I like the idea of this book but felt there was too much plot crammed into it. If it had been spread out into 2 or 3 books, the timeline would've made more sense and the character development would've been more realistic. The pacing of the first 2/3 was a bit fast but not terrible, while the final 1/3 went by so quickly it was very jarring.

I love fantasy. I love sapphic books. A sapphic fantasy should be right up my alley, but, unfortunately, Traitors of the Black Crown doesn’t have a lot going for it apart from the queer rep.
The plot was there, but it’s hard to see it underneath so many convoluted layers of dullness. I considered DNFing several times because I couldn’t find it in myself to care, but I don’t DNF arcs and forced myself to keep going. I won’t be picking up the sequel if it ever gets published because, even if the ending was interesting, the best part about it was that the book was finally over, and that’s not the experience I’d like to have while reading.

this book overall is a good fantasy. amazing characters, plot, and world-building. not much else to say its a fun read if you're just getting into fantasy.

dnf @ 40% i believe i cant remember.

i have an arc of this but never got to finish and forgot to log it so here we are.

um it was quite boring as far as i remember. nothing was really happening except a lot of politics that we were thrown into the deep end for. also i didnt really like how two of the main characters were hooking up where one was a girl pretending to be a boy but the other didnt know idk.

im sure it picked up after where i left off but this wasnt for me.

DNF around 40% I really tried to get into this book but it just dragged. Not for me. But some might enjoy.

I actually enjoyed reading the first few chapters but like I came to one point that the chapters dragged and I lost the whole plot.
I had to DNF but it had a lot of potential, I just wished it hooked me more!
(those two stars are exclusively for the first few chapters)

DNF at 38%.

I tried. Really tried but this book just isn't for me.
Had a super interesting premises but it was just a little too slow for my liking.

I love all the elements in this book and the cover is amazing! However, this book just wasn’t for me. I think lovers of fantasy and LGBT books should still give this one a try!

Thank you to Hansen House and NetGalley for the ARC.

This book was pretty good on the world-building but felt like it could be a little more. While I enjoyed the characters and the romance. I was a little afraid that it was going to be a big insta-love thing between Raena and Avenna. Thank goodness there was a lot more to them than that.

I found that the book can be a little slow at times; it made it a little difficult to get through., but when it was OK, it was a lot more interesting when it focused on the main plot.. I found the dynamic between to two main characters really good, the whole mistaken identity secret. I liked but the romance was ok for me. Loved the villain. She was probably the best part of this book.

In the end, I found Traitor to the Black Crown - Ok.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange of an honest review.

DNF 20%
This is a hard review to make, because of not for one thing or another i cant really say there's something really wrong with the book. The problem was just that i didn't have anything to keep me hooked. I was enjoying Raenas' relationship with Finn but they soon get separated and I didn't have it anymore.

One thing that i can say that did bother me though was the long action scenes. But this is also mostly a personal taste too.

I would still read something else the author writes because i see potential in this, it just sadly wasn't my cup of tea.

Im giving a 3 mostly for what i think the book deserves objectively.

I was looking forward to what sounded like an interesting a queer adventure and fantasy novel, but I think the book fell short for me. For me, it was 100% the pacing that really made this difficult for me to get passed the 30% mark. I restarted a couple of times and pushed myself through that barrier I had and I don’t think the rest of the story made up for the trouble I had initially.

To anyone reading this, please note that I was unable to download this book due to unknown error. I did requested it at some point and when I check back, it was already on my shelf with no option to download. I had to post this feedback even though I haven't read the book in case it might affect my feedback ratio.

It was a big shame but unfortunately this book wasn't my cup of tea. The plot did get me excited and I had high hopes from the blurb but the pacing was too slow and I found my interest waning.

Unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. I had high hopes for it because the premise intrigued me, but found the pacing too slow to keep me interested. Neither the plot nor the characters could make up for the slow start so ultimately I decided to DNF this one.

With Thanks to Cate Pearce for a Advanced readers copy of this book

2* DNF at 45%

Okay, I'll start honestly and say I am in a big slump just now, but the pacing of this book is so very slow. The synopsis, and premise are great. The execution however leaves a lot to be desired.

1) World building is very inconsistent, in some passages its stellar, and really drops the reader into the scene. It others its very quick and slapdash.
2) The characters are flat, I would love to read this book with strong character focus and fleshed out real people.
3) What is the plot? Have I not read enough? I got nearly half way through and I still am unsure of what the plot is.

With only that being said this is just one persons opinion, go forth and try for yourselves.

I really liked the characters and the romance felt very genuine.

The overall plot was great, however I found the first 30% too slow and it took me several attempts to start this book.

Really interesting premise. Full review to be posted soonish. I'll update review with links to socials.
I would like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly I DNF’d this one at like 35%? I found the plot to be very lackluster and nothing was really happening. I couldn’t connect with the characters at all or particular enjoyed the story. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC but I unfortunately will probably not be finishing the rest of this book!

Review excerpted from my blog post over at Pan/Cis LGBT2SQ+ Romance Reviews (https://pancis.wordpress.com/2022/01/28/traitors-of-the-black-crown-by-cate-pearce/).

Overall Rating: 3.5 stars

Library recommendation: Recommended for public library LGBT2SQ+ adult fantasy collections.

Warning: Hereafter, you chance spoilers. I will try never to reveal major plot points, but to review any book, you must reveal some parts of the story.

_____________


Love story speed: Medium burn

Relationship dynamics: The Low-Born Duchess (h1) / The Knight Hiding in Plain Sight (h2)

Sexual content: Some; off-page, vaguely alluded to on-page

Gender Identity: Cis (h1) / Cis (h2)

Sexual Identity: Bisexual (h1); Unclear (h2)

Triggers: Gruesome death; war; torture; elder abuse; sexual and physical assault referred to during trauma responses (PTSD)

Acceptance Rating: 3.0 stars

Acceptance Rating Explanation: Broadly speaking, homosexuality and dressing as a gender other than that assigned at birth does not seem to be a viable option in this society. That being said, there are those characters who seek to protect the heroines from discovery.

Grammar/Editing: My ARC had fair number of grammar (e.g. possessive vs. plural) and word choice issues.

Review: This quick-paced novel is set in a fantasy world generally reminiscent of medieval times. The worldbuilding was okay, but would have benefited from the inclusion of a map to give more opportunity for readers to orient themselves while reading. While I won’t reveal the ending, it is worth noting that this book is saved from the label of “cliffhanger” only by the inclusion of a preview of the next installment in the series.

The main characters of this novel are Raena (aka Rowan) and Avenna (aka Aven). They have instant attraction and heavy chemistry, although this is complicated by the fact that, at first, Avenna is not aware that Rowan is actually Raena. Aside from awkwardness over the differences between their customs and Raena’s secret, the tension is externally driven. Readers should be aware that this book is more fantasy than romance, although the romance does take centre stage for a portion of the plot. There are, notably, a fair few supporting characters, and many are decently developed. The female villain has the best character development, as well as her own point of view within the narrative (undoubtedly why she has the best development. The most interesting part of this is that it is clear that she is an unreliable narrator, given that she is very unwell and unable to accurately track the passage of time.

Overall, an interesting debut, and I am likely to read the next installment in the series.

Full disclosure: I received a free advance review copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

DNF
I read about a third of the way through this a while ago. It was boring and I didn't care about the characters. I know I won't like it and I won't be reading the rest of the series, so there is no point in continuing.