Recommended: for other people
For a world of many characters, for a book that's more about the journey than the destination, for a lot of backstory and build up and a very sudden resolution

Thoughts:
Alright, here's my biggest gripe: the ending was terrible. It was extraordinarily disappointing and underwhelming, and it annoyed me that I waited all this time to see it and it was spectacularly crap. Both endings, I'll say, since there's kind of two key plot points that get wrapped up. This is why I say this book is about the journey, and definitely not the destination. There's no strong resolution here, and ultimately, you could probably read the second book in the series without reading this one and be well off.

For me this was a mostly ok read because it wasn't AWFUL, but it was kind of boring with very little payoff for all the time I put in. Considering I read a 500+ page fantasy book in The City of Brass this month in three days, and this one at around 450 pages took me about a month speaks volumes. It just didn't suck me in. While I was reading it, I meandered my way through the story slowly, plodding along with the characters. But in between reading sessions, I never particularly felt called to go back to it. It was more of a desire to finish it than a desire to see it finished, if you get what I mean.

And WOW, were there a lot of characters. I can't even name how many character perspectives we followed, because there were probably 9 or 10. Remarkably, I didn't care about any of them. I think this is due to the fact that with so many, none got a solid stream of attention to develop and catch my empathy. The story also spans many years, with gaps of decades or years at a time, so I would come back to a very different person than I had originally met. I essentially had to start over with them.

I saw some other reviews point out other issues, such as the society where men are just things to have sex with and be concubines, essentially. Or a scene where a young girl is consoled about the death of her friend by another adult woman giving her an orgasm with a sex toy. What the fuck? These are valid points, and yet I was in such a haze reading through this that they barely registered at the time because I was just plodding through the pages.

Now I realize this sounds like a lot of complaints, and for me, this book just didn't really work. However, I do think this is a read that will work for other people. For people who love character studies, and slower paced reads with a lot of exploration of the world and mind, this will probably be a hit. If you like long-spanning plot with a lot of reflective qualities, and don't mind slower action, then this will probably do you good.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for a free advanced copy of this book. This is my honest review.

This is a very atmospheric and well written depiction of a matriarchal society, and I really enjoyed it. It gave me really similar vibes to the Women’s War trilogy by Jenna Glass. I thought that each of the main characters were fleshed out quite well; you got some backstory on each of them which was helpful. I do wish that there were some more differences between each of the queendoms, they really didn’t seem all that different from each other (both the settings and the people). I wasn’t aware when I requested this ARC that it was book one in a series. I think with a bit of editing & maybe an extra fifty pages this could have functioned very well as a standalone. Regardless, I am looking forward to the next installment to see what happens.

Thank you to NetGalley & Gallery Books for this advanced reader copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I love Greer’s other novels and her writing style but I should have known that fantasy or science-do isn’t my thing. Yet the queendoms that she creates are vivid and alluring.

I have a feeling people who love fantasy will love this series.

This is a rich and intriguing fantasy. I've heard people called it 'Game of Thrones' for women, but lets be clear : it has similar vibes but can very well stand on its own. The women and general characters in this are so intriguing. There a deaths that I did not expect. I received it early on my kindle but will also be buying the physical copy.

A completely female centered fantasy you say? YES!! You read that right! For all of us who have been desperate for a story like this, please read Scorpica!! The world building is marvelous and rich with five queendoms who each have a specialization that allows them to all work well and support the others. Arca has magic, Bastion keeps the records and histories, Sestia provides food, Paxim is the political arm and Scorpica is the warrior queendom. For hundreds of years these queendoms have thrived. Then suddenly, girls stop being born and all that was well balanced begins to tip into chaos. The queens are forced to take action and battle an ancient foe wielding incredible magical power.
The range of characters and their arc's that you follow really draws you into the world and to see how the threads are finally brought together is terrific. I liked Fasiq and the band of Rovers, and how Eminel will deal with all that happens and her abilities will be exciting to follow. Scorpica is a fantastic start to a new series and I am certainly looking forward to where this story goes next!!

