I so wanted to like this book but I got bored and found it poorly written that I quit about 30% into it.

I can’t recommend it .

I honestly almost DNF'd this in the beginning because it felt a little disjointed and very juvenile but with topics that were more new adult so that was confusing. It grew on me the longer I read and I'm happy I didn't give up because as soon as I finished I wanted to know more. It's not perfect, not that any book is, but the story was entertaining and I liked the characters. I do think that Gabriel's character fell flat though because he had so much potential from beginning to middle but then I feel like his actions and behavior didn't make sense for how he was developing. He also had weird brotherly vibes but then also random tension that could have been attraction? And for someone who survived 12 years in an awful prison, Lor was foolishly naive and trusting but I guess there'd be no story if she was wise. The challenges were descriptive and unique and having the story mostly told in Lor's POV built my interest in Nadir because I was waiting for their paths to cross and wanted to see more of him, Amya and Mael. This is a pretty average fantasy novel that reads a lot like YA but with NA themes however I did enjoy it and plan to finish the series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this ebook from NetGalley after the pub date. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4 stars

This book had all of my favorite fantasy elements, court intrigue, magic, fights, and romance!

Lor is a prisoner in Auroras realm and is kidnapped and taken to the sun realm and forced into the trials of the sun queen. There are four trials against nine other people and the winner becomes bonded to the sun king, Atlas.

This book game me lots of Throne of Glass vibes which is one of my favorite series of all time.

Lor is a captivating character and I enjoyed reading about her trying to win the trials. The enemies to lovers was great! Although I've got some suspicions about that... I'm super excited to read the next book!

This is such a well written, fantasy book that has lyrical writing and tremendous world building. It was fascinating to see Lore in a new environment in order to win her freedom from her actual kingdom while many adversaries. The characters are so intriguing and this is a fantastic first book in a series.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

4.5⭐️
1.5🌶️

👑 Deadly trials
👑 Forced proximity
👑 Fae & Magic
👑 Hidden identity
👑 Slow burn spice
👑 Dual POV
👑 Savage Lands, Plated Prisoner and ACOTAR vibes all wrapped together

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘰𝘢𝘱....
"𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦. 𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘪𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘴."

Our FMC Lor has lived half her life in a prison with her siblings. She has learned to be tough, gritty, and takes no shit from anyone. From page 1, I knew that I was going to love Lor (refer to quote above lol) She is then kidnapped, taken to a rival kingdom, and forced to participate in the deadly Sun Queen Trials. In the span of a few months, she has to learn how to wield a weapon, navigate the politics of court, and compete against other women who have trained most their lives for this competition.

There is slow burn open door spice, the story is fast paced with lots of action and mystery, and a secondary character that I am very interested learning more about. Some parts of the plot were predictable, hence the reason for the 4.5 star review, but I couldn't put the book down. I plowed through this book in less than a day, so in summary I loved the action, story and characters. I am now going to dive straight into book 2, Rule of the Aurora King.

Thank you to NetGalley, ReadForeverPub, and Nisha J Tuli for the eARC!

I absolutely loved this book! It has Hunger Games and Throne of Glass vibes. The introduction of Lor at the start of the book gives you the perfect view into who she is and what her family means to her. The mystery of her “true identity” through out the book is super intriguing and I couldn’t put the book down! As the “underdog” in the Sun Queen trials, you can’t help routing for Lor and enjoying her success.

Before starting this book, I heard it likened to the Bachelor meets the Hunger Games. I honestly wish I had never heard this, as I felt it gave me expectations that the book ultimately fell flat against. While Trial of the Sun Queen is in no way “bad” it didn’t fully capture my attention. Instead, it felt like a standard run of the mill romantasy. It was a decent time, but didn’t bring anything new or revolutionary to the genre for me.

I could have gotten on board with it just being a quick little read, but the larger and more deal breaking issue for me was that I didn’t feel invested in our FMC Lor. The book is also structured in a unique way in that it is dual POV… but the second POV only comes in for one chapter after five or so chapters of Lor’s POV. As I was reading, I could only assume that Nadir (the second POV) would come more fully into play in book two, especially given the author has said this will be a four book series. Even with this knowledge, had I not had a review copy of both books one AND two, I would have finished the first, called it a day, and not picked the second book. And to my absolute shock, what a mistake that would have been!

