An epic, wildly fun, over-the-top conclusion—and I’m totally here for it!

The final installment of The Dread Penny Society features the long-awaited showdown between The Dread Master and Tempest. It has everything—danger, action, romance, humor, magic, and a happy ending. Please do yourself a favor and read this amazing action-packed series in order. Truly, this series is a breath of fresh air. I loved Móirín and Fitz. Their banter is so much fun. I also loved seeing all the characters from previous books. While book 1 remains my favorite, The Queen and the Knave is a fantastic book with such roller coaster of emotions. The women really shone in this one and totally stole the show. Lastly, Móirín and Brogan share a beautiful sibling relationship. They love and care for each other so much.

I really hope Justine Eyre returns to narrate the audiobook.

CW: Kidnapping, blood, violence.

Thanks to Netgalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an e-ARC.

Great final story for the Penny Dreadfuls! We finally know who the Dread Master is and get to see the DM in action! I really enjoyed the relationship between Moirin and Fitzgerald; they have a chemistry that also has a logic to it. They are responsible for the people they care about and it shows. The showdown between the Dread Master and the Tempest is well worth waiting for and reminded me of the sharp wit and fast-paced story arc of Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty. All my favorite characters also had at least a small bit to play in the story (got to say, Fletcher is still my favorite Dreadful).

A great finish to the series and well worth the read!

Rated PG-13 for violence
--mild to no language
--clean romance (kisses)
--moderate violence (fairly non-graphic)
--moderate intense scenes/peril
--little to mild torture (mostly mental instead of physical)

I received this ebook free from NetGalley. My opinions are my own and voluntarily given.

As of right now, sadly, this is a DNF for me. I only reread The Bachelor and the Bride before starting this one. I'm feeling like I should have started rereading from the beginning of this series. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC copy. It's just not keeping my interest enough. I might go back to it some day when I can reread all the other books. This one just wasn't for me at the moment.

Each book in this series has the distinction of being very much its own story while contributing to the greater whole, which really is impressive. This book brings us to the end of the whole Tempest issue, although I admit to hoping for more books in the series itself. Moiran is an excellent heroine, even more so when we consider the role she's been playing from the shadows of the previous novels, and her romance with Fitz, although a bit more rushed than others in the series, is still nicely grounded and rewarding to read about. As always, the main story is broken up by two serialized penny dreadfuls, one by Mr. King (Elizabeth) and one by Moiran's pseudonym. The latter is something of a surprise, as it's basically the 19th century equivalent of an elderly sleuth novel, but that makes it fun. (And yes, the ladies <i>are</i> very good at dogs.) King's dreadful is a little too on-the-nose, but the fairy tale feel of it also sets it apart from earlier entries in a positive way.

As always, Eden's writing is excellent, and the plotting is deft. Period detail is excellent, and if the accents can be a little difficult to parse, they're still well within the realm of understandable. With a delightful blend of mystery and romance, this is simply a good book (and series) overall, and even if you don't think you'd like a "proper" sort of romance (i.e. closed door, fade-to-black), it's worth picking up the first book so that you can eventually get to this one.

Another great story by Sarah M Eden. I’ve enjoyed this series so much and am sad that I’ve made it to the end. This book was such a great finale! Moirin is so strong and capable, but she isn’t afraid to ask for help when she needs it. Great series!

What a highly adventurous book! I love a small mystery intertwined with a romance. Sarah has done a wonderful job bringing the two together with this final installment of the Dread Penny Society. I would highly recommend this book and any in the series!
Thanks to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I thought this conclusion to Sarah M. Eden's Dread Penny Society series was spectacular. I am not normally a fan of the Victorian period as the darkness and the hopelessness of the era is discouraging. Even though all of those elements are present in 'The Queen and the Knave' the resolution of the series was so satisfying and gave a plausible solution to a life that seemed impossible to redeem from negativity. There is a delightful love story and a revelation of absolute commitment to choosing what is right no matter the costs that elevates this story to memorable and edifying. I just loved it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

The Queen and the Knave is the 5th and final book in Sarah M. Eden’s Dread Penny Society series. I have absolutely loved this series and this finale has been highly anticipated for me!

I adore Moirin and Fitz! They are the definition of opposites attract! I love that Fitz teases Moirin and pushes her buttons just to get a rise out of her and how she does it right back to him! I think Moirin intimidates people and the only people who tease her are the ones who know her well. The fact that Fitz can tease her so easily says a lot about how well they fit together. I also love that Moirin acknowledges that humor helps her cope with stress and Fitz provides that for her. I love that Fitz is protective of Moirin without necessarily overpowering her. He lets her be the strong woman she is but is also there to back her up when she needs it. I love that balance. I also love how loyal they each are to the people and causes that are important to them.

I love the balance of suspense, romance, and comedy. These characters are hilarious and I just love hearing all the ridiculous things that come out of their mouths despite their dreadful situations (pun intended). I love that Moirin uses her humor to her advantage and how that ultimately is what sets her apart and gives her the extra something she needs to overcome The Tempest. I never thought I would laugh through a final battle, but I did and I loved it! It was very true to Moirin’s character and the feel of this whole series!

