The Evergreen Heir

"CW: violence, drug use/addiction, spice, some others.<br/><br/>Thank you to Harper Collins/Harper Voyager for my copy of the book!<br/><br/>This one is far and away my favorite of the four Okrith books I’ve read so far. How can you not love the black cat/golden retriever dynamic?<br/><br/>After an impromptu brawl for the hand of the Heir of Saxbridge, all eyes turn to the Southern kingdom. Neelo Emberspear wants nothing more than to hide away in their library, content to let the bawdy ways of the south pass them by. Unfortunately, Neelo’s mother keeps trying to pass her crown off to them, and it’s really getting in the way of Neelo’s best attempts at staying in the shadows. With the additional threat posed by Augustus Norwood, it looks like Neelo’s going to be more in the spotlight than they ever desired.<br/><br/>Neelo “please do not perceive me” Emberspear is probably my favorite of all of the characters we’ve seen in the “Five Crowns of Okrith” series, and this book just solidified that standing. With Talhan being our other MC, I had no doubt this book was going to be really good. Fortunately, I was correct, and the story was incredibly entertaining.<br/><br/>One of the things I’ve enjoyed the most about this series is that you can see both the writing and the world building developing as the books continue. While each can be read as a standalone, I’ve been reading them in chronological order, which has made the progress even more noticeable. One of my biggest issues with book 1, and to a certain extent book 2, was that the writing was stilted and awkward; there were very few compound sentences, and the overall structure made it very difficult to stay engaged with the story. Book 3 made a lot of progress in this department, and this book, book 4, absolutely knocked it out of the park. I stayed engaged with the plot the whole way through and rarely saw any pieces that didn’t seem to flow. <br/><br/>With the entirety of the story taking place in the Southern kingdom, we also got to see even more of Okrith and the world building that I love so much. We saw a bit of it in Remy’s story (book 1), but mostly in passing as she was on her own journey. The Southern kingdom is vibrant and colorful, and we got to see it from Neelo’s lense as the heir who feels removed from their kingdom, which provides a nice contrast to what could otherwise be an overwhelming location. <br/><br/>The plot was lovely, and I stayed entertained the entire way through. It didn’t really feel like the story hit any slow parts, and I think a lot of this has to do with how enjoyable the Neelo/Talhan dynamic is to watch. It’s a very sweet, very subtle connection that’s full of acceptance and heart. That’s not to say there isn’t action, of course, because someone is still trying to ruin the entirety of Okrith, which is mildly problematic, but having those longer gaps between action didn’t feel like it disrupted the story.<br/><br/>All in all, I stand by my statement that this has been my favorite installment thus far. Each book has continued to improve, and I’m very excited to see what’s in store for book 5. If you like stories about the fae, witches, and realm-altering trouble, then this might be a series you want to check out! Each story can be read as an interconnected standalone, though I would personally suggest starting with book 1 so you can have a full grasp on what’s going on throughout.<br/>"