#Review - Warrior of Legend by Kendare Blake #YA #Fantasy #Epic

Series: Heromaker # 2
Format: Hardcover, 512 pages
Release Date: October 29, 2024
Publisher: Quill Tree Books
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Epic

Picking up where #1 New York Times bestselling author Kendare Blake’s epic fantasy Champion of Fate left off, Reed is now an Aristene, but old flames and old foes rear their heads during her next quest. 

Reed is officially a member of the immortal order of the Aristene. She even has a new name: Machianthe. It’s everything she’s ever dreamed of—so why isn’t she happy?

Maybe it’s because every hero she helps can only find glory at the cost of their life. Or maybe it’s because she can’t stop thinking about the prince she left behind.      

Now Reed looks for any opportunity to help with low-risk hero’s trials. And a princess looking for a glorious marriage? Nothing could be less dangerous. But Hestion is one of the suitors, and while Reed is occupied trying to win him back, an old danger is gaining strength.

To battle the growing threat, the Aristene must band together, but the order has never been more divided. Will Reed be able to survive this war with her chosen family and her heart intact?

Warrior of Legend is the second installment in author Kendare Blake's Heromaker series. Picking up where Champion of Fate left off, Reed is now an Aristene, but old flames and old foes rear their heads during her next quest. Though the stakes were high for Reed in Champion of Fate, they’re impossibly higher for her in Warrior of Legend. She has a devastating new role as an Aristene and an old flame keeps crossing her mind. Meanwhile, an old enemy is growing ever more powerful, and new monsters are waiting for her. Be prepared to gobble up this suspenseful read in one sitting!

Reed is officially a member of the immortal order of the Aristene. The Aristene are a legendary order of female warriors who guide heroes to victory. They are also known as the Heromakers. She even has a new name: Machianthe. It’s everything she’s ever dreamed of—so why isn’t she happy? Maybe it’s because every hero she helps can only find glory at the cost of their life. Reed has already had three more heroes, leading them to Glorious Deaths. She is moving a bit too fast, trying to escape her broken heart. Or maybe it’s because she can’t stop thinking about the prince she left behind. 

Lyonene is still with Alsander but it’s time for her to go to a new hero, but Reed comes up with the idea that she takes Lyonene’s new hero and Lyonene can stay with Alsander. Reed’s new hero is Yngarue a princess, and Reed's job is to act as a matchmaker the only problem is that one of the Princes coming to see Yngarue is Hestion. Not only does Reed have to deal with seeing Hestion try to win over a princess but there’s something far more sinister coming for the princess and anyone who stands in the way especially the Aristene. 

Lyonene ends up making some bad decisions when it comes to Alsander like getting married. As much as the girls tried to keep their switch under wraps they end up being found out and that’s when things really begin to pick up in the book. While Reed is occupied trying to win him back, an old danger is gaining strength. To battle the growing threat, the Aristene must band together, but the order has never been more divided. Will Reed be able to survive this war with her chosen family and her heart intact? 

We also get to see the POV of multiple characters which leads to what I thought was a really heartbreaking ending for many characters. We get to see more of the villain from book one, the bones of the prophet. We get to see more monsters. Such a twisted story. I'm not sure how the author wraps up this series after all the crap Reed went through and then was forced to become to defeat an enemy by elders who should have known better what would happen. If you have read Three Dark Queens, there is a character that ties into that book. A character who was once a queen, Aethiel. 

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#Review - Against the Darkness by Kendare Blake #YA #Paranomal

Series: Buffy: The Next Generation (#3)
Format: Hardcover, 384 pages
Release Date: April 9, 2024
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Source: Library
Genre: Young Adult / Paranormal

This epic finale to the Buffy: The Next Generation trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Kendare Blake (Three Dark Crowns) features the next generation of Scoobies and Slayers who must defeat a powerful new evil.

For generations, the Slayer was supposed to be the chosen, the one girl in all the world with the power to stand against the vampires, demons, and forces of darkness. When Willow used the scythe to call up all the potential slayers at once, it changed everything. For years, the slayers have been working and fighting together as a team.

Then the Darkness came, killing many slayers and trapping the rest in an alternate dimension. And Frankie Rosenberg, the world’s first Slayer-Witch, found herself fighting evil alone. Sort of.

