Book Review: Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

10/23/2017

SYNPOSIS

In every 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.

Synposis from Indigo.ca

PERSONAL REVIEW

Wow, I did not like this book. There were some parts that I thought were ok, but overall I wasn't a fan of the characters, the "plot twists" they have to overcome, and - in general - the story itself. It seems like this book is being talked about everywhere, so I was surprised by how unimpressed I was with it.

Why I Didn't Like It:

Boring Plot Twists: you would think that a book based on a mystical world filled with magic where three sisters are preparing to kill each other would have some epic adventures along the way. Not so.

We have Mirabella randomly deciding to run away, only to save someone from drowning and decide that having sex with him will save him from hypothermia. And then, surprise! He's the love interest of a different character. Of course he is. We then have to read as they have sex again, him returning to Jules, beginning forgiveness...and then later have sex with Mirabella again. (I hope it's clear how useless I think Joseph is. Such an awful character.)

With Katharine, we basically get to watch her be abused (which is actually horrible) and then see her "grow" as a male character arrives to show her how to be desirable. Cool, thanks, glad we got a guy in there to show that she is so weak only being uber-sexual will save her.

The Island’s Ridiculous Rules: I can believe that there's a magical island that the rest of the world can't see. I can believe that gifted people live there. What I can't believe is that part of the islands "prosperity" is based on siblings having to murder each other. And then after doing so, the remaining queen is basically on the throne only long enough to have another set of triplets and then abandon them as she sails away with her husband to...her death? Her happily ever after? Ugh, there was so much opportunity to give us more background on all of this to make it believable but that never happens so we're left without any actual answers.

The Only Thing I Liked:

Arsinoe and Billy: this is probably the only storyline I was semi-interested in. Billy as a character is actually really cool (so is Pietyr actually, but I don't want to get off track). I like that Billy's relationship with Arsinoe continues to grow and he actually cares for her. there's a loyalty as well as mutual respect there. I love Arsinoe's attitude towards everything; she's basically been raise more free any other characters and really see how strong she is because of it. We'll see how things go for her in the next book...

Overall, this book did not live up to the hype for me. I have the sequel and I'll be reading it (because a series should never be left unfinished), but so far I'm really not falling for this series.

FINAL RATING: 3/5