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Her Majesty's Royal Coven #2
The Shadow Cabinet
In the second installment of Juno Dawson's irresistible fantasy trilogy (Lana Harper), a group of childhood friends and witches must choose between what is right and what is easy if they have any hope of keeping their coven--and their world--from tearing apart forever.
Niamh Kelly is dead. Her troubled twin, Ciara, now masquerades as the benevolent witch as Her Majesty's Royal Coven prepares to crown her High Priestess.
Suffering from amnesia, Ciara can't remember what she's done--but if she wants to survive, she must fool Niamh's adopted family and friends; the coven; and the murky Shadow Cabinet--a secret group of mundane civil servants who are already suspicious of witches. While she tries to rebuild her past, she realizes none of her past has forgotten her, including her former lover, renegade warlock Dabney Hale.
On the other end of the continent, Leonie Jackman is in search of Hale, rumored to be seeking a dark object of ultimate power somehow connected to the upper echelons of the British government. If the witches can't figure out Hale's machinations, and fast, all of witchkind will be in grave danger--along with the fate of all (wo)mankind.
Sharp, funny, provocative, and joyous, Juno Dawson's sequel reimagines everything you think you knew about her coven and her witches in a story that spans continents and dives deep into the roots of England and its witchcraft. Ciara, Leonie, Elle, and Theo are fierce, angry, sexy, warm--and absolutely unapologetic as they fight for what they believe in, all in the name of sisterhood.
Niamh Kelly is dead. Her troubled twin, Ciara, now masquerades as the benevolent witch as Her Majesty's Royal Coven prepares to crown her High Priestess.
Suffering from amnesia, Ciara can't remember what she's done--but if she wants to survive, she must fool Niamh's adopted family and friends; the coven; and the murky Shadow Cabinet--a secret group of mundane civil servants who are already suspicious of witches. While she tries to rebuild her past, she realizes none of her past has forgotten her, including her former lover, renegade warlock Dabney Hale.
On the other end of the continent, Leonie Jackman is in search of Hale, rumored to be seeking a dark object of ultimate power somehow connected to the upper echelons of the British government. If the witches can't figure out Hale's machinations, and fast, all of witchkind will be in grave danger--along with the fate of all (wo)mankind.
Sharp, funny, provocative, and joyous, Juno Dawson's sequel reimagines everything you think you knew about her coven and her witches in a story that spans continents and dives deep into the roots of England and its witchcraft. Ciara, Leonie, Elle, and Theo are fierce, angry, sexy, warm--and absolutely unapologetic as they fight for what they believe in, all in the name of sisterhood.
504 pages, Hardcover
First published June 20, 2023
731 people are currently reading
20152 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,894 reviews
November 19, 2023
These cliff hangers are criminal
March 29, 2023
I can't talk about this yet. My feelings are too big.
I CAN say that I am upset with how long I'll have to wait for book 3 and that Juno Dawson is an incredible author!
I CAN say that I am upset with how long I'll have to wait for book 3 and that Juno Dawson is an incredible author!
April 6, 2023
The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Shadow Cabinet picks up right where HMRC left off; the audience reeling with the shocking conclusion to book one, whilst the characters remain blissfully unaware of the change. Other than the obvious switch, the same characters are back but with even more point of view chapters than last time. Luke gets a say, with a surprising twist to his backstory. We get to see what Theo is thinking, which I loved. Even the Prime Minister gets a once off chapter! It’s a free for all, adding a new layer to the story by providing the perspectives of characters with slightly less positive views of the world and witchcraft.
The writing is this book retains the same funny yet emotional flow. It’s easy to read and despite the whirlwind of characters and events, easy to follow. Dawson does not shy away from difficult topics or killing characters, allowing the reader to tackle challenging ideas and moments. Characters are multifaceted and complicated.
