I think this book had a lot of great potential but I think the execution of it was not the greatest and I could definitely tell that this was a debut novel because it read exactly like one.
While I really enjoyed the premise and reading about the characters, I found that the timing of this book was a huge obstacle. It made the book incredibly choppy with the back and forth between the queens’ perspective and Keralie’s perspective. I also felt that time moved really strangely. There were instances when I felt as if days had passed but apparently it was only a few hours or vice versa and these instances played a major role at the end of the book when things were coming together. It made me incredibly confused and took me away from the book.
There was also this romance (obviously as typical of YA novels) but I could care less about it. It felt strained and I didn’t see any chemistry between the two. It also felt that their romance grew too quickly when I haven’t even gotten to really know either of the characters. Personally I think the book would have been a smidge stronger without the romance.
However, at the end of the day, I still enjoyed this murder mystery because there were definitely a few plot twists that I did not see coming. I also really liked reading about the secrets that each queen was hiding because it just shows that no matter what the laws are and no matter who you are, there are always secrets that you want to keep. And it was quite fascinating to see each secret being revealed.
The ending and the culprit was definitely not what I had expected at all! I was really surprised to find out who was behind everything and the motive behind it as well. To be honest, I completely went on a different path when this one tidbit was revealed in the middle and to find out that it was the complete opposite was shocking.
Overall, there were definitely elements that I enjoyed (plot, secrets, murder mystery) but there were also a few things that really hindered my reading experience (timing, pacing and romance). If you enjoy murder mysteries then I would recommend this book.
While I really enjoyed the premise and reading about the characters, I found that the timing of this book was a huge obstacle. It made the book incredibly choppy with the back and forth between the queens’ perspective and Keralie’s perspective. I also felt that time moved really strangely. There were instances when I felt as if days had passed but apparently it was only a few hours or vice versa and these instances played a major role at the end of the book when things were coming together. It made me incredibly confused and took me away from the book.
There was also this romance (obviously as typical of YA novels) but I could care less about it. It felt strained and I didn’t see any chemistry between the two. It also felt that their romance grew too quickly when I haven’t even gotten to really know either of the characters. Personally I think the book would have been a smidge stronger without the romance.
However, at the end of the day, I still enjoyed this murder mystery because there were definitely a few plot twists that I did not see coming. I also really liked reading about the secrets that each queen was hiding because it just shows that no matter what the laws are and no matter who you are, there are always secrets that you want to keep. And it was quite fascinating to see each secret being revealed.
The ending and the culprit was definitely not what I had expected at all! I was really surprised to find out who was behind everything and the motive behind it as well. To be honest, I completely went on a different path when this one tidbit was revealed in the middle and to find out that it was the complete opposite was shocking.
Overall, there were definitely elements that I enjoyed (plot, secrets, murder mystery) but there were also a few things that really hindered my reading experience (timing, pacing and romance). If you enjoy murder mysteries then I would recommend this book.