Member Reviews
This book was okay. Neither entirely amazing, nor completely boring. It was just meh. Khalinda, annoyed me frequently. Yet, I loved her dedication to Jaya and the ways of the sisterhood. I also liked her obliviousness to the world outside the Temple and reading her grow to understand the ways in which the world of men worked. Yet, she was a tad bit too hot-headed for me. She never really took the proper time to think things through.
I really enjoyed the strong relationships between women in the book. Khalinda and Jaya in particular who were very much connected. There are more female relationships that Khalinda obtains throughout the course of the story, each one unique and different. I really liked how the author used this as a way to resolve the conflicts instead of making them the conflict.
One of the reasons I didn’t love this novel is because I found the characters so vague. There was nothing about them that really stood out to me.
Nothing blew me away. It was an action filled book but I was never invested enough with the characters to truly feel something. This story was not bad. I liked the plot, the events but…it just…nothing.
The Hundredth Queen is a book I probably would’ve LOVED two years ago. The concept of a girl taken out of her home to be the Hundredth wife of a tyrant and having to fight to the death for her rank is right up my alley! It has sisterhood, magic, culture, religion and tradition; things I find incredibly interesting.
Unfortunately, there was insta-love within the first ten pages and the plot was rather predictable from there on. I usually have no trouble with insta-love at all because I like romance and love, but it just didn’t feel right or something. Like it was insta-insta-love. I actually found myself sighing and eyerolling at the romance because I just did not like it. I came close to DNF-ing a few times, although The Hundredth Queen is quite a fast read. I only took my first note at about 50% because I simply didn’t think to take any as I flew through this book. Eventually I put it down to read something else and picked it up later.
I have still have so many questions. Like, is Rani and Viraji the same thing? Or are they different? Is it my own fault for not understand, or wasn’t it explained? How did Kali kill the Kindred after she had only ever fought with bamboo? It felt unrealistic. This happens more often, but in this book I just couldn’t forget about the fact that Kali was pretty much untrained.
The characters weren’t very much to my liking, either. Kalinda/Kali could’ve been a great heroin, but she didn’t feel like one. At one point she’s thinking about this thing I and just wanted to throw my iPad to the floor and laugh because “how can she be so stupid?” but then again, it was a pretty messed up situation and should look at my own stupid thoughts before judging someone else’s… I didn’t like Devon at all, and I can’t really explain why. He was probably a really nice guy. Maybe I would’ve liked him more if there was no insta-love. I just didn’t really like the vibe coming off of him… I don’t even want to talk about Tarek. I dislike him even more than I dislike Devon. I understand than marrying a hundred wives is his culture or religion, but it freaked me out! And he doesn't just have a hundred wives, he has courtesans as well! I just can’t picture it! His Kindred (his first wife, who’s name I can't remember) is actually a really badass antagonist! I can’t remember much about her, honestly, but he was bitchy and badass, so she was okay.
Overall, I think The Hundred Queen could’ve just been amazing. Like I said before, I would’ve loved this if i read it two years ago and I know there’s people our there right now that just LOVE this book. If my review put you off of reading this book, although you thought you’d like it, please check out some four or five star reviews!
Well, that’s over and done with.
For a while now I’ve been seeing nothing but raving reviews for this novel. Add that to the gorgeous cover, and you can bet that I was excited. I went into it hoping to love it. Better yet, I was expecting to love it. Needless to say, I did not.
Before sitting down to write this I thought of all the eloquent ways to express myself. Then I decided that the best way to go about this is to be blunt as possible. So, to put it quite frankly, I found this book to be very boring.
There were a lot of things happening and yet, not a single one caught and held my attention. None of the characters inspired anything but indifference from me. And that, more than anything else, is why I am rating this book with only two stars. The moment that I no longer care about the characters the entire book bores me and the plot no longer matters to me.
It also did not help that I was not a very big fan of the writing. Two pages into the story I already knew that I was going to have a problem with the writing style. I know that some people liked it, sadly, I was not one of them. It not that it was bad, it’s just that it wasn’t good, at least, in my opinion.
I did not like the way the world or the characters were described. Everything seemed so bland. So dull. Even the relationships seemed watered down and generic, especially with all the insta-love that went into Deven and Kalinda’s “relationship”. The two had barely spent time together before they were declaring their undying love for one another. To make it worse, all of their interactions seemed awkward and forced. The two had very little chemistry and felt a little flat.
