Review: The Queen of the Tearling
08:00
By Erika Johansen
Source: Personal purchase, ebook
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, High Fantasy, Adventure
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...
This book looked really intimidating to me before I read it - not only is it almost 500 pages and looks really wordy, but everyone seems to love it. I literally haven’t read a bad review of it! This can be really scary, especially for a book blogger. I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy it as much as everyone else did, but sadly, that was the case.
It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy this book, because that’s not true at all. I did like reading it, but for me, it wasn’t anything special at all. I wasn’t blown away by the plot, the characters, or the world, and I found the writing to be pretty bland. It was readable, and I did want to read on, but I wasn’t hooked at all, and was constantly waiting for something exciting to actually happen.
My favourite aspect of this book was Kelsea, the protagonist. I really liked her - she made the right decisions, and actually had some common sense. She was strong and brave, and I really admired just how tough she was. She was my favourite character by far, and the only thing that made the book bearable.
My main problem was that nothing happened. There were plot points, and there were scenes that I think were meant to be exciting, but for me, it just didn’t work. It wasn’t built up enough, and there was no tension, so the book overall felt a bit dull. I was anticipating greatness, and for it to be super exciting, but sadly that never came.
I would recommend this book to some people, but if high fantasy isn’t really your thing, I don’t think this is the one for you. It takes perseverance, so if you’re looking for a fast-paced, highly exciting novel, I’d recommend something like Half Bad. It was well-written, but left me disappointed with the slow-pacing. I thought it to be a rather dull read.
Hello! I'm D - a dog-loving feminist from the UK. You'll probably find me with my nose in a book or playing my clarinet
12 comments
Sorry to here you didn't like it as much as expected. The hype is that main reason that I have not read the novel, either. By the way, I nominated you for the One Lovely Blog award!
ReplyDeleteYeah there's so much hype it's scary! I was pretty sure I was going to love it, but it just wasn't for me. Thank-you! I'll have to be getting round to that soon - I haven't done a tag/award post in ages :)
DeleteI think I'll eventually read it just to see what it is like, but I've always been a bit unsure about it. You're welcome! I can't wait to see your post. :)
DeleteI'll let you know if the series is worth a read once my library gets the second! It's the sort of book to read on holiday or when you're really in the mood for reading, not one for when you're just out of a slump. Thanks! :)
DeleteOh my.. Sorry to hear that this didn't turn out well for you, Denise! The cover is really gorgeous, don't you think? Oh well, to each of their own, I guess. Goodluck on your next read though! Hopefully it'll live up to your expectations. :) xx
ReplyDeleteFiona | A Girl Between the Pages
Yes definitely! All of the editions are so beautiful (sadly I read this as an e-book), and it suits the book so well. Thank-you, Fiona! ♥
DeleteAh, I hate it when they hype is huge and you're not really feeling it when you are reading. That's kind of how I am feeling about Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater right now :/ I am glad you could find it okay, but when nothing is really happening in the plot I can understand things can get a bit tiresome. Especially with it being such a long novel as well!
ReplyDeleteYeah I know, I always feel so bad to let people down by not loving their favourite book, especially when I don't have a really strong opinion about it. Things weren't too bad because I was able to power through it whilst I was on holiday - I think it would have been much more dull if I was reading it at home.
DeleteI'm sorry you're not loving Shiver! Hopefully it will pick up soon :)
I have to agree with you on this one - I really loved this book but it a ton of build up. While there are things that happen (especially with that whole slave situation), there just isn't anything major. I just read the next book a couple of months ago and that had some awesome action and intrigue going on. Maybe you'll like that one better :) Lovely review!
ReplyDeleteLaura @BlueEyeBooks
Yeah, there's lots of "world-building" which I thought could have been dropped. The slave situation was really interesting, but I felt it wasn't done as well as it could have been, so I didn't enjoy it as much. I've ordered the next book from the library, and I'm really looking forward to reading it. Thank-you, Laura! ☺
DeleteI ended up reading a preview of this one and not really seeing what all the hype is about as well. I loved the world and the characters, but it wasn't enough to really make me care about what was going on. You may want to try Julie Kagawa's books if you liked the concept but not the execution :)
ReplyDeleteEli @ The Silver Words.com
Yeah, that's the same with me. I think I still would have bought the book if I had read a preview - it was the middle and ending that mainly let it down for me. I'll have to check them out; I've heard lots of hype about her. Thank-you! :D
DeleteThanks for commenting! I read and respond to every comment, so make sure to check back to see my reply. Have a nice day! ☺♥