CAWPILE score 8.29

You'll find royals, magical powers and magical pets with assassinations and some political intrigue, as well as some spice.

I really liked the idea of this book, the magic system and the soul shards. However, the writing could be better and more consistent.

It ends with a cliffhanger and now I really want to see what's gonna happens and I really hope the second book won't be rushed and it will be a bit more polished because the idea has a lot of potential

Received this as an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I had a hard time getting into this book. It was very slow and I honestly almost DNF it. I also didn’t like the sl*t and s*x worker shamming and felt a little forced. In the words of Randy Jackson, “It was a no for me dawg.” I will say, I did enjoy the smut in the book between Layla and Rune was good!

Writing: 4/5
Plot: 4/5
World Building: 3/5
Characters: 5/5

Blood Queen is about a queen with a bad reputation who is trying to find a way to save her kingdom. I loved the characters. Layla is a strong character with sass. But I think Keir was my favorite. He is the fun sidekick that isn’t afraid to tell it like it is. The romance was good and I did enjoy the love interest. I just wish there was a little more world building and it explained the magic system a little better. I can’t wait for the second book to come out, and with how this one ended, the sooner the better.

I received an arc and am leaving an honest review.

Blood Queen Layla, the sole heir to the throne after her parents' death, fights against a rising rebellion and her own murderous reputation. As lies unfold, Layla realizes nothing is what it seems. Will she become a queen her parents would be proud of, or will all the lies catch up to her?

While the book promised a captivating blend of fantasy, enemies-to-lovers, and easy world-building, the two main characters weren't very likeable and a lot of the book felt rushed (yet slow at the same time). Layla, the Blood Queen, seemed incredibly immature at 28, while Rune's strength was so over emphasized. Both lacked likability, and certain aspects felt too YA. The predictability of her parents' murderer especially frustrated me - like girl, open your eyes! Despite the cliffhanger, I won't be picking up the next book.

Thanks to NetGalley, the Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, and Caitlin Denman for allowing me access to this book. All opinions are my own.

Yeah this was not for me. The biggest thing that took me out was the comments on sex work in the beginning, basically that only those truly in need and on the streets would do it. This industry is a respectable one, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with choosing it. I'm unsure if this was the author's own opinions coming out in the book on this or just the FMC being ignorant, but either way it left a very bad taste in my mouth. The slut shaming in this book immediately made it tank in my head. Along with this, the fact that the FMC is supposed to be 28, but had the maturity of someone over a decade younger continued to ruin it for me. I could not stand the FMC, and the hatred between her and the MMC made zero sense to me. I liked that he was open and honest with her, but man the FMC was incredibly annoying. Miss girl, how in the world are you supposed to be a queen if you can't even think for yourself and let other people run your country to the point where all your people hate you??? The brain cells were just dying off on this one.

The only thing I enjoyed in this book was the smut. The plot was interesting at first, but there was minimal world building to the point where some random monster, that was never mentioned in the book, just got randomly thrown in at the end. I am confusion.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC! This book was an easy read and definitely kept me on my toes. Layla was a frustrating FMC to say the least though. She was a bit naive to everything going on around her and she ran away from every issue she had. I did like the romance between her and Rune. My favorite characters were Marv and Kier! Kier had my heart from the beginning and I enjoyed his sass. I do look forward to reading the next book just to see what happens as this one ended on a cliffhanger.

Review has been posted to Goodreads!

A little different than I was expecting, but an interesting read. Finding her parents murdered as a child, Layla grows up driven by revenge. She is the queen to her people, but is feared. Though, some believe it is better to be feared than loved. She receives her assignments from her advisor, who has been with her for years, and served her parents. However, things change when Layla has to meet her betrothed, a prince from other country that her parents selected for her. Layla has no interest in marrying Rune, but to avoid a war welcomes him into her kingdom. There is much tension between them, but Rune's influence makes Layla start questioning the things happening in her kingdom, leading her to look into things on her own to discover the truth. The story ends on a cliffhanger. I received this novel from net galley and the publisher, Thank you! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received this arc for an honed review.

This book is not for me and i wouldnt recommend my friends read it either. Too much problematic language towards sex workers and around sex in general. It made it really hard to get through. There wasn't enough workd building to keep me interested and the characters were bland.

Thank you netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me.
I think what let this down is the maturity level of a 28yr old who if felt more like young teenager.
Baring in mind the age her parents died she would of been groomed to be a queen from a young age. Could not connect with her unfortunately.

The plot is good and could be an amazing book.

Spoiler Free Review - 4/5. Spice - check. Drama - check. World Building that isn't to overwhelming, easy to follow yet let's you get immerse yours in the world - check. This book has it all. I tend to rate books based off three different criteria 1. How much of a "need" do I have to read it when I'm not reading it? 2. How much do I think about if after I've finished it? 3. How big is the book hangover after? I couldn't put this down. It was fast past and only had a few spots that felt relative. After completing it, I cannot stop thinking about the ending and cannot wait for the next one, and lastly the book hangover is real. The only reason it's not a 5/5 is I found it a tad predictable in parts, yet in others it shocked me.

