Thanks to Forever for the copy of this book!

Do you like unwinding by having a glass of wine and watching The Bachelor? Are you looking for another beginner fantasy read after finishing Fourth Wing or reading A Court of Thorns and Roses? This is the book for you. I enjoyed this because it's a romantasy that doesn't require a lot of brain power, and is just an entertaining story. I listened on audio while working and finished in a day!

Trial is the Sun Queen and it’s sequel Rule of the Aurora King are in my top five of the year with Fourth Wing and Iron Flame. Beyond excellent world building and storytelling that is powerful, emotive, compelling to the point you want to read all night and not sleep. The story is original yet resonates with comfort vibes of the past with undertones that are reminiscent of The Selection, Hunger Games and even an element of the Bachelor. It's thoughtful and creative with an intricate plot you can follow easily but also leave you in suspense in a way that pushes you forward as the story propels itself through heartache and trauma to healing to lust to love. I rank these among the best you'd ever pick up.

“Now we're even.”
“We are not even. We’re not even until I make you come at least five times to my one. Spread your thighs, and I’ll make you come so hard and so often you won’t remember your name.”

The worldbuilding also continues to develop and we get some chapters from before the Queendom of Heart crumbled. Wolf is 🥵🥵🥵 and while Serce definitely has her issues and despite knowing that they're doomed to die, I still find myself rooting for them and I'm going to be crushed when we find out what really happened all those years ago. And while Lor starts to piece together what happened almost 3 centuries ago, she is also working towards unlocking her own power and finding her inner strength to take back her Queendom. And I'm here for it.

The royal family wears black. Nadir’s companions wear black. But I am not his conquest. I am not his to claim. I’m not part of their royal line. I have my own family. And I am my own fucking castle.

Really wanted to love this after reading the hunger games and the selection but this fell short. The book was slow and did not spark a lot of interest as I read through the pages. It was a fine story, but it definitely is not re-read or a book I would bring up to my friends.

A romance fantasy marketed as “The Hunger Games meets the Bachelor?” Gimme.

Short Synopsis:
Lor has been imprisoned for 12 years. But after a riot breaks out at the prison she wakes up to find herself in the golden palace competing for the role of the Sun Queen.

My Thoughts:
This was bingey and fun. I did find it glaringly predictable, but enjoyed the journey. The pacing also felt off at times.

But I did enjoy Lor and her grit and determination. And the side characters were so fun.

I’m looking forward to continuing on and see Lor’s story develop more.

Honestly SUCH a fun read. I would recommend to anyone who liked serpent and the wings of night or ACOTAR. Really great!

This book feels like The Bachelor meets Hunger Games. We’ve got captor to lovers, trial/competition, rags to riches, twists (that you can kind of see coming, but that I’m not mad about). At the beginning I wasn’t fully into it and kept getting hung up on like… why does this poor prisoner know the names of all these luxury items and gems and stuff - but it end up making sense later. It got so much better and by the end turned out to be one of my favorite reads. The trials were exciting and gave a real view into the kind of person Lor is. Tuli writes really immersive settings and it is easy to feel like you are there in the story with the characters.

This is a low-spice story, but still one of my top reads.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
🌶️

I'm a big fan of Nisha and a big fan of this book.

This is a beautifully described world. Everything from the drab and gritty to the polished and shimmering is displayed, and hate to hope is wonderfully translated on page.

Lor, a prisoner, is plucked from dangerous isolation, stuffed into a pretty gown, and made to compete for the spot of queen in a rival court. All against her will - though winning could quench her desire for revenge against her own king who wants her dead.

Beautiful, shimmering, magical.
Complex emotions wonderfully portrayed.

I’m truly loving this series. It was a great book to close out 2023 on.

*I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

4.5 stars

The Bachelor meets Hunger Games meets ACOTAR? Sign me UP!

Lor has lived twelve long years of torment under the Aurora King's rule. She dreams of the day that she can be free and get her revenge. When an unexpected release lands her in the court of the Sun King, Lor competes against nine other Tributes for the role of the Sun Queen. If she were to win, she'd have the perfect opportunity to get her revenge. However, Lor doesn't belong in the Sun Queen Trials, and she doesn't understand why she is suddenly free. She isn't a citizen of the Sun King's court, and everyone knows it. Still, she knows that her only choice is to win, otherwise she'll die or be sent back to the Aurora King.