More specifics to come in my review of book two, but the bottom line for me is that Trial of the Sun Queen, though not my favorite, lays the necessary foundation for its sequel and likely the books still to come. For every way that I was hesitant while reading it, I was chomping at the bit and loving book two, so I am beyond glad that I put in the leg work to get to the next part of the story. A big, big thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect with this book but it was surprisingly hard to put down every day. I haven't read some of the books I've heard this is similar to and that may be why but I thought the idea of this type of contest amongst women over the chance to become queen sounded interesting. The fantasy elements weren't anything that I wasn't expecting, sort of the general fantasy elements you read in most books these days. I did find Lor very relatable in sense of she was doing the best she could given what she was working with. Once we got into the actual trials and started in on her relationship with the Sun King things got interesting. It did feel a little rushed at the end (which I assume was intentional since the events of the end were rushed by the characters). The only part that was a little confusing is that the book is leading you to a sense that Lor is someone of importance, with magic, maybe not so human after all. It seemed initially she didn't know or maybe had forgotten over time but as the book came to a close it seemed like she was well aware and was hiding the fact. That piece wasn't clear but overall I found it an easy read that really had me hooked for a bit. I have just started reading the second book and am looking forward to seeing what happens at the end.

Thank you Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for this ARC.

This had everything needed for a fantastic fantasy, but it kind of fell short for me. It was so incredibly predictable. I found myself cringing at Atlas' attempts to win Lor over and waiting for his true self to be revealed. It seemed glaringly obvious that he wasn't the true love interest when we already had Nadir as the second point of view. Speaking of the dual point of due, I didn't like the way Lor was first person and Nadir was second person. In addition, it seems Nadir's chapters were referred to in past tense, which felt even more detached.

All that said, I did enjoy it to some degree, and maybe had I not already read so many similar stories I would have found it more intriguing. I probably will read the second book, as I've heard it gets better, and I do want to see Lor find her place and see how the chemistry between her and Nadir grows. Plus I do love a good enemies to lovers, so hopefully the next book is much better then the first.

I liked it, but I didn't love it.
I think the premise was okay, but it really felt like it needed to be a little more fleshed out. There was a lot that we just needed to accept as "this is how it works in this world" for no real reason.
As far as characters go, I feel like our FMC was inconsistent. Based on the "secrets" she knows that she isn't telling the audience it feels like she'd be more savvy / have a better idea of what is happening, so it's weird that the reader could sus things out quicker even without having as much insider info.
The book is 1st person, so it was also strange to me when she would have revelations that didn't have much build up. Like "I" thought the Sun King was sus from the get-go, but she was lusting hard, until suddenly she was like " there was always something off" Girl I was in your head, you were way too in your own head / with your own hangups to suspect he had an ulterior motive past just being horny.
She also is supposed to be 24, and yes I know she's lived in a prison for half her life so there is going to be trauma behaviors with that, but there was a weird level of self-awareness about her behaviors, like she'd been to therapy or something.
Other characters were also kind of off and I can't place them. I can't tell whether we're supposed to like Gabriel or not, he's so inconsistent. He's an ass, but then sometimes he looks at her nicely and that was enough for her to be cool with him? I think he was supposed to have a bit of a teasing older brother vibe but I don't think it succeeded. He's just a dick.
The world feels so vague. A lot of it can be chalked up to our FMC not knowing shit, but also she was 12 when she was imprisoned, not 4. She should have some idea of the world around her. Again, I get the impression she knows a lot more than she's saying, but for some reason her inner monologue is still confused.
My other complaint isn't just a this book problem, but it feels like "New Adult" is written less as YA with Spice, but like Middle Grade with Spice, which gives those scenes a weird icky quality even though they're technically happening between adults.
I'll give book 2 in the series a chance I think, but I really need to see some real world building and character development/growth to go any further than that.

Lor has been pulled from the prison she’s lived in the last 12 years to enter a deadly competition to be the Sun Queen. If she wins, she can finally get revenge against the Aurora King. However, she’s woefully unprepared for the competition, and the other tributes want her gone. Winning is the only option otherwise Lor faces death or worse returning to the Aurora King.
✨
✨
What happens when you mix The Selection, The Hunger Games, and the Fae? Well Tuli shows us exactly that in Trial of the Sun Queen. This story delivers exactly what it promised if predictable at times. Lor is an interesting FMC, and I enjoyed learning about her history throughout the course of the Trials. I also really enjoyed the friendship Lor developed with Halo. Tuli did a great job using the trials to illustrate the nature of Atlas. I would love to know more about Gabriel in the next books. Every time I thought there was more to him, he disappointed me. I still think there’s more to him than on the surface, though. I also can’t wait to learn more of Nadir. His scattered POVs throughout the story simply weren’t enough. This was an enjoyable introduction to the series and I definitely recommend checking it out.

4.5 stars!!

I've said it before, I'll continue to say it until the day I die: I will read any book based around a competition, whether it be for love, survival, power, or some combination of the above. This book falls into the category of all the above!!

Lor, a human imprisoned in the Aurora King's jail, is somehow mysteriously taken from solitary confinement and lands herself a spot in the Trial of the Sun Queen, competing with 9 fae females for the right to bond with the Sun King and become his kingdom's queen. Because what does a faerie king want more than a young human woman? NOTHING!! But what does our young female want? Freedom, her family, to never have to go back to where she was.

