I really enjoyed the first book in this trilogy, The Buried and The Broken, but I think this sequel succumbed to Middle Book Syndrome.

A little bit.

The thing is, it’s still a very easy, enjoyable read that doesn’t flinch away from interesting, sometimes darker themes. The prose that elevated Buried & Broken runs like cool, clear water through Summer Queen, smooth and silken. And the characters continue to be fabulous; they all get to develop in Summer Queen, moving a few steps along in their evolution. For Aziza, it’s the beginning of learning what her hedewitchery can do and how it can be used to greatest effect; Tristan is becoming more confident and whole within himself, finding a home and accepting that he’s not the person Leo fell in love with before; and Leo wrestles with being the lone ‘normal human’ in the coven and finding ways to carry his own weight (even though Aziza and Tristan don’t see things that way at ALL).

But most of the plot of Summer Queen was – I don’t want to call it a waste of time…except that it kind of was? Everything the coven went through was for nothing in the end – it allowed each of them to learn more about their abilities, but it was pretty literally one lesson for each character. If the whole point of the book was to make sure the teens got these lessons, then…surely that could have been arranged WITHOUT the whole Hunt quest?

The plot hinged on a few leaps of logic that didn’t make sense to me. For instance, Leo becomes convinced that his lost true love was taken as a servant by the Folk – but he has absolutely no evidence of that? The curse was that his true love would be ‘taken’ from him, but how he goes from that to ‘the Summer Court has my true love!’ I have no clue. (To say nothing of: even if we accept the Folk might have taken this person…the Summer Court is far from the only court! Why do you think your person would be here specifically?)

There was a frustrating amount of things going unexplained – for example, the big quest Leo and the others have to go on? Was never explained. Why are they hunting this creature? What IS it, really? The coven reaches it, scoops up some of its water, and leaves, and the whole thing was very…underwhelming and hand-wavey?

The character-growth was excellent; the prose is still lovely; the plot was a whole lot of waffling. But I'm still going to be pouncing on book three!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

"The Summer Queen" by Rochelle Hassan is a lush and enchanting fantasy that immerses readers in a vibrant world of magic and political intrigue. Its richly drawn characters and captivating plot create a mesmerizing and unforgettable read.

I don't know if it's because we already knew the characters but I liked this one a lot more than the first book. Well I still had a lot of struggles with the narrator for Tristan, I felt like I was better able to manage that this time around. Maybe it's because I knew he was going to be narrating it going into it or just that this story worked a little better for me.

I really liked the element of the fae in this book and the magical system seemed a little bit more developed. I'm hoping we get another book that dives into some of the selkie culture and lore.

If we do get a third book, I can confidently say this book does not suffer from second book syndrome. It is engaging and interesting on its own and has its own set of conflicts to solve and new characters added to the mix.

This enthralling sequel to 'The Buried and the Bound' immerses readers in a mesmerizing world of the Fair Folk, evoking the allure and danger reminiscent of beloved fae realms. Aziza, Leo, and Tristan navigate the aftermath of their previous trials, confronting painful secrets and lingering scars while grappling with new mysteries. As the Summer Court descends upon Blackthorn with enigmatic intentions, Leo's refusal to yield sparks a daring journey into the heart of Elphame, where winning comes with a perilous price. With its captivating blend of fantasy and adventure, this novel captivates from start to finish, offering a thrilling continuation that will enchant fans of fae folklore and magical realms.

I had listened to 'The Buried and the Bound' as an audiobook, so I really enjoyed the e-arc of this novel.

The Summer Queen by Rochelle Hassan is a captivating blend of romance, fantasy, and adventure that transports readers to a world filled with magic, intrigue, and forbidden love. Set in a lush and vividly imagined realm, the story follows the journey of Aelwyn, a young woman destined to become the next ruler of the Summer Court.

Hassan skillfully weaves together elements of mythology and folklore, creating a rich tapestry of lore and legend that adds depth and authenticity to the narrative. The world-building is immersive, allowing readers to easily lose themselves in the enchanting landscapes and vibrant cultures of the Summer Court and its neighboring realms.

