Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - Solomon's Crown

Listened to the audiobook which had two voices play the two main characters. Overall, I enjoyed the book. The characters had strong emotions and the book is well written. I felt the romance but wished it was a bit more fleshed out and explored. One character seemed to like the other a lot more that the other did which I thought was interesting. There are some implied spicy scenes! The following of the lands and sides of the war were confusing but could have been fixed if I read the physical book.
Overall, good book that was enjoyable with strong characters.

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spootilious's review

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Read: October 17, 2023
Title: Solomon’s Crown

Author: Natasha Siegal

Genre: Historical Fiction / LGBTQ Romance
Rating: 3.5 / 5
Review:

This book was very cute. There was no real feeling of suspense or worry despite the subjects of war and the like. So, I would classify the novel as a ‘Cozy’ Historical Fiction though I am unsure if others would agree.

The prose was beautiful and well written, reminding me a log of Song of Achilles, and each character was well rounded and unique.

This book was given such a high rating, not because I enjoyed it (tbh I was quite bored with most of it, though it’s obvious that I am not the target audience) but rather because I can not find many faults with the book. The two that I did find were simply that the book’s pace was slow and monotonous, and there were many repetitive aspects of the main characters.

Overall, though, It was definitely a solid read and highly recommend it to individuals that enjoy Historical Fiction and Cozy LGBT novels.

Quotes:
N/A

TW:
Minor: War, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Grief, Emotional abuse, Death, and Adult/minor relationship

Content Warnings

marghepardo's review

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emotional sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.0

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diana_raquel's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

“My liege," I said, bowing low.
"My Lord Aquitaine," he replied, as he stood from the bench. "Is the gate broken, or do you make a habit of vaulting over walls?"
"Only when you are on the other side of them.”

I was perusing the shelves at my favorite bookstore - you know, as one does - when I came face-to-face with this book and fell in love with the cover (you know the old saying "never judge a book by its cover"? Well, when it comes to books, I don't think that saying is accurate). At that point, I never heard of Natasha Siegel and when reading the synopsis of the book I got intrigued. It seemed like a thing that I would like. A queer medievalist alt-history romance between two widely know history figures? Shut up and take my money!!

But, alas, I was skeptical. How many times do I think that I will like a book, because it has all the elements that I like and comes up short or I hate it? Case in point: ACOTAR! Nevertheless, and because I'm a masochist and like to make mistakes, I brought the book. And love it!!!

I have to say that, at first, given the sorta melancholic and nostalgic tone of the first pages, I was like "oh, s***, this is gonna end in tragedy! It will be this epic love story and then one of them is gonna die". I was so sure it was gonna end in tears! Imagine my surprise when it was a epic love story with a happy ending!

If you like alt-history, enemies to lovers, and political intrigue I truly recommend this book! As the author herself put it, this book is "joyously queer"! Its a delightful return to the past (albeit a fictionalized one) full of intrigue, love and drama!

One of the best reads of 2023!!

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quinnyquinnquinn's review

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emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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caseythereader's review

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dark emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Thanks to Random House for the free advance copy of this book.

- OH MY HEART, THIS BOOK! I never thought I would care about European kings from a thousand years ago but now I will go into battle for Philip and Richard.
- SOLOMON'S CROWN envisions the rival kings as secret lovers, opposites inexorably drawn to each other. They both know the relationship can never be, and both fall into it willingly anyway.
- Be forewarned that there is a lot of political gamesmanship here, as they are warring over a few duchys throughout the book. But Siegel makes it all fairly easy to follow, and of course, the relationship between the two kings is really the driving force of the book.

Content Warnings

hilwithonel's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

beautifully written, absolutely breathtaking love story. I loved all the main characters in this story and rooted so hard for Phillip and Richard. Fantastic writing and beautiful romance.

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