Review: Orphan Queen

* First in a duology*

Wilhelmina is a princess without a homeland. Years ago, her parents were murdered in front of her eyes. A boy helped her escape her kingdom unharmed. Now she and a band of her people hope to take back her land.

Wil and her BFF Melanie forge documents and impersonate two ladies to gain access to the palace of her enemies. Will must complete tasks and uncover secret information to bring back to her team.

She meets the Black Knife in the city. The vigilante's already suspicious of her. The more time she spends with him, the more she stops viewing him as a threat.

With two secret identities to keep, Wil know she's only at the palace for a limited time. She only hopes that she isn't discovered and thrown to the wolves. She can't let her people down...

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book - learning why Wil didn't have a homeland, the magical creatures destroying the land, and how she infiltrates her enemies castle. I loved her sense of loyalty and love, but how she also had lines that she would not cross.  I liked her thieving ways and her interaction with the Black Knife. 

I liked her friendship with Melanie - even though they had their moments of distrust. I'm interested to see how the exiled Princess will move forward with regaining her kingdom. 

Cover Thoughts: Impressive
Source: Sent for Review

Final Thoughts: I can't wait to read The Mirror King - to uncover what happens next.

If You Like:

Review: Falling Kingdoms

For centuries, the kingdoms have known peace. Recent events threaten to change that. A murder of a vendor becomes a turning point. Anger boils over to eruption. Why should one kingdom prosper while others wilt? Why should people go hungry when others have too much food?

When Princess Cleiona crosses the sea with a group of friends, what starts out as a day of fun goes drastically wrong. The consequences of her inability to react and stop the death of a merchant's son will change her life. Her father's determined to curtail her actions.

He announces her engagement to the man who murdered the young boy. Cleo doesn't want to marry Aron. She despises him,  but she can't refuse, especially since he was a secret that could ruin her. How can she convince her father that she'll never be happy with Aron. How can she stop her world from crumbling?

My Thoughts: A teen Game-of-Thrones-esq book complete with political intrigue, romance, heartache, death, and danger. I read this book on a long plane ride and loved every second of it. It made my long day so much better. I tore through this novel, it was impossible to put down!

I loved the plot twists and turns. Just when I thought something was going to happen, something drastically changed to turn everything upside down. It all played with my emotions from hope to danger to horror to sympathy. A fantastic high fantasy novel that left me desperately wanting more!

Similar Read: Throne of Glass
Cover Thoughts: Loved it - but I wish it matched more of the book.
Source: BEA from Penguin Teen

Review: Bitterblue

*3rd book in the Graceling series*

Eight years after Katsa and Po rescued Bitterblue, she's now ruling her kingdom. However, she begins to think her advisers aren't always telling her the truth. She's so lost, she begins wandering her city at night in an attempt to escape her troubled mind.

Bitterblue meets two boys who challenge her knowledge of her own city. Teddy and Saf share their knowledge with her, without knowing her true identity. In time the three become fast friends. Bitterblue uses their information to try to combat her advisers into making the city a better place.

She's fighting a losing battle most days, still trying to recover from her father's reign. Still, Bitterblue isn't giving up the fight. She wants her kingdom to heal and with the help of her friends, she's going to make sure it happens. To heal the kingdom, she'll have to fight the horrors from the past. Not everyone wants those secrets to resurface, especially the people trying to silence those who ask questions, even Bitterblue.

My Thoughts: I've been waiting for this book ever since I finished Graceling. It took me a little while to get into the book and I think that's because I didn't re-read Graceling and Fire. I wish I had because there were pieces that I know I didn't fully appreciated without that extra knowledge.  


There were several illustrations in the back of the book, which were great. However, it would have been nice to see those either at the front of the book or interspersed within the chapters themselves. Most of the illustrations were maps of complicated rooms/areas, which were hard to picture while reading.


I loved Bitterblue's midnight walks. I liked how she saw the real city and not the city everyone tried to make her see. I loved her relationships with Teddy and Saf. I liked the game of truths she shared with Saf. They had a great way of bantering back and forth. I enjoyed seeing Katsa and Po again. 


While this book dealt with a lot of pain, most of the pain came from the past. It's still hard to relive it, but it made it easier as a reader to not read about the horrific things as they were happening. 


Bitterblue is a massive book filled with adventure, friendship, political issues, and a touch of romance. Cashore write amazingly detailed descriptions with intertwining characters from the previous books.  I really hope this isn't the end of this series.


Cover Thoughts: Interesting, but not my favorite cover.


Source: My Library

Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian

The last Artemis Fowl comes out July 10th.I think the cover is great - but I hate when the art changes direction midway through the series.... I hate it when a great series ends. Are you excited to read the end???

Can't wait until then, read the first chapter here