We also get a mix of POV in this book, with some of the chapters following the Aurora Prince Nadir's story as he works to locate and bring back the "escaped" prisoner. This was an interesting way to tell the story, since we had Lor's perspective from first person POV but Nadir's from third person POV. The more we learned about Nadir, the more in I was on his chapters, and I am very excited to see more of our dark shadowy fae prince and learn who he could maybe be to Lor in the future... (I have some thoughts)

Overall, this was a great introduction to a 4 book series, that left some interesting clues for where the story might continue. I will be going RIGHT into the Rule of the Aurora King so let's go!!


Thank you to NetGalley for an opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I don't know why I've waited so long to read this book. It's mix of Hungar Games/ACOTAR made it almost impossible to put down!

Lor was the type of heroine that I enjoy. She's endured. She's a bit broken. But she's not willing to give up to protect herself, her sister and her brother. I wasn't sure about her relationship with Atlas, feeling like there was something there that I needed to pay attention to, but her time with him during the Sun Queen trials showed us more of Lor and why we really needed to get behind her.

At first, I wasn't sure what the deal was with Nadir but as the story unfolds you can start to understand there is going to come a point where Lor's storyline intersects with Nadir's (and it's probably going to explode).

I devoured this book in a Sunday and quickly downloaded the 2nd book in the series. I can't wait to find out what happens next.

Trial of the Sun Queen was such a brilliant mix of a “Bachelor” type competition with Hunger Games style stakes! I was obsessed with the plot and hooked from the very first chapter. After suffering in a prison under the Aurora King for most of her young life, Lor has little hope for freedom, however she soon finds herself in a completely different kind of peril. She is stolen to compete in a competition for the right to become Queen in a rival court. Though disbelieving at first, Lor decides to take full advantage of her opportunity when to lose is to die, but winning could change everything. I greatly enjoyed the characters and I loved that you could feel something lurking below the surface of the plot without knowing exactly what to expect. The only reason that I’m giving this book 4 stars instead of 5, is that parts of the dialogue seemed a bit choppy and forced and the story did not flow as smoothly as I would have liked. I also thought the pacing was slightly off. Overall, though, I am very excited for this series and already can’t wait to dive into the next book!

My favorite book I read in November. I loved the trials plot and how the whole system worked. Lor is everything you want in a main character. I loved her personality and her determination for her family. I liked that she was real and honest, it's so good when a book is like that. I think the romance was good but I don't think the king is the one for Lor. I really don't see the resemblance to SJM books, this book is vastly different and amazing on it's own. I think with fantasy lines can blur between books but I didn't see it here. The writing isn't the most amazing I've read but it personally didn't read like a Wattpad book like others said it has. The ending was a bit of a cliffhanger and I can't wait to read the second one.

HEAR ME OUT! The hunger games meets The Bacheloratte!??? HUH??

OMG, What did I just read!? UGH, I was invested in this story from the very beginning! Talk about The underdog raising to their full potential! Nothing is at it seems! Secrets that will unravel and have you clutching at your imaginary pearls!! And on top of that you add deathly Trials that will take you on quite the emotional journey that will leave you wanting more....

I Just have to say that LOR [The FMC] is my spirit animal and my inspiration. This story is the perfect one if you are in the mood for FAES, BONDED MATES, ROYAL SECRETS, DEATHLY TRIALS, BETRAYAL, I mean... do I need to say more?

Thank you netgalley and foreverpub for a copy of this novel in exchange of an honest review.

Trial of the Sun Queen
⛓️☀️🏰👗🗡️

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

What I liked:
•The Selection meets the Hunger Games with a touch of Fae, what more can you ask for? I will for sure be continuing on with book two because I flew through this one

•The chapters at the prison had me so hooked. I’m hoping we hear more about it or Lor goes back at some point. Honestly I would’ve read a whole book set there, it was super intriguing

•This world was complex but easy to follow which was great. I’m really excited to learn more about the Sun and Aurora worlds in the next book. I think the plot is going to get better and better

•I really liked all of the side characters Nadir, Gabe, Atlas, and all of the other tributes had a lot of secrets and depth to them which I loved

What I didn’t like:
•Lor was a badass and so strong in the prison. Once she got to the castle, she was naive and almost weak. I didn’t love that change in her character. I hope that in the next book she gets some of that character back

Read if you like:
👑Court politics
🏃🏼‍♀️Competing in trials
✨Fae magic

Thank you NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 rounded to 4

I really enjoyed this book! I think I would’ve rated higher if it was a little more original? I got the vibe of maybe 4 different books while reading this one.

I knew I’d like this book from the first sentence. The characters are bad an—and I love it. This is the perfect book with a strong female lead. Highly recommend for any fantasy lovers.