At the heart of the story is Aelwyn's struggle to navigate the complexities of love and duty. Caught between her blossoming feelings for a forbidden love interest and the weight of her responsibilities as the future queen, Aelwyn must confront difficult choices that will shape the fate of her kingdom.

The characters in The Summer Queen are well-developed and relatable, each with their own hopes, fears, and desires. Aelwyn is a compelling protagonist whose journey of self-discovery and growth will resonate with readers. The supporting cast adds depth and dimension to the story, with each character playing a unique role in Aelwyn's journey.

The pacing of the novel is brisk, with plenty of twists and turns to keep readers engaged from start to finish. Hassan's prose is lyrical and evocative, painting vivid pictures with her words and bringing the world of the Summer Court to life in exquisite detail.

Overall, The Summer Queen is a spellbinding tale of love, magic, and destiny that will enchant readers of all ages. With its lush world-building, compelling characters, and gripping storyline, it is sure to leave a lasting impression long after the final page is turned.

The Summer Queen is a good sequel that doesn't quite hit the second book slump. Aziza, Leo, and Tristan are all such great, layered characters and I loved being with them again. Rochelle Hassan's fae are very reminiscent of Holly Black's - conniving. lovely and complex. However, the diversity of these characters, and the level of angst these books bring make me much more likely to recommend these to young readers. Leo and Tristan are both so easy to root for that my heart immediately breaks for them in this, and Aziza's story is expertly built on here.

My biggest issue with this is the pacing. There's a super fun fae road trip element that I wish had more page time. The beginning of this is sort of slow, the ending is rushed, and the middle is easily the most interesting. I was never bored, but I felt that there was like there were like three main conflicts which are sort of hard to keep up with. Still, I loved the sibling dynamic at the heart of this, and the side relationships that added more drama.

Ultimately, this is a good sequel. I am excited to see how things end for these characters and think they are the best part of these books. The romance is one of the best I've read in any YA series. I hope to see more young people reading this series soon!

I feel in love with this story and its characters after book 1. I was very interested to see how the trio would put their lives back together. This 3 have each others back through everything. Following Leo as he faces a threat against his loved ones. I love that the majority of this book took place in the Fae realm to the Summer Court. There was so many revelations and secrets that still need to be revealed! My heart continues to break for Leo and Tristan. I need the 3rd book out now! There is something in this book for everyone to enjoy. I love how the story seems so thought out and everything connects. Nothing is a coincidence! The multiple POVs give us the right insight for our main characters that leaves you craving more.

The Summer Queen delivers as a perfect sequel to the Buried and the Bound! Building off of all of the reveals and happenings in the last book we now get to have a better focus on Hazel and the Fae. Just as creative and action-packed as it predecessor, you will not be able to put this one down and will be left even more excited for the next book!

I always worry about reading sequels when I love the first book in the series, they always seem to be a let down, but that was not the case here. Rochelle Hassan wrote The Summer Queen with the same evolving magic and page-turning excitement as with the first book. I loved seeing our characters evolve even more. Where my favorite storyline in the first book was Tristan's, Hazel takes that spot here - and she is not even one of the POVs.

I love the creativity, magic and fraught that Rochelle Hassan writes with. She has fast become an auto-read/buy for me. Thank you for letting me read an ARC of this and inviting me back into your world, Every fantasy and faery-lovers should read this one!

The Summer Queen (The Buried and the Bound Trilogy #2) by Rochelle Hassan was an excellent sequel to The Buried and the Bound. I had no expectations going into the first novel but it has gone onto become an absolute favorite. I was very nervous if this would be as good, but it is possibly even better. This author ranks right up there with Holly Black and Melissa Albert for me. If you haven't tried Rochelle Hassan, I can't recommend this enough. I can't wait to read more from her in the future.

Book two continues the beautiful cruelty of Elphame and the Fair Folk. Everyone warns against a Fairy bargain, but fairies are cunning and the bargain is the only option as the trio is sent back into the fold. This sequel has all the magic of book one as it wraps you up in a tale at once familiar and new.

This book genuinely is one of the most masterfully written pieces of literature I’ve read in so long. Hassan just has a way with words that never fails to give me chills. With the amount of times that I nearly lost my mind while reading this, it’s a miracle I’m still sane enough to write this review. Both the Buried and the Bound and The Summer Queen have brought me back a bucket of that magic that I always felt while reading as a child and dowsed me in it. It’s been so long since I’ve felt this invested in a story and its characters and it’s honestly addictive. I’m so excited for Book Three that it hurts my chest a little.

