To Kill a Kingdom
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- Create Date：2021-04-21 10:51:19
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Alexandra Christo
- ISBN：1250112702
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Summary
Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all。 With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection， she is revered across the sea。 Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own。 To punish her daughter， the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most--a human。 Robbed of her song， Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen and or remain a human forever。
The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home， even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world。 Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby--it’s his calling。 When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean， she’s more than what she appears。 She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good--But can he trust her？ And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy？
The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home， even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world。 Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby--it’s his calling。 When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean， she’s more than what she appears。 She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good--But can he trust her？ And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy？
Reviews
mer reads
，
thoughts to come
celia
，
"Any human who takes a siren’s heart will be immune to the power of their song。 Only Elian didn’t need to take my heart; I gave it to him。"To Kill a Kingdom is a Little Mermaid retelling， except the main character is in fact not a mermaid--she's a siren。 This book tells the story of Lira， a ruthless prince-killing， heart-ripping siren who was punished and turned into human by her mother， the Sea Queen， to hunt Elian， a morally good siren-killing prince/pirate's heart （who also happened to be hun "Any human who takes a siren’s heart will be immune to the power of their song。 Only Elian didn’t need to take my heart; I gave it to him。"To Kill a Kingdom is a Little Mermaid retelling， except the main character is in fact not a mermaid--she's a siren。 This book tells the story of Lira， a ruthless prince-killing， heart-ripping siren who was punished and turned into human by her mother， the Sea Queen， to hunt Elian， a morally good siren-killing prince/pirate's heart （who also happened to be hunting her）。 It is a 300-page fantasy standalone with a rich world building and beautiful descriptions， taking us on a quest with our two main characters on a journey across countries to find the tool believed to be able to stop the endless war between humans and the sea kingdom。 The only thing this book lacks of？ A map。In the first few chapters of the book， I must admit I felt kinda iffy to both Lira and Elian。 I was afraid it was going to be another The Shadows Between Us for me， a book I was so looking forward to read and one that disappointed me beyond belief。 But that worry was short-lived because in no time， I forgot all about The Shadows Between Us and I really just couldn't stop reading this book because every time I told myself， just one more chapter， there was always something at the end of it that made me want to turn another page。I guess I've always been someone who values heroes more than villains， because I was relieved when it was implied that Lira was not at all like the Sea Queen， that she actually had a good heart and deep within her she had always known that her mother was evil。 The journey of how she went from trying to please her mother to accepting her humanity by using Elian as her mirror and her moral guide made my heart go whoosh。There were two ways I could rate this book; the first one is I could rate it five stars because this is a really beautifully-written fantasy standalone and Alexandra Christo managed to execute it quite perfectly considering the fact that it's only about 300 pages， or I could rate it four stars for the reason that this is a fantasy standalone that needs more time and pages for the world to fully develop。 In the end， I based my rating on just one scene; the battle。For all its description， I still cannot for the life of me visualize that battle in the end。 How are sea creatures supposed to fight humans？ Do they just stay in the water and trip them up， or do they jump from the water to tackle them？ I don't know if it was just me or if it was never really made clear in this book。 The battle also kind of dragged out a bit in the end， to the point where I thought， when is this supposed to be over？ To base the rating from this one problem might sound selfish， but I came to the conclusion that the main reason for it is option number two; there simply wasn't enough time and pages to lay out realistically how humans vs sea creatures battles work。Nevertheless， this was still one of my most enjoyable reads this year so far， and I really hope there are more fantasy standalones like this out there！ 。。。more
