Book Review: King of Envy by Ana Huang

“Call off the wedding.”

May 08, 2025

Vuk Markovic, as known as the ‘Serb’, is the billionaire in New York who is extremely private and never talks. The thing has been bothering him in past few months is the fact that the woman he has been obsessed with for years, Ayana Kidane, is now engaged to his best friend. Even worst, he is the best man. Not only does his obsession doesn’t stop as he knows more the Model of the year, his past he had put aside seems to come back to him.

My Review

Overall, this is definitely a 5 star read, this book is absolutely wonderful read. The character development is really good and the ending is also lovely.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT:

Vuk’s broody and quiet personality is very well established. He definitely is the most unhinged character within the series. His internal struggle between his obsession towards Ayana and his loyalty towards his best friends is really portrayed. I also the scenes between Vuk and Shadow (the cat). Yes! I love how Vuk’s broodiness clashes with a sassy feline, it’s so funny. I would have never thought Shadow also has his moment to shine in the battle scene!!

I like how Ana inserts cultural representation is every single book in this series. In this book, Ayana’s Ethiopian heritage and her family dynamics are portrayed. I love those Friday game nights, it’s just lovely to read and seeing Vuk being able to get the warmth he hasn’t got for so many years is heart-warming. I also love Ayana’s character in general, she is no damsel in distress. For instance, when Ayana knows about Vuk’s past involvement in the brotherhood (underground killing organisation/ something like the mafia), she asked Vuk to teach her how to shoot. She wants to be able to protect herself. When she has difficulties with her modelling agency, she doesn’t want to ask Vuk, she knows that it is her battle. I just love how Ayana’s character shows her independence and strength.

There are also some funny moments like the bachelor party scenes, I would recommend reading all the books in the series since some of the characters pop up in this scene, and it will be more hilarious if you read the previous books.

SPICE🌶️:

I have to say Ana has outdone herself again!! THE elevator scene!! It’s absolutely amazing! There aren’t many spicy scenes compared to the previous books but there is certainly more stakes in the plot for this book and the spice is just as good!

Conclusion

It’s a wonderful book. I have to admit it isn’t my MOST anticipated book this year but I certainly looked forward to it and clearly Ana never disappoints. If I have to harsh here, I wish there would be a scene about combining Ayana’s love for perfume and Vuk’s alcohol business, like consulting Ayana or like an alcohol flavour perfume. This was something I was hoping as I was reading it, but to be honest, the plot is already very focused so I wouldn’t say I’m disappointed if there are words on the plot than these small details.

Although it is a standalone book in a series, I would really recommend reading the whole series so it will be easier to understand the character’s name and when it comes to some cameo scenes, you will feel more excited knowing what they’ve been through and their character developments.

This may be a slight spoiler for the upcoming book: but I’m so excited for the King of Gluttony which will follow Maya Singh and Sebastian Laurent. There are glimpses of them in this book and it gives off this childhood rivals/ business competitors vibe, and I’m certain I will eat this up. Also I’m a foodie so I can’t wait to read those amazing food descriptions and the title of the book may imply some inspirations for the spicy scenes!! I can’t wait for book 6!

Overall:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Plot: 📖📖📖📖.5/5

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

Humour: 🤣🤣.5/5

Check out my other review for the King of Sins series: