Book Review :: Kings of this World by Elizabeth Knox

Kings of This World by Elizabeth Knox
ISBN: 1991142285
Published by A&U Children's NZ
on 9 September 2025
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult
Pages: 336
Source: Allen & Unwin NZ
Goodreads

When Vex and her friends are kidnapped and held to ransom it sets off a terrifying chain of twists and turns as they struggle to survive and try to find a way to escape.

Vex is used to people being afraid of her special power, the ability to persuade others to do what she wants.
But when she arrives at a new school, Tiebold Academy, it is packed with people who have the same special power as her, and who might even like her.

There is her roommate Ronnie, a coolheaded high achiever; and Ronnie's friend Taye, who is recovering from a brain injury. There is witty, lordly Hannu, whose father happens to be a billionaire. And then there's troubled, blessed, honourable, terrifying Ari.

Vex is enchanted by her new friends when, five weeks into term one, they are kidnapped.

They find themselves chained in the basement of an abandoned factory, trying to figure out how to escape, all the while tormented by questions Why were they taken? Why do the kidnappers seem to hate Vex, and at the same time want to recruit her?

Can Vex and her friends save themselves? And if they do, will they ever feel safe again? What kind of reckoning will they face afterwards? And will Vex again feel responsible for all the bad things that happened?

Last updated on 22 October 2025

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What is Kings of this World by Elizabeth Knox about?

Kings of this World by Elizabeth Knox is about a group of teens who get kidnapped and held ransom, for reasons they can’t quite figure out. Vex has recently arrived at Tiebold Academy, and it’s full of students who have the same power she does: the ability to Push or Persuade others.

She meets various students and becomes friends with them, when suddenly when they’re out on a field trip to the morgue, they’re kidnapped and trapped in a basement, chained in, no way out.

My thoughts on Kings of this World

I’m finding it hard to gather my thoughts about Kings of this World by Elizabeth Knox. It was weird, but also somewhat compelling …? A bit scary and get somehow I wasn’t that bothered by it? I don’t know.

It was like Knox wrote this strange story and somehow drew me into it, even though I didn’t really care for the characters that much, nor was I that phased by what could happen to them.

I haven’t read the other Dreamhunter books, and this one, I believe, is set in the same setting, called Southland. Perhaps if I had, I might have got behind Kings of this World a bit more than I did. Or maybe it wouldn’t matter (let me know if you have any thoughts about this! Drop it in the comments), unsure.

The little I now know of Southland is that it definitely gives South Island of New Zealand vibes, the map in the front of the book looking like the Tasman region, with Farewell Spit making an appearance. It’s almost like an alternative New Zealand, with magic.

The concept of this story was very interesting. People have a magical, superpower called P … which is short for Push or Persuade. It’s that kind of magic where people who have it can use it to control the actions of others. By persuading them to do something.

I really like this idea. It’s not fancy or elaborate… it just sort of is.

It was advertised as a Dark Academia, which is one of the reasons it drew me in in the first place, but so little of it was spent at the school that I didn’t really get that feeling while I was reading it. Yes, it was dark and moody and what you might expect from a Dark Academia, but the fact that it wasn’t really based in the school that much sort of threw that out of the water.

The story follows mostly Vex, but we do get flashbacks to when she was younger, and also when she has just joined Tiebold Academy and is meeting the rest of the people who will be chained in a basement with her a few weeks later. The relationships between characters were interesting, and I definitely enjoyed some more than others… but not enough that I actually cared about them. Which sounds terrible, but you’re a reader … you get it. Right?

As you can probably tell, I’m a little conflicted by this one. I’ve given it 2.5 stars (3 on Goodreads) because while I did enjoy reading it at the time, I don’t know that I’d rave about, or read it again.

If you’re intrigued by this book, if you like the darker, moodier vibes where you don’t quite know what’s going on but also you’re compelled enough to keep reading … pick up Kings of this World by Elizabeth Knox and give it a go. I’d love to know what you think if you do!

If you’ve already read it, let me know in the comments! 

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Thank you to Allen & Unwin NZ who provided me with a free copy of this book in exchange for a review. This does not affect my opinion, and all thoughts are my own.