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alya_289's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
_aoibheann_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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
0.75
amelia_rose_20's review
adventurous
medium-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
2.0
3/10 | "The Queen's Secret" by Melissa de la Cruz is plagued by an infuriatingly nonsensical plot and culminates in what may be the laziest conclusion I've ever encountered.
thebooknerdscorner's review
2.0
Reluctantly married to a king she despises, Lilac will do anything to get back to the assassin she loves.
Where do I even begin with this one? "The Queen's Assassin" has plenty of issues, but somehow, "The Queen's Secret" made all of them worse. The writing style was bland, the magic system had little coherency, and the quest that I thought Cal was going to have to embark on was completely thrown aside. Also, don't get me started about the pretty bow that tied the ending of the book together.
I couldn't care less about Lilac as a character, especially because she spends the majority of this book faking illness so she doesn't have to be around her husband, King Hansen. She also is extremely jealous of the pretty assassin that is Cal's new apprentice. I found this to be so petty, though to be fair, Cal is jealous of the king, too. Cal is at least tolerable as a character, but he spends the majority of this book on a wild goose chase for the sole reason to get him away from Lilac. Also, the romance in this book only consisted of them pining for one another; I think there was in total around two scenes of them alone together. For a fantasy romance series, I'm not sure if that was the most helpful choice on the author's part.
My biggest problem with this book, is how little I cared for anything that was going on. This wasn't helped by how bland the writing is. Also, there was so many things in this book that came out of nowhere and made little sense (if you know about the horse scene, you know). Yet somehow, the entire main problem surrounding the magical assassins is still super obvious to figure out and created zero urgency in the plot.
The one thing I was actually excited about was Cal's quest to find the magical scrolls that will free him from the curse that is inflicted upon him. However, this had absolutely nothing to do with the plot line and the way that he ends up finding them in the end is one of the cheapest and laziest writing choices I've ever read. And that's not to talk about how quick and easy the final boss battle was. *sigh* In many ways, this book felt like the second installment in a trilogy, which caused the ending to feel rushed, uneventful, and very anti-climatic. Also, the way that the trio's relationship (Lilac, Cal, and King Hansen's) was resolved was also problematic, especially when it came to Lilac's weird vision she had about the future in the fire place. The fact that there wasn't a big scene between Lilac and Cal at the end was also strange, and made the ending about as lackluster as it could possibly be,
Overall, "The Queen's Secret" is the disappointing conclusion to a incoherent duology that truly fell flat on its face for me. There was very little that I enjoyed about this book, but luckily it only took me a couple of days to trod through. I loved my first read by Melissa de la Cruz, but this series was so disappointing, I don't even know what to expect from the rest of her books. I think that there are many people who could enjoy this duet, but I found it too bland, cliché, and repetitive to find joy within its pages.
Where do I even begin with this one? "The Queen's Assassin" has plenty of issues, but somehow, "The Queen's Secret" made all of them worse. The writing style was bland, the magic system had little coherency, and the quest that I thought Cal was going to have to embark on was completely thrown aside. Also, don't get me started about the pretty bow that tied the ending of the book together.
I couldn't care less about Lilac as a character, especially because she spends the majority of this book faking illness so she doesn't have to be around her husband, King Hansen. She also is extremely jealous of the pretty assassin that is Cal's new apprentice. I found this to be so petty, though to be fair, Cal is jealous of the king, too. Cal is at least tolerable as a character, but he spends the majority of this book on a wild goose chase for the sole reason to get him away from Lilac. Also, the romance in this book only consisted of them pining for one another; I think there was in total around two scenes of them alone together. For a fantasy romance series, I'm not sure if that was the most helpful choice on the author's part.
My biggest problem with this book, is how little I cared for anything that was going on. This wasn't helped by how bland the writing is. Also, there was so many things in this book that came out of nowhere and made little sense (if you know about the horse scene, you know). Yet somehow, the entire main problem surrounding the magical assassins is still super obvious to figure out and created zero urgency in the plot.
The one thing I was actually excited about was Cal's quest to find the magical scrolls that will free him from the curse that is inflicted upon him. However, this had absolutely nothing to do with the plot line and the way that he ends up finding them in the end is one of the cheapest and laziest writing choices I've ever read. And that's not to talk about how quick and easy the final boss battle was. *sigh* In many ways, this book felt like the second installment in a trilogy, which caused the ending to feel rushed, uneventful, and very anti-climatic. Also, the way that the trio's relationship (Lilac, Cal, and King Hansen's) was resolved was also problematic, especially when it came to Lilac's weird vision she had about the future in the fire place. The fact that there wasn't a big scene between Lilac and Cal at the end was also strange, and made the ending about as lackluster as it could possibly be,
Overall, "The Queen's Secret" is the disappointing conclusion to a incoherent duology that truly fell flat on its face for me. There was very little that I enjoyed about this book, but luckily it only took me a couple of days to trod through. I loved my first read by Melissa de la Cruz, but this series was so disappointing, I don't even know what to expect from the rest of her books. I think that there are many people who could enjoy this duet, but I found it too bland, cliché, and repetitive to find joy within its pages.
cmdufresne's review
3.0
Like the first book, what should be the main plot is in the background for most of the book and then resolved in like 5 pages. Most of the book is just awkward distance jealousy. And all the characters are flat and not very likeable.
beautyandthebookdragon's review
2.0
Lilac and Cal's story continues as Lilac works to assert her power as queen of two different countries and Cal continues his quest for the Deian Scrolls. I felt compelled to finish their story because I knew there had to be more. Unfortunately, I felt that most of this book consisted of them pining for each other and not being able to talk to each because of court politics. I felt more at peace with the ending of this book but also felt that the ending was someway convenient.
k_lee_reader's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
crhogan's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
heatherlovesreading's review
3.0
Not as good as book one, but still an enjoyable read. It was nice to see Cal and Lilac's story continue and be wrapped up the way it was. It does feel like this story was a bit rushed, and had some plot holes, but I still had a good reading experience overall.