I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the THE ROYAL TRIALS (LAST GATE OF THE EMPEROR #2) by Kwame Mbalia & Prince Joel Makonnen Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
About The Book:
Author: Kwame Mbalia & Prince Joel Makonnen
Pub. Date: July 19, 2022
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook
Pages: 272
Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org, Libro.fm, Book Depository
*Please note - this post contains affiliate links, from which we may earn a commission (at no additional cost to you) if you make a purchase
From Kwame Mbalia and Prince Joel David Makonnen comes an Afrofuturist adventure about a mythical Ethiopian empire. Sci-fi and fantasy combine in this epic journey to the stars.
Yared has traveled a long way to find
his place in the universe. Light years, even. Though the battle of Addis Prime
is over, the spacefaring Axum Empire is still fractured. The kingdom once gave
their technology away free of charge, to better humankind. Now, having been
missing for over a decade, they’re returning to the planet where their
galaxy-spanning civilization began―Earth.
But they find the planet in disarray.
Old Earth’s atmosphere is a mess of junked shuttles and satellites. This is
especially true of Debris Town, an orbital flotilla where poor spacefarers―left
to rot by the Intergalactic Union that rose up in Axum’s place―have taken to
piracy to survive.
Yared is set to speak at the opening
of the Royal Trials, a competition of the best exo pilots in the Sol System.
But on the day of his speech, the pirates launch an attack!
The siege sets off a chain of events
that will lead Yared into the depths of Old Earth―and the jaws of a cruel
betrayal. There’s more to the pirates―and Debris Town―than anyone saw coming.
Grab book 1 LAST GATE OF THE EMPEROR now!
Check out my review of the first book here!
Rating: 4 Stars
Format: eARC (Provided by Publisher and Rockstar Book Tours)
Publisher: Scholastic
After the events of Last Gate of the Emperor, Yared has unraveled the secrets surrounding his past and had his whole life changed. Now, instead of just being Yared the Gr8, he’s Lij Yared the First, Prince of Axum. Instead of it just being his Uncle Moti and his bionic lioness Besa, now he’s got parents, bodyguards, and a whole set of advisors to deal with. Will Yared be able to make it into the Royal Trials (the biggest video game tournament ever), deliver the speech of his life, and save the galaxy all while staying out of trouble?
First of all, the worldbuilding in this book is incredible. In the first installment, the story mostly stuck to the area around Addis Prime. Now, the world has been opened up more with characters traveling between different planets and space stations (in sometimes less than fashionable shuttles shaped like pigs *cue amused laughter*). I loved learning more about the royal family, the history of Axum, and all the different pieces of technology the authors dreamed up. I was also really impressed by how the video game references and mechanics were incorporated into the main storyline - if this book ever gets made into a project on the big screen, I imagine it’s going to be epic.
The characters were once again a highlight of the book as well. Yared is an insanely engaging and humorous narrator - his inner commentary and one-sided conversations with Besa and other AIs in the book always had me laughing. I also enjoyed getting to see the growth of Yared’s relationships with his newfound family members and some of the newer characters that were introduced.
Although there’s obviously a lot of big stuff that Yared has to learn now that he’s a prince, I appreciated the authors featuring the small moments too. For example, one particularly meaningful moment for me was when Yared asks his father (the Emperor) what he was supposed to call him. It’s an interaction that takes less than a page, but it stood out to me for some reason and stayed with me for a while after I finished the book.
Overall, The Royal Trials is another fantastic book from Kwame Mbalia and Prince Joel Makonnen. Being a crossover between genres, I can see this book (and the series as a whole) appealing to fans of diverse fantasy (like Mbalia’s Tristan Strong series), die-hard video game enthusiasts, and lovers of science fiction action-adventure tales. I look forward to reading more by these authors in the future, especially since the ending of this book leaves the door open for more stories in the series!
Thank you to the authors, Scholastic, Jaime at Rockstar Book Tours, and Edelweiss for providing me with a complimentary review copy of the book. I appreciate the opportunity to read and review The Royal Trials immensely! Please note - I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions expressed in the review are my own and not influenced in any way.
About Kwame Mbalia:
KWAME
MBALIA is a husband, father, writer, a New York Times bestselling
author, and a former pharmaceutical metrologist in that order. He is the author
of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, a Coretta Scott King
Honor book. He lives with his family in North Carolina. Visit him online
at kwamembalia.com.
Website | Twitter | Instagram | TikTok | Goodreads
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PRINCE JOEL
MAKONNEN is the great-grandson of His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile
Selassie I, the last emperor of Ethiopia. He is an attorney and the co-founder
of Old World/New World, a media and entertainment company focused on telling
powerful African stories that inspire global audiences through film, TV and
books. He lives with his wife, Ariana, in Los Angeles.
Website | Twitter | Facebook
| Instagram | Goodreads
Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a finished copy of THE ROYAL TRIALS (LAST GATE OF THE EMPEROR #2), US Only.
a Rafflecopter giveawayTour Schedule:
Week One:
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7/5/2022 |
Excerpt/IG Post |
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7/6/2022 |
Excerpt |
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7/7/2022 |
Excerpt |
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7/8/2022 |
Excerpt/IG Post |
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7/9/2022 |
Excerpt |
Week Two:
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7/10/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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7/11/2022 |
IG Post |
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7/12/2022 |
Review |
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7/13/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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7/14/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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7/15/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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7/16/2022 |
Review |
Week Three:
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7/17/2022 |
Excerpt |
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7/18/2022 |
IG Review |
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7/19/2022 |
Review |
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7/20/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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7/21/2022 |
Review |
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7/22/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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