Pelin Ökmen
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Well， i actually really enjoyed the story。 It was a well-built world。 The writing style was a little more different than i am used to but i liked it too。 Also， because i love happy endings， the book won my heart once again😁 i wish it was not a standalone， i would like to read more about Elian and Lira’s story。。 or at least i would like to hear more about the rest of the crew of Saad like Madrid and Kye！
Cath Go
，
Wow， this book was a great read。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Hollie Wilkins
，
I really enjoyed the story and the characters。 I enjoy the humour but by the end I find I have more questions and I'm very aware it's a stand alone book。 🤔 Not sure how that kind of a relationship will work， if you know what I mean。。。 The fight scene towards the end just didn't do it for me and seemed very long winded。 Overall I enjoyed it but I much preferred the first half of the book then the last half 😔 I really enjoyed the story and the characters。 I enjoy the humour but by the end I find I have more questions and I'm very aware it's a stand alone book。 🤔 Not sure how that kind of a relationship will work， if you know what I mean。。。 The fight scene towards the end just didn't do it for me and seemed very long winded。 Overall I enjoyed it but I much preferred the first half of the book then the last half 😔 。。。more
Lauren Long
，
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ I loved this book so much more than I expected to ❤️ if you love fantasy/fairytale style this is for you！
Pilar
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Una pena no haber conectado con el libro porque tenía todo el potencial para ser increíble pero no ha sido así。 Está bien como desvincula por completo a Elian del principe que es， haciéndonos ver solo al pirata que quiere ser， los reinos y las culturas de cada uno son muy ingeniosos， las nereidas son interesantes pero no tienen más sentido en la historia que en el único momento en el que hablaron con Lira， las descripciones eran pobres y para mi un poco confusas， no he podido imaginarme bien muc Una pena no haber conectado con el libro porque tenía todo el potencial para ser increíble pero no ha sido así。 Está bien como desvincula por completo a Elian del principe que es， haciéndonos ver solo al pirata que quiere ser， los reinos y las culturas de cada uno son muy ingeniosos， las nereidas son interesantes pero no tienen más sentido en la historia que en el único momento en el que hablaron con Lira， las descripciones eran pobres y para mi un poco confusas， no he podido imaginarme bien muchas escenas， y creo que falta desarrollar mucho más algunos personajes o también dar un poco más de protagonismo a las sirenas o nereidas， también a la prima de Lira que podrían haberla puesto como consejera de la nueva Reina Del Mar por ejemplo o contar un poco más su historia o la de sus otras 8 hermanas！ Que no aparecen mencionadas más que 2 veces y ni se como se llaman o como son de carácter o físicamente。 Me parece correcto y maduro que Lira se quede en el reino， es un bonito final que no es triste ni solitario， si no esperanzador pero como he dicho en un principio no he sentido esa emoción que generan los libros de aventura， solo vacío， que tristeza。。。Ah！ Y ni hablemos ya de la batalla final。。。 más vueltas que una peonza， todo el libro “odiando” a Elian y justamente no se despega de él en toda la lucha？！ Mujer pueden besarse después de matar a la Reina Del Mar 。。。more
Chark
，
This had potential but I felt no chemistry between the leads
Sanah
，
This book is not very good。I am easy to please when it comes to books， but everything about this book was below average， from the romance to the plot to the characters。The Characters:The characters weren't horrible， but they seemed more like cardboard cutouts than real people。 Lira's character is something that isn't unique at all （she's the heartless killer that learns the error of her ways because of "true love"）。 And Elian just seemed like a ripoff Nikolai （Shadow and Bone）。The Plot:The event This book is not very good。I am easy to please when it comes to books， but everything about this book was below average， from the romance to the plot to the characters。The Characters:The characters weren't horrible， but they seemed more like cardboard cutouts than real people。 