Another thing that got to me was the depiction of the culture. I am Hispanic. My family and I are from the Caribbean and I have never traveled anywhere other than constantly between the USA and The Dominican Republic. So, I have to admit that I know very little about Indian culture and its many religions. What I do understand is that India is an extremely diverse country with many, many different cultures and peoples living within it. I am always a little wary about jumping into books about certain cultures by people that are not from that culture. I understand all of the research that must have gone into writing the book, but rare;y do these authors do the cultures justice. One of the main complaints I hear about this book is the depiction of India as a monolithic culture and religion. I have seen some people have some problems with the descriptions of the world and the lack of cultural depth to the story. As I said, this is something that I don't know much about and cannot properly describe or talk about, so tell me what you thought of this.
Overall, I was not a fan of this book. I did not enjoy it, despite having really wanted to. Will I read the sequel? I doubt it? Do I recommend? Strangely enough, I think I might. There are a lot of people that love it, you might too. It just was not for me.
I wasn’t expecting to love this as much as I did (which is saying a lot because I was expecting to love it), and now all I want to do is FLAIL UNCONTROLLABLY UNTIL THE NEXT BOOK COMES OUT. I mean, COME ON, WHY DOES EVERY SINGLE BOOK I LOVE HAVE TO HAVE AN ENDING THAT MAKES ME FEEL CRAZY UNTIL THE NEXT BOOK COMES OUT?!?!
I would say sorry for all the caps, but then I’d be lying.
Here’s why you should read this book immediately:
There is a SUPER AWESOME DIVERSE SETTING. While the setting is fictional, the religion is based on the Sumerian faith, and the whole setting has a strong eastern vibe going on that I could not get enough of. I am seriously obsessed with the culture explored within this story. You will be too, promise.
The women are all KICK-BUTT in every way. I seriously fangirl so hard for strong female characters, and this book has them in DROVES. Good, bad, or in between, every single woman in this book is strong, intelligent, and fierce as hell. It’s freaking awesome. The women are all incredible warriors, and they’re brave and calculating and I wanted to know them in real life. It’s always good to see strong role models in books for young people, and many of the women in this book fit that bill. Some are quiet about their strength, but they are all powerful, and I loved the diversity in the way they chose to wield that power. Also, female gladiators are just so interesting. The whole tournament structure was WHOA.
The theme is about standing together. In these often troubling times (I won’t go into it, but y’all feel me, right?) it’s always a treat to read something that makes me feel like hugging my neighbors and banding together into one giant extended family/community/nation/world. I loved how Kali brought others together, and I truly felt the message was one of peace… specifically choosing peace instead of war and standing firmly united so as not to fall apart. What person couldn’t use more of that in their lives?
Kali is flawed and courageous and totally relatable. I may not have magic powers, but I still felt like I could understand Kali’s POV throughout the story. She’s learning more and more about herself and her past (classic YA heroine stuff) and while that’s happening she’s also just trying to do the right thing (who doesn’t struggle with that?). I respected her and I felt for her, and I truly enjoyed her internal dialogue and seeing how she chose to deal with hard issues (like reconciling her faith with her reality and learning how to both stand strong in her religious beliefs while also standing against the world she lived in).
It’s sexy and romantic without being gross. Sorry if you like a lot of explicit sex scenes in your books… I don’t mean to insult anyone here but I just can’t deal with too much graphic sex in my books (I prefer to enjoy that in real life instead). When books get to steamy I just turn an awkward shade of tomato and skip ahead. But that doesn’t mean I don’t like my books to be sexy or romantic. I do. I just… I like to use my imagination. This story leaves your mind plenty to work with without ever dipping into vulgar or “adult” territory. I really really appreciated that. I like knowing I can recommend this book to absolutely anyone without having to worry about it being inappropriate for them. And I like knowing that if my child ever picked up this book and started reading I wouldn’t have to have a long and embarrassing conversation with him about its contents. So, hate on me if you must, but just know that The Hundredth Queen has so much vibrant passion and romance (and some super creepy relationships too… I’m looking at you, Tarek) without crossing the boundary from YA to New Adult or Adult lit. It’s a perfect balance.
It’ll keep surprising you until the very end. It’s rare I say this about a book, but there was one specific twist I did not see coming and I just love when a book can surprise me like that. I was absolutely delighted that I hadn’t called it ahead of time. There are plenty of twists and turns here, and you will feel all the feels, so just be ready for that (it’s one heck of a ride).