After their latest confrontation with the Darkness, the Scooby gang is more fragmented than ever. Jake is having a werewolf identity crisis, and the return of his troublemaker brother Jordy is only making things worse. Hailey is off pretending to be one of the rogue slayers. Sigmund is burying his broken heart in books. And Frankie's mom, Willow, and Watcher, Spike, only seem to care about bringing Buffy back.

Now, Frankie must forge her own path, save the slayers, reunite her friends, and lead the charge to defeat the Darkness once and for all.

Against the Darkness, by Kendare Blake, is the third installment in the authors In Every Generation series. For generations, the Slayer was supposed to be the chosen, the one girl in all the world with the power to stand against the vampires, demons, and forces of darkness. When Willow used the scythe to call up all the potential slayers at once, it changed everything. For years, the slayers have been working and fighting together as a team. 

Then the Darkness came, killing many slayers and trapping the rest in an alternate dimension, including Buffy. Frankie Rosenberg, the world’s first Slayer-Witch, found herself fighting evil like her aunt Buffy. Like Buffy, she has her very own Scooby Gang, plus the help of her mom, Willow; Watcher, Spike; and even the brooding-but-hot Hunter of Thrace. But even though they have a master plan (obviously), the gang is more fragmented than ever.

Even though Frankie did a good thing by destroying a powerful weapon, and stopped Aspen and the Countess, things are far from over. Frankie and the Scoobies (Jake, Sigmond, Hailey and Sam) need to find a way to defeat the Darkness and bring Buffy and the other slayers home from an alternative reality where they have been stuck for months, or else serious badness could descend upon Sunnydale. Meanwhile, Hailey, has chosen to play the role of double spy in order to find out what Aspen and her allies are up to.

The problem is that Hailey starts to think that Aspen truly just wants to have the power to choose or reject her Slayer powers and possibly return to a normal life. And what happens when Hailey finds herself in the position as being one of the potentials or understanding that she may become the next slayer? Her sister Vi, who was one of the surviving Slayers who chose not to follow Aspen, has gone in hiding along with Sarafina for fear that she will be the next slayer to get in Aspen's way.

Jake, meanwhile, is coming to terms with his wolf, and on occasion, they don't see eye to eye. He seems to be in the process of losing himself each day that goes by. Things don't exactly go smoothy when his cousin Jordy sends him something to help calm his wolf. Which leads to even more trouble. Then of course, we have the return of Dark Willow who goes searching for a powerful black Grimoire that may hold the answers they need to bring Buffy and the surviving Slayers back home. If Willow doesn't lose herself again.

So, now that I babbled my way through this review, let me say that you should absolutely read this series from the beginning. Especially if you are like me who watched Buffy 25 years ago and never missed an episode. So much actually happens in this book, that it is hard not to spoil things. From Aspen's obsession, to Grimloch becoming a pawn against Frankie, to Hailey's seesaw journey of deciding who she wants to be, and to the final chapters and the return of you know who to help stop the Darkness as well as, a nice surprise I didn't see coming. In the end of this book, the author pretty much states that she has no reason to stop writing books about the Buffyverse, and I am here for it. However, can we find out what happened to Xander and Dawn, please?

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#Review - Champion of Fate by Kendare Blake #YA #Fantasy

Series: Heromaker # 1
Format: Hardcover, 480 pages
Release Date: September 19, 2023
Publisher: Quill Tree Books
Source: Publisher
Genre:Young Adult / Fantasy / Epic

In this epic duology starter by #1 New York Times bestselling author Kendare Blake, a girl is taken in by a group of female warriors who train her to shepherd a hero to victory—so long as she doesn’t get her heart broken in the process.

In this sweeping fantasy perfect for fans of Alexandra Bracken and Stephanie Garber, Kendare Blake introduces a new heroine: Reed, the Aristene-in-training. The Aristene are hero-makers. Time and again, the women who make up this fabled order champion fighters to win wars for the glory of their goddess.

 After Reed was orphaned, the Aristene took her in. Now she’s an initiate, finally ready to take her place beside her sisters-in-arms. There’s just one task in Reed’s way: she must lead her first hero to a great victory. Succeed, and she’ll officially join the Aristene. Fail, and Reed will be cast out from the only home she’s ever known.

Nothing is going to stop Reed from joining the order. But her infuriatingly charming hero is nothing like she expected. When her feelings take her by surprise, Reed is faced with a decision: fulfill her destiny as an Aristene, or forge a new path to an unknown future. 

