Review: Queen of the Tearling

Ratings: 3/5 

 

Kelsea Glynn is the sole heir to the throne of Tearling but has been raised in secret by foster parents after her mother – Queen Elyssa, as vain as she was stupid – was murdered for ruining her kingdom. For 18 years, the Tearling has been ruled by Kelsea’s uncle in the role of Regent however he is but the debauched puppet of the Red Queen, the sorceress-tyrant of neighbouring realm of Mortmesme. On Kelsea’s 19th birthday, the tattered remnants of her mother’s guard – each pledged to defend the queen to the death – arrive to bring this most un-regal young woman out of hiding…

And so begins her journey back to her kingdom’s heart, to claim the throne, earn the loyalty of her people, overturn her mother’s legacy and redeem the Tearling from the forces of corruption and dark magic that are threatening to destroy it. But Kelsea’s story is not just about her learning the true nature of her inheritance – it’s about a heroine who must learn to acknowledge and live with the realities of coming of age in all its insecurities and attractions, alongside the ethical dilemmas of ruling justly and fairly while simply trying to stay alive..

I’ll be honest, I had very low expectations for this book, partly because of the abundance of negative reviews this book has on Goodreads and partly because of Emma Watson’s apparent obsession with this book. Now that I have finally read it myself, I am pleasantly surprised: Queen of the Tearling is an intriguing, entertaining, well-written piece of fantasy and a classic example of why we should all read a book ourselves in order to form our own opinion instead of listening to what the mass people are saying. The characters were very interesting and well developed–Kelsea is by far one of my favorite female characters; she has her flaws like any nineteen-year-old but what sets her apart

Review: The Fifth Season

First off, a huge thanks to Aentee from Read At Midnight for recommending this book. Had I known what a jewel The Fifth Season is, I would have read it sooner. Click here for her review of the book.

Synopsis

THIS IS THE WAY THE WORLD ENDS… FOR THE LAST TIME.
A season of endings has begun.
It starts with the great red rift across the heart of the world’s sole continent, spewing ash that blots out the sun.
It starts with death, with a murdered son and a missing daughter.
It starts with betrayal, and long dormant wounds rising up to fester.
This is the Stillness, a land long familiar with catastrophe, where the power of the earth is wielded as a weapon. And where there is no mercy.

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Ratings: ☕☕☕☕☕ 5/5

Let’s start with the end of the world, why don’t we? Get it over with and move on to more important things.

There are many great, well-known fantasy books that have a strong engaging narration, incredibly realistic and powerful world building, heartbreaking plot twists and characters so unforgettable that you can’t help but be emotionally invested in them as if they were real, all written with such skill and perfect execution that you are transported into a time and place far far away from the reality you live in, which is exactly the reason why you read fantasy in the first place. To discover a world unlike any you know.

Then there’s The Fifth Season.

Review: Ignite Me (Shatter Me#3) by Tahereh Mafi

This is my review of the third and final installment of the Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi. To see my review of the previous books, click here (book 1) and here (book 2).

SEE GOODREADS BLURB HERE

Review: (4/5)

That awkward moment when you are supposed to review a book but it’s so incredibly, inexpressibly great that you really have no idea how to articulate your thoughts so you could explain the magic that this book is.

Ignite Me by  Tahereh Mafi was everything I wanted it to be, which is to say a lot because my expectations for this book was probably as high as Mt. Everest. After the way Unravel Me ended, I couldn’t help but want to see how the writer ties it all up in the last and final book of the series. Safe to say, I was not disappointed at all.