Published: September 19, 2017
Publisher: Harper Teen
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Series: Three Dark Crowns #2
Pages: 464 (Hardcover)
My Rating: 4.0/5.0
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis:
The battle for the Crown has begun, but which of the three sisters will prevail?
With the unforgettable events of the Quickening behind them and the Ascension Year underway, all bets are off. Katharine, once the weak and feeble sister, is stronger than ever before. Arsinoe, after discovering the truth about her powers, must figure out how to make her secret talent work in her favor without anyone finding out. And Mirabella, once thought to be the strongest sister of all and the certain Queen Crowned, faces attacks like never before—ones that put those around her in danger she can’t seem to prevent.
In this enthralling sequel to Kendare Blake’s New York Times bestselling Three Dark Crowns, Fennbirn’s deadliest queens must face the one thing standing in their way of the crown: each other.
As I mentioned in my Currently Reading post, Three Dark Crowns was one of my favorite YA books of 2016, so naturally I was very excited for its sequel, One Dark Throne. Once I picked this up, I devoured the entire book in about two sittings because I was absolutely hooked! So much can happen between one page and the next that it’s difficult to put down. I wish I could have read both books back to back, because as I began One Dark Throne I realized I had forgotten about many of the details and character relationships that were central to the plot. I struggled through and managed to glean most of the details from context alone, alas I still missed out on stuff but it didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment.
While the story seemed dark from the very first pages of Three Dark Crowns, One Dark Throne really takes things to a new level. Katharine is now known as the Undead Queen because of her miraculous emergence from the Breccia Domain, a depthless rift in the island where dead queens are thrown. She’s gone from fearful girl to a deadly spider of a woman and she won’t be deterred from the throne. Mirabella and Arsinoe are on the defensive since Katherine’s emergence and you can practically taste their desperation. Mirabella’s role in this book isn’t as prominent as in book one, where she was introduced as the favored daughter and the most powerful elemental queen in history. Arsinoe continues here charade as the naturalist queen while testing her true gift – that of the poisoner. Her role in this book as significant as Katherine’s, thus developing her character further.
The plot itself was surprisingly unpredictable, though I can’t say the surprises were particularly astounding. I mostly found myself thinking “oh, didn’t see that coming” with raised eyebrows rather than rocketing out of my seat and hurling the book an undetermined distance. So basically, it was good but not mind-blowingly life/genre changing. The pacing was pretty solid and there was definitely enough drama. One thing that I’ve noticed is that all the male characters feel extraneous – if they weren’t there, it would hardly matter at all. I don’t feel strongly about any of them and I still can’t get over the fact that there’s one name Billy. It’s like naming your cat Kevin or something – waayyyyy too normal of a name.
Overall I liked this book quite a bit and will DEFINITELY be continuing on with the series. I’ve got to know what happens next! The ending of One Dark Throne was satisfying and unexpected – I look forward to having the world expand somewhat and I hope some of my questions will finally get answered! For instance, what really happens to the queens after they leave the island? Kendare Blake has once again delivered a book both aesthetically and intellectually pleasing.
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