I thought I would absolutely love this novel. I loved being introduced to this amazing Historical figure but the storyline itself at times seemed to drag on. This book is almost 600 pages long and it wasn’t the kind of storyline for me that made me forget how long it was. It felt long and drawn out.

I begged for this book. I was so excited to read this and learn more about the slave trade in the West Indies, since I am from Trinidad. And this was a very well written book with a very detailed story about Dolly and her trials. It was also about 100 pages too long. This was so heavy in history and less a fiction for me. It was broken down into little sections with was helpful, but also added to the length. It reminded me of later books in the Outlander series. Ones that I can't finish because I just seem to focus or be interested in it.
I think, if you are history buff, you will love this story. It will give you everything you need for the span of many year.s You will like this if you want to see the dynamic of the Black plantation owner, former slaves, the white masters that loved the women of color that were in their "employ". I also think that people should remember that this is so romanticized and I highly doubt it went down this way, but it's nice to see how successful Dolly was. It was also so sad to see how she was treated by family and how she would have done anything for her children.

I couldn't get through this title. It ended up not being for me, but I hope it finds a hope with other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I loved reading and learning about the life of Dorothy. Like many of our Black ancestors Dolly experienced horrors that would have broken many. Dolly in spite of her circumstances was able to create a successful life (at a time that was near impossible) for her and her family. This is a story of determination, of believing in self and of hope.

A unique historical fiction read that weaves the story of real life person, Dorothy Kirwan Thomas, into a rags to riches tale. This book contains, heroic decisions, romance, and the strength of an independent female. Doll was born into slavery in the Caribbean island of Montserrat, where she worked to buy her freedom as well as her sister's and mothers from her father who was also their master. She herself became a land owner and entrepreneur whom traveled the ocean and bought her way into the elite circle winner herself the title of the most power and wealthiest black woman in the Caribbeans.

I really was excited to read this book. But I didn’t like it. Too many characters, I felt it was overwritten and dragged on. I wasn’t able to complete the read, hoping I can circle back and finish

This was a historical fiction based on the true story of a formerly enslaved woman who later became one of the wealthiest land owners in the West Indies. I had never heard of this person and enjoyed learning more of her history through this fictionalization.

An in depth look at the life of an incredible woman, I really enjoyed this. Riley does a great job of showing the horrors of slavery without getting too into the gory details, which I appreciated. I did have a bit of trouble keeping Dorothy's kids straight as the book went on, but that didn't affect my enjoyment

Though the format of the story is usual to me, getting glimpses of a person's life through vignettes into their past, there was something about this setting and discussion of the relationship between enslaved people and their oppressors that seems to light in appraising the role of white supremacy. By 15% in, I had to leave my read.

What better way to celebrate Juneteenth than a story about a slave who broke all the normal barriers to become one of the wealthiest and respected land owners in the West Indies!

An epic eighteenth century historical fiction novel of Mrs. Dorothy Kirwan Thomas's journey describes her courageous and hard fought victory.

This was an amazing story of strength and courage. Very emotional with some tough situations (trigger warnings) detailing how Dolly was smart enough to turn the tables on the people using her, to become free and gain riches and prestige. Impossible not to cheer alongside her as the story unfolds.

The lushness of the Caribbean along with the fancy dwellings in London make for an interesting contrast in setting.

A must read for Historical Fiction lovers.

Island Queen tells the story of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas, a slave who eventually rose to become one of the most powerful landowners in the Caribbean Islands during the Colonial era. Dorothy was the daughter of a landowner and a slave. Eventually, she buys her freedom as well as her mother and sister from her father. She then proceeds to build an empire from the ground up. This novel also chronicles her romances as well as her success.

From the moment when we first meet her, Dorothy is an ambitious woman. She dreams of purchasing her freedom and has an interest in business. She begins to learn the ropes of business at an early age. Dorothy is also a survivor. She is not afraid to do what is necessary to survive. She has had a tragic life. Yet, she never lets her past bring her down. Most of her knowledge comes from her experiences. Thus, Dorothy is a hard working woman who is persistent in gaining her success. Thus, she is an admirable character.