If that’s not enough for you THE. COVER. IS. LEGIT. Let’s just “pretend” that maybe you and I both buy and read books based on how pretty the cover art is. OBVIOUSLY, neither of us would ever do that because you can’t judge a book by its cover yada yada yada… we all know the drill. But let’s just imagine for a second that we DID buy books based on their covers. I guarantee that if that were the case we would both run out to the bookstore this instant to buy The Hundredth Queen (and pre-order the sequel) because the covers are so freaking unbelievably gorgeous. I want to frame them. My ARC didn’t have the cover and I was so disappointed that I had to order a copy of the book to take pictures of (I am anxiously awaiting its arrival so that I can bookstagram the heck out of it).
Now GO already and get a copy of this beauty so that we can flail together until The Fire Queen comes out (thank goodness it’s soon!)!
Rating: 5/5 stars
It has been a long time since I've picked up a book and enjoyed it from cover to cover. The Hundredth Queen took me to a world full of hidden magic and dueling women who fight for survival. The story took so many twist and turns, I was always left guessing at what was to come next. I loved the characters. They seemed real and full of depth. Five stars for Emily R. King.
Received from NetGalley
I was so pleasantly surprised by this book. It is sooo amazing. It's high fantasy book with really interesting mythology.
Our main character Kalinda is living and training with sisterhood, kind of like monastery. She is not in the best shape, because her life was plagued with fevers. When Rajah Tarek (ruler of the kingdom) comes looking for the hundredth wife, she gets chosen.
She is not like his other wives, she is not obedient and does what she thinks is right.
She is really strong and interesting character and I really like her.
The romance in the story is really lovely too.
All in all amazing book and I highly recommend it.
Happy reading!
Anie
I received an eARC of this book via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.
Actual Rating: 3.5★
So I wasn’t overly impressed with The Hundredth Queen by Emily R. King like I thought I’d be. I thought I’d be fangirling over this book, writing a really enthusiastic review. But instead I feel meh about it. The Hundredth Queen had a lot of potential. It’s a high fantasy with elements of romance and rebellion. Sounds promising right? But in reality it was like all the other YA fantasy books out there where an unskilled, untrained young girl becomes the unwilling face of the rebellion…oh and she falls in love with the first boy she sees (literally!).
The orphaned Kalinda was raised by a Sisterhood (similar to a convent/nunnery) and at 18 she has never known the world outside it. She is timid, naive, and a social outcast even among the Sisterhood. Her illness growing up has left her slightly sickly and even now with the fevers under control she is surprised with the Rajah chooses her to be his last rani. I liked and disliked her. I liked that she was steadfast in her beliefs and always stood up for equality. Kali genuinely has a good heart. But I disliked her pining for the captain.
Deven is a great character, don’t get me wrong. But he is a flat character. And while Kali’s instant love for him can be explained away by the fact she’s never set eyes on a man let alone speak to one, Deven does not have that excuse. Their love just made no sense to me.
The story really revolves around the myth of the 100th rani and the god Enlil. While the author opens the story with a note that the mythology of the book is fiction, there are many similarities with the ancient Mesopotamian gods and goddesses. In fact, I was hoping for a fantasy mixed with mythology but was sorely disappointed. Though the mythology the author creates and the world-building is very similar to that of Mesopotamia.
Because of the myth, there is a rank tournament held prior to each rani’s wedding to the Rajah. The rank tournament allows any of the current ranis and courtesans to challenge the incoming rani for her place at the Rajah’s side. It is a fight to the death. Kali is no fighter so I was curious to see how this particular element would play out. Again there was a lot of build up and while I did enjoy how Kali handled it, the actual tournament was disappointing.
Then there was the rebellion and the supernatural/paranormal element of the bhuta. This was the book’s saving grace. While the rest of the book felt like a repeat of other YA fantasies, the bhuta were original. I won’t go into to much detail as I do not want to spoil the story. I’ll just say the bhuta present an interesting challenge as they hold the elements like fire, wind, earth, water (think Avatar) in their hands and are being hunted by the Rajah.