I can tell that there is plenty more to come from this series, and the Trial of the Sun Queen was a great start. Sure, I am walking away with more questions than answers, but this is often the sign of a great series. Will be diving into book 2 immediately!

Lor has been imprisoned for twelve years under the Aurora King's rule. Until one day, she's rescued by the Sun King's court. Forced to compete in a dangerous competition against nine other tributes for a chance to become Queen. However, she hasn't been trained her whole life like the other tributes. In hopes of gaining her freedom (along with her siblings) and getting revenge against the Aurora King who tormented her, she has to try. Lor soon finds that she doesn't belong in the Sun Queen trails, but her life depends on it.

Perfect if you like:
●Deadly Competitions
●Fae courts
●Secret Identities
●Betrayal/Revenge
●Badass FC
●TOG vibes mixed with the Bachelor
●Potential multiple love interests

"I need to remember they brought me here to die in a contest I never entered."

This book seemed to be very similar to Throne of Glass if you added in the Bachelor, too. Even though it was semi predictable, I found myself throughly enjoying it. I knew that the MMC wasn't what he seemed and couldn't be completely trusted. I also figured Lor wasn't who she originally said she was. While I wasn't sold on Prince Atlas, I found myself liking the captain of the guard, Gabriel. He is a grumpy asshole who lets nothing get to him, but he also shows signs of being redeemable. I hope in the next book we can dig deeper into his character and see another side of him. Nadir Prince of Aurora is also an interesting character. Thankfully, we got to see his point of view in a couple of chapters throughout the book.

I would definitely recommend this book. It was fast-paced and kept my attention, making it an easy read.

This book was undeniably enchanting. The main character was strong willed an a vicious warrior. The story sewn into a Hunger Games theme is one nostalgic for those who are fans of the genre. I loved the imagery and the description of worlds. This Book is an impressive expression of imagination and creativity.
Nisha has talent and it builds worlds worth fighting for.

Oh my god, I am obsessed! I was hooked from the start by the first sentence, “That b*tch stole my soap”. What a way to start, and draw the reader in. Exposition and introductions can often fall flat, but Nisha’s storytelling is so smooth and seemingly effortless. I love how straightforward and scrappy Lor the FMC is, which immediately made me fall in love with her character. Her circumstances are terrible, and she’s been through some seriously traumatic events. However, she has managed to overcome these obstacles and keep going. There is beauty in the way Lor acknowledges that even though she has triumphed over those very hard times, she was still affected by them which has changed her in both positive and negative ways. Things like that stay with you, and there is a fine line between not letting it drown you and toxic positivity because having to be “gritty” can be tiring. Nisha did an amazing job finding this balance within Lor. I am so invested in Lor’s character development, and I can’t wait to see how her journey progresses.

Speaking of Lor’s journey! I am a sucker for a story with a good tournament, and the Sun Queen trials were so good. I enjoyed the underdog we all root for who is against the snooty entitled b*itches trope. Of course, Lor has the help of her warden (mentor) Gabriel to help her through the challenges to win the position of Sun Queen and be bonded to Atlas the handsome Sun King. The challenges have some interesting twists, and as they progress Lor learns that, like her, others also have their own secrets as well. Lor’s growth throughout the trials was incredible to see, and she has some pretty badass moments! The story switches POV between Lor and another character named Nadir. Lor doesn’t interact with Nadir until way later in the book, but it is apparent they are connected especially with how the story ends.

Astounding work by Nisha J. Tuli! It took me out of my Iron Flame slump, and I am so excited to read the next book in the series. If you have been thinking about reading this book, go do it now. You will not be disappointed!

Romatasy as a genre is something I’m fairly new too and often times I have a hard time jumping in. I didn’t have that issue with this book! It’s a promising start to the trilogy and i’m excited to continue on!