In all honesty, I was a little disappointed in the Tempest. I felt like she was all talk and was waiting for her to fight without the help of her henchmen. She’s great at blackmail, mind games and taking down powerful people, but I wanted to see her get her hands dirty and she seemed too above that. This is a great contrast to Moirin who does get her hands dirty and fights right alongside her people. She’s willing to trudge through the sewers for heavens sake! Moirin is a great leader because she never asks anyone to do anything she isn’t willing to do herself. I honestly can’t say the same for the Tempest.

I also really enjoyed the penny dreadful stories! The two old ladies solving crimes was hilarious and exactly what I would expect Moirin to write. I also loved the Queen and the Knave and the parallels to the main story.

Overall I loved this story and this series! It reminds me very much of the Robert Downey Jr. Sherlock Holmes movies. There were so many little details and Easter eggs that I will definitely need to go back and reread this series to find them all!

𝙰𝚑. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚕𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚍 𝙳𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝙿𝚎𝚗𝚗𝚢 𝚂𝚘𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚝𝚢. 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚙𝚞𝚝𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚏𝚏 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚎𝚗𝚍. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚂𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚑 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚍𝚛𝚊𝚖𝚊, 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎, 𝚜𝚞𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚎, 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚎. 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜... 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜𝚗’𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚋𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚋𝚎 𝚒𝚝.

𝙰𝚜 𝚊𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜, 𝙸 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚗𝚢 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 𝚐𝚘𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝’𝚜 𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚜' 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚜. 𝙰𝚜 𝙼𝚘𝚒𝚛𝚒𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙳𝙿𝚂 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚔 𝚝𝚘𝚐𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 (𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚍𝚘𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎) 𝚍𝚎𝚝𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎, 𝙳𝚎𝚝𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝙿𝚊𝚛𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚝𝚘𝚗, 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚎𝚜𝚝… 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐.

𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚜𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚍𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚗𝚎. 𝙰𝚕𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚜𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚕𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝙳𝙿𝚂 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜, 𝙸 𝚏𝚎𝚕𝚝 𝚂𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚑 𝚋𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚊 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚎𝚗𝚍. 𝙸𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎𝚗’𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚢𝚎𝚝, 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘. 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗’𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚎𝚗𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑.

While I absolutely love Sarah M. Eden’s books, this series has been a bit hit-or-miss for me. The Queen and the Knave, the final book in this series, is a fitting, but not completely satisfying, conclusion.

What this book does well: There’s a lot happening in The Queen and the Knave and Eden does an excellent job at wrapping up plot points and giving readers a fast-paced, high-stakes finale. The stars of the previous installments are utilized well without taking away from Móirín and Fitz’s story. The Victorian setting is beautifully captured.

What I was missing: The romance. The romance in this one is very simple. One of the things I adore about Sarah M. Eden’s books is the banter between the MCs. We don’t really get a ton of that. This book is much more focused on solving the mysteries and wrapping up the storylines. Which is fine but personally, I felt slightly let down by the romantic subplot.

Also, the penny dreadfuls intermixed with the main story have never been my cup of tea. I ended up skimming both of them by the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the eARC in exchange for this review.

Everything Sarah M. Eden writes is golden and worth a read, and this book is no different! You definitely need to read this series in order or this book won't make sense- so run and grab the others!

Móirín is the central character in this book and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. A sister of one of the DPS members, she's been a side character since the first book and I'd been hoping she'd have her own central story someday. Móirín is strong, bold, and a great role model- it was fun to watch this series come to an end in her capable hands.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves a good romance with a lot of action, history, and mystery- but only if they've read the others first!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

Every installment in this series has been an absolute five star experience!

These stories are told side by side with very creative of penny dreadful style stories. And the books are the perfect mix of adventure, mystery, and romance!

In this book Moirin finds herself at the center of a group of people who love her and are willing to fight for her, and that is just the best ending of all!

I received a free ARC from NetGalley, but all enthusiastic opinions are my own!

Have you been reading the Dread Penny Society series? I've been following along and loving them from the first book being released! I even went to a book release signing for one of them and met the author! She's amazing! Very talented author and storyteller. She has woven together an amazing tale of friends and a society trying to protect and help the oppressed and needy, as well as 5 sweet love stories. *Happy sigh* And those penny dreadfuls written in each of the books are deliciously gothic and full of fun, mischief, suspense and tales of triumph! If you didn't know, her publisher has taken all of the individual penny dreadfuls and compiled them into a beautiful book that will release around the same time as this book.

Just so everyone is aware, this is a series where you HAVE to read every book in order! Each story builds into the next and boy are there some awesome plot twists and big reveals along the way!!! This book features a certain Irish lass, Móirín, and a certain police detective, Fitz Parkington, whom the lass can't help but rib, tease and keep a close eye on. These two have been dancing around each other for several books and I'm pleased as punch (ok, maybe that's not the best time to use the phrase but I really am pleased-not like punch- and this phrase is perfect for this book and time period-IFKYK) that they finally are acknowledging what all of us readers have already known and have seen. They're so cute together! And such a great duo in detective work!