Overall I was underwhelmed by The Hundredth Queen. The instalove and cliché heroine made it difficult to read. The characters ran together and even now just a few days after finishing the book I can’t remember Kali’s best friend’s name or the bhuta who helps her. Despite that, I did enjoy the supernatural element of the bhuta and I’m curious after the ending to see what will become of the empire so I will attempt to read The Fire Queen when it releases. If you enjoy the standard YA fantasy tropes, you will probably enjoy this book. If you’re looking for more, I’d pass.
3.5 “Queens, Deaths & Magic” Stars
ARC via NetGalley.
Thank you, Skyscape!
Let me start this review with the appropriate amount of gushing over this stunning cover, because JUST LOOK AT IT!
I’d been anxious to get my hands on this book since the beginning of the year, and I was more than happy to get approved for a review copy!!! I immediately started reading and the beginning of the book really pulled me in. The MC was likable enough, there was a little mystery since she kept getting fever and didn’t know what was wrong with her, and there was a hint of forbidden romance from the start. The whole “now you have to fight other queens and courtesans” if you want to stay alive thing was also intriguing. Sure it’s been done a lot in YA Fantasy, but I thought I liked the history behind this.
As the Rajah’s 100th wife, Kali (the main character) was the last woman he’d marry. She was also the courtesans last chance of “upgrading” to wife. If one of them killed her during an official tournament held by the Rajah, that courtesan would take Kali’s place.
The whole concept is unnerving, because it puts woman against woman as they risk their lives in order to become a man’s wife. It could’ve gone blown up in the author’s face, but she ended up finding a way to make it clear that the whole idea behind this tournament was wrong. I liked how the ending had a little of a girl power vibe to it.
The magic, though, didn’t do much for me. I thought I’d be more intrigued by it, but it just didn’t hold the impact I was expecting. I found it confusing at times, and I wasn’t really convinced at the motives behind the war between the ones with magic and the ones without. Since the second half of the book was heavier on this mythology, I ended up being less interested in the story, which was a shame.
Now, I had mixed feelings about the romance. I’m usually a sucker for guards falling in love with future queens/princesses, and I was shipping Kalinda and Deven for real in the beginning. But then things moved a little too fast with them. The romance loved the angst it needed to work. Things were going too fast and too easy for them, and I became uninterested after a while. I also expected a little more from Kali when things with Deven got “complicated”, but she didn’t show me enough emotion to make me feel for her.
Though I liked the ending, I have to say the first half of the story held my attention a lot more than the second half.
I found THE HUNDREDTH QUEEN intriguing and original but struggled with any kind of character connection and found the writing, for lack of a better word, choppy.
King was strong in world building which made THE HUNDREDTH QUEEN a like read for me.
I received this copy of The Hundredth Queen from Skyscape and Two Lions. This is my honest and voluntary review.
5 likes
The Hundredth Queen had a great premise but a bad execution. I didn't care for any of the characters, or their lives. The love was cliche and just annoying as well as all the characters. The plot twists were expected and it read like a TYPICAL YA NOVEL. Nothing amazing about it except the cover. The cover is BEAUTIFUl. But yeah, I'm sorely disappointed in this.
For now, DNF.
I've recently been reading too much of the same thing.
Mary Sue characters who are so SPECIAL and so PRETTY even if they DON'T KNOW IT. Love at first sight sickens me and it was obvious that that's what this was. I didn't even know his name yet when I figured out she'd fall in love with him. I couldn't do it tonight. Perhaps one day I'll come back to this and be more interested. But I just could. Not. Get. Into it. Maybe it's me? I mean, I've read and enjoyed lots of books that are similar to this one. Maybe that's why. I just can't, for now.
Enjoyed this fantasy story. The characters were engaging, the world felt just developed enough for this story without going overboard, and there were multiple twists that took me by surprise. Looking forward to the next!
Kalinda, an orphan at the temple of the Sisterhood of the Parijana, spent many years on a sickbed with chronic fevers meaning she didn’t grow up with the same training and experience as the other girls who often shunned her for her odd illness. However, she found a true friend in Jaya and the two girls grew up thick as thieves. Now that Kalinda has a daily tonic that cures her fever she is slowly catching up to her peers but the final goal is something they aren’t looking forward to. Once the girls in the temple come of age any benefactor of the temple can come and claim them as wives, consorts and slaves. The girls are completely opposed to leaving the temple and each other so when a very important, wealthy benefactor comes to claim they try to escape notice but Kalinda, trying to protect Jaya, draws attention to herself and catches the eye of the mighty Rajah.
