Crown Me Dead (Heartstring Duet, 1)

Crown Me Dead made me suspicious of everyone, disgusted by nearly everything, and desperate to know what was hiding behind the next castle door. Liv Zander fills Marrowbrae with rot, death, deception, and enough body horror to make my stomach turn. I loved every dreadful minute of wondering who Elara should trust. Elara is a gravedigger’s daughter living in a kingdom being consumed by a gruesome plague known as the Rot. Her brother’s illness leaves her vulnerable to an offer from Vale. Vale is a charming stranger who promises to save Elara's brother if she enters the palace, seduces King Kael, becomes his queen, and sacrifices herself to Kael's crown. It is a terrible bargain made worse by the fact that neither Vale nor Kael seems capable of telling her the truth. Elara was exactly the woman I wanted in a story like this. She breaks rules, has a vile mouth, and refuses to become an obedient pawn when powerful men expect her to follow their plans. Her upbringing as a gravedigger’s daughter gives her a distinctive perspective on mortality that helps her survive the macabre. Kael and Vale had me suspicious of them from beginning to end. Both are silver tongued men with centuries of secrets, personal agendas, and a rivalry neither are willing to explain. Every answer Elara found seemed to uncover another reason she should run away. I kept wondering how she would trust either of them enough to save her brother. The mysterious curse became my favorite part of the book. Kael believes he can break it, but his reasoning left major questions unanswered. His willingness to let the Rot consume the people of his kingdom raised more unanswered questions for me. Vale’s secrets created uncertainty the revelation involving his true identity threw me for a loop. Elara needed to stop trusting these men! The horror found in this story deserves its own warning. Rotting bodies, disease, death, and some spectacularly disgusting scenes appear throughout the book. One bedroom scene had me mentally screaming, “Whaaaaat? Ewww!” The grotesque imagery is not softened and makes Marrowbrae feel diseased to its core. The writing made me feel that there was a steady sense of dread hanging over every interaction. Elara wandering through a haunted palace and uncovering pieces of its history scratched my love of clue hunting and gothic mysteries. I constantly felt like another horrible secret was waiting behind the next door. Then, came that cliffhanger. Diabolical. I understand why this is a duet because far too many questions remain unanswered for me to walk away now. I need the truth about the curse. I need to know what Kael and Vale are still hiding. Most importantly, I need to see what Elara does after discovering just how thoroughly these men have manipulated her. Book two is already sitting on my shelf exactly where it needs to be.