Champion of Fate, by Kendare Blake, is the first installment in the authors Heromaker duology.  When Reed (not her real name) was 8 years old, she was treated as though she was already dead by the village wise woman. "She's not ours, so why should we get attached?" Moments later, her villain is raided and wiped out by Ithernan Raiders who try to take her back to their ship as a sacrifice since the eyes are the pathways to the soul.

Reed is saved when two Aristene Heroes, Aster (who later becomes her mentor) and Veridian (who is apostate or castaway) show up and take Reed into their order and introduce her to the mounts of the Order of the Aristene which will eventually end up with a horse named Silco as her trusty steed. The Aristene serve the Goddess Kleia Gloria and are the ones who make heroes. Heroes that sometimes die since they are not immortal. Along with her friends Gretchen and Lyonene, Reed trains hard to pass the rigorous Hero's test.  

The Aristene are an incredible order of powerful female warriors; think Xena: Warrior Princess or Wonder Woman’s Amazons, and the mysterious order itself is Jedi-like in nature. With so many pop culture connections, there are hooks for readers from a variety of fandoms to connect with. The Aristene have many rules, but one is crucial to Reed’s quest: don’t fall in love with your first hero. 

She doesn’t think it will be a problem, but that’s before she meets her hero, Hestion of Glaucia. He’s stubborn, willful…and effortlessly charming. Kendare is a master at writing chemistry between characters, and this forbidden slow burn is expertly crafted. It's a will-they-or-won't-they romantasy at its best. Though this is completely separate from Three Dark Crowns and you don't have to read those books to love this one, there are a few well-placed details here for eagle-eyed Fennbirn aficionados to pick up on, which will delight Kendare's fanbase.

*Thoughts* One of the themes of the book is a criticism of the old adage, “Behind every great man, there's a great woman.” Even though the Aristene guide these heroes, they are the ones with the real power: the puppet masters. Heroes, while respected, are fleeting. Aristene are forever. As someone who happily watched nearly every episode of Xena, and as a huge fan of Valkyries, as well as Amazonian warriors, I had to read this book. Reed's trials are not easy ones, nor should you expect this to be a light read. At points to being dark, and I am eager to see if the sequel will follow. Especially after the twisted ending that the elders of the Aristene have hoped for through Reed.  

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#Review - One Girl in All the World by Kendare Blake #YA #Paranormal

Series: Buffy: The Next Generation # 2
Format: Hardcover, 352 pages
Release Date: January 31, 2023
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Paranormal, Occult & Supernatural

Into every generation, a slayer is born. One girl in all the world . . . sort of.

Frankie Rosenberg is the world's first slayer-witch, but she doesn't have that slay-life balance figured out just yet. She's still reeling from the deadly explosion at the annual slayer retreat—and new evidence that some slayers may have survived. And while she's defeated her first Big Bad, Frankie soon realizes it was just a warm-up act. Bigger, badder forces of evil are just getting started.

The Hellmouth has been reawakened and its calling old friends home. Portals are opening between Sunnydale and other dimensions. And the Scooby Gang has too many demons to contend with—real, metaphorical, and sometimes absurdly hot.

Then an oracle warns of a new foe on its way: the Darkness. Could this be what attacked the slayers? And is it coming for Frankie?

One Girl in All the World is the second installment in author Kendare Blake's In Every Generation series. 16 year old Frankie Rosenberg, daughter of the infamous Willow, the witch who almost destroyed the world, is the first witch-slayer in history thanks to the devastating events that happened in Halifax prior to the first installment. Frankie and her new "Scooby Gang," Hailey Larsson, sister of the slayer Vi Larsson, Sigmund, a sage demon, Jake, born werewolf, plus Willow, Spike, and Oz, are trying to not only train Frankie into what it means to be a slayer, but to protect the school and population of New Sunnydale.

Meanwhile, thanks to Dawn and Xavier, the investigation into what happened in Halifax is still ongoing and the mystery is getting deeper and deeper, as well as who was responsible for attacking Buffy and her fellow slayers. On a kind of goofy moment, it appears as though Frankie is doing a sort of census to see where certain supernaturals are coming from before slaying them. But the tip of the iceberg is straight ahead. Something has reawakened the Hellmouth―and is calling old friends home. Someone is performing demon magic in the shadows, opening portals between dimensions. 

