4.25/5 stars! This fantasy retelling of Three Kingdoms of Korea really incorporates Korean fables and was an interesting read. The world-building in this story was phenomenal and I found myself being pulled into the adventure and fantasy. A really enjoyable read and I'm anxiously awaiting the sequel.

Unfortunately, this one just wasn't for me. The concept is a good one but the writing style didn't work for me and I wasn't invested in the characters. Some of the characters lacked some depth and their motives were unclear.

Note to self, don't start this before bed - you won't be able to put it down PLUS it's kind of creepy if you are reading it in the dark..
This book had me gripped, it didn't go the way I expected it which I really loved. I adored the main character and her growth throughout, poor thing really had a lot of tough choices to make. I'm looking forward to reading the next one, so I'll definitely give this a reread before then. I need to get my hands on the special edition from Locked Library!
Thank you for the eARC!!

As fascinated as I am by Korean mythology, I was looking forward to this book a lot. Sadly, this didn't live up to my expectations. Despite having such a promising premise, the book fell flat in execution. The main character wasn't someone I really cared about much, which is what made this a cumbersome read. However, this is just the author's debut and I'm really looking forward to more cause there's so much potential!

A fascinating read with a beautiful cover. This was a book that I knew I needed to read.

I enjoyed this book a lot. I knew I would but I'm sad that it took me so long to get to it.

A must read.

I've heard such great things about yhis book and, oh my, it didn't disappoint! It was gripping and immersive, I loved the characters and the world building was fantastic! Would definitely recommend!

This was an enjoyable teen/young adult read exploring Korean mythology. There are time shifts, magic that comes with a price, a Queendom.

I enjoyed all of the characters, even the Never King and the big bad at the end (I won’t name to avoid spoilers).

My favourite character is probably Hongbin.

I loved the theme of family in this book and generational trauma/curses.

There were some truly heart wrenching moments.

And Break the Pretty Kings is a book all about Mirae, who was meant to become a queen but when disaster strikes before her coronation and she discovers scary new powers, she must go and rescue her brother and try to stop a terrifying future from happening. I enjoyed the magic systems in this book and the different characters Mirae interacts with throughout the book. I thought the characters, especially Mirae, were incredibly interesting and well-written, and the story was nicely laid out. I would recommend this book!

2.5 stars

Not necessarily a terrible book, but not one I'll probably ever think about again.

That might sound harsh, but honestly, it's just because the main character feels very bland. I couldn't connect to her emotionally, and therefore I didn't care about what was going on in the story - which is such a shame because I love the concept, I like the magic system... but I was just bored. And if this hadn't have been an ARC, I would have considered DNFing. Despite the Korean history and mythology inspiration, which sounds incredible, it just didn't stand out to me against other YA fantasy books. And from reading other reviews, it looks like I'm not alone in thinking this. Really hate rating a debut so low, but as I said, it was just boring.

I love these types of books set in Asia and part of the local mythology and culture.
The book is very beautiful and interesting, it was a smooth read even if sometimes I got lost in the descriptions.

I absolutely recommend reading it, I found it enjoyable.

I really enjoyed this Korean mythology inspired fantasy adventure. Although I felt the pacing was off at times, that didn't take away from my overall enjoyment of the book.

Overall theme and plot idea was very strong. However I felt the execution lacking in points. Particularly in the plot progression and the pacing of the book.

Thank you to publishers and NetGalley for this ecopy.

And Break The Pretty Kings was a delightful read, I very much enjoyed this novel.
I loved our MFC she was strong in what she need to do and I loved how she was created, the characters around her played with into the story and the twists and turns were great to read. I loved this reading journey. In fact I loved this book so much that I bought the hardback.

Writing didn't flow as well as it could have, and there was difficulty in commenting with the story. For a debut, it was simply an okay read.

Korean myths and fantasy! What’s not to love. And Break the Pretty Kings for me started pretty slow however it was a very interesting read and learnt a few things about Korean culture. I enjoyed reading this book and will recommend to friends.

And Break the Pretty Kings was not a ground-breaking fantasy book, but it was well-written, engaging, and managed to keep my interest for longer than most. The plot is rather… predictable and sometimes unwieldy, but predictability is not a sin in my mind, as long as the story manages to pull it off. I was confused about the romantic subplot because it felt like there was a lot of set up and no payoff, so I assume this would be addressed in the sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.

I'm so sorry but I'm going to have to DNF this one. I've been trying for several weeks to finish it but I just can't connect to it. The premise and writing so far has been wonderful but the world building is too confusing for me and the characters are a bit bland. I'm just finding myself a bit bored, which is a pity because, like I said, the premise is intriguing and the cover is absolutely stunning.

Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'And Break the Pretty Kings' by Lena Jeong.

I've been simmering on this review for a while. 'And Break the Pretty Kings' has such high potential and I highly enjoyed it. But for some reason, I definitely need to read the second book so that I can fully review this book.

And Break the Pretty Kings was wonderful, and not at all what I expected.

It begins by dropping us straight into the action, the magic, and the world. Very much show-don’t-tell, yet I felt I learnt quickly how the magic system worked and didn’t at any point feel like I was missing information - an excellent execution of this style.

Our main character, Mirae, is the only daughter in a long line of Seollan queens, and she’s destined to take up the mantle of keeping the kingdom’s long imprisoned enemy - the Inconstant Son - locked away, at the cost of her own sanity. Her mother has succumbed to the ‘generational madness’ much earlier than any previous ruler, and thus Mirae must undertake the trials to become queen much younger than any of her descendants. However the night of her trials is calamitous, and Mirae finds herself on a quest to save her brother which has her questioning her history, her loved ones, and herself.

Mirae’s magic, foresight, and confusion wound together in such a way that even when she made decisions I didn’t agree with, I could understand why. She’s lost, feels alone, and she’s so young to have the fate of a country resting on her shoulders. I loved some of the twists and turns that came up along the way, it sometimes felt like no one and nothing was what it seemed, and this kept the plot exciting and fast paced.

I was completely intrigued by the magic system and can’t wait to see more of it as the series progresses. The way that magic is separated into the three disciplines and each has a guardian ancestor was really interesting, and I’m excited to see how this develops throughout the sequel(s).

Overall, And Break the Pretty Kings was an exciting Korean inspired fantasy, and I will definitely be continuing the series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for granting me an arc!

I need to know if there's going to be a sequel, hell I'd even scream for a prequel with Mirae's mother.

I had plenty of theories while reading the book, one of which proved to come to fruition, in a manner of speaking, right at the end. What I thought would happen, did, but not in the way I was expecting.

There's also a scene in which Hongbin tells her she must put her feelings aside to do whats right (that's not quite what he said but I don't want to spoil anything!) and I feel I know exactly what he was talking about, hopefully I'll get my answer in the sequel, if there is one. Again, I really hope there is because I'm not ready to finish Mirae's story.