I love this book. It took a bit of time to get into it but Pow it nailed me.Just the perfect amount of teasing romance, I am hoping it would continue on in the next book. Iam looking forward to reading more of this authors titles.

This was a pretty decent book. I loved the main character and connected to her because of her commitment to protecting her sister. There were many moments that made me tear up in sadness, pride, and joy as we followed Everly along on her journey towards self discovery while she fought to defy her fate.

Gena Showalter's adult novels have always been one of my favorite reads because she has a remarkable talent for making me fall for "villains" without turning them more into "anti-heroes". This YA novel is no different. While Everly Morrow is fated to be the Evil Queen, and does in fact exhibit some evil queen-ish behavior, Gena Showalter gave this character enough layers to help us understand her motivations, her fears, her desires, and above all her humanity. In this fairytale world of monsters and fate, Ms. Showalter shows us that our choices are our own and not everything is as it seems.

**Side Note**- Roth Charmaine, the supposed Prince Charming and his chemistry with Everly was 🔥🔥🔥. Which is to be expected from Ms. Showalter.

3.75 - 4 stars

Not too bad for my first Gena Showalter read. It took me a bit to get into the story, but once things picked up, it really picked up.

Everly was definitely ruled by her emotions and was often conflicted with the many prophecies that would determine her future. Although there was growth with her character, she definitely had some setbacks towards the end. I understood her need for vengeance, the amount of pain she went through physically and emotionally. How can you expect someone to bounce back so easily from that?

Gena definitely wove us a fantastic world and I was completely intrigued.

The book did feel a bit too long and often we were stuck on the same thing for what seemed like forever. There's a lot of information coming at you and got pretty overwhelmed by it, but eventually caught on to who was who and what was what.

I haven't read a YA fantasy like this in a while, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. I often shook my head at the many decisions made by some of these characters, but that was definitely to be expected. I wasn't expecting the flooding of emotions this one was going to put me through.

I'm pretty eager to see how the rest of the series goes

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book started slow but quickly picked up the pace. The romance was a little slow but played a main part in the story. I love the take on the fairy tales it’s got it own original twist. And I’m ready for the next book to see what the end game is.

Gena Showalter has a brand new Young Adult series called "The Forest of Good and Evil". The first book in the series is called THE EVIL QUEEN. If you can't tell already, it's a fairy tale retelling of Snow White, but the twist is that it's all about the villain. As a fairy tale lover myself, I was very excited about this new series. I also think that this series is a good introduction to Showalter's writing style if you haven't tried her books before. This story captures her fun, light-hearted writing style but also explores the darker themes that she often writes about in her other books.



Unfortunately, I had a little bit of trouble getting into this book because of the protagonist. I wasn't fully invested in the character, which was why I felt like this book was a little slow at times. However, I guess it makes sense that it would take me a while because it's a story about a character readers wouldn't normally get a point of view from otherwise. Nevertheless, I will still try reading the next book in the series, just to see if my opinion will change.



If you're a fan of Marissa Meyer's HEARTLESS, then I think you would definitely enjoy this book! THE EVIL QUEEN will definitely make you rethink the classic fairy tale!

This book was a lush, riveting, and fresh retelling of a classic fairytale. As always, Showalter’s writing is gorgeous, accessible, and witty. She blends fantasy so well with modern themes and ideas and characters!

I love retellings and this one didn’t disappoint. This book provides a fresh “retelling” of Snow White. Two sisters who live in the mortal world discover the truth about their mom and her origins. She comes from the magic world of Enchantia where the fairy tales we know and love are the prophecies of the future. Just like any other prophecies the truth can be murky and not as clean cut as you’d like. I love the twist and turns in this book, not to mention trying to figure out who is who. Highly recommend and I look forward to reading book number 2!

While I did enjoy this book overall, I did struggle with the lead character and her being tough and self-sufficient one minute and weak and needy the next. I loved the family dynamics: loyalty and trust even when events should have made this difficult. I also enjoyed how grief was handled as well as being hurt so deeply by a loved ones actions. The biggest struggle I had with the book was that the romantic interactions were a bit much, a little too Harlequin Romance-esque.
I actually rate it a 3.5 but can't actually so that.