And a demon oracle warns Frankie of a new evil on its way: the Darkness. Pushing the envelope just a little bit more, Vi Larsson returns, but is that a good thing, or a bad thing? Vi’s return not only throws Frankie and Hailey’s budding friendship into flux, but it perhaps leads to answers as to what readers need to know about the missing slayers. We also have a surprise arrival of almost all enemies that Buffy and her gang once faced when she first became the slayer thanks to an intentional play by another enemy who wants to unleash hell on New Sunnydale. 

Plus? The one plus in all of this is that Grimloch has returned to town and seems to have become Frankie's guardian. Grim also would love to know what happened in Nova Scotia since the slayer he loved is also missing. If you are a fan of the show, you will probably remember all of them. Then there is the arrival of Sarafina, mother of Sigmund, who also has a connection to Willow. Sorry, not Sorry, but I’m not a big fan of Grim as love interest. There’s something about his age and previous relationship with an older slayer that makes his interest in Frankie less believable and a bit creep and if Grim finds his missing slayer, what's going to happen?

I would love to continue this series, especially since we are getting closer to the answers as to whether or not the author will stab Buffy in the back, or will she make a surprise appearance. This may or may not be a mild spoiler, I really like this development in the mystery of who targeted the slayers in Halifax. It makes a lot of sense in the context of the series mythology. Buffy has always been a show that talks about power corrupting.

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#Review - In Every Generation by Kendare Blake #YA #Paranormal #Fantasy

Series: Unknown
Format: Hardcover, 400 pages
Release Date: January 4, 2022
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Paranormal / Fantasy

Frankie Rosenberg wasn't yet alive when her mom, Willow, her aunt Buffy, and the original Scooby Gang destroyed the Hellmouth and saved the world from the First Evil. These days, life in New Sunnydale is blissfully quiet. Frankie is just trying to survive her sophomore year at the rebuilt high school and use her budding magical powers to make the world a better place.

But that world is suddenly plunged into danger when the slayer community is the target of a deadly attack, leaving the future of the line uncertain. Then Frankie discovers she's sort of freakishly strong. Oh, and there's something Willow never told her about her true identity.

Cue the opening credits.

Quicker than she can carve a stake, Frankie discovers there's more to saving the world than witty one-liners and stupid hot demons. now everyone looks to her for answers, but speaking up has never been her strong suit. And it's hard to be taken seriously when your mom is such a powerful witch she almost ended the world once, while your greatest magic trick is recycling.

Despite the many challenges standing in her way, Frankie must assemble her own bumbling Scooby Gang, get dressed up in Buffy's (vintage '90s) clothes, and become a new slayer for a new generation—before whatever came for the rest of the slayers comes for her next.

 

“Into every generation, a slayer is born: one girl in all the world, a chosen one. She alone will wield the strength and skill to fight the vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness; to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their number. She is the Slayer.” 

Kendare Blake's In Every Generation begins a brand-new reimagining of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe. This story takes place 18 years after the curtains fell on the Buffy TV series. This series features the next generation of Scoobies and Slayers who must defeat a powerful new evil. A Buffy superfan herself, Blake deftly creates a new story within the Buffy world, fresh and exciting enough for those unfamiliar with the series, and rich enough to satisfy existing fans. This series is timed to launch with the 25th anniversary of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV show, when hunger for all-things Buffy will be high.

16-year-old Hailey Larsson is the younger sister of a Slayer named Vi. Vi and her fellow slayers are getting together this year for something called Slayerfest which is a regular gathering of all the remaining slayers in Halifax. But something goes horribly wrong. Hailey has been kept secret by Vi who wanted to protect her. Hailey has grown up knowing about the supernatural world and knowing she has to keep it a secret. She has also secretly been training so that she could help her sister. When Spike, Vi's watcher, shows up at her house, Hailey finds herself taken to Sunnydale, the former home of Buffy and her Scooby gang. 

16-year-old Frankie Rosenberg is a sophomore at New Sunnydale High School, and the daughter of the most powerful witch in Sunnydale history. She calls herself an eco-witch. Her mom, Willow, is slowly teaching Frankie magic on the condition that she use it to better the world. But Frankie’s happily quiet life is upended when Hailey & Spike show up with news that the annual Slayer convention has been the target of an attack, and all the Slayers—including Buffy, Faith, and Hailey’s older sister Vi—might be dead. That means it’s time for this generation’s Slayer to be born. 

