Unfortunately I had to DNF this book - for the sole reason that I didn't realize that it's the 5th book in a series, and I feel like I'm missing a lot of back story.
I definitely like what I've read so far, and have added the first book in the series to by TBR. I think Sherry D. Ficklin has talent when it comes to writing, and while she had me interested and wanting to continue, I personally can't continue until I've read the beginning of the series first.
The cover and the synopsis are what drew me in initially, that and I'm a sucker for anything Romanov inspired. I'm excited to dive into this series from the beginning, and then picking up where I left off in The Hollow Queen!

I do intend to do a sort of spotlight post about this series in the near future, as without NetGalley, I doubt this would have even been on my radar. I really wish I was able to finish it right now, but it's going to unfortunately have to wait.

I'm not sure why I put off reading this book for a while. Perhaps I knew that once I started, I would not be able to put the book down. And so it came to pass.
I've already read the first 2 books in the Stolen Empire series and thoroughly enjoyed them. I wanted to read this one when I saw the author's name but I was a little nervous that at some point the lustre would start to come off the story telling.
That is definitely not the case here.
This is a fantastic story with interesting characters (somewhat based on some very interesting rulers of Russia) and plot lines that would be at home in a Hollywood movie.
I'm going to have to hunt down a copy of The Winter Queen - the book that came before this one. And then I'll have to sit around and wait for the the next book in the series. Sigh!

3 Stars. Best enjoyed with a…um, prior knowledge…of how noble relationships worked back in the day.

Let me start this off by saying that Sherry Ficklin is a very talented author for three very good reasons. One, this is my first book by her and it wasn’t exactly clear that I had jumped into the second half of the series a book too late until I was well into it. She provides enough backstory to catch the reader up on what is going on, though. Two, She is able to tackle what some might find to be very dry material in a way that makes it still pretty interesting. Then again, I love reading about political intrigue in historical fiction. Lastly, she is able to take some usually unpalatable material slightly less palatable.

The Hollow Queen is the second book in the story of Princess Elizabeth, one of the last remaining Romanovs of the royal line. After the murder of her mother, Elizabeth wants to find out who is responsible. However, she is brutally stripped of her title and all its trappings when the throne is passed down to Elizabeth’s half nephew, Peter II. She is then sent to serve him at court, currently hosted by the brutal tyrant, Prince Meshikov. Expecting the worst of the new king, Elizabeth is pleasantly surprised by Peter’s disposition and character. Despite this revelation, her vengeance has yet to be satisfied, and as Peter and Elizabeth grow closer, it becomes clear the person behind her mother’s murder is closer than either of them think. As their feelings become stronger, so does the threat to their lives.

Although the story kept my attention, my interest was not exactly in the romance. Actually, the romance made me uncomfortable so I had to take a couple of stars off. I get it, though, this kind of thing happened pretty frequently back then. Everyone was pretty laissez-faire about it, which probably checks. However, for a modern reader who recognizes that this story is supposed to be a romantic historical retelling, I’m was not here for it and it literally made me squirm a few times. It just felt wrong.

Even if the romance was a little off putting, the overall story was still one that I wanted to finish and figure out. I probably will read the next one just to see Ficklin’s take on Elizabeth’s journey to the regency. I’m a fan of historic fiction, after all!

Thank you to Netgalley and Clean Teen Publishing for an advanced copy of The Hollow Queen in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I voluntarily read and reviewed and advanced copy of this book, received through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was excited to read The Hollow Queen after its summary, but the book fell flat. It was okay, just not very engaging and kind of shallow. The plot was mainly about romance and the setting -one of the main things I was interested in- wasn't particularly relevant for the plot. This is specially disappointing since this historical moment has many things that could have been used to give a little more character to the story. There were also some issues with the writing, such as the abuse of some verbs and adjectives all through the book.