Thanks to Gallery Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of Scorpica!

I thought this was an interesting first entry to a fantasy series, and I think it was neat to read about a world based on a matriarchal society. Despite spanning years upon years, I found the book did read quickly, and I liked that there was a variety of POV characters, and sometimes multiple POV characters per chapter. The author clearly loves this world and the characters that populate it, and I appreciated that she didn't steer away from the brutality of her world and there were a couple of surprising deaths.

With that in mind, this book did raise some questions that I hope will maybe be further explored later in the series, since when I started this I found myself often wondering if what I was reading was a lot of gender essentialism, which was most prominent in the two main featured queendoms (but Scorpica especially). I thought that Part I read as a very long prologue, and that at times it felt that maybe parts of this book could be expanded upon and thus the book was split in two parts. I also have some questions about the ending, but I think those will probably be answered in the next installment, which I do look forward to reading.

Though at times this book was a bit messy, I did find it to be a fun read and while it did raise questions in me about how this world will treat gender, it was still refreshing to read fantasy that wasn't utterly rife with misogyny. Very interesting and I'm interested in seeing where this series is going.

I'd like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for a chance at reading this book.

This book has such a really strong narrative offer. It also seems to entice those who are after Wonder Woman-esque Amazonian fans. Which is what really got me interested (besides Robin Hobb's glowing review).

This book is a dialogue light book, the characters speak so sparsely and when they do it's nothing important and the dialogue comes across rather juvenile. On top of that, because we are told mostly though observation text we don't get a good grasp of the characters.

The author also does not explain the world and the people that inhabit it. All I knew by 20% into the book is that there are 5 various kingdoms. The women treat men like shit, except when they have to use them to father children. Every time when a boy is born they send them away? There is a drought of girls being born and when some of them are born they are born with magic which is bad thing (? - jury is still out on that) and some are built with healing, some are offered to be warriors. So I guess you can say the world building is shit.

I do a test and the test is - if I close my eyes can I tell the difference between the characters, can I picture them in my eyes and their flaws and weaknesses? No. I couldn't.

Scorpica was one of the best fantasy's I've read recently.

Scorpica's main plot is centered around five queendoms and the Drought of Girls, a phenomena where no more girls are being born. This odd occurrence effects the queendoms in various ways. Be it religiously, politically, etc. It gave the book a 'end of the world' vibe that felt wholly original. To see the various queendoms struggle with this concept and fight for survival was exquisite. And don't worry, there is plenty of magical goodness sprinkled throughout the story to make things all the more complicated.

The character's of Scorpica are a treasure. The book spans roughly 14 years, and within those many years you'll encounter a variety of strong female characters. Not a single male lead is featured in Scorpica and it was refreshing. There are plenty of twists and surprises that upset who the main cast is, but it made the struggles between these five queendoms feel all the more real. There wasn't one storyline that I wasn't excited to dive back into. It was either a dangerous sorceress who wanted revenge, a queen who viciously desires immortality, or a queendom upset by the constant thirst for power and control.

Scorpica laid down the foundation for a fantastic fantasy world that I can't wait to dive back into.

A feminist game-of-thrones-eque novel, with a healthy dose of fantasy. I have to say this book was a LONG READ. It took me about a week to get through. And that’s just cuz it’s packed with detail. I really enjoyed the detail, but sometimes it feels like I was left lacking when a characters story just…. Abruptly ended. I’m really hoping that certain characters get brought up in future novels but I guess I’ll just have to wait and see!

Rated 4 stars because while it was GREAT and a really enjoyable read, at times I felt a bit lost in the plot lines and I feel like some characters just got dropped.

I received this as a galley in exchange for review!

Scorpica is an incredible fantasy book full of cutthroat betrayal, duels and battles, political intrigue, and sorcery. It moves at lightning speed and constantly changes directions so you never quite know where the plot is heading.

