This is the third book in the series. I previously reviewed book one, THREE DARK CROWNS, the second book, ONE DARK THRONE, and the bonus side stories, QUEENS OF FENNBIRN.
So if you haven't read the first two books, the bonus side stories are pretty optional (interesting, but optional), I would recommend skipping this review.
...then if you have read these books, I foolishly got excited that this was the final book in the series, but it's not. So there will be another book. I'm just excited for the conclusion. I know, in my last review of One Dark Throne, I mentioned there was going to probably be two more books in the series...but sometimes I just get excited.
Anyways, an amazon summary, "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 or not her sisters are actually dead—or if they’re waiting in the wings to usurp the throne.
Mirabella and Arsinoe are alive, but in hiding on the minland and dealing with a nightmare of their own: being visited repeatedly by a specter they think might be the fabled Blue Queen. Though she says nothing, her rotting, bony finger pointing out to sea is clear enough: return to Fennbirn.
Jules, too, is in a strange place—in disguise. And her only confidants, 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." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE
So, a super quick recap of the end of One Dark Throne, Katherine has been crowned queen (by permanently having a black crown tattooed into her forehead), Mirabella and Arsinoe have fled to the main land with Billy, Joseph is dead, and Jules is hiding out on the island after it's discovered she is legion-cursed.
Sidenote: I still have personal suspicions that since Mirabella and Arsinoe are still alive after all the times they should have been dead, it seems like the island has more planned for them... or all three are going to rule. Maybeeee this is why I want the books concluded so bad, JUST CONFIRM OR DENY MY SUSPICIONS. Also, this is a sign of good story telling.
Anyways.
So book 3 begins with a scene from the past when four queens were born to a war-gifted queen. The first three triplets were disposed of in correspondence to their gift, but the fourth queen is the blue queen, the chosen one to rule. For the record, the first three queen borns were Leonine (naturalist), Isadora (oracle), and Roxane (elemental). The fourth queen is Illiann (elemental). I want to spell this out now, because I feel like this will be one of those weird things that will come back into play later on in the series in very specific ways because they're giving us these very specific facts about an old event. (Reader senses.)
...anyways.
Mirabella and Arsinoe are on the mainland, and they're trying to adapt with being off the island, without their gift, with no longer really being queens. Billy is there to help, but Arsinoe sees the shadow of the Blue Queen while she's visiting Joseph's grave. Soon, she starts having dreams about the Blue Queen. dun dun dunnnnn
Meanwhile, Queen Katherine has changed out three of her council members, and is starting her rule on the island. She sends out people to search for the bodies of Mirabella and Arsinoe (as the queens are not allowed to the leave the island because magic), but the people sent out to search...show up in the mist and they're all dead. Some of the bodies are torn apart, others look like they've been dead for weeks rather than a day or so. The mystery of the mist begins, just as Jules is learning more about her war gift.
Jules has been taken in by Emilia, who is hiding her but also training her in her war gift. Emilia believes Jules is the true Queen of the island as her naturalist gift and war gift are on the same levels of the queens. Jules is reluctant at first, but once Emilia exposes her to a group of people in a bar and they start to show hope that Jules can stop the poisoner's rule. They also are hopeful she can get the Undead queen off the throne (Undead queen is Katherine's nickname).
That's enough summary.
I liked this book the best out of all the books so far. It gave me everything I had been looking for in the past books, and I also felt it was much more grounded into the era it's supposed to take place in. I thought a lot of the character development was on point, the islanders were better represented, and the story seemed to shift focus into more about how the island was affected or evolving by the queens antics/power struggles.
...I'm on board for another book, I just hope there's a sense of a complete revolution as all of these different story threads conclude.
Happy reading!
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