However, something is lost from the first book that’s difficult to pinpoint. The plot is similarly fast and a large number of events all converge at the end. Yet this time it started to feel a little bit silly. This is a combination of there being so much going on that nothing has the chance to breathe before it’s resolved, despite the book being quite a 500 page slot at times, and the fact that we are following what seems to be the 3% of witches who are incredibly powerful. The level at which the events operate becomes so big it’s almost ridiculous, and I wanted to spend more time in some of the smaller moments (I’m keeping this spoiler free but for anyone who has read it: the island is a prime example of this). This can be mostly seen in the reaction to everyone finding out the truth about the twins (again, spoiler free!); a moment which represents a huge and shocking betrayal but which is dealt with in seconds and ends with a hug.
I loved the first book dearly, but this sequel just felt like it took what was special about HMRC and tried to do that again but too much. I’m intrigued enough by the ending of this one to pick up the third book when it is released, but I worry about the stakes of that book when this one took them so high.
Thanks to Net Galley and HarperCollins for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Shadow Cabinet picks up right where HMRC left off; the audience reeling with the shocking conclusion to book one, whilst the characters remain blissfully unaware of the change. Other than the obvious switch, the same characters are back but with even more point of view chapters than last time. Luke gets a say, with a surprising twist to his backstory. We get to see what Theo is thinking, which I loved. Even the Prime Minister gets a once off chapter! It’s a free for all, adding a new layer to the story by providing the perspectives of characters with slightly less positive views of the world and witchcraft.
The writing is this book retains the same funny yet emotional flow. It’s easy to read and despite the whirlwind of characters and events, easy to follow. Dawson does not shy away from difficult topics or killing characters, allowing the reader to tackle challenging ideas and moments. Characters are multifaceted and complicated.
However, something is lost from the first book that’s difficult to pinpoint. The plot is similarly fast and a large number of events all converge at the end. Yet this time it started to feel a little bit silly. This is a combination of there being so much going on that nothing has the chance to breathe before it’s resolved, despite the book being quite a 500 page slot at times, and the fact that we are following what seems to be the 3% of witches who are incredibly powerful. The level at which the events operate becomes so big it’s almost ridiculous, and I wanted to spend more time in some of the smaller moments (I’m keeping this spoiler free but for anyone who has read it: the island is a prime example of this). This can be mostly seen in the reaction to everyone finding out the truth about the twins (again, spoiler free!); a moment which represents a huge and shocking betrayal but which is dealt with in seconds and ends with a hug.
I loved the first book dearly, but this sequel just felt like it took what was special about HMRC and tried to do that again but too much. I’m intrigued enough by the ending of this one to pick up the third book when it is released, but I worry about the stakes of that book when this one took them so high.
Thanks to Net Galley and HarperCollins for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
July 18, 2023
2.5 stars. Oh I found this to be a disappointing sequel. Everything that was brilliant about the first book was lost in this one, and I really didn't like how some of the characters changed and the new storylines introduced.
I was so hoping that what happens at the end of the first book wasn't going to come to pass, but it does. So we get some new characters' perspectives and I really didn't like reading Ciara's parts at all. She's such a selfish and vile character and no I haven't warmed to her at all in the slightest after reading the whole book.
Luke gets some parts with a new storyline which I absolutely did not like. I did enjoy seeing things from Theo's perspective though - the only welcome change in this book. I didn't care for Leonie's mission to find her brother who stupidly went off to look for Hale all on his own - I found her chapters a bit boring at times. And I so didn't get on with what Elle does as her perfect life comes crumbling around her.
Still written well, I just didn't like the storyline or any of the characters in this sequel bar Theo and Holly. I can only hope the next one improves and this was just a blip.
I'll have to mention some things that happen now - spoiler warning!
So Niamh does actually die when I was really hoping someone would walk in on Ciara and she'd have to make a quick getaway, leaving Niamh trapped in Ciara's body but no, she actaully does smother her own body and Niamh to death. How does no one notice it's not Niamh? How is Theo the first to find out out of all of her best friends? And Luke doesn't find something amiss either, particularly when Ciara gets quick frisky shall we say? It's quite unbelievable that no one finds Ciara out until near the end bar Theo who gets her memory changed.
