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A review by amandamant
Claiming His Queen by Ella Goode
5.0
After an odd start, I have to admit - this is my favorite Ella Goode book so far.
I know! I love her work, how could I possibly choose a favorite? Well, I just did. Aidon and Cora are awesome. Particularly Cora. She’s the perfect sweet virgin with a backbone that actually made choices a sweet virgin with a backbone would make.
We’ve all read these novella heroines...they usually go from zero to sex kitten in a matter of paragraphs. Cora wasn’t like that. She had sex kitten in her (she wouldn’t be an Ella heroine if she didn’t), but it progressed realistically even in the very shortened time frame of the book.
For the record, it all happens in like 3 days, but still, somehow, it totally worked for me.
WARNING / HEADS UP - when I started this book I was confused beyond measure. Was this one of the contemporary romances that Ella usually writes? Or some Sci-Fi, other worldly, paranormal story that I’m not prepped for? - Don’t get me wrong, I love paranormal, but I don’t expect it from Ella - Turns out, it is contemporary. And while the setting is pretty ambiguous it’s set in modern times.
Why did I question that this was actually an Ella book for about the first 3-4 chapters ?
These names!
I understand that unique character names are important in books. But all of these names felt like they were meant for other places. Cora? Fine totally believable. Aidon? Well, it’s not spelled right, but I can get behind it. It’s very possible this is set in a Mediterranean nation where there are names and spellings I don’t know. Cora could definitely be Italian or Greek. But then we just got progressively weird.
Poppy - okay it’s a nickname for Penelope, totally fine. Wait, Poppy is a GUY?? Bran - okay now we’re in Winterfell. Hunt - we’ve moved to the Deep South. Pole - ummm. Okay. Notch?? Like, a notch in a wood? Kailler???? What? Is it supposed to be like Killer, but special dude-like Killer kind of name? Nope. Kailler is a woman. Karin? Is this typical spelling? And Karin’s last name - the one that she’s frequently called - Veith. Essentially all of her people are called the Veith orphans. Veith.
Do we understand why Amanda thought we were reading some kind of Sci-Fy?
Seriously, unique names are awesome, but too many and it’s hard to call a story contemporary unless you put it in a specific setting. The lack of setting is what made me immediately think I was getting something other than what I expected.
All of that aside - I truly LOVED this book! Once I got past all of the weird names, I totally fell for the characters. There was action and a touch of mystery. The entire cast of characters held my interest. And it was so steamy and delicious. A genuine new favorite of mine.
So, don’t let yourself get stuck on the weird names. Rename them in your head if you have to! The actual story is awesome and I highly recommend it to any romance lover! Particularly if you, like me, find short and steamy books to be the catnip that they are.
I know! I love her work, how could I possibly choose a favorite? Well, I just did. Aidon and Cora are awesome. Particularly Cora. She’s the perfect sweet virgin with a backbone that actually made choices a sweet virgin with a backbone would make.
We’ve all read these novella heroines...they usually go from zero to sex kitten in a matter of paragraphs. Cora wasn’t like that. She had sex kitten in her (she wouldn’t be an Ella heroine if she didn’t), but it progressed realistically even in the very shortened time frame of the book.
For the record, it all happens in like 3 days, but still, somehow, it totally worked for me.
WARNING / HEADS UP - when I started this book I was confused beyond measure. Was this one of the contemporary romances that Ella usually writes? Or some Sci-Fi, other worldly, paranormal story that I’m not prepped for? - Don’t get me wrong, I love paranormal, but I don’t expect it from Ella - Turns out, it is contemporary. And while the setting is pretty ambiguous it’s set in modern times.
Why did I question that this was actually an Ella book for about the first 3-4 chapters ?
These names!
I understand that unique character names are important in books. But all of these names felt like they were meant for other places. Cora? Fine totally believable. Aidon? Well, it’s not spelled right, but I can get behind it. It’s very possible this is set in a Mediterranean nation where there are names and spellings I don’t know. Cora could definitely be Italian or Greek. But then we just got progressively weird.
Poppy - okay it’s a nickname for Penelope, totally fine. Wait, Poppy is a GUY?? Bran - okay now we’re in Winterfell. Hunt - we’ve moved to the Deep South. Pole - ummm. Okay. Notch?? Like, a notch in a wood? Kailler???? What? Is it supposed to be like Killer, but special dude-like Killer kind of name? Nope. Kailler is a woman. Karin? Is this typical spelling? And Karin’s last name - the one that she’s frequently called - Veith. Essentially all of her people are called the Veith orphans. Veith.
Do we understand why Amanda thought we were reading some kind of Sci-Fy?
Seriously, unique names are awesome, but too many and it’s hard to call a story contemporary unless you put it in a specific setting. The lack of setting is what made me immediately think I was getting something other than what I expected.
All of that aside - I truly LOVED this book! Once I got past all of the weird names, I totally fell for the characters. There was action and a touch of mystery. The entire cast of characters held my interest. And it was so steamy and delicious. A genuine new favorite of mine.
So, don’t let yourself get stuck on the weird names. Rename them in your head if you have to! The actual story is awesome and I highly recommend it to any romance lover! Particularly if you, like me, find short and steamy books to be the catnip that they are.