Lira's character is something that isn't unique at all （she's the heartless killer that learns the error of her ways because of "true love"）。 And Elian just seemed like a ripoff Nikolai （Shadow and Bone）。The Plot:The event that kicks off everything in the book is Lira killing someone too early。 Apparently sirens have to take the heart of a human every year in the month of their birth， but Lira did it like two weeks early or something what a rebel。 Anyway， her punishment from her mother （who is also the Sea Queen） is， for her next heart， she has to kill a normal sailor （she always kills princes）。 Lira doesn't listen and instead tries to win back her mother's favor by killing a prince。 *rolls eyes* Aside from the conflicts being easily avoidable， the plot was really boring。 I was only interested in the story for the last 50 pages， and even then I wouldn't have cared if anyone died。The Romance:It was enemies to lovers。 That's all you need to know。Oh I also wasn't a fan of the writing， but that's probably just me。She hisses。 "Just like a human to rely on weapons to make a kill。"Is that supposed to be an insult？3 stars， the only reason I finished it is because it was relatively short and I'm 6 books behind。 。。。more
Danalay
，
He comenzado la lectura el día de ayer luego de terminar The Shadows Between us y a pesar de tener mis expectativas muy altas a causa de la misma， esta lectura no me decepciono para nada。 Veo todo el trabajo que esta oculto detrás de lo escrito， todo el mundo que creo la autora es impresionante y nos brinda cada detalle haciéndonos completamente parte de cada cosa que pasa。Nunca fui muy fan de los re-telling pero luego de leer Una Corte De Rosas Y Espinas comencé a darle una oportunidad a las mi He comenzado la lectura el día de ayer luego de terminar The Shadows Between us y a pesar de tener mis expectativas muy altas a causa de la misma， esta lectura no me decepciono para nada。 Veo todo el trabajo que esta oculto detrás de lo escrito， todo el mundo que creo la autora es impresionante y nos brinda cada detalle haciéndonos completamente parte de cada cosa que pasa。Nunca fui muy fan de los re-telling pero luego de leer Una Corte De Rosas Y Espinas comencé a darle una oportunidad a las mismas， y esta amigos míos no es la excepción。 Basado en la historia de la sirenita se nos presenta un mundo con similitudes pero totalmente distinto a la vez， los protagonistas son fuertes y tienen muy marcados sus ideales。 Si bien el romance esta presente， apenas podemos ser testigos de grandes momentos mas que al final。 Yo creo que la historia es hermosa pero me hubiera gustado quizá una secuela donde pudieras disfrutar mas acerca de la historia de los protagonistas， su romance y todo el mundo en el que viven。 Creo que la autora tiene muchas mas historias para contar。 。。。more
amelia lupin
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ultimately satisfying but was rather slow at the start to middle of this book - loved it at the end though :）
Daniek
，
This book is so incredibly good！ Its my favorite read this year so far！It took me in his grip from word one till the end。 The action， the humour， the romance。 Pirates and sirens。 The perfect book！
Dayana López
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3，75 - Un retelling de La sirenita muy interesante。 Me gustó mucho la ambientación y la relación con el océano。 Además tenemos una protagonista maravillosa， valiente y dispuesta a enfrentarse a su malvada madre。 Junto al punto de vista de Lira， también tenemos el de Elian， un príncipe fuera de lo común， con alma de pirata， que pasa sus días en el océano cazando sirenas。 El enemies to lovers de este libro es genial y muy creíble。 El cliché "se supone que debo matarte" es muy real， los protagonist 3，75 - Un retelling de La sirenita muy interesante。 Me gustó mucho la ambientación y la relación con el océano。 Además tenemos una protagonista maravillosa， valiente y dispuesta a enfrentarse a su malvada madre。 Junto al punto de vista de Lira， también tenemos el de Elian， un príncipe fuera de lo común， con alma de pirata， que pasa sus días en el océano cazando sirenas。 El enemies to lovers de este libro es genial y muy creíble。 El cliché "se supone que debo matarte" es muy real， los protagonistas no sienten algo en el momento y lo ocultan con supuesto odio。 No， los protagonistas realmente desconfían y no cambian de opinión de un momento al otro。 La batalla final me pareció un poco floja， aún así me conformo con el final。 Creo que es un libro muy bueno， pero le faltan algunos detallitos para que sea excelente。 La pluma de la autora es una de las más bonitas que he leído en inglés， a veces se puede notar una cierta musicalidad。 。。。more
marin anne ;）
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Quick read， I liked Lira & Elian heheh
Elly Tarnas
，
A little mermaid retelling with Lira taking the role of Ariel and Elian as the Prince。 Elian and Lira are predisposed to hate each other。 For millennia the two species have despised and slaughtered each other。 Elian sets of on a Jason and the argonauts style quest to rid the 100 kingdoms of the sea witch and her minions。 Elian is an amazing character， for those of you familiar with Grishaverse， he is of a similar ilk as Sturmhond。 Lira comes across as quite vile， however you do begin to apprecia A little mermaid retelling with Lira taking the role of Ariel and Elian as the Prince。 Elian and Lira are predisposed to hate each other。 For millennia the two species have despised and slaughtered each other。 Elian sets of on a Jason and the argonauts style quest to rid the 100 kingdoms of the sea witch and her minions。 Elian is an amazing character， for those of you familiar with Grishaverse， he is of a similar ilk as Sturmhond。 Lira comes across as quite vile， however you do begin to appreciate that she is a victim and conditioned by her mother， the sea queens， tyranous rule。 All in all its a very mermaid tale。 Lira is dark and dangerous， she is much more Rasulka than Ariel。 There are plenty of unique ideas， plot twists and much appreciated ethnic representation。The ending is disappointing， like Elian， I feel restless。 With 101 kingdoms there is so much more we could explore through his eyes。 。。。more
Katie Teggart
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I enjoyed the book， but I’m not sure I’ll reread it。 Despite it being labelled as enemies to lovers， they always seemed to like each other， and when Elias found out about her being a siren he was only angry for like one chapter
Catarí Labra
，
Le doy cuatro estrellas porque， primero， el libro comenzó estupendo。 Por separado， los personajes principales eran endemoniadamente interesantes y atrayentes， pero cuando se juntan la historia se vuelve casi demasiado plana。 Estaba decidida a darle únicamente tres estrellas， pero el final me convenció y me gustó a pesar de que muchos digan que no es bueno。 Soy una romántica， tal vez。 Probablemente le di una estrella demás solo porque me enamoré de Elian， que es sin duda el mejor personaje del li Le doy cuatro estrellas porque， primero， el libro comenzó estupendo。 Por separado， los personajes principales eran endemoniadamente interesantes y atrayentes， pero cuando se juntan la historia se vuelve casi demasiado plana。 Estaba decidida a darle únicamente tres estrellas， pero el final me convenció y me gustó a pesar de que muchos digan que no es bueno。 Soy una romántica， tal vez。 Probablemente le di una estrella demás solo porque me enamoré de Elian， que es sin duda el mejor personaje del libro。 。。。more
Irini Rose
，
The good :The writing was immaculate。 I loved the world building。 Everything was perfect， really。 No complaints in terms of structure， plot， characters。 The not as good but still good:I would have liked some more romance。 Especially since the whole conflict of the book pivoted on their romance， and without it the story wouldn’t be the same。 Like cmon， ONE kiss before the big battle？ I didn’t expect smut and I think it’s fine to be PG。 But love？？ I really didn’t feel that there was love between t The good :The writing was immaculate。 I loved the world building。 Everything was perfect， really。 No complaints in terms of structure， plot， characters。 The not as good but still good:I would have liked some more romance。 Especially since the whole conflict of the book pivoted on their romance， and without it the story wouldn’t be the same。 Like cmon， ONE kiss before the big battle？ I didn’t expect smut and I think it’s fine to be PG。 But love？？ I really didn’t feel that there was love between them。 Maybe a mutual understanding。 But the way Elian and Lira described eachother wasn’t so lovey。 I get the slow burn not insta love thing - in that regards I was so happy to not have stupid insta love。 But I think the development of their relationship was too invisible。 They had some banter， sure。 But where was the sizzling chemistry？ The understanding that no one else has？ The actual love。 I feel like love was just thrown around without actually being proven。 However， I’m romance obsessed and I realise most people aren’t。 Secondly - the stakes？？ There was a lot to lose， but nothing was lost？ Like surely someone could have died？？ Surely something could have went wrong？？ Anyways， this is one of my first 5 star reviews in ages。 It’s really worth the read。 Very entertaining， well written， lovable characters。 Very beautiful world。 Oh and I LOVED that the siren’s language was Greek！！ I’m greek so it felt like I knew secrets that other readers wouldn’t， and that I was a mermaid or something tehe。 。。。more