And, for the first time in history, Frankie is the first Slayer Witch. Gone are the days of one watcher, and one slayer. Girls now are magically chosen at birth to be the next slayer if one dies before they are ready. In fact, Giles, one of the original Buffy Watchers, is so far off the screen that he is not a factor in this story. Frankie's origin story is pretty interesting and no, I am not going to spoil anything. Frankie and her new friends and old friends have to deal with a dangerous character called Hunter of Thrace, as well as the Countess who has been told that Sunnydale is free of slayers.

I understand that there are some of you folks who haven't watched the original Buffy TV show, so, Spike (James Marsters), Willow (Alyson Hannigan), Oz (Seth Green) are active characters from the series. Xander, with Buffy's sister Dawn, calls in with regular updates often and things don't look so good for our beloved Slayers. Vi was the slayer played by Felicia Day in the last season of Buffy. Sigmund, a half-demon who is the son of one of Willow’s demon friends, is a new character who steps up and stays to help out. 

One of the hardest things to do as a reviewer is to stay as far away from spoilers as possible. No, I will not tell you which slayers are no longer with us. I will say that there is a brief appearance by one of them who then immediately dashes off stage as soon as the villain is defeated. The author does her best to incorporate the Buffy-style campy dialogue and it's nice to see that Frankie is a bit like Buffy in that she never expected to be chosen as the next Slayer. With the gaping whole of an ending, I am definitely eager to see what happens next, and whether or not we will get the answers we need about any possible survivors.
  

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#Review - Five ​Dark Fates by Kendare Blake #YA #Fantasy

Series: Three Dark Crowns # 4
Format: Hardcover, 464 pages
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Library
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Epic

In the final book in the New York Times bestselling Three Dark Crowns series, an all-out war is brewing—one that will pit sister against sister, dead against undead, and the betrayed against their betrayers.

Picking up the pieces after the grim confrontation with Queen Katharine, Mirabella and Arsinoe must figure out what’s next. Their answer to Katharine’s evil reign was in Jules, their warrior, but now that her mind has been ravaged by uncontrollable fits of madness, there’s no telling what might happen with the rebellion.

Then Mirabella goes missing and, though it pains Arsinoe to admit, all signs point to an unthinkable betrayal. But there are more players in this war than she realizes. The power struggle will come to an end indeed, but at what price?

In this conclusion to the Three Dark Crowns series, three sisters will rise to fight as the secrets of Fennbirn’s history are laid bare. Allegiances will shift. Bonds will be tested. But the fate of the island lies in the hands of its queens.... It always has.

Five Dark Fates is the Fourth and final installment in author Kendare Blake's Three Dark Crowns series. This story continues where Two Dark Reigns left off. The story alternatives third person POV's between sisters Arsinoe, the naturalist queen who really should have been placed with the poisoners, Mirabella, the most powerful elemental queen in a long while, and Queen Katharine, the one who defeated her sisters, and now carries the Dead Queens of the past within her. 

You could add Jules as a semi-main character since she was born a Guardian, a Naturalist, and Warrior born cursed which has led us to this point in the series. Plus, with her abilities, she could be one of the most powerful characters in this series. The sides have been chosen. Arsinoe chose to stay with Jules, the Legion Queen of Sunpool, her best friend since childhood. Mirabella chose to go to Katharine hoping that she could stop her sisters from killing one another. Mira refuses to see the bad in Katharine, and has hopes that she can do something to prevent her sisters from killing each other. 

But, there are other problems like the mist that seems to have a mind of its own, and a rebellion that is rushing forward towards an unknown conclusion. I think Mira's choice was the right one. She's the oldest, and therefore she knows that when all is said and done, she has to try to keep her sisters alive, even though history and the Island of Fennbirn expects only one to live. Kat is as morally complex as a character can be. Labeling her as a villain completely erases the fact that Kat wanted and was trying to be a good queen; she was a result of the life-altering decisions made by others around her, including if you remember, Pietyr. 