Trial of the Sun Queen was an great kick-off to a promising series! It has a little bit of everything - fiery heroine, a dangerous competition, dual POV, mysterious world building, a missing queen and contradictory men. This is an extremely fast-paced plot with lots of action, romance and scheming. The heroine, Lor, was fun and sassy with a complicated past that was interesting to see slowly reveal itself to the reader. My biggest gripe is that it's Dual POV, but for some reason Nadir's POV was in third person while Lor's POV was in first person--it was a jolt every time we switched between them.

This book 1 is truly setting the stage for future books. The overall plot of this one was fairly predictable, but a lot of clues were laid to hint at where the author might be going with the rest of this series. The predictability also made it really difficult to put down - I could see where the story was going and just wanted to get there! The romance in this book particularly felt more like a stepping stone of backstory that had to be laid before we get to the good stuff in the next book (I am definitely running to pick up Rule of the Aurora King as soon as I finish my review).

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for a digital copy in exchange for my honest review. I have also shared this review on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, and Books-a-Million.

3.5 but rounded up because I did binge the book. I really enjoyed the first third of the book. It was interesting and riveting and fun. The writing was good. But as the book went on we really don’t get the world building we should or as many answers that we should have in my opinion. I did enjoy the trials and how that progressed. Kinda of like a riff off The Selection and Throne of Glass. The biggest disappointment was the “romance.” It was awful, not developed and honestly made no sense for our FMC. I really hope we get more of the fantasy aspect because the magics sound interesting.

I’ll read the second book in hopes that it fixes some of the mistakes in this one because I am intrigued.

There is not a single plot twist, trope, or narrative choice in this book that is unexpected, but that doesn't detract from its appeal as a light romantasy read. While the earlier chapters promise a bit more grit, we quickly move into a beautiful palace for a bachelor-style competition, only with fae and a bit of death. It's a quick and easy read and will definitely appeal to newer fans of the popular genre mash-up.

4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This was really good! Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for this free copy in return for my honest review. I really enjoyed reading this story!

Think The Bachelor meets Hunger Games meets ACOTAR. Lor is a young mortal woman who has been a prisoner for 12 years. She is taken to the court of Atlas, the Sun King to compete against 9 Fae in the Trial of the Sun Queen. She will face 4 challenges, and if she succeeds in those, she will stand before the Sun Mirror to determine if she will be the next Sun Queen. There are alliances, rivalries, and secrets on all sides.

I enjoyed the occasional POV of Nadir, the Aurora Prince, which left me wondering the true nature of the Sun King and his court. Overall I think this book does a very good job setting the stage for the rest of the series and I’m looking forward to reading the next book!

Thanks to Forever for this ARC!

Trial of the Sun Queen feels like the Prison Healer series meets ACOTAR. This book felt familiar to a lot of romantasies I've read, but in a good way! I found that the story was still fresh and the story went in ways that I didn't expect. Parts of the competition/romance annoying and cringey, but that was very much intentional. I loved our main character, Lor, and found myself rooting for her the whole way. There is a second POV (Nadir), and it was interesting seeing his side of the plot play out also.

This book is really fast paced, and there is barely any downtime between each trial. You're constantly learning new information about the world, and this ends on a little bit of a cliffhanger. I immediately started book 2 when I finished this one because I had to know what happens next.

This book was like The Selection but mix it with ACOTAR. My fae/dystopian loving heart needed this. I loved the different POVs, Nadir & Lor are both interesting characters and I cannot wait to see what happens next in this series!

Thank you to NetGalley, Nisha J Tuli, and Forever for the opportunity to review Trial of the Sun Queen.

I need to start by saying that the author does a fantastic job establishing characters within the first few sentences of meeting them. The first line had me hooked - you know that the FMC is going to be kind of feral and maybe slightly unhinged at times.

The story has everything you love to hate about shows like The Bachelor - falling for him too fast, cattiness, he's playing the field, etc. If the thought of those make you cringe, good, because they should, and you need to finish the book to see why.

The pacing is quick, which I think helped the story flow and move along. There's a lot of action and a good bit of court intrigue. By the end, there are definitely a lot of questions left unanswered.

I loved this book more the second time I read it because there are some obvious plot vibes and breadcrumbs sprinkled throughout, and it was nice to know what's going on as I read it.