To Crown A King by Raedene Jeannette Melin – Book Review

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Title: To Crown A King (you can Buy on Amazon here)

Author: Raedene Jeannette Melin

Genre: Historical Thriller

Pages: 298

Format: E-Book

Rating: *** (3/5 Stars)

About: Scotland, 1295. The kingdom is on the verge of rebellion. John Balliol wears the crown, but even his powerful Comyn kin cannot break King Edward of England’s insatiable desire to conquer the northern realm.

For Christina Bruce, neither man is worthy of being called King of Scots. Born into the influential Bruce family, the only noble house to rival the Comyns, she is expected to obey her father and side with England. But when a chance meeting with an outlaw named William Wallace brings her into the conflict, she risks everything to get what she wants most – freedom.

From award-winning author Raedene Jeannette Melin, To Crown A King is the empowering tale of Christina Bruce and her struggle between family loyalty and Scottish freedom. Discover her untold story and follow along as she takes her destined place in history.

Review: So I’ve actually came across this book on Reedsy, and it sounded really interesting from just the blurb. You can also find my original review there as well (although this is basically the same).

I have read my fair share of historical fiction, but this is the first book I’ve read set during the Scottish War for independence. This was certainly something that was of interest to me and I really liked the storyline… but I found this quite difficult to read if I’m being honest.

For the first half of this book I thought I would be giving it 4 stars, but unfortunately it ended up being a 3-star read for me. 

There are far too many characters to keep track of. Some of which disappear for a bit and reappear. I had to pause every time a character was talked about for a moment and just try and remember who they were.

Perhaps this was because I don’t have a lot of knowledge about that specific time period (except things I’ve learned from Braveheart – and yes I know that film isn’t really accurate). So maybe this book would be perfect for someone who knows a thing or two about that particular time. 

The story struggles with pacing & can be a bit slow in parts (there is lots of riding back & forth etc). 

But it is also very heavy on history and I actually really enjoyed that part. I think if I were to reread this book, I would have a better understanding of what is actually going on, and would probably enjoy it a lot more.

As a side note, you have to admit that the cover is gorgeous!

I think this book is worth a read though.

But it just wasn’t quite my cup of tea, but I think that’s partly just because of my lack of knowledge of this time.

Give it a go, you never know this might just be your favourite book, and if you do end up reading it, then I would love to know what you thought of it…