The Dead Queen by Briar Knightly

By

 


The Dead Queen by Briar Knightly is a dark retelling of the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood. In this version, Sienna, heir to the Fox throne, is forced to return home to a palace and a position she does not want. Caught off guard by an arranged marriage to her childhood friend—now one of the King’s Guard—she must also contend with rumors of another heir soon to be born. If it is a boy, her life will be forfeit. Haunted by memories of her grandmother and the elusive moth motifs scattered through the city, Sienna vows to uncover the truth behind her grandmother’s death. When one of the Dead Queen’s Wolves is discovered in the Fox King’s private office and thrown into the dungeons, Sienna heals him and helps him escape. Fleeing with Hunter, her childhood friend, and Tristan, the Wolf, she learns the true cause of the war dividing North and South. As the fugitives face the Fox King’s guards and the dead that wander the northern lands, Sienna makes a decision that will haunt her forever. But when she finally comes face-to-face with the Dead Queen, she is left with more questions than answers.

 

Knightly has taken Red Riding Hood and given it a grown-up cape to wear. Sienna is a strong magic wielder and a rebel fighting a destiny steeped in tragedy. Knightly’s world is sharply divided between the colorful, deceptive Fox Court of the South and the shadowed, death-haunted kingdom of the North. Even the characters mirror this duality: Sienna wields light and healing magic, while Tristan commands shadow and death. Traditional fairytale elements are set in a dark, Gothic setting that heightens both suspense and mystery. As the first book in the Thrones of Ruin series, The Dead Queen promises more magic-driven, fairy-tale-inspired adventures to come. With just enough romantic sizzle to make it more New Adult than Young Adult, the book is an easy and engaging read, comparable to the works of Chanda Hahn and Demelza Carlton. Briar Knightly proves that true talent lies in telling a story that enchants, terrifies, and transports the reader to a world of both horror and wonder.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cicero James, Miracle Worker by Hal Emerson

By
Image
Cicero James by Hal Emerson is a cracker-filled urban fantasy and so much fun to read. Cicero James is a Worker – someone who through some horrible tragic event in his life awakened the ability to fight creatures from the space between spaces. He has a Mentor, an older doctor who took Cicero in after his mother passed. Cicero does the mundane thing, the daily grind at his uneventful job, but in his free time, he does Works, meaning he takes contracts from the Worker higher-ups and then sends the beasties back to where they belong. Unfortunately, his last beastie killed him. At least that was what should have happened. When Cicero wakes up in the morgue with no deadly wound to his chest, let’s just say things get complicated. Cicero has to escape an unknown threat and prove to Marlowe’s associates that he is to be trusted while coming to terms with his apparent Immortality. Hal Emerson has written an exciting and action-packed urban fantasy and Cicero James reminds me of Harry Dresden...
Read more

Thy Kingdom Come by Ariana Tosado

By
Image
  In the land where the seven Kingdoms struggle to live peacefully, heir after heir is born in the hope that they would be the ones to run the race for the Last Kingdom, a Kingdom that would unite them all under one rule. Each kingdom has paid its price as the parents of the newborn heir die so the new heir can live. Seven monarchs grow up as orphans made who they are by those who raise them in their parent’s stead. Emberly from Snowark and Leon from Seavale both had a hard upbringing and when the portals to the race for the Last Kingdom open for them to compete, they both have conflicting emotions regarding their suitability to compete in the race. As they face the seven stages Ember and Leon face heartbreaking tragedy and physical challenges that test them almost to death. When the two Monarchs and their teams meet up and decide to work together, Ember and Leo could not have guessed that they would end up as friends and maybe more. But, who will rule if both of them finish the ra...
Read more

Manhunt - Ann Voss Peterson

By
Image
 "He'd bought this ranch in the Wyoming wilderness so he'd never have to look out for anyone but himself again...She stumbled through the dry grass and occasional patch of snow, no rifle, no concern for frightening her game. In fact, she looked like the frightened one."                                                                           click on the image to go to amazon A retired and disgraced cop looking for silence and no excitement; a young single mom expecting a promotion as an accountant and her boss on a hunting trip.  What was supposed to be a hunting trip in the Rocky Mountains turns into a horror adventure as unexpected circumstances force Jace, the retired cop, to take a leap of faith and help the scared Shannon he catches trying to steal his S...
Read more