I was so surprised by this book. I expected to enjoy it but not how much I would. I love these characters. The banter is top-tier. I especially love how our Blood Queen, Layla, is strong and independent and doesn't fall to the trope of still backing up for a man to save her or be the hero. She is Rune's hero. I cannot wait for the next book because holy cliffhanger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you NetGalley for this arc and new must-read author.

I just reviewed Blood Queen by Caitlin Denman. #bloodqueenbook #NetGalley

Blood Queen

Thank you to Caitlin Denman and NetGalley for giving me an arc e-copy of this book.

Overall I really like this book. The world building wasn’t overly complicated which I can appreciate. I really liked the magic and animal elements. A back and forth romance is always fun, and I enjoyed the mmc. The fmc is portrayed as strong, independent.. but also a little immature at times. I thought this made her more relatable/“real”.

It seems some aspects of the story were missing, but perhaps they will be filled in with the subsequent book(s). Some of the twists were predictable but these didn’t stop me from understanding and enjoying the book.

I love me a good cliffhanger and am looking forward to the next one!

Thank you to Caitlin Denman and NetGalley for giving me an e-copy of this book.

"She may be called the Blood Queen, but Layla will do anything for her kingdom's peace.

As queen of a kingdom plagued by murders, Layla struggles to live up to the expectations her parents had of her. Whispers of rebellion and dissent grow daily, and a murderer stalks the townspeople.

In agreeing to marry a foreign prince, she hopes to find a way to bring stability back to the land. But, she fears the marriage, unlike her parents, will be devoid of love.

On the eve of her betrothal's arrival, Layla sneaks away and enjoys one last passionate night with a stranger. But doing so threatens everything her parents laid out for her. As more lies come to the surface, Layla will do whatever it takes to keep her kingdom safe—even murder."

I love this book, I can't get to the next one. This was so easy to read & I was hooked from the first chapter. Some twist are predictable but it did not stop me from reading.

DNF

I made it about 15 chapters before giving up completely. First of all, the author uses the word grunt way way too much. AND THE ENTIRE STORY IS IN ITALICS. I just felt like this was going no where and I was not about to risk my sanity in reading an entire book where every single page has grunt and the whole thing is in italics.

The story quickly gets to the plot twist from the description. And then the story tried to follow too many plot lines. The Romance between the royal couple, trying to solve the 5 year old murder case of the King and Queen, and the mystery surrounding the drug problem, the FMC feelings on who she can trust. They didn’t intertwine smoothly, making the story feel slow as we jump from problem to problem. Loved the ending, the story ended quickly with a surprise plot twist.
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Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own

This fantasy romance was very good. It was a little slow to start but it picked up and I enjoyed it a lot. The plot twist of this story was very good and it kept me on my toes. I would highly recommend this book.

Blood Queen started out interesting. Layla is a great female lead and Rune is also a good main character. However, their character changed so abruptly it was jarring for me. One moment Rune is stuttering all flustered then he's a tough dominant man then he ends up following Layla's every whim. And the same for Layla. First she seems to be a tough queen only to cry her heart out for hardly any reason...

I didn't like the sl*t shaming, just nope.

The magic system was a bit bumpy but still very interesting and hopefully, book two will cover the questions not entirely clear here.

Kudos for the cliffhanger, definitely hooks you and makes you want to read the next installment.

This book was really enjoyable to read, I did struggle a bit at the start but once the pace got going I found myself having a great time within this world. The animal sidekicks were a great add on and the magic, romance and oh the bloodshed were top notch. Layla was seeking revenge for her parents murder and the whole mystery with that was so interesting, as well as the handsome Rune.

The spice in the book is simmering, and the tropes within it were some of my favourite, to name a few: arranged marriage, possessive mmc and a feisty fmc.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of Blood Queen on exchange for an honest review.
4.5 stars

We follow Layla who has become an assassin of sorts. Dispatching citizens of her Kingdom who her advisor has told her had to do with her parents murder. We also are with Rune. A prince from one of the three kingdoms who is her betrothed. Layla is discovering how little she knows of her kingdom, the lies she’s been told about her parents death. She’s not sure who to trust.

This was a fun read! The world wasn’t overly complicated (which I appreciate!) and was very easy to fall into. It was refreshing reading about an FMC who is a little older, 28. Overall I really enjoyed Blood Queen.
* arranged marriage
* Political intrigue
* Shadow Queen
* Secret identities
* Murder

*I received this book as an ARC from Net Galley for an honest review *

I think the story of Layla (FMC) was fascinating, well written and kept my interest through out the entirety of the story.

It was a bit of a slow build up; but once it picked up; I couldn’t put it down. I am excited to see how the story continues.