It's probably unfair of me to say this, but Arsinoe was probably the weakest character. Her only saving grace is that she doesn't just abandon her best friend, and allows Billy to make his own choices in the end. Plus, she's tied to a freaking bear named Braddock. While I don't have an issue with killing off characters who seemingly have wasted readers times, or have clearly bitten off more than they can chew, I was really not a fan of who survives and who dies. Especially when one of the characters was one of my favorites and I believed she would be indestructible. This characters death was almost an after thought. 

The author looked around and said, whoa, I have so many characters someone must die! In the end, the sisters are really guided by fate, and the Dead Queens who push and push until Katharine is left without anyway out of her fate. In the end, it is characters like Pietyr, Billy, Bree, and Elizabeth who are forced into some interesting choices. In the end, this wasn't all that bad of an ending to a series.

 

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#Review - Two Dark Reigns by Kendare Blake #YALit #Fantasy

Series: Three Dark Crowns # 3
Format: Hardcover, 464 pages
Release Date: September 4, 2018
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Library
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Epic

In the third book in the #1 New York Times bestselling Three Dark Crowns series, a queen that has long been dead makes a chilling return to Fennbirn Island. 

Queen Katharine has waited her entire life to wear the crown. But now that she finally has it, the murmurs of dissent grow louder by the day. There’s also the alarming issue of whether her sisters are actually dead—or if they’re waiting in the wings to usurp the throne.


Mirabella and Arsinoe are alive, but they’re dealing with a nightmare of their own. Stuck on the mainland, where their powers have weakened, the girls are being visited by a specter they think may be the fabled Blue Queen, pointing her rotting, boney finger toward Fennbirn.


Jules, too, is in a strange place—still on the island but in disguise. And her only confidantes, a war-gifted girl named Emilia and her oracle friend Mathilde, are urging her to take on a role she can’t imagine filling: a legion-cursed queen who will lead a rebel army to Katharine’s doorstep. This is an uprising that the mysterious Blue Queen may have more to do with than anyone could have guessed—or expected.

 

Two Dark Reigns, by author Kendare Blake, is the third installment in the author's Three Dark Crowns series. As the story opens, Katharine has been crowned Queen of Finnbirn, but there has been some costs associated with her rise to the crown. Some are personal costs associated with being a poisoner, some are putting together a council with people she can trust, and some of her issues stem from what happened to her at Breccia Domain.

That doesn't even touch the fact that her sisters, Arsinoe and Mirabella, are presumed to be dead, but apparently there are rumors that they may be alive. Or, the fact that there is a threat to her reign by someone called the Legion Queen or the Mist is actually killing people arbitrarily. Katharine has actually earned her title. She didn't abandon the island like her sisters did. Yes, there are some real issues to deal with, and yes Katharine's issues are a bundle and a half to deal with, but there are some curious roads ahead that the author created in the final chapters of the story.

On the mainland, Mirabella and Arsinoe, along with Billy, are trying to make the best of their situation. While Mirabella, as the oldest, seems to fit in with the parasols, and frilly dresses, and has vowed to protect her sister, Arsinoe is the odd duck who ends up being looked down at and scorned. She hates wearing dresses and she really has no use for Billy's family who look down on her. But, Arsinoe's troubles are just beginning. 

She has constant dreams about Illian, the Blue Queen from centuries before our triplets’ time, and Daphne, her sister, who was raised as a mainlander. It appears that Arsinoe is being lured back to the island by a force that fears that if she doesn't, things will get much, much worse than they already are. Arsinoe and Mirabella have no clue what dangers await them, but Mirabella is going to allow her sister to go alone, and neither will Billy for that matter.  

If you remember the ending of One Dark Throne, you know that Juillenne (Jules) Milone made a choice to return to her island home. In the process, she is being propped up as the true queen of the island by Emilia Vatros, and Mathilde, and Oracle. Emilia, like Jules, is war-gifted, but nobody apparently has the powers that Jules has that makes her a threat to Katharine's reign. Emilia pushes and pushes and pushes some more for Jules to take the reigns and end the reign of the three queens. Emilia might just be the most annoying character in the entire book.

While there's not much to say about Mirabella because her powers on the island are pretty much null and void, she is still my favorite. I think there are plenty of things to come in the next installment which center wholly on Mirabella and the fact that her powers are probably the most dangerous of any of the characters in this book. Will Mirabella stand alongside Jules, and apparently Arsinoe who remain friends even after all that has happened, or will she make the difficult choice to support Katharine? 