I loathe Luke being brought up to be a witchhunter and on a mission to seek out witches in Hebden Bridge. He gives up the vicar, Sheila, like she's nothing to temporarily save Niamh. His character is destroyed in this book.
And speaking of characters being destroyed, Elle flips out at finding Jeremy is cheating on her and turns him into stone. Just what?! I liked Elle but she turns out to be savage and then just accepts Ciara took over Niamh's body?? No, sorry she lost all respect from me after that.
So Elle turns her husband to stone, Theo and Milo are getting close and Milo turns out to be bloody Lucifer (honestly, what?), Leonie is galavanting trying to find her brother and Hale and obviously gets used and hexed by him, and Luke is helping to kill witches. Meanwhile, Ciara takes over Nimah's life, lets in a demon for a bit to kill someone, kills Hale, discovers her memories, poisons Theo, becomes High Priestess, tries to kill off humans for a bit and then somehow we're supposed to just ignore everything she's done and accept she's here to stay now and not going to destroy the world?
This sequel is so different to the first book in terms of quality of characters and storyline, and how I felt afterwards. Sadly, it's a let down.
I was so hoping that what happens at the end of the first book wasn't going to come to pass, but it does. So we get some new characters' perspectives and I really didn't like reading Ciara's parts at all. She's such a selfish and vile character and no I haven't warmed to her at all in the slightest after reading the whole book.
Luke gets some parts with a new storyline which I absolutely did not like. I did enjoy seeing things from Theo's perspective though - the only welcome change in this book. I didn't care for Leonie's mission to find her brother who stupidly went off to look for Hale all on his own - I found her chapters a bit boring at times. And I so didn't get on with what Elle does as her perfect life comes crumbling around her.
Still written well, I just didn't like the storyline or any of the characters in this sequel bar Theo and Holly. I can only hope the next one improves and this was just a blip.
I'll have to mention some things that happen now - spoiler warning!
So Niamh does actually die when I was really hoping someone would walk in on Ciara and she'd have to make a quick getaway, leaving Niamh trapped in Ciara's body but no, she actaully does smother her own body and Niamh to death. How does no one notice it's not Niamh? How is Theo the first to find out out of all of her best friends? And Luke doesn't find something amiss either, particularly when Ciara gets quick frisky shall we say? It's quite unbelievable that no one finds Ciara out until near the end bar Theo who gets her memory changed.
I loathe Luke being brought up to be a witchhunter and on a mission to seek out witches in Hebden Bridge. He gives up the vicar, Sheila, like she's nothing to temporarily save Niamh. His character is destroyed in this book.
And speaking of characters being destroyed, Elle flips out at finding Jeremy is cheating on her and turns him into stone. Just what?! I liked Elle but she turns out to be savage and then just accepts Ciara took over Niamh's body?? No, sorry she lost all respect from me after that.
So Elle turns her husband to stone, Theo and Milo are getting close and Milo turns out to be bloody Lucifer (honestly, what?), Leonie is galavanting trying to find her brother and Hale and obviously gets used and hexed by him, and Luke is helping to kill witches. Meanwhile, Ciara takes over Nimah's life, lets in a demon for a bit to kill someone, kills Hale, discovers her memories, poisons Theo, becomes High Priestess, tries to kill off humans for a bit and then somehow we're supposed to just ignore everything she's done and accept she's here to stay now and not going to destroy the world?
This sequel is so different to the first book in terms of quality of characters and storyline, and how I felt afterwards. Sadly, it's a let down.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2023
4.5 stars 🤯
June 2, 2023
I received a copy of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The HMRC is in a bit of a shambles - the previous High Pristess is dead, and the one that's about to take her place is not who people think she. Other than that, young Theo is struggling with her failing powers, Leonie travels to rescue her brother from one of the worst villains the world has known and Elle deals with marital issues in possibly the worst way imaginable.
