Book Shelf: The Cracks in the Kingdom (The Colours of Madeleine #2) by Jaclyn Moriarty

Princess Ko's been bluffing about the mysterious absence of her father, desperately trying to keep the government running on her own. But if she can't get him back in a matter of weeks, the consequence may be a devastating war. So under the guise of a publicity stunt she gathers a group of teens -- each with a special ability -- from across the kingdom to crack the unsolvable case of the missing royals of Cello.

Chief among these is farm-boy heartthrob Elliot Baranski, more determined than ever to find his own father. And with the royal family trapped in the World with no memory of their former lives, Elliot's value to the Alliance is clear: He's the only one with a connection to the World, through his forbidden communications with Madeleine.

Through notes, letters, and late nights, Elliot and Madeleine must find a way to travel across worlds and bring missing loved ones home. The stakes are high, and the writing by turns hilarious and suspenseful, as only Jaclyn Moriarty can be.

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Review:

The Cracks in the Kingdom is the second novel in Jaclyn Moriarty’s Colours of Madeleine series and is a fabulous follow up to its predecessor, seeing Moriarty expand even more on her already compelling world.

The Cracks in the Kingdom continues to follow Elliot Baranski of the Kingdom of Cello and Madeleine Tully of Cambridge, England the World. Elliot and Madeleine began communicating through a series of letters sent through a crack between their two worlds during the first novel, A Corner of White and in the second book the circumstances behind their ongoing correspondence continue to become more important as Elliot joins Princess Ko’s Royal Youth Alliance to help search for the missing Royal Family and the search for Elliot’s own missing father continues. 

Jaclyn Moriarty does a wonderful job of continuing to develop her fantasy world within this second instalment; making The Cracks in the Kingdom even better than it's predecessor! Cello has already been vibrantly and vividly depicted to us readers but in The Cracks in the Kingdom we see new aspects of Cello; including some truly magical and ethereal concepts. The Lake of Spells, Turquoise Rain and some even more dangerous Colours come to mind as I relive my adventure within Cello.  

Our characters continue to come alive in this series and Moriarty continues to bring surprises to light that intertwine Elliot and Madeleine’s worlds in unexpected albeit brilliant ways. Beautifully told, I’m never quite sure what to expect with the turn of every page, but I adore every surprise regardless and look forward to seeing everything come together.

As with the previous book, both main characters were fabulous to follow, as were the more minor characters we get to follow at times too. The town of Bonefire is filled with beguiling individuals and it’s impossible not to love them all. Elliot and Madeleine’s relationship continues to grow stronger in this book—racing headfirst towards a connection that is appealing and exciting and edged in romantic possibilities. 

This series is so wonderfully paced with so many unexpected twists, although it’s hard to go into any kind of depth in my review without giving them away. Jaclyn Moriarty continually manages to keep me on my toes with each novel just getting better and better.

Delightfully blending magic, science and philosophy, Jaclyn Moriarty pens another great novel and leaves readers ready to dive into the third and final instalment in what I am sure will be an explosive conclusion to a brilliant trilogy!  

Rating:
Source: Sent for review by Pan Macmillan (Thank you guys!)
Format: Paperback
Buy it: Bookworld | The Nile | The Book Depository | Amazon
My Recommendation: Fantasy fans will LOVE this series.
Cover: Goes perfect alongside the first.
Will I read sequel/continue with series: YES!