Billy and Arsinoe's relationship does hit a quite a few bumps in the road throughout this book due to Arsinoe keeping secrets. But, Billy isn't going to give up on her that easily. Billy and Mirabella's relationship is also curious. I think it's mostly to keep Arsinoe safe from her own actions, and in that, they respect each other.  

I have no regard whatsoever for Pietyr, the brown nose who once tried to kill Katharine, and is now her lover since he can actually stand her poison. While she is possessed by the queens of the past, Pietyr becomes the one who tries to save her even though he already tried to kill her once. He's the backbone that Katharine lacks at times. While she tries to be calm and understanding, he wants her to become more forceful and crush anyone who challenges her. 

Like others, I found the ending of this book to be absolutely stunning. Holy wow, can the author get any darker? Let's hope the fourth installment holds up to the scrutiny to come. 

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Monday #Review - One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake #YALit #Fantasy

Series: Three Dark Crowns # 2
Format: E-Book, 464 pages
Release Date: September 19, 2017
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher via Edelweiss
Genre: Young Adult \ Fantasy \ Epic

Picking up where the New York Times bestselling fantasy novel Three Dark Crowns left off, One Dark Throne continues with higher stakes, jaw-dropping reveals, and an ending readers will never see coming.

With the queens’ sixteenth birthday celebration on the horizon and the unforgettable events of the Quickening behind them, the sisters must reassess their strategic paths to the throne in light of what has happened.

Katharine, once the weak and feeble queen, is curiously stronger than ever before. Arsinoe, after discovering she’s not a naturalist, must figure out how to use her potentially life-threatening secret before it winds up killing her. And even though Mirabella’s powers are as strong as ever, the incessant attacks on her and her people have left her questioning if being crowned is worth it if everyone in her wake dies.

But time is running out, and the triplets aren’t the only ones in Fennbirn scheming about what’s to come. Friends and foes alike who stand to benefit from the victory are trying to force the hands of the sisters, pushing them toward a shocking outcome that defies history, confounds nature, and forever changes everyone involved.

One Dark Throne is the second installment in author Kendare Blake's Three Dark Crowns series. This is a series that takes place on the fictional island of Fennbirn. There are three separate factions: Poisoners, Elementals, & Naturalists. 

Three queens. One crown. Simple, right? No, not really. Each of the three queens have their own special powers. Two of the three queens are keeping secrets from their own people. If you think the first book was a wild ride, you haven't seen anything yet. Things only get more twisted in One Dark Throne!

This story picks up about a month after the ending of Three Dark Crowns. The Ascension year is in full swing. The object now is for only one queen to remain alive at the end of the year. But, why wait for a year to kill your own flesh and blood and collect the crown? Why not go full out and eliminate the competition so that you can focus on who is going to be your consort? So, let's start with Queen Katharine of the poisoners. Katharine is not the same person that we met in Three Dark Crowns. She somehow managed to crawl her way out of Breccia Domain after being shoved in by someone she thought she could trust.

She also blames her sisters for her failings as the weakest sister of the three. But, that is no longer the case. Katherine aka Katharine the Undead is more powerful, more vengeful, and more dangerous than ever before. As the youngest of the three sisters, Katharine has never been taken seriously. By the time this story is over, I think everyone will be shocked at the turn of events that Blake unleashes. Katharine went from one of my most favorite characters, because she wasn't taken seriously, and was faced with horrors from the time she was fostered, to probably my third or fourth because of her actions in this book.  

Arsinoe, aka Bear Queen, is the Queen of the naturalists, but she carries a heavy secret. A secret so shocking that if it ever came out, she would find herself hunted down by her own people. Arsinoe isn't in the killing mood. She doesn't want to be the only Queen standing. In fact, she tries to make her older sister Mirabella understand that she would stand behind her attempt at winning the crown. Arsinoe has two very supportive people behind her. Jules and Joseph. I would dare say that Jules should have probably been one of the main characters of this book. Don't believe me? You haven't read the first book then. 

Mirabella is the oldest sister of the three, and presumably the most powerful because of her elemental powers. But, she really has her eyes opened after she discovers that everything she thought she saw at the Quickening, was perhaps more to it than she realized. Can she find a way to get past the goals and desires of the Priestesses, or will she quiver and fall to the more powerful Katharine. Now, it is up to her to stand up against her own sister Katharine who has become someone nobody recognizes. If she wins, she becomes Queen. I actually loved the fact that Mirabella and Arsinoe form a sort of alliance. I also am glad that the Joseph issue has been resolved. 

