Kill the Queen: Crown of Shards Series by Jennifer Estep In Order
Jennifer Estep’s Crown of Shards series focuses on Everleigh Blair, a member of the royal family who is distantly in line for the throne of Bellona, a kingdom steeped in gladiator tradition. But when the unthinkable happens, Evie finds herself fighting for her life—both inside and outside the gladiator arena. The Crown of Shards books include nods to Roman, Norse, and other mythologies
Books in the series are:
The author notes on her author website that the Kill the Queen books are not YA fantasy but adult epic fantasy—the books include sex, language, and violence, just like there is in her Elemental Assassin series. “That being said,” the author continues, “if you like my YA books, especially my Mythos Academy series, you will probably enjoy this one too. And like all my other books, Kill the Queen features a strong heroine, lots of action/fight scenes, a hint of romance, and magic/worldbuilding, among other things.”
Click here for more from Jennifer Estep about Kill the Queen and the Crown of Shards Series: The author compares world-building in urban fantasy vs. fantasy, her biggest challenge writing her first epic fantasy series, and the appeal of fantasy romances.
Monster Complex uses Amazon affiliate links.
Complete Kill the Queen Crown of Shards by Jennifer Estep
Kill the Queen (A Crown of Shards Novel Book 1)
Gladiator meets Game of Thrones: a royal woman becomes a skilled warrior to destroy her murderous cousin, avenge her family, and save her kingdom in this first entry in a dazzling fantasy epic from the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Elemental Assassin series—an enthralling tale that combines magic, murder, intrigue, adventure, and a hint of romance.
In a realm where one’s magical power determines one’s worth, Lady Everleigh’s lack of obvious ability relegates her to the shadows of the royal court of Bellona, a kingdom steeped in gladiator tradition. Seventeenth in line for the throne, Evie is nothing more than a ceremonial fixture, overlooked and mostly forgotten.
But dark forces are at work inside the palace. When her cousin Vasilia, the crown princess, assassinates her mother the queen and takes the throne by force, Evie is also attacked, along with the rest of the royal family. Luckily for Evie, her secret immunity to magic helps her escape the massacre.
Forced into hiding to survive, she falls in with a gladiator troupe. Though they use their talents to entertain and amuse the masses, the gladiators are actually highly trained warriors skilled in the art of war, especially Lucas Sullivan, a powerful magier with secrets of his own. Uncertain of her future—or if she even has one—Evie begins training with the troupe until she can decide her next move.
But as the bloodthirsty Vasilia exerts her power, pushing Bellona to the brink of war, Evie’s fate becomes clear: she must become a fearsome gladiator herself . . . and kill the queen.
“With its strong female characters trained in hand-to-hand combat, and a protagonist with a bent for sarcasm, Kill the Queen is reminiscent of Mark Lawrence’s Book of the Ancestor series. Jennifer Estep’s engaging style and a perfect balance of action and intrigue make this a strong first installment of a promising new fantasy series.”—New York Journal of Books
Buy the book from Amazon (affiliate link)
Protect the Prince (A Crown of Shards Novel Book 2)
Everleigh Blair might be the new gladiator queen of Bellona, but her problems are far from over.
First, Evie has to deal with a court full of arrogant, demanding nobles, all of whom want to get their greedy hands on her crown. As if that wasn’t bad enough, an assassin tries to kill Evie in her own throne room.
Despite the dangers, Evie goes ahead with a scheduled trip to the neighboring kingdom of Andvari in order to secure a desperately needed alliance. But complicating matters is the stubborn Andvarian king, who wants to punish Evie for the deaths of his countrymen during the Seven Spire massacre.
Dark forces are also at work inside the Andvarian palace, and Evie soon realizes that no one is safe. Worse, her immunity to magic starts acting in strange, unexpected ways, which makes Evie wonder whether she is truly strong enough to be a Winter Queen.
Evie’s magic, life, and crown aren’t the only things in danger—so is her heart, thanks to Lucas Sullivan, the Andvarian king’s bastard son and Evie’s … well, Evie isn’t quite sure what Sullivan is to her.
Only one thing is certain—protecting a prince might be even harder than killing a queen…
“What an amazing series installment this story was! Right from the start I was dragged into the action and drama. There is plenty of action in Protect the Prince as well as subterfuge, betrayal, and some rather swoony moments. I loved reading this story and I am completely looking forward to what is next in this series!!”—Genre Minx
Crush the King (A Crown of Shards Novel Book 3)
Queen Everleigh Blair of Bellona has survived the mass murder of the royal family, become a fearsome warrior trained by an elite gladiator troupe, and unleashed her ability to destroy magic. After surviving yet another assassination attempt orchestrated by the conniving king of Morta, Evie has had enough. It’s time to turn the tables and take the fight to her enemies.