There were also some good points. I really enjoyed the part about royal politics, it was more interesting to read about Elisabeth and Peter fighting back against their enemies than the development of their impending romance. Menshikov was also a great villain, even if his plotline was ridiculously short. I felt like it could have been a bit more developed and solved in a way that didn't feel so abrupt.

The Hollow Queen is okay for a quick read, but not what I was expecting at first or what I enjoy in historical fiction.

After the death of her parents, the rulers of Russia, Elizabeth is stripped of her title in favor of her half-nephew Peter. Prince Menshikov, the power behind the throne, threatens both Elizabeth and Peter's life.

I had a hard time maintaining interest in this book. The characters were extremely stereotypical and lacked realism. The plot itself was extremely predictable. Both the love story between Elizabeth and Peter and the rivalry with Mechnikov was trite and a bit boring. Overall, a bust.

As a princess of the Romanov Empire, Elizabeth has enjoyed a life of luxury and privilege. But the sudden deaths of her parents leaves her unprotected – awash in the dangerous tide of her family’s political rivals. When the supreme council crowns her half-nephew Peter II in her place, Elizabeth is left with no title, no power—and no allies. Now little more than a bastard in the eyes of the world, she is sent to serve in the palatial home of Prince Menshikov—the real power behind the boy king. 

But Elizabeth won’t fade quietly into the background. 

Determined to uncover the truth behind her mother’s murder and expose the men who mean to rule Russia in secret, she grows closer to the handsome young king, and swears to protect him and his rule at any cost. But the forces that oppose them are as dark as they are far-reaching--and this time, Elizabeth could lose more than just her title…- Goodreads

Short Review. 

I gave this book 2 Pickles.  Yes, it is odd that I start with the rating first but the reason I did this is because 2 is actually being a bit generous. Throughout the entire book, it felt dragged. It felt as if the author did not know what else to talk about and needed to stretch the book. The reason I keep reading the book is because Elizabeth is such an amazing character. She has developed so much from the first book and has lost so much and proves constantly why she is the strongest and should be here. This is why the book got a three. Because of Elizabeth. But from beginning to end, from the romance to the friendships everything felt dragged and forced.

WOW! That is all I can say after reading The Hollow Queen. This was the first book in the series I have read, and I will definitely be going back to read them all. I am blown away by what I just read. The story was gripping, intriguing, and addictive- I could not put this down.

The only thing I would have to note is that I would not recommend this as a Young Adult book for teens, especially in the rural conservative community where I work. But this is an excellent novel to pass along to adults.

One of the last pages left me with chills and the need for vengeance on Elizabeth's behalf:
" If I cannot have my love, if I cannot keep safe those I care for, then I will bring every last thing to its knees before me."

Long live the queen.

I'm actually so upset with how disappointing this book was. The cover and blurb reeled me in, but failed to deliver. For such a short book, I struggled with it.
Amongst the numerous errors, abuse of the word smirk, the two dimensional men and the confusing purple prose and the world's worst transitions, the only real saving grace this book had for me was that it had some beautiful one liners. I didn't even realise this book was in a series, I think this book probably could have used a bit more TLC.

Elizabeth should have been the queen of Russia, but she was declared illegitimate and the throne passed to her half-nephew. As she works her way through t he intrigue of the Russian court, she finds herself falling in love with Peter, and winning over the hearts of many.
But when Peter dies, everything that she has worked for is thrown into chaos.

A great read! I enjoyed the book, and look forward to more from this author!

Elizabeth, daughter of Peter the Great, is striped of her titles and inheritance at the beginning of this historical novella. Formerly the heir to the throne, she is now forced to support her nephew Peter's reign. A strong and clever woman, she is determined to go down fighting - but she doesn't imagine falling in love with the reigning Peter. I was impressed with the historical aspect of this book, especially as I wasn't familiar with these characters and this time period. I was less of a fan of the romance aspect that threatened to overtake the novel. Definitely recommend for fans of historical romances, though!