It's official that the HMRC trilogy is now probably one of my favourites of all time - the two books I've read have just been soooo good and given me everything I wanted, and missed, for a novel about magic and witches but aimed at adults who have been through stuff, just like the readers. I just love and admire how Juno Dawson has brought this world to life - it genuinely feels so real, and the world-building is just so, so good as is the magic - the dark, the good, and the limitations of it.
I'm always so impressed how Juno Dawson brings real world issues into her books and explores them through character actions and how these movements affect and hurt people. In the first book, we saw a main character, Helena, become a full-blown TERF and how it hurt her relationship with her best friends and ultimately brought about her demise, mostly by her own hand. There isn't as much blatant transphobia in this book from characters which is a relief though we see trans-character Theo still struggling with her transition and what it means for her in a very realistic way. In this book, we see the topic of women-hating men in the form of the Hard Working Men witchfinders group (a couple of twists/reveals about this one that had me shocked!!). This group is very much what you would expect from the type of women-hating incel groups you'd find on 4chan and the dark web in how they rile each other up about how awful women/witches are and how they've been hard done by by them. The way Juno Dawson explores this subject (and rising issue in today's modern society) through witchcraft is just genius.
The characters are a bit more scattered in this one so although we will always have our main Spice Girls, they are a little on their own adventures here. Leonie and Ciara as well as Theo and a bit of Luke are the main POVs in this story with Elle taking a little bit more of a backseat apart from a couple of crazy moments. I loved Leonie's journey to different covens - especially her discovery of a sacred coven/safe place.
Our main POV in this book is the most interesting one as it's darker and more twisted than the ones we have had before (even Helena's) and it's a story we have heard a bit about in the previous book but now we're getting, and feeling it, through the actual source and it's different from what I would have imagined it to be. I thought I would hate this character as we've been told how evil they were but after this book, I don't think this at all and I'm just so excited for book 3 when we will have all the Spice Girls back together, even Geri, to kick some Lucifer butt.
Also, screaming, crying, throwing up at the last scene.
The HMRC is in a bit of a shambles - the previous High Pristess is dead, and the one that's about to take her place is not who people think she. Other than that, young Theo is struggling with her failing powers, Leonie travels to rescue her brother from one of the worst villains the world has known and Elle deals with marital issues in possibly the worst way imaginable.
It's official that the HMRC trilogy is now probably one of my favourites of all time - the two books I've read have just been soooo good and given me everything I wanted, and missed, for a novel about magic and witches but aimed at adults who have been through stuff, just like the readers. I just love and admire how Juno Dawson has brought this world to life - it genuinely feels so real, and the world-building is just so, so good as is the magic - the dark, the good, and the limitations of it.
I'm always so impressed how Juno Dawson brings real world issues into her books and explores them through character actions and how these movements affect and hurt people. In the first book, we saw a main character, Helena, become a full-blown TERF and how it hurt her relationship with her best friends and ultimately brought about her demise, mostly by her own hand. There isn't as much blatant transphobia in this book from characters which is a relief though we see trans-character Theo still struggling with her transition and what it means for her in a very realistic way. In this book, we see the topic of women-hating men in the form of the Hard Working Men witchfinders group (a couple of twists/reveals about this one that had me shocked!!). This group is very much what you would expect from the type of women-hating incel groups you'd find on 4chan and the dark web in how they rile each other up about how awful women/witches are and how they've been hard done by by them. The way Juno Dawson explores this subject (and rising issue in today's modern society) through witchcraft is just genius.
The characters are a bit more scattered in this one so although we will always have our main Spice Girls, they are a little on their own adventures here. Leonie and Ciara as well as Theo and a bit of Luke are the main POVs in this story with Elle taking a little bit more of a backseat apart from a couple of crazy moments. I loved Leonie's journey to different covens - especially her discovery of a sacred coven/safe place.