I really don't want to give any spoilers here. None at all! This book is power packed and full of lots of whodunnit and guessing and hoping the Dread Penny members can all be safe and hurry up and figure out what's going on with the Tempest! Time is running out. And nobody knows who will be next.

I loved seeing all of the previous characters again! We get a lot of all of them throughout the book! Woohoooooo!!!!! Seriously they're all wonderful and have their own strengths and it's great seeing them come together and helping each other!

I know I'm gushing but honestly I can't help it! I seriously love this series and it just goes to show again why the author is one of my all time favorites! She's a master at her craft! I'm sad this is the final book but it was an amazing end to an amazing series! I'll be revisiting it again and again!

Content: Clean. There are moments of mild violence and peril but nothing overly graphic. Some death, some danger, some fights, etc. No explicit content and nothing more than kisses.

I received a copy from the publisher, Shadow Mountain Publishing, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

Happy Reading!!!

This was an amazing conclusion to the series! I’m kinda sad it’s over. I loved how everything throughout the series tied together though. Sarah m Eden really is an amazing author and I understand why everyone loves her so much!! I loved Móirín and Fitz!! They balanced each other so well and their banter was hilarious!!
That ending though! I didn’t see it coming and it was epic!! Everything was so well written and thought out and I loved all the details that fit into place!!

I received a complementary copy from netgalley, but I was not required to give a positive review

A very satisfying conclusion to the Dread Penny Society series. This story had a lot going on. Almost too much going on. And included two penny dreadfuls. And so I felt like the primary story was rushed. So much needed to occur in order to end The Tempest’s reign that I think it could have been fleshed out, perhaps even in two books. Instead it was so busy that I finished it feeling a bit dizzy.

This was a great conclusion to the Dread Penny Society. This series MUST be read in order or you will be completely lost with all the characters and storylines.

I loved seeing Móirín and Fitz! Their banter was perfection. The mystery and suspense kept me guessing. And I loved seeing all the dreadfuls together again.

I will say that one of the penny dreadful stories didn't really capture me, so I skipped it. But I loved Mr. King's, The Queen and the Knave! I honestly could have read a much longer and more in depth of that story.

All in all, a great conclusion to this unique and fun series!

*I received an ARC from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

As much as I love and look forward to every one of Sarah Eden’s book, this series is my favorite of hers. How she writes the main story, plus two penny dreadfuls the way she does is masterful. They all connect and are engaging in so many ways. (Posie and Pru are my favorite things ever!) The author has a wonderful talent for making even the tiniest details in the book brilliant and so important to the story. In case those reading this review haven’t read The Bachelor and the Bride (the book before this one), I won’t try to summarize or give hints to this one. But just know this is one of the best series I have read and The Queen and the Knave was an excellent end. The twists and turns were written well and each character good or bad written with care and precision.
I received a copy from the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.

I cannot believe we have come to the end of this series! Sarah M. Eden has given us a uniquely fun series full of wit, mystery and Victorian flair. The Queen and the Knave answers all of those lingering questions that have developed as this series has progressed. The banter between Moirin and Fitz was the absolute best! I enjoyed the dynamic of two strong and capable characters. It’s sad to see this series come to an end, it has been such a fun ride!

Overall Impression: An exciting ending to an intriguing series. I couldn't put this down until I reached the ending.

This is the fifth and final book in the Dread Penny Society series. I highly recommend reading the books in order. While the romance in each book reaches its conclusion in each book, there is an overarching story that builds through each book and concludes in this book.

Once again you get three stories in one book. The dread penny novels in this book are written by "Mr. King" and the female main character writing under a pseudonym. The plot of the dread penny novels enhance the characterization and flow of the main storyline.

The main storyline kept me on the edge of my seat. The final showdown was epic and was resolved in a way that I did not expect.

Even though this is the final book in the series, I hope the author continues to write stories set in this world. There are several members of the Dread Penny Society that I would love to see as main characters in a novel or novella.

Thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced e-ARC. These opinions are my own.

The Queen and the Knave by Sarah M. Eden is the 5th and final story of the Dread Penny Society series. This has been such a fun and different series! There have been some great mysteries, wonderful couples, and lots of intrigue. I also thoroughly enjoyed the addition of the Penny Dreadfuls in each story.

First, this series really should be read in order and at a minimum, you must read book 4, The Bachelor and the Bride, or you will be pretty confused. This conclusion is full of twists and turns, answers to many questions, and romance. We also get to catch up with the previous couples. While this wasn’t my favorite of the series, it was really nice to have all of our questions answered. I also really, really wanted a story for Stone and was sad that we didn’t get one.

If you’re looking for a Victorian series with romance and intrigue and mystery, this is the series for you!

I received a complimentary copy of this story. All opinions are my own.