There is no better opportunity to strike than during the Regalia Games, a time when warriors, nobles, and royals from all the kingdoms come together to compete in various sporting events. With the help of her loyal friends, Evie goes on the attack at the Regalia, but things don’t turn out the way she hopes. Soon, she is facing a terrifying new threat, and she will have to dig deep and learn even more about her growing magic if she has any chance of defeating her foes.
Because to secure her throne and ensure her kingdom’s survival, Evie must think like a true Bellonan: she must outsmart and outwit her enemies . . . and crush the king.
“A fast-paced, engaging read. I loved the moments we see Evie so clearly comfortable with her powers. The ending is satisfying and I love the idea of getting more stories in this world.”—Vampire Book Club
Interviews with Jennifer Estep About The Kill the Queen Series
The author compares world-building in urban fantasy vs. fantasy, her biggest challenge writing her first epic fantasy series, and the appeal of fantasy romances.
Jennifer Estep is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author who prowls the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea. Jennifer is the author of the Crown of Shards, Elemental Assassin, Mythos Academy, Bigtime, and Black Blade fantasy series. She has written more than 35 books, along with numerous novellas and stories.
Jennifer Estep On Kill the Queen and the differences in world-building for fantasy versus urban fantasy
Kill the Queen is book #1 in my Crown of Shards epic fantasy series. The series focuses on Everleigh Blair, a member of the royal family who is distantly in line for the throne of Bellona, a kingdom steeped in gladiator tradition. But when the unthinkable happens, Evie finds herself fighting for her life—both inside and outside the gladiator arena. So the book is sort of like Gladiator meets Game of Thrones with a kick-butt heroine. If you are looking for a fantasy book with a strong heroine, plus lots of action, adventure, magic, and a hint of romance, then you should check out Kill the Queen.
Crown of Shards is my first adult epic fantasy series. One of the main differences is that Kill the Queen is set in more of a medieval world, whereas my Elemental Assassin and other books are set in our modern world. Also, kings and queens are battling in Kill the Queen, and the fate of kingdoms is on the line, so the stakes are a little higher than in some of my urban fantasy books. Also, epic fantasy books are usually quite a bit longer than urban fantasy books. For example, KILL THE QUEEN is about 125,000 words versus VENOM IN THE VEINS, the latest book in my Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series, which is about 100,000 words.
Read the interview: Author Interview: Jennifer Estep (Kill the Queen) – That’s What I’m Talking About
Jennifer Estep On Her Biggest Challenge Switching to Epic Fantasy
This is my first published epic fantasy book, so it was a bit of change to write epic fantasy instead of urban fantasy or young adult urban fantasy. Most of my Elemental Assassin and Mythos Academy books are about 95,000 to 100,000 words, but Kill the Queen is around 125,000 words. So it is quite a bit longer than my other books. That means that everything takes a little bit longer to do, from revisions to copyedits to page proofs. So adjusting to the lengthier production schedule was one challenge for me.
Read the interview: Interview with Jennifer Estep - Under the Covers Books Blog
Jennifer Estep On How Much Research She Did For Kill the Queen’s Gladiator
I did a little bit of research, but as with all my books, I really like to try to put my own spin on things when it comes to the characters, magic, and world building. I hope everyone enjoys my take on gladiators.
Read the interview: Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep Interview: Between Dreams and Reality
Jennifer Estep On What Inspired Kill the Queen
I’ve always loved reading epic fantasy books, ever since I was in high school and college. In fact, the very first (unpublished) book I ever wrote way back in college was epic fantasy. So I have been wanting to write epic fantasy for a long time. When I was thinking about writing an epic fantasy series, I took a look at my own writing and really thought about the things that I enjoy writing – like strong heroines and fight scenes. Then I started thinking about what sort of world/character would let me have a strong heroine and lots of fight scenes. One day, I started thinking about gladiators, and that was sort of the beginning of the idea for KILL THE QUEEN.
When I decided that I would have gladiators in KILL THE QUEEN, it seemed like a good fit to use some creatures, goddesses, and other things from Roman mythology. There is also a bit of Norse mythology in the book too. But as with all my books, I really like to try to put my own spin on things when it comes to the characters, magic, and world building. I hope everyone enjoys my take on gladiators and getting to know Evie and all the other characters in KILL THE QUEEN.
Read the interview: Blog tour—Crown of Shards book 1—Kill the Queen
Jennifer Estep On The Appeal of Fantasy + Romance
Deep down, I think everyone wants to be the hero/heroine of a fantasy story. Who wouldn’t want to have amazing powers and magic and use them to defend their friends, family, and kingdom? I love fantasy romance because you get all the action, adventure, and magic from a traditional fantasy novel, but you also get a romance too. I love writing and reading books that have a little bit of everything in them, and fantasy romance is a genre that really works for me as both an author and a reader.
Read the interview: Jennifer Estep | Exclusive Interview: PROTECT THE PRINCE
Horror and comedy both make us jump—which is why these elements work together so well together. Looking at books from authors like Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, Tanya Huff, Kelley Armstrong, John Scalzi, Diana Rowland, and Kevin J. Anderson, plus many authors you should meet.