Review: The Emerald Lily by Juliette Cross

The Emerald Lily
(Vampire Blood #4)
Juliette Cross
Release: January 29, 2018
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When Princess Vilhelmina Dragomir is awakened from her hellish sleep with a blood kiss from a handsome stranger, she learns that much has changed while she’s been away. The armies of the Black Lily and the vampire Crown have amassed and are on the brink of war.

No romantic entanglements, no family. Mikhail Romanov, Captain of the Bloodguard, took a vow when he joined the Bloodguard. But he never planned for the gut-punching attraction he would feel for the untouchable princess. He must keep his focus, though. In order to avenge his family, it’s essential he help Mina claim her crown and keep his damn hands off of her.

But Mina sets her heart on the elusive captain, and keeping his focus on the great battle ahead becomes harder and harder. While they're making plans, the evil King Dominik has been making some of his own. This time, he will show no mercy to the Princess…

Review:
I'm always a bit sad when I pick up the last book in a series. I'm always torn between wanting to know how things wrap up and not wanting it to be over. That's how I felt when I finally picked up my ARC of The Emerald Lily. I've loved this series and it's unique paranormal take on some of my favorite fairy tales.

I won't lie. I was super excited for this book after the last one revealed that it was going to be a Sleeping Beauty retelling. While it was not my favorite book in the series, I loved this one! I've wanted to know more about Princess Vilhelmina since we first were introduced to her in book one but I will admit that finding out more about Mikhail and his enigmatic Blood Guard eclipsed her storyline for me. 

While the romance was a bit predictable with the whole "awaken the princess from a deep sleep with a kiss" thing, but I enjoyed the hell out of Mina and Mikhail's chemistry. They're perfect together and have that kind of angsty push and pull dynamic that's like crack to read. I loved learning these two's backstories and watching them fall for each other. I really enjoyed seeing characters from previous books make an appearance as the climax and final battle approached.

I don't want to say to much about the plot or the fairy tale elements in this story because it would be a bit spoilery if I did. But I will say that there were a few twists that I didn't see coming that made me gasp out loud while reading. In my opinion, this book was a pretty satisfying conclusion to the series. Although, I did think that the final battle was over a bit too quickly but it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the story. That epilogue though was great! :)

I'm sad to see this series end but it was one hell of a ride. I will be recommending it to all of my friends who love paranormal romance and fairy tale retellings. If you haven't picked the series up, now is a good time to grab them all and binge read the whole thing.


ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.

   

  4 / 5 Stars

  My reviews of other books in this series:
The Black Lily by Juliette Cross
The Red Lily by Juliette Cross
The White Lily by Juliette Cross