Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco
Hello Books Lovers,
last year Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco caused a sensation. It was one of the most viewed books on social networks – tiktok and instagram – and has finally also been translated into Italian by Oscar Mondadori with the title Il Regno dei Malvagi. Kerri Maniscalco is also the author of the saga of Stalking Jack the Ripper.
Many do not like this author, but I have fallen in love with her writing since the first book. And in my opinion with Kingdom of the Wicked she wanted to dare even more, she wanted to pay homage to her Italian origins by setting the book in Palermo, adding phrases and idioms in Italian – all correct – and moving from Young Adult to New Adult writing.
I listened to the audiobook on audible. This was my second audiobook, and I couldn’t have made a better choice. Apart from the fact that the narration was in British English, I also found a lot of accuracy in the description of the places, of the neighborhoods of Palermo. I really liked the addition of Italian terms. Among these, calling Nonna precisely the grandmother of the protagonist and not grandmother. This is a small thing, there have been many other details, sometimes just sayings that Italians have and that are untranslatable into English.
This is probably one of those stories that if I had read in print I would have plastered with post it. The story sees Emilia as the protagonist, but alongside her an important role will be played by her twin sister, Vittoria. It will be her fault if Emilia finds herself in a nice mess, forever tied to Wrath and with a mystery to solve.
Everyone believed that the princes of Hell were each in their respective kingdom, the truth is that some of them walk undisturbed on Earth and are looking for the horns of Hades to bring him back to command. Emilia is a witch, and following Vittoria’s death she will do anything to find out who killed her sister and why. She will make the mistake of summoning Wrath and without knowing the terms of the spell will bind him to herself.
The two will spend a lot of time together. They will work together, each for their own purposes, to find out what is really going on and who is to blame for the killing of all these witches. Emilia will discover a new world, that of Wrath, and will also meet some of his brothers.
This book is only the first of a trilogy and I’m curious to read the rest. This volume still tends towards young adult, the hottest scenes will appear later. I can only tell you, avoiding spoilers, that in Kingdom of the Wicked, as enemies, Wrath and Emilia eventually got very close.
The story was very smooth even though I listened to it. With each chapter I could not turn off, I had to continue and know more. I practically listened to the book in every free moment. Sometimes I even went to university on foot rather than by bike just to have the excuse and more time to listen to the book.
The narration is all from Emilia’s point of view. What I like about these narratives is the way in which the protagonist herself realizes, little by little, the fascination emanating from the other main character. His dark being that fascinates her without her realizing it. Even if she gets angry many times, she can’t stand him, you notice all the bond that is going to form.
Maybe sometimes I would have preferred Emilia had made a more intelligent decision, but all in all I found her a strong and tenacious girl, not the damsel in danger, but the one who solves problems on her own, without anyone’s help. A detail that perhaps will change some possible reader’s mind, or will attract someone who was not sure about reading, is that in this book there are not only demons and witches, but also vampires and at the end of the book shape-shifters, more specifically werewolves. .
I repeat, I have always liked the Maniscalco, and here she was no less. I like the mystery she manages to create, but most of all I like the way she intertwines love stories with everything else. After all, at least for me it is like this, when I decide to read a book of this kind it is for the love story, and not for the plot, which in any case remains light and not complex precisely because it must act as a background and nothing else.