I read this book in one day and I think that’s a testament to the easy nature of the book because I’ve been having some issues lately with focusing on reading when there’s so much else to do but I just started reading and was done before I knew it! The Hundredth Queen came at a great time for me though because of these light, easy reads are exactly what I need in between a dense, serious series. I still think this book is a serious fantasy but it was just softer and it wasn’t very violent or dark. What would have made it really fantastic for me, in terms of overall rating, would be if the central theme of the book was clear, if the writing was more fluid and if the characters had more depth to them.
From page one I felt that the words were sort of shouting at me with a lot of, “I did this. I did that. I said this.” and it felt very clinical and without emotion. Once I was more intrigued with the plot a few more pages in I definitely noticed it less but once the thought went back into my mind I couldn’t help but count the repetitive terms on one page. The plot also made me confused because it was too much coming in too fast. I understand how it all works together now that I’ve finished the book but while you’re reading the book it can feel really disjointed like it’s way too much for one book. Lastly, the characters didn’t seem to have much going on with personality. I really enjoyed the relationship between Kalinda and Jaya (every time they said “I love you” I was hoping that they meant romantically!) but I had zero interest in her actual love interest and the competition for the spot of the hundredth bride. The favoured rank between the wives was disappointing as well but I think that could have been better if it was expanded on so I’m hoping for more detail and important of the wives and consorts in the next book.
Now that I’ve purged all of my negative opinions out of the way I can talk about what I loved about the book. The best part, as I mentioned, is the friendship between Kalinda and Jaya. I loved reading about them as they plotted how they could avoid being claimed and becoming a slave, wife or consort by avoiding attention and losing the trials at the claiming. They really had each other’s backs and it’s so sweet that Jaya was such a loyal friend to her when everyone else was afraid. I also think the idea of this arcane, god-like power will be what I’m looking forward to most in the second book because of the elemental powers the people she saw and met wielded sounded awesome.
Even if I didn’t love it I would still recommend it to other people especially if this plot is something they usually enjoy because while it wasn’t polished enough for me I’m sure it would be a great romance/adventure read or fluffy fantasy read for some. I think readers of The Wrath and the Dawn, Rebel of the Sands and Red Queen might enjoy this book because the themes are very similar. I haven’t finished reading The Wrath and the Dawn but the idea of the young, beautiful girl being sold or married off to the wealthy leader of the kingdom/lands is similar and the plot of the people with these wild, deadly powers that are being hunted is very much like the other two books.
"Anything can be changed by those who have the courage to blaze their own path"
* * * .5
3.5 / 5
The Hundredth Queen had a strong opening: Kalinda is at mountain temple that raises young girls; in exchange for funding, any nobleman may visit the Sisterhood temple and choose a young woman to be a servant, courtesan, or wife. When Rajah Tarek arrives at the temple to choose his hundredth wife, Kalinda is shocked to be chosen; she had been hoping to be passed on by, free to devote her life to the Sisterhood and the gods.
"The Burner is gone; he has vanished, like a quenched fire without a trace of smoke"
Ripped from her childhood home and closest friend, Jaya, Kalinda is placed under the care of Imperial Guard Captain Deven Naik, who she grows fond of. Naik is the first man she ever sees and there's a pretty ridiculous paragraph describing how "godly" he looks, very much "lust at first sight". At the capital, Kalinda is informed that in order to wed the Raja she must participate in a tournament, fighting against the other wives and courtesans for her throne. The Hundredth Queen weaves together mythology, magic, action, and fights to create a solid book.
"I do not understand why the gods have made it so that every woman's lot in life is to owe her security to a man"
Kalinda is an interesting character. She's pretty religious and concerned with her duty to the gods and her fate, which makes a nice change from a lot of books I've read recently. Unfortunately, she's one of these characters that goes on and on about how plain she is, how surprised she is that a man might desire her. There's all these comments about how shapely and curvy and womanly her fellow temple wards are and it gets really grating after a while. Thankfully, as the book goes on, Kalinda grows less whiney and there's a cute but cheesy scene (like something out of a fighting anime) about the power of sisterhood and female friendship.
What I didn't expect this book to contain, and was really pleasantly surprised by, was magic. There's a sort of avatar-like magic system, power over the four elements type of thing. Those with magic, called Bhukas, are persecuted. King manages to weave in a decent explanation for this using a complex crafted history, the same way she explains the hundredth wife tournament, which I thought was cool.
