in the series which is the hardest part.
Overall, this is by far the best retelling I have ever read. If you are a fan of the classic Beauty and the Beast fairytale then you would love this series more than any other retelling even the Disney movie. I strongly recommend this series.

*A special thanks to Bloomsbury IN for providing me with the gorgeous ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.*