Overall, this novel is about choices, ambition, and perseverance. The message of the novel is to not let anyone stop you from pursuing your dreams. Dorothy came from the bonds of slavery and became one of the wealthiest woman in the Caribbean. Aside from Dorothy and her sister, I thought all the characters were very flat and typical. While it was a long book, there were many scenes that were rushed and others that dragged. Dorothy’s romances consisted of most of the book, which disappointed me because I wanted to focus more on her entrepreneurship. Still, Island Queen enlightened me on an extraordinary woman that I knew nothing about. I am very interested to learn more about Dorothy Kirwan Thomas’s fascinating life. I recommend this for fans of The Great Mrs. Elias, The Yellow Wife, and Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen!

Having read a regency romance by Vanessa Riley, I wasn't 100 % sure what to expect with this book. However, I was wholly looking forward to the audiobook which I read in favor of the ebook.

Doll, a slave on the small Caribbean Island of Montserrat, buys her freedom to get away from the horrific treatment of her half brother who is left to run the plantation in her father's stead. In her free life, trials still await as she works to pave her path in a bigoted society that not only fights against a person of color, but also a woman of color. Dorothy or Doll, is resilient and continues to build business, relationships, and tries to find ways to bring the rest of her family to freedom.

Firstly, I read some reviews of this book that felt it was too exhaustive because of how deeply it went into Dorothy's life. It does truly feel like a biography with a fictional slant. As someone who loves biographies though, I loved it. Doll's voice was so front and center, plus you got her emotional state of mind and her motivations were front and center. It made it so much more personal than a straightforward biography would have been. Add on that we learned a great deal about her life through this form of writing, adding on, of course, Riley's imagining of life events. While it might have been extensive, if you could consider it through the lens I did, it's exactly as it needed to be.

Also, you end up learning a great deal about the historical landscape of the Caribbean Islands and how slavery and race relations functioned during this time period. Something as a student of history in the United States I was never taught. While I am sure an actual historical jump into non-fiction would be more beneficial, this was a good start. Doll lived a long life and saw a great deal that happened.

It was hard to watch her struggle through her relationships with her children and have to make some of the choices she did. Especially having to lose some of them to continue trying to live her life. I can't even imagine.

Overall, I felt this was a masterful story.

Thank you for the ARC.

One of the most unique historical fiction novels Ive read in a while. We need more HF like this! I loved the Caribbean setting especially. I also love stories than span a long period of one characters life, and I thought that this book did that well. I do think at times it read a bit like nonfiction, some paragraphs dragging on a bit. And felt that it could have been a bit shorter. But overall I really enjoyed this story and will be eager to pick up more of Riley's' future books.

This was a wonderful epic of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas' life and successes.

Dorothy started life as a slave and was able to buy her freedom after a friend left her with his plantation and money to buy her own freedom. Dorothy was a business woman by necessity so she could get the rest of her family the freedom they deserved.

This is a wonderful fictional account of her life using as much fact as was possible with the time period. A great read for historical fiction lovers.

Dorothy made an amazing life for herself and her family with many personal tragedies and triumphs along the way.

Based on a true story, Riley tells the story of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas (“Doll”), the exceptional free woman of color who bought her freedom from her Irish father and built an empire that defied the odds in 18th century West Indies. The Island Queen ensures that Doll’s incredible story as a survivor, entrepreneur, and woman ahead of her time will not be forgotten. I very much enjoyed the story though it was very grim at times. I loved chatting with Vanessa for my podcast and learned a ton more Doll in the process.

In this historical novel, Island Queen is based on the real life of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas. Dorothy is referred to by her pet name, Doll given to her by her father. Doll is the daughter of an Irish planter and a slave mother. Be aware, the book is filled with some tough topics of racism, incest, sexism and rape. The story is set during the 1700-to early 1800’s, in the Caribbean Islands. At a very young age, Doll sets out to earn money to buy her and her family out of slavery. Through many years of hardships, Doll manages not only to succeed, but to become one of the wealthiest women in the Caribbean. I truly enjoyed learning about this part of history. The book is well research and written. I enjoyed this book so much that I purchased the audio version of this book to go back and listen to the story.

Thank you #NetGalley, #WilliamMorrow and #VenessaRiley for the advance readers copy for my honest review.