The book is set in a world with five queendoms where women have political power and it usually passes from mother to daughter. Each queendom has a different climate, culture, and religion, with some more focused on battles and war, some focused on magic, and so on. This balance exists for hundred of years when suddenly and with no explanation, baby girls stop being born. This time is called The Drought of Girls.

The book begins immediately before the Drought and introduces key characters from several different regions in this world, including some of the last girls born. Time passes rather quickly in this book and you get to see several generations. As you might imagine, in a world that is so dependent on matriarchy, the Drought causes a lot of chaos and rising tension between the different regions as they all form their own plans to deal with the changing world.

I found the plot very unpredictable despite it having some classic tropes. The strength of this story is the way the spotlight shifts from one character to another as they grow up and how initially unrelated storylines begin to intertwine.

While this book is definitely not a romance, many characters are openly queer and it's not a big deal to anyone; it's simply normalized and accepted within the world.

There was some resolution at the end of this book but it definitely sets up for a sequel, which I'm already excited for. This was such a strong beginning to a new fantasy series and I highly recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this ARC to review!

CW: child sacrifice

This was definitely a vanity request first and foremost because I love covers with gold color palettes and this one with its intricately designed dagger was a beauty. I was also quite intrigued by this world of queendoms and immediately requested an arc. And this was such a ride.

The world building was a major draw for this book and I’m glad it didn’t disappoint on that level. We never do get to know why the women in this world are so powerful except for it being their god’s will but I loved the history of how the Great Peace came to be and the unique ways each queendom differs from each other. Their specific characteristics together make for a very coherent whole and I loved how the author managed to create them. The pacing is also pretty steady, never too fast or slow, but with its own reflective moments, covering more than a decade of the story. The writing is straightforward and easy to follow, with not too many flourishes, but I think it suited the slightly harsh circumstances of this world.

This is not a spoiler because it’s mentioned in the blurb but the idea of what will happen to a matriarchal world when girls stop being born is a fascinating premise and I was really excited to see the issues arising with this play out. I probably did want to see more of the political machinations and how the common people were dealing with the issue, but we never get to explore the societal wide implications. The author mainly focused on what it meant to one of the queendoms and how they decided to deal with it - I wasn’t completely disappointed but I just expected more.

There are a whole number of women POVs to follow along here and it was nice to get such a variety. Tamura and Mirriam are both conniving queens in their own ways - Tamura hiding all her insecurities by leaning on her warrior side, with a thirst for blood and conquest; Mirriam on the other hand who can’t trust anyone around her, paranoid to the core, all powerful magic user but all alone. Jehenit is a healer who takes her duty to her village very seriously but all that changes when she needs to protect her only daughter. Vishala is bound by her loyalty to her queen, more than to her homeland, and will do anything to protect her heir. Gretti is a reluctant strategist who is loyal to her people more than the Queen and will try her best to protect them all, but is not fond of conquest or bloodshed. Eminel is an unexpected prodigy who doesn’t realize what she is capable of. And finally Sessadon - the resentful one, who wasn’t chosen to be queen but will destroy the world to make it kneel in front of her. All these women are dynamic, their personalities shining through the pages, and I loved getting to know each of their strengths and vulnerabilities and guessing what they might do next. There is so much tension in their relationships and life altering consequences to their actions, and it was fun exploring it all.

In conclusion, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book and I loved savoring the book a bit slowly than I usually do. The world is fascinating, the magic is cool, the ensemble of characters is brilliant (whether I actually like them or not is a different matter) and the plot is convoluted in some ways, but thrilling in others. I liked how this first book is almost self contained with an interesting conclusion, while leaving lots of possibilities for the sequel. I’m definitely looking forward to it.

Several chapters in it is very clear that "Scorpica" introduces us to a world vast in scope, spanning not just multiple lands and cultures, but generations.