The pacing of this book is so lovely. It’s fast but knows when to slow down and give details. While the vibe of Book 2 is a little different than Book 1, it feels like an epic transition to something bigger than just the Hag and Blackthorn. The stakes in this book were incredible. I’m so so so excited to see where Book 3 takes us.

I’m the type of person who values characters much more than actual plot (and trust me the plot is phenomenal). The characters in this trilogy are so detailed with quirks and flaws that they feel real. I think that’s what really hooked me to this series. Picking up this book after finishing the Buried and the Bound felt like coming home because of how much I invested myself mentally to the characters. Aziza, Leo and Tristan (and Hazel too) serve the found family trope so well that it makes me a little nauseous. They care so much about each other. My heart hurt so much for all of the characters this book. Additionally, the new key players of the story intertwine themselves into the story seamlessly. (On a quick side note, I have a slight thing for ghost boys so Tristan is everything my little heart longs for when getting attached to characters).

This review would not be complete if I didn’t talk about TRISTAN AND LEO. Oh my God. Oh my good God. They actually had me screaming into my pillow so many times. I would like to personally thank Rochelle Hassan for writing the most heart-wrenching, gut-churning, beautiful, painful love stories of this century. I’m actually speechless.

I hope this review gives just a slight indication of how obsessed I am with this book. At this current moment, I can’t think of anything else to say because of the brain rot I’m experiencing. I don’t think I’ll be able to think about anything for the forseeable future. I am going to be insufferable talking about this book to my friends and family. I really hope there are no typos.

As a huge fan of The Buried and the Bound, I'm delighted to say that The Summer Queen is a spectacular continuation of Aziza, Tristan, and Leo's story! I was riveted by the new developments, new characters, and new challenges. These three went to hell and back for each other in book 1, and as Leo faces a threat to his loved ones, Aziza and Tristan don't hesitate to fully back him up. This time their sights are set on Elphame and completing a quest that will push their limits. There's so much loyalty and trust in this coven, but there's still a great deal of pain as Tristan struggles with his past actions and his heartache over Leo, Leo is tormented by his curse and longing for his lost true love, and Aziza is trying to adjust to having only one working hand and shouldering the emotional weight of closely bonding with Tristan and Leo. I loved every heart-wrenching moment! This series has lit me up in the way that very few fantasy series have - it brilliantly combines human drama, suffering, and triumphs with the full beauty, horror, and trickery of the fae. I was at times swooning, terrified, and heartbroken. I can't recommend this series highly enough!

aziza, leo, and tristan are working on putting their lives back together, which can be quite hard with as many secrets as they’re sharing. plus, with the solstice approaching, members of the summer court have been appearing in blackthorn, attempting to claim leo’s sister. when leo refuses, the summer court’s princess challenges the coven to a game that is sure to have a high cost.

after reading the buried and the bound from owlcrate’s box last year, i’ve been really excited to see what happened next. there’s so much going on both plot- and character-wise, yet i feel like hassan combined all these elements very well to make the book intriguing. i loved seeing each of the characters grow, though there is one more character who needs a little more growing (or remembering), so i guess i’ll be sitting around not-so-patiently waiting for the next book😭

The sequel to The Buried and the Bound further delving into faerie politics, risky deals, and fights. Aziza, Leo , and Tristan have survived the hag... only to now face a new threat. The Summer Court, a nomadic community of Fair Folk from deep in Elphame. They've come back and want one thing: Hazel, Leo's changeling sister. Leo will do anything to keep her safe. Tristan is still keeping it a secret that he is Leo's forgotten true love and Aziza is dealing with the mystery of her family and a new librarian witch in town who is hiding many secrets. The three friends will have to find a way to work together to stop the threat at their door or risk losing each other. This is the second book in the trilogy and I can't wait to see how the story ends and where the characters go next. This one was a little less exciting than the first book, it kind of felt stagnant at certain points, but that does not mean this was a bad book in any way, it was just slower than the first one. I loved the first one a lot and this one was a pretty decent follow up to the story, it does suffer a bit from sequel syndrome, however I am excited for the third book. Aziza is my favorite hedgewitch trying to protect her coven and find out about her family. I wish there was a bit more progress in Leo and Tristan's cursed romance but alas, that is fort he next book. I did enjoy the fae court we got to see and how Leo played into it too. Overall its an interesting way to see how the story had continued and I look forward to the final book.

