READING: Cracked Kingdom (The Royals #5) by Erin Watt

Publication date: March 1 2018
Published by: TimeOut
Genre: New Adult, High School, Contemporary, Romance
Rating: 

These Royals will ruin you.

Ever since Hartley Wright met Easton Royal, her life hasn’t been the same. There are enemies behind every corner and dangers beyond each door. When tragedy strikes and steals her memories, she can’t trust anyone, not even the blue-eyed boy who promises her that everything will be all right.

Because while Hartley’s memory is full of gaps, her instincts tell her Easton is dangerous. She doesn’t know if he’s the snake in the garden or her chance at salvation. The chaos he brings wherever he goes is too much to handle, the intense feelings he evokes are too confusing to unravel.

Easton wants her to remember. Hartley thinks it’s better to forget.

She might be right.

Tragedy. Treachery. Trust. Hartley has to face the facts—in this world, you can’t escape the Royals.

So angry and disappointed.
Cracked Kingdom was sloppy, silly and completely over the top.

**Some spoilers ahead**

The memory loss trope went belly up real fast, it did not work at all. Hartley seemed totally unfazed by 3 years worth of memories being gone or by the fact that she almost killed a kid (!) She has all this people like Kyle and Felicity and her parents going up to her and abusing her and she just stood there and took it. She was going around like a zombie for almost the whole book, completely emotionless. So, imagine my surprise when she hooked up with Easton after not remembering who he is or knowing his real intentions, just because he was so hot and OK, being nice to her. Or rather nicer than all the other assholes in her life. Oh and the way she kept calling him her sun? Barf.
I guess even though the mind doesn't remember, the heart always does. Double barf.
Their hook up scene was weird and awkward and just wrong. Zero chemistry between them.

Why did Seb need to act like a sex depraved maniac after he woke up from his comma? It was gross and not remotely funny. No explanation was given for it, of course.

Oh, and I hated the ending with a fiery passion. Yes, teenage girls, it's true. You can marry your 19 year old rich step brother and that's OK, as long as you're in love! Way to kill the series...
After Fallen Heir I had some hope that maybe the series could be redeemable, but Cracked Kingdom totally crushed it 👎🏻