Admittedly, I missed the fourth book so I may have lost some nuance from that, but this just wasn’t quite right. It was staggeringly short and the plot seemed to centre around an improbable romance. In places the writing was a little clumsy too. I really like world of the original trilogy but this felt a little thin. Perhaps it’s just no longer for me.

This book was....fine. It was a short, fairly quick read. I just found it rather shallow and not very compelling overall.

The characters were one dimensional, and the setting could have been literally anywhere. We're given the location but zero details or descriptions about anything or anyone. With all the rich historical detail there is out there to draw upon, it was disappointing not to get a flavor of any of that in the writing. I was also disappointed with the liberties taken with the actual history. Mainly because the history of the time was so wild to begin with, I felt like sticking closer to the facts would have actually been more interesting than the story we got. I was also never able to get fully on board with the (incestuous) relationship. I know royals and nobles did things that way back then, but the way it was handled here just struck me as a bit off.

This was okay for a light, quick read, but not what I look for in historical fiction. I also wasn't aware when I requested it that it was 5th in a series. I haven't read any of the other books in the series. I don't know how much that impacted my reading experience.

WHEN THE ONLY THING KEEPING YOU READING IS THE FACT THAT THE BOOK IS SHORT, IT'S NOT A GOOD BOOK...😶😶

Yeah, there was really nothing, aside from the length, that made me want to read this book. The good thing is, it only took me two hours to read it, so that's something.

"Shaking my head, I nod."

THE THINGS I DISLIKED

Bad writing: For proof, see the above quote. Really, this was not something I saw in the previous books. Sure, the writing wasn't amazing in those, but it made sense. This book had many mistakes that didn't make sense...

Vampire Sergei: This, I touched upon in my review of The Winter Queen, book number 4 in this series. In 1725 Sergei and Elizabeth meet. Sergei is supposedly 16/17 years old. In 1745, Sergei is 20...

Plot: The plot was super thin, it was mainly just Elizabeth falling in love way too fast. The plotline of getting rid of Menshikov was almost laughable, it was resolved so easily. Though he was a good villain, so that's something.

The Hollow Queen is the fifth novel in the Stolen Empire Series by Sherry D. Ficklin. When I received this book I didn't realise this and I haven't read the previous titles but I am happy to say that this book can be read as a stand alone and I really enjoyed it. My historical reading has centered mainly on British and European medieval and renaissance themes and I hardly know much about the Russian royal Romanovs, with the exception of the final royal Romanovs who sow the dynasty end. This novel follows the daughter of Peter the Great, Elizabeth, after the death of both her parents which strips her of her estates and title in favour of her half nephew to the Tsar. I found this story to be engaging and moved at a good pace. I liked the character of Elizabeth a lot and her thoughts regarding placing duty above her personal interests and it has given me a desire to know more about the other Romanovs. I am greatly looking forward to the continuation of Elizabeth's story in the next book. My interest has been aroused due to the taster of the Empress Anna, who is only briefly mentioned, but intriguingly, she has inherited the madness of her father, Ivan V. I will not google any of the historical characters until after the series finishes, to avoid spoilers and continue the bliss of ignorance. Luckily, while I wait for the next installment, I have four previous books to catch up on.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, for an advanced electronic reading copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.

I absolutely LOVED this book, The Hollow Queen by Sherry Ficklin. It is the first book I have read by this author and I will definitely be reading others by her, This is the story of Elizabeth Romanov, who was stripped of her title, her wealth and her power and her relationship with her half-nephew Peter II who became King. I loved the relationship between the two and the strength this woman had to arise above all adversity.

I loved this book so much I finished it in one day as I couldn't put it down - even having my 8 month old granddaughter couldn't keep me away - I was reading parts of it to her!

I promise you will not be disappointed in this book at all! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free e-book copy.

I wasn't aware that this was a book in a series. In order to review properly I'll need to read the other books before I can leave a full review, but this sounds so good