There are five Queendoms that comprise the fantasy world of "Scorpica" - yes, the cultures are refreshingly matriarchal - each populating a geographically distinct land and thus each specializing in their own skill. The focus of this first novel in a series is on two of the five queendoms, Scorpica and Arca, and by extension on their specialized crafts of war and magic. These two lands are populated by women whose aptitudes are determined by the accident of location/birth. As a result "Scorpica" is a multi-voiced story, told from the alternating point of view of queens and queens-to-be, healers, and even would-be-goddesses.

This well oiled machine of inter-connected matriarchal queendoms (one cannot survive without the others) is thrown into chaos when girls stop being born. In a world where every person of consequence and function is a woman, it forecasts literal doom, end of civilization as they know it.

In this society males are completely subservient, are bartered for food, or chosen to be husbands for their looks. The concept was actually a bit disquieting, as I did not enjoy marginalizing a huge swath of the population to this degree.

The aforementioned unease was one of the reasons I did not enjoy the novel as much as I'd hoped. The POV structure means that there shall be at least one character the reader will enjoy, but none jumped out at me, personally. I found the overall pace slow, as well, and the amount of dialogue is very limited, the majority of the story told/described from a third person perspective.

As a positive, there are quite a few unexpected twists and turns and the novel does resolve the major plot threads, while laying the ground for the next installment.

Not what I expected, but I really enjoyed the world building the author accomplished and the all-female ruler vibe felt believable. Strong women you can appreciate and it's definitely not a fluff story, so be prepared for anything to happen. Can't wait to read the, hopefully, next book!

thank you to netgalley for this arc.

scorpica is an incredible book full of world-building, character development, and plot twists.

what i loved most about this book was the matriarchal society, and how even in all of these queendoms, the women can be as cutthroat as the men. in this world, men are only used for a few things, and women are held to the highest regard. they are the leaders of their world. giving birth to a woman, especially in scorpica, is of the highest honor, as they are the ones who become warriors. boys who are born are cast out and sent to the bastion, where intelligence and research is prevalent. then there is arca, where magic is practiced, and paxim, where laws and government are valued. then there is sestia, where "religion" is valued above all.

there is not a ton of dialogue in this book, but that does not matter to me. i enjoy description and setting and tone more than unnecessary dialogue, and macallister gives me just enough.

this book read similarly to game of thrones, but the descriptions are not as long and heady. they are, in fact, rather beautiful and give you just enough to imagine what the world looks like. we are also left to wonder about some of the characters, and i believe they will be making their appearance again in book two.

i am very glad this will be a series, because i just cannot get enough of these women and what they will do next.

Fantastically imagined brand new offering of a matriarchal society fantasy world, in which anything can happen and the reader is kept guessing until the end.

Before picking up this advance copy of SCORPICA, I feared my life-long love affair with fantasy was over, as each offering felt like just another same book with young heroine who saves her world, with one cool twist and different title. From page one of SCORPICA, I knew this drought was over. Perhaps it is because of the matriarchal society, a definite rarity in fiction (until this book creates a boom!). But also it is because this is a multi-voiced story, with fully fleshed protagonists and antagonists, and chaos reigning supreme. I hate to compare it to GAME OF THRONES, because it is very different from that book, but in that sense, it is absolutely game on.

SCORPICA's set up happens quick: in a world of 5 queens, their annual gathering goes drastically wrong, Little do they know that they've entered a drought where only boys are born, except for the last few baby girls, born to some of our characters.

Now, with a premise like that, in a matriarchal society, problems abound.

One of the great things about SCORPICA is that I did actually bond with each character, and though I had a favorite, as I am now anticipating book two, I am interested to find out what each surviving character does. And I'm eager to hear about a few characters that I *think* will be really up to some fun twists in book two. Also, I'm a reader who demands a great ending, and this one delivers, with some twists I didn't anticipate. So buckle up and enjoy the ride.

Though I received an advance copy in exchange for an honest opinion, this book is complicated enough (THANK YOU!!) that I can't wait to listen to the audio I've already ordered. Perhaps I'll have more to say as I'm expecting a great experience, and can't wait to catch more things the second time around. Great job GR MACCALLISTER, and here's to GIRL POWER.
NOTE: THERE IS A MAP! Hurrah. It's not so complicated that I absolutely needed a character list, but I think book two certainly better have one.

