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A review by shanyreader
The Red Queen's Daughter by Jacqueline Kolosov
2.0
So, two stars is actually a very generous rating, but the author seems like a very nice person and her author's note at the end was very sweet, so...two stars. >.<
Now...what the book did that was wrong...it told us EVERYTHING. Now, I'm not adverse to having a few hints here and there, but when everything is spelled out for us over and over again about this jewel or that or the other thing in almost the exact same wording, even from different characters...it's hard to really be very impressed with the writing.
The romance. Now. I thought there would be some nice building up to the romance, through interaction where Edward or Edmund or whatever black magician's name is, would be shown to be a jerk with a heart of gold or something along those lines. BUT we spend the whole book with our hearts set against him because all he does is impregnate females and engage in sub-par romantic, dangerous conversation with our MC. I couldn't see any chemistry between them at all and I was very sorely dissapointed with the ending because it seemed much too rushed. I didn't feel like I got to know him well enough to really care at all about him. Ugh.
Final thing it did wrong: King Lear. What. Why. WHY. *Facepalm* I love King Lear, but why is the story just...HERE? Thrown in and forced in? No purpose whatsoever.
I think it would have been so much better if the book had just expanded on other things that I thought it did well. The spells were interesting, and understanding what the different components added was very intriguing. I liked Lady Strange a lot and I would have loved to see more time of Mary's training, her growing up, and maybe have her ACTUALLY contribute something to Elizabeth's reign? We have it all being set up for us in the first half of the book about her aiding the queen...and then in the second half, that all falls pretty much apart.
It wasn't a terrible to read book...Amethysts are supposed to represent cheerfulness, and pearls are the tears of heaven--little fun facts like that and the beautiful imagery she sometimes comes up with, its fun to read sometimes...but...overall...I'm not going to really give the book more praise than it deserves, or more censure than it deserves. Eh.
I wouldn't recommend it when there are better Tudor-era books out there.
Now...what the book did that was wrong...it told us EVERYTHING. Now, I'm not adverse to having a few hints here and there, but when everything is spelled out for us over and over again about this jewel or that or the other thing in almost the exact same wording, even from different characters...it's hard to really be very impressed with the writing.
The romance. Now. I thought there would be some nice building up to the romance, through interaction where Edward or Edmund or whatever black magician's name is, would be shown to be a jerk with a heart of gold or something along those lines. BUT we spend the whole book with our hearts set against him because all he does is impregnate females and engage in sub-par romantic, dangerous conversation with our MC. I couldn't see any chemistry between them at all and I was very sorely dissapointed with the ending because it seemed much too rushed. I didn't feel like I got to know him well enough to really care at all about him. Ugh.
Final thing it did wrong: King Lear. What. Why. WHY. *Facepalm* I love King Lear, but why is the story just...HERE? Thrown in and forced in? No purpose whatsoever.
I think it would have been so much better if the book had just expanded on other things that I thought it did well. The spells were interesting, and understanding what the different components added was very intriguing. I liked Lady Strange a lot and I would have loved to see more time of Mary's training, her growing up, and maybe have her ACTUALLY contribute something to Elizabeth's reign? We have it all being set up for us in the first half of the book about her aiding the queen...and then in the second half, that all falls pretty much apart.
It wasn't a terrible to read book...Amethysts are supposed to represent cheerfulness, and pearls are the tears of heaven--little fun facts like that and the beautiful imagery she sometimes comes up with, its fun to read sometimes...but...overall...I'm not going to really give the book more praise than it deserves, or more censure than it deserves. Eh.
I wouldn't recommend it when there are better Tudor-era books out there.