Rating: 3.5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.86 stars
Source: Library
Buy the Book: Amazon
Summary: "Every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born: three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.
But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins. The last queen standing gets the crown.
If only it was that simple. Katharine is unable to tolerate the weakest poison, and Arsinoe, no matter how hard she tries, can’t make even a weed grow. The two queens have been shamefully faking their powers, taking care to keep each other, the island, and their powerful sister Mirabella none the wiser. But with alliances being formed, betrayals taking shape, and ruthless revenge haunting the queens’ every move, one thing is certain: the last queen standing might not be the strongest…but she may be the darkest."
Review: Great premise, interesting world, but darker than I expected. I don't know why I'm surprised- the word "dark" is literally in the title.
Maybe it's because I have three (totally awesome) sisters myself, but I was so disheartened that they couldn't just band together to overthrow the obviously horrible cards they were dealt. The way this book is written, you really feel for all three girls and want them to succeed, but know that they can't all win. And, in this case, losing means death. Very Game of Thrones-esque mentality going on. And the supernatural forces at play make me wonder if it would even be possible for the sisters to survive, even if they came together and tried to change things.
That ending really changed the game, and I'm curious to see what happens in the sequel. I'm not completely sure whether or not I'll read it though. If it's horrible and everyone dies, I may just skip it. I cared about these characters and want them to be happy, and I'm not sure I'm up for a bloody ending here. So I'll wait for the reviews on the next one and then decide. But I'm certainly going to keep my eye on this series, just in case it turns in a way I hope it will. We'll see.
Review in a GIF:
Bottom Line: An interesting and dark new series, though maybe too dark for my taste.
I own this one on my kindle so I'll read it eventually. I have heard from others too that it's pretty dark. I'll be wary of that when I start reading it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, you definitely heard right: it's pretty dark. Hopefully the sequel isn't too bleak.
DeleteI loved her Anna Dressed in Blood duology, so I'm really excited about this one. :)
ReplyDeleteI wanted to read that one, but never got around to it. Maybe I'll pick it up around Halloween, it seems like a good Autumn read. :)
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