Book review: The Kingdom by Amanda Stevens

Amanda Stevens is back with her second novel in the creepiliciously   good Graveyard Queen series. Do you enjoy a good urban fantasy/paranormal romance ghost story that make you shiver almost non stop? Look no further you've just discovered your new favorites series! Welcome to Amelia Gray's world of mysteries and cemetery restoring. This review is SPOILER FREE.

Amanda has been asked to restore a cemetery in the foothills of Blue Ridge Mountain, more exact in the dying town of Asher Falls, South Carolina. A perfect excuse to runaway from problems back home in Charleston. Upon Amelia's arrival she instantly feels a disconcerting connection to the place. After discovering a hidden grave nearby the cemetery Amelia gets in trouble with the towns citizens, the dead and an ancient evil residing in the mountains. Not only will Amelia have to solve a mystery, she will also have to dig deep into her own family history trying to discover who she really is.

I got my copy for review from the publisher via Netgalley.

My thoughts:
The second book in a series is more often than not when I decide whether it is worth my time. Needless to say I was nervous before diving into The Kingdom... because I'd already asked if Amanda Stevens would like to make a guest appearance here on Escape In A Book. What if I disliked the second installment? Honesty is my only way, so luckily for me I was yet again completely sucked into the world of Amelia Gray and the tranquility of the peaceful cemetery in Asher Falls.

However the good feeling didn't last very long. Amanda Stevens started wielding that masterful skill of hers, creating that utterly spine chilling feel, Amelia feels it and the reader perhaps even more. I normally don't like being scared but Stevens writes in a way that gets me completely hooked on the story and it is almost impossible to put the book down. I was like "ok, I'm so taking a break for the night, when there is a scene that allows me to calm down and breathe(and I'm not too scared to turn off the light and go to sleep)", but there rarely ever happened.

The Kingdom offers up a continued story about the mystery evolving Amelia and why she can ghosts. What is she? In addition to that we have a mystery that will be a closed case by the end of this novel(well almost, one loose thread still hanging in the air). That means you can read on without fear of a big cliffhanger ending.

The characters in this story are all very interesting, Amanda Stevens knows how to give enough from her characters to make for interesting people. I was invested in every character because they all had their personal story to tell. My favorite character would be a dog named Angus, I'm guessing he will be a regular member of the cast in the series as of now on. Angus was a poor little creature who had been used as a bait dog for dog-fighting. Angus has much to offer Amelia, unconditional love and protection, something she can never have enough of in her in between worlds kind of life.

There is a gush of love in the air, but will it blossom into something more?

Check out my review of the first book in this series, The Restorer.


My rating of this book:

- FIVE silvery moons for Amanda Stevens and her wonderful character Amelia Gray. I want more!

By the way I want to say a big CONGRATULATIONS to Amanda for being nominated as a 2012 RITA Finalist in the Paranormal Romance genre for her first novel in this series, The Restorer.

 Check out Amanda Stevens on Twitter and visit her homepage!