Our main POV in this book is the most interesting one as it's darker and more twisted than the ones we have had before (even Helena's) and it's a story we have heard a bit about in the previous book but now we're getting, and feeling it, through the actual source and it's different from what I would have imagined it to be. I thought I would hate this character as we've been told how evil they were but after this book, I don't think this at all and I'm just so excited for book 3 when we will have all the Spice Girls back together, even Geri, to kick some Lucifer butt.
Also, screaming, crying, throwing up at the last scene.
December 10, 2023
JUNO DAWSON YOU MUST ANSWER FOR YOUR CLIFFHANGER CRIMES
June 24, 2023
much like her majesty’s royal coven, i feel like this starts incredibly slowly and then builds up to a crazy ending with an even crazier cliffhanger (which sucks, because now i’m going to have to wait a year for the next one). however, unlike the first one, despite understanding the world and how it worked and being invested in the characters, i felt like this one dragged more although i actively disliked one of the pov characters in the first book.
i think this primarily boils down to two reasons: having to get used to ciara (who is her own intriguing, complex character, but isn’t niamh, who i had developed a soft spot for), but also losing the found family dynamic that had been established between niamh and theo in the first book. while ciara is fond of theo, it’s not the same, and since niamh and theo’s dynamic was one of my favourite things from the first book, it being lacking left me disappointed. the other issue that the spice girls (there are less references to them overall this book) are separated for most of the novel, each dealing with their own troubles, and therefore having their own storylines. this is in contrast to the first novel, where they’re all brought together (or in opposition with each other, in helena’s case) by theo. while everyone are still friends and they care about each other, the dynamic between the friends doesn’t really play a strong role in the novel.
still, it was nice to get theo and luke’s perspectives, fleshing them out as characters. we see theo deal with the repercussions of the end of the first novel, as she continues to process her transition, and luke’s backstory, which elevates him from generic love-interest to someone much more complex than that. there are still quite a few threads that haven’t been tied up, and i can’t imagine how they will be addressed in the final book. it’s also interesting to see how juno dawson weaves societal issues into her fantasy world—it’s low fantasy, rooted in our world, so it actually makes a lot of sense how those issues cross over into the world of the supernatural.
either way, i’m going to be reading the third book!
i think this primarily boils down to two reasons: having to get used to ciara (who is her own intriguing, complex character, but isn’t niamh, who i had developed a soft spot for), but also losing the found family dynamic that had been established between niamh and theo in the first book. while ciara is fond of theo, it’s not the same, and since niamh and theo’s dynamic was one of my favourite things from the first book, it being lacking left me disappointed. the other issue that the spice girls (there are less references to them overall this book) are separated for most of the novel, each dealing with their own troubles, and therefore having their own storylines. this is in contrast to the first novel, where they’re all brought together (or in opposition with each other, in helena’s case) by theo. while everyone are still friends and they care about each other, the dynamic between the friends doesn’t really play a strong role in the novel.
still, it was nice to get theo and luke’s perspectives, fleshing them out as characters. we see theo deal with the repercussions of the end of the first novel, as she continues to process her transition, and luke’s backstory, which elevates him from generic love-interest to someone much more complex than that. there are still quite a few threads that haven’t been tied up, and i can’t imagine how they will be addressed in the final book. it’s also interesting to see how juno dawson weaves societal issues into her fantasy world—it’s low fantasy, rooted in our world, so it actually makes a lot of sense how those issues cross over into the world of the supernatural.
either way, i’m going to be reading the third book!
November 17, 2023
Been putting off this review since July, because sometimes you just like a book too much. I am right about this! Also I'm just really impressed by this book, and I wanted to make sure I did it justice, which is just way too much pressure for a book review. Can't handle that, procrastination is the solution.
