Three Dark Crowns
Author: Kendare Blake
Release Date: September 20, 2016
Publisher: Harper Teen
Three Dark Crowns Book #1
ISBN: 0062385437
ISBN13: 9780062385437
Genre: Fantasy
Review Copy Source: EdelweissEvery generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born: three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.
But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins. The last queen standing gets the crown.
If only it was that simple. Katharine is unable to tolerate the weakest poison, and Arsinoe, no matter how hard she tries, can’t make even a weed grow. The two queens have been shamefully faking their powers, taking care to keep each other, the island, and their powerful sister Mirabella none the wiser. But with alliances being formed, betrayals taking shape, and ruthless revenge haunting the queens’ every move, one thing is certain: the last queen standing might not be the strongest…but she may be the darkest.
Although there were quite a bit of slow points in THREE DARK CROWNS, I enjoyed the overall story line and the characters circumstances were interesting enough to keep me wanting to find out what would become of them.
While I didn't find the characters super interesting on their own, the situations and their stories kept me wanting to read THREE DARK CROWNS. Each sister has different powers/talents/lives, but they all share one thing, their all queens fighting for the crown and they will have to kill two of their sisters to get it. There is a lot of learning about the characters and the different magic they have and the communities they belong to in THREE DARK CROWNS. The problem is, I still don't think we learn enough about the world that they live in and why it's the way it is. Of course each 'group' wants power, but I felt like we never got the whole story and I was left with a lot of questions.
As I stated above, there are a lot of slow points in THREE DARK CROWNS. Maybe now that we know—sorta—the sisters and their different lives, maybe book two will have a faster pace with less down time. I do have an idea of how this series will end, just because it's clear the current way of doing things doesn't seem to be working for this generation of triplets. I will be interested in seeing if my prediction is correct.
I didn't see the twist at the end coming, but it sure does make a few things make more sense and I am actually really interested in reading book two JUST to find out what the fall out from that bomb will be. I think you are either going to love THREE DARK CROWNS or be disappointing with it, I don't think a lot of people will be stuck in the middle like me. If you have the chance to borrow THREE DARK CROWNS from a friend or the library, give it a shot!
I gave it 3/5 stars
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.