I KILLED THE KING, by Rebecca Mix, Andrea Hannah, Storytide, Sept. 16, 2025, Hardcover, $19.99 (young adult, ages 14 and up)
When the king is killed, the six people who were last with him all become suspects in I Killed the King, a YA fantasy mystery by Rebecca Mix and Andrea Hannah.
After a decade of war, the kingdoms of Avendell and Istellia have finally agreed to peace. As nobles and magic wielders from both countries arrive at remote Castle Avendell for a historic all-night masquerade to celebrate, King Costis summons an unlikely group to his chambers: the crown prince, his Istellian bride-to-be, his personal guard, a wild beast tamer, and the palace’s questionable new healer. But before Costis can reveal why he has gathered them, the castle goes dark.
When the lights come back, the king is dead—murdered with the princess’s knife, in a weak spot only his guard knew of, and with venom from one of the beast tamer’s monsters lacing the blade.
With no clear killer—and everyone a suspect—they make a risky pact: Tell no one until the treaty is signed. But when a winter storm seals everyone inside and someone aware of the king’s untimely death begins to pick off guests one by one, the six suspects must work together to discover who killed the king . . . before one of them is next. —Synopsis provided by Storytide
I Killed the King is billed as a locked-room whodunnit YA fantasy.
That’s mostly true.
I Killed the King is told in present tense, which adds to the immediacy of each moment and adds tension, but it’s also a style that takes getting used to. And there are six, count them, six points of view. Add in a mystery and fantasy elements, and you get a book that has promise but feels a bit cluttered.
The entire story (minus a few flashbacks) takes place in the Avendell castle. This narrows the worldbuilding scope and adds to the overall feel as the deaths start mounting. It also means you get a good sense of the setting and what the characters are up against.
The part that doesn’t work as well is the fantasy. I never truly understood the magical system, with bits and pieces thrown in here and there almost like props. There just isn’t enough here to hold fantasy fans who will expect much more.
But for those who are reading I Killed the King for the mystery, there’s a much better chance of them sticking around. Authors Rebecca Mix and Andrea Hannah have done a god job mapping out the who, what, where, when, why and how with strong pacing and red herrings placed throughout.
I Killed the King is a planned duology, so it is possible that the fantastical elements will play a larger role going forward. But having solved the whodunit in the first book, mystery readers could be left wanting. It will be interesting to see which path the authors take.
Recommended age/sensitivity note: I Killed the King includes death, violence, trauma, underage drinking/drug use, references to abuse. For that reason, I suggest ages 14 and up. There are a number of romantic elements and discussions of different kinds of love throughout the novel. Those elements (queer and straight) are chaste