J。 Rayne
，
This is the first kind of “little mermaid” retelling I’ve ever read。 I found it fun to read， I love that our main female character wasn’t weak and helpless， she was strong and determined， the battles the characters fought within themselves was just as good as the actually battles。 The only thing about this book was that the love didn’t make a lot of sense to me。 The timing of it and everything was maybe just a little off or maybe I just didn’t feel the connection I wanted to but it’s still a rea This is the first kind of “little mermaid” retelling I’ve ever read。 I found it fun to read， I love that our main female character wasn’t weak and helpless， she was strong and determined， the battles the characters fought within themselves was just as good as the actually battles。 The only thing about this book was that the love didn’t make a lot of sense to me。 The timing of it and everything was maybe just a little off or maybe I just didn’t feel the connection I wanted to but it’s still a really good book。 。。。more
H C Kilgour
，
There’s some mixed feelings about this book。 The good things: the enemies to lovers was paced well， the banter， the world building。The bad things: the pacing was a bit slow at times， I couldn’t keep some of the kingdoms straight， the narration （something about the characters just felt flat）。I did also enjoy the pills from Greek， Scandinavian， and Japanese cultures。 And making the Little Mermaid dark was well done。
Loren Frances
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Great short read with engaging characters。 I loved the dynamics between Elian and Lira， but the story felt a bit rushed to me， especially with regards to the romance between them。 It was predictable to the point where I knew what was going to happen by halfway through it， but it was a satisfying read that ended with a wonderful "happily ever after" for the characters。 Great short read with engaging characters。 I loved the dynamics between Elian and Lira， but the story felt a bit rushed to me， especially with regards to the romance between them。 It was predictable to the point where I knew what was going to happen by halfway through it， but it was a satisfying read that ended with a wonderful "happily ever after" for the characters。 。。。more
Aimée
，
I love this book so much。 I don't know what I don't love about it。 The characters are so well written and I could relate to them so much。 （Of course not the killing part。 Obviously）。 And the end？ Aaaarrggghhh I threw my book across the room at least 3 times。 I love it so much。 Thank you so much for this masterpiece Alexandra！！！ I love this book so much。 I don't know what I don't love about it。 The characters are so well written and I could relate to them so much。 （Of course not the killing part。 Obviously）。 And the end？ Aaaarrggghhh I threw my book across the room at least 3 times。 I love it so much。 Thank you so much for this masterpiece Alexandra！！！ 。。。more
Vilde
，
3。5
Julia Rajsigl
，
I really enjoyed this！ Both main characters were very well developed and the chemistry between them just made sense。 It didn't feel forced， which is something I'm always worried about。 I think the "found family" of pirates helped to balance out the characters as well。 Having other people around who distrusted Lira and were opposed to her presence gave the story that needed tension without having it all focused on the main pair， making it easier for their feelings to change into something more。 T I really enjoyed this！ Both main characters were very well developed and the chemistry between them just made sense。 It didn't feel forced， which is something I'm always worried about。 I think the "found family" of pirates helped to balance out the characters as well。 Having other people around who distrusted Lira and were opposed to her presence gave the story that needed tension without having it all focused on the main pair， making it easier for their feelings to change into something more。 Their relationship felt believable and their banter was very enjoyable。 The world building was interesting and well developed for the human lands。 I did feel that the story was lacking information about the underwater kingdom a bit， but that wasn't really necessary to the plot。 I just would have be interested to learn more because it was a fascinating concept。 I'm really glad I picked this book up and I will be looking out for more of this authors work in the future。 。。。more
Nikoleta Kallipoliti
