A Review for The King (Black Dagger Brotherhood #12) by JR Ward

Posted by Donna
Release Date: April 1st, 2014

Finished Date: April 6th, 2014
Publishers: Piatkus
Genre: Adult, Paranormal

Source: For Review
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 573

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

J.R. Ward's # 1 New York Times bestselling Black Dagger Brotherhood continues as a royal bloodline is compromised by a grave threat to the throne.

Long live the King… 

After turning his back on the throne for centuries, Wrath, son of Wrath, finally assumed his father’s mantle--with the help of his beloved mate. But the crown sets heavily on his head. As the war with the Lessening Society rages on, and the threat from the Band of Bastards truly hits home, he is forced to make choices that put everything--and everyone--at risk.

Beth Randall thought she knew what she was getting into when she mated the last pure blooded vampire on the planet: An easy ride was not it. But when she decides she wants a child, she’s unprepared for Wrath’s response--or the distance it creates between them.

The question is, will true love win out... or tortured legacy take over?

The Review: JR Ward has had me completely hooked on her Black Dagger Brotherhood series since I first started reading and now, with the release of book twelve, I’m still completely hooked. I’m glad this series is still going strong! I find myself craving for more the BDB series while I’m waiting for a new release and when I get it, that’s it…I’ve got to read it straight away.

I really loved The King, but there’s so much going on with so many different characters, sometimes it’s a little overwhelming. I really wish JR wouldn’t focus on so many characters at once because it’s easy to lose interest in parts of the story. But here are my thoughts on some of the characters.

Beth and Wrath; I’m so glad we got more of these two. The whole story started with these and I think it was a fantastic idea to go back to them. They’re story never gets old and The King brings so much more to their story. With Beth wanting a young and Wrath knows that’s not for him, it really was gut-wrenching to read their story at times throughout this book.  I was happy with the way things turned out though, what was a sad story turned into something beautiful and full of joy.

King Wrath and Anha; Wrath’s parents story was a great extra to the story. It was fantastic to see the King Wrath’s father was and how much he’d go to protect Anha. It was a beautiful story, but full of heartbreak.

Trez and Selena; I really enjoyed the chapters based on these two. I wasn’t expecting it but it was a pleasant surprise. With Trez being a Shadow trying to unravel his character was fantastic. You just didn’t know what to expect from him and Selena really bought out the good in Trez. He wants to turn his life around but doesn’t believe he’s worthy, especially since he’s tainted himself to stay away from his people. I liked these two together and I’m glad their story isn’t over.

John Matthew; For the past few books, I’ve felt like JR Ward has completely forgotten about John. If you’ve read the series then you already know that there is a secret that no-one knows about John –not even John knows – but I’m so ready for it to come out. Thankfully with The King it seems that it’s possibly on the verge of being revealed, if only someone could figure it out. I think Xhex maybe the best possible person to discover it, if only JR gave more time to John’s secret.

Assail and Sola; I had to think long and hard on these two. I enjoyed their story but I didn’t love it, nor did I see the point in it. Especially when this book is supposed to be about Beth and Wrath but I felt like more time was spent on them. I just didn’t care for their story and wish their parts had been about the rest of the brotherhood.

Xcor and Layla; Finally some progress with these two. I enjoy their scenes together but I’m left questioning so much after the agreement they came too. I honestly have no idea what will happen next. 

In all, there were some parts of the The King I didn’t like, but still, no matter what JR does, I still find myself completely mesmerized by the Brotherhood and I’m still dying for more. I’m excited to see what book thirteen will bring and with it being called The Shadow, I think I may just love it!

Thank you to Pitakus for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.