While I loved The Foxglove King, it’s been a while since I’ve been back in this series. And I had the highest hopes to be dragged back in, but I fear this one fell into the middle book syndrome a little. Keep reading this book review of The Hemlock Queen for my full thoughts.
Summary
The corrupt king August is dead. Prince Bastian has seized the throne and raised Lore—a necromancer and former smuggler—to his right hand side. Together they plan to cut out the rot from the heart of the sainted court and help the people of Dellaire. But not everyone is happy with the changes. The nobles are sowing dissent, the Kyrithean Empire is beating down their door, and Lore’s old allies are pulling away. Even Prince Bastian’s changed. No longer the hopeful, rakish, charismatic man Lore knows and loves, instead he’s reckless, domineering and cold.
And something’s been whispering in her ear. A voice, dark and haunting, that’s telling her there’s more to the story than she knows and more to her power than she can even imagine. A truth buried deep that could change everything.
With Bastian’s coronation fast approaching and enemies whispering on all sides, Lore must figure out how to protect herself, her prince, and her country before they all come crumbling down and whatever dark power has been creeping through the catacombs is unleashed.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The Hemlock Queen throws us headfirst amidst the love triangle vibes. And while that’s certainly one aspect, my favorite one was how Whitten explores power. What will power do to us and how much of us will we lose? It’s one thing to be scared of our power, but what happens when we give up to it? In The Hemlock Queen, I felt like the beginning half was a bit meandering? Unfortunately, this feels like a middle book syndrome which relies on the mystery and the character dynamics, but considering the ending of The Foxglove King, it feels like it loses momentum.
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By the end, it gains some of it back by allowing our characters to descend and rise. By fully entrenching ourselves in the corruption of power and wondering if we can ever pull back. There’s a gaping maw of power and the line between the gods and the priests becomes blurry. The Hemlock Queen asks us whether we can enter a deal without even knowing the price. It explores whether love is about ownership or freely given loyalty. These themes come into their own late in the book and I am going to read the last. But my feelings were a bit of a roller coaster throughout.
Find The Hemlock Queen on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.