Review Detail

The Liar’s Crown by Abigail Owen is a scintillating first book in a completed trilogy. Told from Meren’s perspective, we enter a world of magic, danger, and secrets. She is the secret twin princess kept to protect and be ready in case anything happens to Tabra. Their kingdom of Aryd is threatened by an immortal king, Eidolon of Tyndra. He has been known to kidnap and kill the heirs over the centuries, which is why one twin is kept hidden so their kingdom never knows the danger.
Meren’s destiny to protect her sister comes sooner than she imagined when she is kidnapped by a shadowraith. Reven is an intensely dark and broody antihero. As their time together lengthens and they start to share their feelings it is a refreshing plot twist to see him bear his secrets while Meren posing as Tabra keeps her own. If you are bothered by the keeping secrets/miscommunication trope thankfully the truth between them does happen before the end of the story.
The names of places stick out in an otherwise well-done magical world. The emotional intensity between Reven and Meren is captivating. The events take your attention and hold for the action-packed cliffhanger. Their relationship gets quite spicy so it is recommended for mature YA/NA audiences. Overall, this book is one to keep in the personal library and dive right into the sequel. For part of the story, I used an audiobook and the narrator captured Meren perfectly so this can be enjoyable as a book or audio option.