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I really loved the characters and all， it was nice but there was one huge thing that bugged me-WHAT WERE THOSE GREEK TRANSLATIONS THO- they truly were mostly bad and sometimes made almost no sense。 It was really bad grammar， no matter if old greek or modern- it was bad。 I wish I could at least helped the author even if I am not that good in Greek。 That said， I am greek and lived in Greece for the first 13 years of my life， which means I do know the language but like- please some of these had me I really loved the characters and all， it was nice but there was one huge thing that bugged me-WHAT WERE THOSE GREEK TRANSLATIONS THO- they truly were mostly bad and sometimes made almost no sense。 It was really bad grammar， no matter if old greek or modern- it was bad。 I wish I could at least helped the author even if I am not that good in Greek。 That said， I am greek and lived in Greece for the first 13 years of my life， which means I do know the language but like- please some of these had me on the ground in tears of pain。 ;-;If we can oversee that- it was good。 But not quite perfect to my liking。 It's a 3，75 for me I'd say。 。。。more
a court of plants and books
，
“Love and madness are two stars in the same sky。 You cannot build a roof to keep out last year’s rain。”I really enjoyed reading this！ It has wonderful world building， and the enemies to lovers is really well written！ Lira and Elian were such amazing characters， i loved that we got to see both of their perspectives throughout the book！ The only reason why i didn’t give this five stars is because i was a little confused with all the places and people。 At the beginning it was quite complicated with “Love and madness are two stars in the same sky。 You cannot build a roof to keep out last year’s rain。”I really enjoyed reading this！ It has wonderful world building， and the enemies to lovers is really well written！ Lira and Elian were such amazing characters， i loved that we got to see both of their perspectives throughout the book！ The only reason why i didn’t give this five stars is because i was a little confused with all the places and people。 At the beginning it was quite complicated with lots of different place names popping up and getting confused as to who is who。 Maybe it would’ve been easier with a map？ Other than that， I thought it was a beautiful book with some awesome characters and a fantastic plot！ I kind of saw the ending coming， but I loved it all the same。 I wish we had got to hear more about Madrid and Kye， I think Madrid was my favourite character and I’d love to hear more about her！ 。。。more
Kat
，
4。5 💜
Eliška Štěpánková
，
OKAY， tis is officially my favorite book。 I love it。 I literary LOVE it！
Gabi A
，
There was a lot about this that had a LOT of potential - the world-building， the magic， the characters - but overall it fell a bit flat。 At moments when the plot was moving it was a 4-5 star read， but the MCs spent toooooo much time reflecting and brooding in their own heads and not enough time connecting and building relationships in ways that could make the developments believable。 And I didn't particularly like either of the MCs' personalities so I didn't really care what was happening to the There was a lot about this that had a LOT of potential - the world-building， the magic， the characters - but overall it fell a bit flat。 At moments when the plot was moving it was a 4-5 star read， but the MCs spent toooooo much time reflecting and brooding in their own heads and not enough time connecting and building relationships in ways that could make the developments believable。 And I didn't particularly like either of the MCs' personalities so I didn't really care what was happening to them。 A lot of the side characters also had a lot of potential， but they're all side-lined in favor of whatever is going on between the MCs。 The villainous Sea Queen was especially disappointingly one-dimensional。 And the very pretty descriptions in the writing - for me - often tilted into the incomprehensible for me and made it difficult sometimes to imagine what something actually looked like or what exactly was happening。Good things: it was very cinematic and the chapters were quick， so it was a speedy read。 I could see it making a great movie if it had a good visual effects budget and it could lean harder into the plot points and give the side characters more to do。 。。。more
Judith
，
Bardziej kolejna część "Piratów z Karaibów" niż reteling "Małej Syrenki"， ale rozrywkowo spełnia swoją rolę。 Bardziej kolejna część "Piratów z Karaibów" niż reteling "Małej Syrenki"， ale rozrywkowo spełnia swoją rolę。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=To Kill a Kingdom
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=To Kill a Kingdom&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,To Kill a Kingdom&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0