"He is the first man I have seen in person. My eyes widen to take him in. He is more fascinating than the chapel murals of the sky-god, Anu, and his son, Enlil, the fire-god."
Then there's the romance aspect, which was pretty stupid. When Kalinda arrives at the palace, she sees a woman, a wife of the Raja, beaten to death for running off with a guard. I don't know about anyone else, but this would definitely put me off starting an illicit relationship with my guard! It was just stupid and frustrating. On the upside, I had thought there was going to be a sort of love triangle between Naik and the prince, but this is thankfully not the case.
The Hundredth Queen has a good mix of lots of good fantasy elements: loads of fighting, magic, rebellion, mythology, and, of course, love. It's a decent read if you can like Kalinda, who improves as a character over the course of the book.
My thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for an ARC of this book.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.
Meh, this book would have been so much better without Deven. The whole insta-love thing just really ruined the whole book for me. There was no relationship building, no suspense, just goo goo eyes on both sides for no apparent reason. Kalinda was a little more excusable since she was raised so sheltered but still... Now if Brac had been the love interest I would have been all over that.
The story was interesting enough but it was just so bogged down with sneaking around with Deven that I just got really bored since I didn't give two figs about their relationship. Oh well.
Oh, where do I start with this one? I wanted to like it. I tried and tried to...it's just that it felt like a battle to get through. Should I have DNFed it? Perhaps, but I hate doing it and have already put aside tons of books this year. I requested it because of the really pretty cover and the positive reviews but it just wasn't for me. It's so disappointing!
The book moved at a sluggish pace. Characters were introduced, things were happening, but I just didn't feel anything. It was slow and dull and I was bored. Sometimes I had to push myself to finish chapters. That's not the type of reading experience I enjoy. Ok, I've had to do it with some books from university. Mining history is really not my cup of tea but at least I was learning something! The characters were also lackluster. They read as flat, cardboard-like, and elicited no feeling from me. Also, what's with so many books that pit female characters against each other? It's almost like the author doesn't think women can get along or support each other. I HATE IT!!!!
I can say right now that I will not be reading the sequel when it's released later this year. I feel like a wasted my time struggling through this book. Of course, that's my fault for deciding to finish it when I could have easily put it aside. I sound like a broken record but I cannot for the life of me understand why this book has so many positive, 4 star reviews on Goodreads. It's boring and dull and goes absolutely nowhere. If you've read it I would love to hear your thoughts!
There are so many things I thought were fantastic about this book first off the cover is very lovely and eye catching, it defiantly fits the book as well! I also loved reading about and finding out about some of the culture, clothes, and how different it is with kings having more than one wife and courtesans. the book had a great description of everthing that I like to hear about it was very well written it was a fast and easy read, the adventure and action was there to balance out the romance and paranormal feel to it all. I really liked knowing that most of all the women could come together in a sisterhood oooooh the small twist at the end I did see it coming but I still liked it wonderful book I Highly Recommend it!
My review is coming soon on madforbooksluv.wordpress.com
I went into reading this book with the only previous knowledge being that it had received some high ratings on Goodreads. Considering that the description really appealed to me, and was the reason (in combination with that gorgeous cover) to request this title, the fact that the reception for The Hundredth Queen had been a positive one was definitely encouraging! I fell behind on my reading schedule due to my travels (I was away for 21 days with barely any time to read), and therefore got to this book a little later than I’d planned. But I was quite happy to finally dig in once I did!
The first things that I noticed when I started reading this book was that King has interesting turns of phrase, a pleasant writing style, and that The Hundredth Queen is written in the first person. Some of you may know that I am not the biggest fan of first person, but in this case I will say that it was interesting to get Kalinda’s perspective on everything that was taking place. It was also interesting to experience all of the secondary characters through Kalinda’s eyes, and I believe that the romantic plot benefited from Kalinda narrating in the first person.
This book’s plot was fairly complex, which was definitely a plus, and there were a lot of plot twists as well! For the entire last third of this book, I was not sure what the expect from the author, and I was literally on the edge of my seat for the majority of that section. I really had no idea what turn the plot would take, and that’s honestly how I prefer it. The moment I finished this book, I requested the sequel to read and review, and I really hope that I will be approved because I am eager to see where this story is headed!