Gena Showalter does it again. In The Evil Queen she crafts a new version of Snow White where everyone can be any of the characters in the fairy tale; it's all a matter of what you choose to do with your life and the situations that transpire around you.

This just wasn't for me, I found it very similar to so many other fantasy series that have been released over the past few years. I will not be leaving a review on any other platform but thank you for the opportunity to read it.

I should not have waited so long to read this YA fantasy novel!

A superbly written retelling of Snow White, Gena Showalter weaves an enchanting tale filled with great characters, plot twists and rich details. Everly Morrow is a relatable character readers will not only connect with but also cheer for.

Be prepared to be transported to another world Existing firmly in the centre of the fairytales we thought we knew.

I'm a fan of Gena's work so gave The Evil Queen a try, even though I'm not a huge fan of retellings. This was not the book for me but it wasn't too bad. The Evil Queen has a unique twist on the Snow White and the Evil Queen. The story has a small amount of romance with little more action and adventure along the way. It was just a little too slow-paced for my liking. but I’m sure those with more patience will really enjoy this story.

Honestly, this book depressed me. While the writing and world building was strong and, probably, engaging, the sheer breadth of disappointment and angst was overbearing. My empathy is far too overdeveloped. I’m one of those people who forgot fictional characters aren’t my real friends. I felt grieved and anxious while reading. It took from me despite knowing the stories origins. However, while I could not enjoy it, I think there are probably a lot of people who would. It is well done. It just wasn’t for me.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

The Evil Queen by Gena Showalter is a great blend of dark fantasy and romance. These twisted fairy tales are becoming my favorite. I love seeing the "bad' guys getting their story!

I had so much fun reading this! If you like retellings or The Cruel Prince I would definitely recommend this one. I adore villains and getting their perspective, especially one as well known as the evil queen. it was awesome, engaging, and had an awesome plot. It makes you think about what makes up villans.

Unfortunately, I did not get the chance to read this ARC prior to the book's publication, and we did not end up buying it for our library collection.

This was a really cool concept for a book but it quickly became boring for me. I really wanted to love it but I fou d myself dreading to pick it up. The main character is a bit childish (it is a YA book but I’m used to more mature YA characters). I really couldn’t get past the clichés. Some YA readers will definitely enjoy this but it was t for me.

I decided — after a very long time of thinking about it and attempting to read it at least twice — to leave this book as unread and it be something that I’ve simply lost interested in. I love the ice of retellings and the Evil Queen... villains are always underrated. However, I don’t want to read a book that my heart just isn’t into.

Showalter is a master at immersing the reader in both romance and suspense. I enjoyed this quick and easy read by Showalter.

I received an eARC of this title in exchange for an honest review

Everly Morrow is a normal teenager who has always felt like the outcast, even though her twin Hartly seems to fit wherever. She soon learns her and her sister hail from the magical land of Enchantia and that they are both tied to a prophecy placing them in roles of the fairy tale Snow White. No ones role is known for sure, but is it possible Everly is the Evil Queen? When she returns to Enchantia she meets many new friends and learns of magics only imagined to her before. Where will she fit into this prophecy, and can you ever truly fight fate?

I did not enjoy this story at all. There was so much in it that didn't agree with me but to keep this brief I'll just touch on a few. In young adult and new adult fantasy today there is this terrible notion that if you have a sexy romantic interest that plot can just fly out the window whenever that character is near. That a set of nipple rings and a tree tattoo is going to be more intriguing to the reader than any actual story. When more time is spent talking about how gorgeous this male that we/she just met rather than mourning a friend lost in battle it's a huge turn off. That and the eventual coupling of these characters completely falls flat.

Next, where Everly feels like she fits into the prophecy. She is the typical selfish MC in that when it doesn't benefit her she does everything she can not to be considered the evil queen in this story, but when it's convenient she completely 180's and decides she'll be the queen they think her to be. And no, this isn't one "fine, you think I'm evil? I'll show you evil"....it's constant. It just sucks because the prophecy and the characters from the version of Snow White it fits is really cool.

The ending of this story wasn't enough to pull it from a 2 star review, in fact it almost made me downgrade it to 1 simply on how tidy and easy everything was after the author tried to make everything complex and hero-forging through 500 tough pages to wade through. Overall, not a book for me. But if you're looking for an awkward story where a lady ends up with her stepson(yes, you read that right) this one is for you!