One Dark Thrown is a stunning story in many ways. Stunning that the series was supposed to be a duology and now it's a 4 book series. Stunning how the author really twists things and left this reader angry at how things ended in this story. Stunning to realize that it's possible that things could change even more with the realization of just how powerful Jules really is, and the introduction of a new power to the story. One Dark Thrown is definitely more twisted and action packed than it's predecessor. One Dark Throne is once again written in the third-person, present tense form. One of my favorite parts of this story was Arsinoe & Billy's relationship. Even though he is a pawn in a much larger game, he never waivers in his love for her. 

Just think, now we have to wait until 2019 to find out what really happens to Katharine, Arsinoe, and Mirabella. 

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#Friday Review - Three Dark Queens by Kendare Blake #YALit #Fantasy @KendareBlake @harperteen

Series: Three Dark Queens # 1
Format: Hardcover, 398 pages
Release Date: September 20, 2016
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

When kingdom come, there will be one.

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born—three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins.

The last queen standing gets the crown. 

Three Dark Crowns is the first installment in author Kendare Blake's Three Dark Crowns series. On the island of Fennbirn, triplets, were born. Katharine, Arsinoe, and Mirabella. One is fated to become Queen, while the others are fated to die by one of the others. When the girls were six, they were taken and placed with host families. Katherine with Poisoners, Arsinoe with Naturalists, and Mirabella with Elementals. The story features a revolving storyline told in the third person narrative. 

Three dark queens
are born in a glen,
sweet little triplets
will never be friends.

Three dark sisters
all fair to be seen,
two to devour
and one to be Queen.

Katharine is the smallest, and the youngest of the triplets. She is also apparently the weakest of the three sisters. But, don't let that fool you. She has been preparing for Ten years to become the next poisoner Queen and can mix a mean brew of poison. Katharine has felt the affects of every imaginable poison thanks to her host family and survived even though it has taken a huge toll on her. One could say that because of those who have trained her, Katharine is the one who isn't afraid of killing in order to become the next Queen. 

Arsinoe is the second Queen introduced. She is supposed to be a Naturalist, who can make flowers bloom, and have a familiar like her best friend Jules. But, her talents seem to be holding back, leaving her exposed to being easily killed by her other sisters. Which is why it is easy to forgive her for wanting to escape to the mainland where she can be free. If you are looking at a character to really pay attention to outside the sisters, then I suggest Jules. Jules is really an interesting character, with a familiar who easily as badass as Jules is.

Mirabella is the elemental Queen who might be the strongest of the three sisters. Mirabella has access to fire, and wind, but fire may be her weakest link. She has been guided by priestesses of the Temple Rolanth. The priestesses, may have something up their sleeves to ensure that the poisoners reign as Queen, comes to an end. One could say that since Mira is the strongest, that she would have the edge. But, Mira is the one who has the most memories of the sisters and may not be able to kill them when it counts the most.

One of the more curious aspects of this story, is the aspects of romance that encompasses all three sisters. For Katharine, it is Pietyr, nephew of the woman raising her, and her personal attendant. For Mirabella, it is Joseph, a boy who was sent away for 5 years after trying to escape. I am not hopeful of this relationship, and no, I will not say why. For Arsinoe, it is Billy, one of her intended who comes to see her as a person, not as the next queen, and the one who understand who vulnerable she is to her sisters without her own gift.

I found myself actually feeling for each of the sisters. They've been through so much. They each are pushed, and pushed some more in order to overcome the obstacle of staying alive and becoming the last Queen standing. By the end, you have three sisters who are dangerous, and are looking forward to eliminating the other two. I would have liked a bit more world building, especially after the author mentions Cape Horn. Cape Horn is off the coast of Chile. So, does that make the mainland Chile? (Author response: Cape Horn was just an accidental cape of the same name! The Island isn't geographically off the coast of Chile. Not that you could travel thru the MISTS to find the Island! Thanks, Kendare!

There are a whole lot of secondary characters who play huge roles in this story. I would love to know more about their backgrounds. I want to know more about the Black Council, and how members are chosen. I want to know who came up with the idea that only ONE could be queen, while the others are killed. 

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