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Roaring Brook Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

I really enjoyed the first book a lot and thought about rereading it before starting this one but decided not to. I wish I had done that to help get myself back into this world because I struggled in the beginning. But once I pushed a little further into the book, I found myself immersed in the world and characters again and I read the second half in two days. Once the trio get to the Summer Court, it's nonstop action, and the pace moves along quickly.

One of the thing I like about the world of this book is that it's more of the "traditional" fey world, with magical creatures like hellhounds and pooka and the Fair Folk are the tricksters who cannot lie but can be quite crafty with words.

The pining between Leo and Tristan was so good--frustrating but in an emotional way. I cannot wait to see what happens between them in the third book.

This book has a complete story arc in and of itself (something else I also liked), but it brings up lots of questions that need to be answered in the third book. I can see a few ways the final book might go (as far as the main storyline), and I'm looking forward to it.

If I were sorting this (and the previous book) based on vibes - which, honestly, is a large part how I sort books - then I would put it with the Cruel Prince trilogy. It's dark and creepy, but just exactly the right amount. It's also heartwarming and adventurous and full of brute force human magic borne of desperation and tricky, insidious, charming, treacherous fae magic.

It's a story of love lost and love found and hubris and naievety and political treachery. It's a story of bargains and tricks and alliances. I flew through it in a little over a day and absolutely hated every time I was forced to put it down. If I hadn't had to stop to make dinner for my kid, I would have finished it that first day, my own dinner be damned.

I was instantly transported back to the world and characters of the previous book as soon as I started, as if I'd never left. There was no struggling to get into it or remember what had happened - it was all fresh and immediate and vital. Now that I've finished, I want nothing more than to jump into the final book. Unfortunately, It's not out yet. Barring that, I want to jump back into this one and get caught up in the frenzied rush of it again. And I desperately, desperately want Leo and Tristan and Aziza to succeed and find happiness.

I want more of the characters and their bonds, more of the world and its traps, more of the tentative allies that were never clearly on one side or the other, more of the shifting sands of never clearly knowing what the sides even were because they kept changing.

An instant favorite and one I will definitely go back to. I instantly purchased the audio so I could experience it again in a new format.

*Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, and Roaring Book Press for providing an early copy for review.

I throughly enjoyed The Buried and the Bound and was extremely hopeful for the sequel. I am so pleased the sequel was even better than the first book. I just know the third book will either save or destroy me.

I could write so many sonnets about how much the characters mean to me. This is the trio I’ve always deserved as a youngster. If I had read these books as a young thing they would’ve been my whole personality trait. They’re already close to being my personality trait in my old age. Every time Tristan chapters come on I just quietly sob. Aziza having the emotional eloquence of a snail is me and Leo I just want to wrap him in bubble wrap. And I deeply want to shake everyone to knock some sense into them.

The pooka was my favorite creature that ever appeared. Pooka and the wind sprites have my heart and soul. I went to find fan art of the pooka to realize I had an arc and there would be no fan art. So if someone could get on that I’d be highly appreciative, thank you.

My complaints are really low key. I just struggled sometimes with the world building and felt like some things that weren’t really necessary got more emphasis than things that were more important to the plot line. The pacing felt a little off at times I felt like things could’ve been cut or made longer for everything to fit better. Really minimal things because I still very much enjoyed the story. And I’m so excited for what’s to come next.

A totally satisfying follow up to The Buried and The Bound. While Aziza, Tristan, and Leo embark on a new adventure, the characters and their relationships grow and evolve so beautifully. I’m all in on this series and can’t wait for the next installment!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

This sequel was so well done! While I did miss hanging out in Blackthorn, getting to see Elphame and meet all different kinds of fae was thrilling. The worldbuilding in this series is excellent and it continues to impress me. Our cast of main characters continues being loveable and easy to root for. I can't wait for the next book.