The Queen of the Tearling Review

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This is one that has been on my to-read list for a long time now, and I wish I hadn't waited so long to read it! The story is gripping, the characters are dynamic, and the narrative is captivating.
This isn't your average princess to queen story! Kelsea didn't ask for this life and had no idea what she was taking on upon being brought to her kingdom. After being hidden and raised by a foster family to ensure her safety, she is taken once she comes of age, to begin her rule. She is a normal girl, who grew to be a bit of a tomboy and is thrown into a land where the history has weaved a web of wickedness that she must sort out if she wants to be a queen with any shred of character. 
Normally when stories jump back and forth with POV's, I get turned off and confused. This book was quite different and the story wouldn't have been near as good without the changes in POV throughout. It is nice to see a real character, one that is well aware of their flaws and argues with themselves about their fear of not being good enough, yet still taking on the day to day life handed to her, while spending her nights wondering if she did a single thing right at all. Kelsea is handed a hard deck of cards and she must decide what to do with them, all while hoping she isn't murdered and dealing with the ghosts of her past and the childhood that was stolen from her. I enjoyed the storytelling Johansen used in this book and look forward to continuing this series. 
Overall, I give it 4 dragonflies. It is an older teen/adult book with a decent amount of cursing throughout. I would recommend 16+ as the audience for The Queen of the Tearling.
If you'd like to get a copy for yourself, click the image above. 
This series also has two other books, The Invasion of the Tearling and The Fate of the Tearling. I will post reviews of both books once I finished them as well.

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The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen