The Queen of the Tearling

 

Title: The Queen of the Tearling
Author:  Erika Johansen
Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers
Pages:  448 Pages
Genre: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy,
Source: Amazon Book Page
Rating: 6  Stars

Summary:

Magic, adventure, mystery, and romance combine in this epic debut in which a young princess must reclaim her dead mother’s throne, learn to be a ruler—and defeat the Red Queen, a powerful and malevolent sorceress determined to destroy her.

On her nineteenth birthday, Princess Kelsea Raleigh Glynn, raised in exile, sets out on a perilous journey back to the castle of her birth to ascend her rightful throne. Plain and serious, a girl who loves books and learning, Kelsea bears little resemblance to her mother, the vain and frivolous Queen Elyssa. But though she may be inexperienced and sheltered, Kelsea is not defenseless: Around her neck hangs the Tearling sapphire, a jewel of immense magical power; and accompanying her is the Queen’s Guard, a cadre of brave knights led by the enigmatic and dedicated Lazarus. Kelsea will need them all to survive a cabal of enemies who will use every weapon—from crimson-caped assassins to the darkest blood magic—to prevent her from wearing the crown.

Despite her royal blood, Kelsea feels like nothing so much as an insecure girl, a child called upon to lead a people and a kingdom about which she knows almost nothing. But what she discovers in the capital will change everything, confronting her with horrors she never imagined. An act of singular daring will throw Kelsea’s kingdom into tumult, unleashing the vengeance of the tyrannical ruler of neighboring Mortmesne: the Red Queen, a sorceress possessed of the darkest magic. Now Kelsea will begin to discover whom among the servants, aristocracy, and her own guard she can trust.

But the quest to save her kingdom and meet her destiny has only just begun—a wondrous journey of self-discovery and a trial by fire that will make her a legend . . . if she can survive.

This book will be a beautifully designed package with illustrated endpapers, a map of the Tearling, and a ribbon marker.

Review:

I just finished reading this book and to be honest I usually marinate in the ending for a while but this time i simply cannot because i am way way too excited and happy! This is like someone took Game of Thrones and mushed it up with The hunger games – Strong female lead and a lot of killers/killing and throne snatching. I love that Kelsea is not your typical too gorgeous to get dirt girls. We see her become self conscious about it and even mention it out loud to another female who gently reminded her that outward beauty is not just a blessing but may also be a curse. We see Kelsea struggle with living two different lives. She struggles with the past and present constantly. You can feel some of her anguish in her self doubt but she is one tough cookie! She  was raised by foster parents and they did a damn fine job of making her self reliant and self thinking. Kelsea grows so much from front beginning to end. She makes some pretty big sacrifices and basically shouts out go big or go home with her mere presence. She works for and earns the respect of the people around her…personally i think i have a crush on the queen of Tearling. The Fetch is my second favorite person and i hope the author plans on keeping him around just to unravel him and his mysteries. The fetch i believe will always hold a place of affection in Kelsea’s heart and she in his as well. Its just a hunch but i hope these two have at least one scandalous moment. 

Speaking of scandalous who IS her dad!? It’s the million dollar question through out the book! [if you know the answer don’t spoil it for me] Everytime it was brought up i was like YEA!!! WHO’S YOUR DADDY?! again very happy that there is a second and third book [rumor has it]. 

Kelsea’s Adversary The Red Queen [*sighs* off with their head?? not the same promise] we don’t really know much about her except shes ancient and a professor of the dark arts. Just kidding. She is a sorceress though and is seen conversing with the devil and staying super young while really being over 100 years old and being inherently evil. There isn’t much said about her other than she rules with fear and shes gorgeous and scared. I like that she is scared. She has plenty to be scared of. 🙂 my 3rd favorite person you ask? Mace. I have a huge thing for sort of broken, overly protective, guarded, gruff, killing machines. He’s brutal. He is one of Kelsea’s best weapons. He is dependable and trustworthy. He is honest to a point and with holds when he needs to. He is the first person to swear fealty to Kelsea for the silliest of reasons but it endears him to me. Mace is so protective of Kelsea that its almost obnoxious. It’s not a creepy protective it’s a fatherly/uncle-please-don’t-get-yourself-killed sort of protectiveness. 

I really and truly enjoyed every moment of this book. it didn’t reek of soft porn like a lot young adult novels and it certainly didn’t need a weak female character to be saved by anyone or thing. This was fantastic – strong female badass who is determined to save the kingdom. Serious blood and scarring going onto said bad ass female. Kick ass family of guards who will follow her to the ends of the earth and at the end of the day decisions made with humility and humanity. There are good choices and bad choices. There are crappy pasts and murky futures but most of all there is faith and hope. In my eyes this book deserves far more than just 5 stars that’s how awesome it was to me. In Fact!!! It is going to be my first 6 Star book! Which means!! It was better than awesome and more fantastic than wonderful. 

Recommendation:

YES YES YES YES!!!! I borrowed mine from Books A Million [perks of being an employee] Feel free to borrow a copy from your library or a friend or buy it from amazon or whatever. Its such a good book that you NEED to have it. It’s like hot cocoa on a cold day or chicken noodle soup when you are feeling sick. That’s how good this book is!!! GO GET IT NOOOOW!!