New favorite. Period. I will freaking reread this book in a heartbeat. It isn't a complete lie to say it is A Song of Ice and Fire baby - with Queendoms instead of Kingdoms. That said, it is an adult read - NOT YA. I thought the plot was interesting and I loved all of the characters - even the baddies. The world-building is also amazing. It is also a sapphic read. I'm a little surprised by some of the bad reviews and who knows - it could be because of all the TWs so I'll put those below. I am super excited for book two and I would recommend this book to anyone who loves adult epic fantasies. Definitely check it out.

TWs:
Human sacrifices, kidnapping, murder, manipulation, sexism

~Thank you Saga Press and Netgalley for allowing me to receive an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!~

4.5⭐𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬
* I was very excited for this book and had high expectations, and I'm proud to say I was not disappointed in most aspects. The book was good, but there were some small minor issues that brought it down from 5 stars but I still recommend it.

𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭
*Most of the issues with the book are laid in the plot. There were numerous different POVs that made the plot odd and hard to connect to because we were constantly seeing different characters, different plot lines and there was no main overarching plot. I have nothing against multiple POVs but I think this was a bit excessive for my taste.

*Besides this, I felt there were high stakes and issues that the characters were presented with, I just felt that there could have been more depth if the story focused on a few set characters and not all of these different ones that really didn't add to the plot.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬
*I did like most of the characters, I felt the protagonists were likable and the antagonists had true motives. Despite the multiple POVs, I did think there was enough character development for each one, and life was given to them all. The differing ages and backgrounds made it unique and I did enjoy the sapphic relationships between characters. Overall, the characters were good and pretty solid with development.

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠
* This is where the book was able to shine. The ideas were unique and the different queendoms and people interested me quite a lot. The magic system had meat to it but also left a hint of mystery to it. I also enjoyed how a lot of the queendoms were desert kingdoms, something not always seen in YA Fantasy. The rites and gods were also fun to read about and I felt the story utilized them properly.

𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥
*This book was good and had a solid foundation. Im curious to know if a sequel is planned or if this will be a standalone. If it's a series I do plan to continue it, and I think it does have the potential to be something great.

This book was difficult for me to get through%. I was not drawn to the storyline and it fell flat to me

Thank you to Netgalley, Saga Press and the author for providing me with an eARC of this novel, however, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I can certainly see why people are saying this is a feminist "Game of Thrones". On the surface this looks like a really richly-drawn fantasy world, but aside from it being painted as matriarchal, a lot of the concepts aren't that unique. Having each kingdom coded as the one with the warriors, the magic users, or the bureaucrats isn't that unique. Many kingdoms in fantasy novels are specialized in this way. However, that is really the least of my problems.

As a character first reader, the way this is written the characters are held at arms length. It's told like a saga or even a history book. And yes, I mean told. We're told what is happening instead of being shown for the most part. This makes the book extremely dry and a bit boring. Also, there is little to no dialogue, which didn't bother me when I was younger, but bothers me quite a bit now. I find that I need it to connect with characters and to break up all the descriptions, which admittedly were well written. On a conceptual level, I find this book very interesting, but in actuality it was a slog to get as far as I did and I'm not intending on finishing.

Overall, I would recommend this for readers who are into sagas and history, but don't need to have an emotional attachment to the characters to keep them interested in a book. While certain aspects of the cultures are interesting, I'm not sure if it will be enough to keep die hard fantasy readers going, but it may be worth them checking out.

First of all, thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Going into this book I was optimistic, but I was pretty let down. The pacing was slow and made it hard to get into. There was so much world-building going on that the characters got left behind. I didn’t feel connected to them and the characters that did have depth died. I think honestly much of the beginning could be condensed to be more engaging. The main thing I liked about this book was the world with interesting countries and I loved the matriarchal aspect.