4 stars. Island Queen by Vanessa Riley surprised me in the best ways. This book is long; it is almost 600 pages. It is set in the West Indies in the mid 1700s/early 1800s. This is a dynamic historical fiction story based on the life of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas. Mrs. Thomas was born to a slavemaster in Montserrat. She is raped by her half-brother, and when her sister, Kitty, defends the child he fathered with her, their brother beats Kitty and takes her to be sold.
Dolly (as Mrs. Thomas is known throughout the book), runs to her neighbor, Cells, another slavemaster, yet a kindly neighbor who is very friendly to Dolly, and asks him to buy Kitty. Then she, Kitty and Cells leave Montserrat and move to Demerara where she and Cells begin their relationship and Dolly begins her adult life.
Over the course of the next seventy plus years, Dolly experiences love, lies, abandonment, loss, friendship, family, and freedom. She begins an affair with Prince William Henry of England in 1786. She marries the love of her life. She gives birth to 10 children (it may have been 11-there were so many that I lost count). She ensures that her children and grandchildren are educated in Europe. Over the course of her life, she becomes one of the wealthiest and most powerful free black women in the Caribbean.
I enjoy learning about a part of history that I was not aware of. I googled Mrs. Thomas a few times during the reading of this book to see if the extraordinary tales were true. While this is historical fiction, Ms. Riley did take some creative license with the details of Dolly’s life. Overall, this was a very good story and I enjoyed spending my time learning about this amazing woman who I had not previously known of.
Thank you to #Netgalley and #WilliamMorrow for the advanced e-copy of #IslandQueen. I look forward to reading more from Ms. Riley.

n 1761, Irish planters dominate plantation life in Montserrat. Dorothy Kirwan is 5, the daughter of an Irish planter and her slave mother. As she grows older, she faces extraordinary personal challenges that force her to flee Montserrat or be killed by her half-brother. By 1824 she’s a wealthy business woman, known throughout the Caribbean colonies. Dorothy is an inspiring and intruiging character. Her number one goal was to be financially independent. After fleeing Montserrat, it took her 16 years to earn the manumission fees for herself, her sister, her mother, and her first two daughters. Once she achieved this she was determined to secure her family’s wealth, and ensured her daughters (7 out of her 10 children) were educated and had marriage contracts that protected their wealth. She tolerated no shit from no man, black or white, lover or business associate. Her pride and sharp tongue were legendary. But she was also human.
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As much as I admired Dorothy I feel that the book didn’t delve deep enough into the obstacles that she faced in building her businesses in the early stages. There’s also little explanation as to why she was accepted by the white class who used her services. Dorothy also made it her mission to buy the freedom of any relative she found. But once this was achieved, that relative was forgotten in the story. I would have liked there to be more page time given to relationship development with these relatives. Her grandmother Sally just becomes a name after Dorothy buys her freedom. But my biggest pet peeve is with her lovers. Way too much time is given to this in the book. Sadly it felt tiring and I could think of other aspects that I would rather read than her running off to England with a prince! But I digress and that’s just me. Overall Dorothy’s character development is solid, her trials painful, her triumphs evoke pride. It’s worth a read if you’re into historical fiction and/or romance.

This historical saga is based on the true story of Dorothy Kirwin Thomas, a free woman of color who became a wealthy and powerful landowner. Doll is born into slavery on the Caribbean island of Montserrat and makes money in order to purchase freedom for her family. She leverages the opportunities she is given to the fullest and year by year amasses power and influence that she uses to help her whole family and other women of color to do better than was typical during that time period. .

This is an story of epic proportions; based on the real-life Dorothy Kirwan Thomas; a woman born into slavery who eventually bought her freedom and that of her family. She would go on to build several successful business and became one of the wealthiest women in the Caribbean. To say she was a legend is an understatement. Dorothy (Dolly) lived life on her own terms and through she had her fair share of heartache, she was not one to cower, but would learn from her mistakes and keep it moving.

Some of the drawbacks included keeping up with the many characters as well as the shifting timelines. I would start a chapter and really wasn't sure which island Dolly was on. I also felt like there was too much emphasis placed on her love life and not enough focus on her strong business acumen.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed getting insight into Dolly's character and seeing how she cared for those she loved. She was determined that her children would have the life she couldn't and would move heaven and earth to make it possible. She was definitely a woman ahead of her time.

Many thanks to William Morrow publishers and to Net Galley for an advanced readers copy. All reviews are my own.