It's so rare for a second book in a series to get better, but this one does. It continued with everything I loved from the first book, got better at the things I didn't, and addressed some major issues that I had with the series as a whole AND managed to make the POV of a certain character I was dreading reading from into one of my favorite things to read! Not to mention it's really killer with the plot twists. There were two big ones in here, and I didn't see either of them coming.
I'm not going to be going much into the plot here because it's basically all spoilers for the first book. All you need to know is that there are modern day witches governed by Her Majesty's Royal Coven (started by Anne Boleyn, a witch*), and there's a prophecy about a Sullied Child who will bring about the return of a powerful evil entity. In the first book, they think they've found the Sullied Child and feel they must protect them, and/or prevent them from fulfilling the prophecy. There is also a group of friends who have known each other since they were children, and now that they are adults they have to navigate the truly adult conundrum of what you do when you outgrow the people you thought you'd be friends with forever.
*Hey, Juno, I wouldn't mind an Anne Boleyn prequel! Just saying.
This is also a very queer book, and it's worth mentioning that Juno Dawson as a trans woman knows how to write about these sorts of issues in a way that is heart meltingly compelling.
Ugh, this review. I'm not saying what I want to say so I'm just going to stop and say that if you like fantasy and witches and female friendships and books that explore how hard it is to be a woman in the modern world, you should read this series!
It's so rare for a second book in a series to get better, but this one does. It continued with everything I loved from the first book, got better at the things I didn't, and addressed some major issues that I had with the series as a whole AND managed to make the POV of a certain character I was dreading reading from into one of my favorite things to read! Not to mention it's really killer with the plot twists. There were two big ones in here, and I didn't see either of them coming.
I'm not going to be going much into the plot here because it's basically all spoilers for the first book. All you need to know is that there are modern day witches governed by Her Majesty's Royal Coven (started by Anne Boleyn, a witch*), and there's a prophecy about a Sullied Child who will bring about the return of a powerful evil entity. In the first book, they think they've found the Sullied Child and feel they must protect them, and/or prevent them from fulfilling the prophecy. There is also a group of friends who have known each other since they were children, and now that they are adults they have to navigate the truly adult conundrum of what you do when you outgrow the people you thought you'd be friends with forever.
*Hey, Juno, I wouldn't mind an Anne Boleyn prequel! Just saying.
This is also a very queer book, and it's worth mentioning that Juno Dawson as a trans woman knows how to write about these sorts of issues in a way that is heart meltingly compelling.
Ugh, this review. I'm not saying what I want to say so I'm just going to stop and say that if you like fantasy and witches and female friendships and books that explore how hard it is to be a woman in the modern world, you should read this series!
July 1, 2023
BOOK 👏🏻 OF 👏🏻 THE 👏🏻 YEAR 👏🏻 I didn’t think I could love this as much as HMRC but Juno has outdone herself.
✅ TWISTS
✅ Demons
✅ Adventures in lost lands
✅ Representation
✅ Politics and class exploration
✅ Witches
✅ Stupid men getting their comeuppance
✅ CLIFFHANGERS?!?
If you want a modern-day witch story full of twists and turns, read this HMRC series.
✅ TWISTS
✅ Demons
✅ Adventures in lost lands
✅ Representation
✅ Politics and class exploration
✅ Witches
✅ Stupid men getting their comeuppance
✅ CLIFFHANGERS?!?
If you want a modern-day witch story full of twists and turns, read this HMRC series.
June 15, 2024
Sorry??? What the fuck???? That ending????????
I think that this has fast become one of my favourite series now. I couldn’t stop thinking about this world and these characters after finishing HMRC, to the point that I knew I just had to pick up the sequel straight away (not very often that happens for me!). This book is even darker and more twisted than the first, given whose perspective we are in for the majority, and I LOVED it. The stakes and the tension were dialled to eleven, and I was STRESSED reading this; everything felt like it was on the verge of exploding at any second and I couldn’t get enough. I can’t believe how long we have to wait now for Human Rites after THAT cliffhanger ending - I honestly didn’t think anything could beat the ending of HMRC, but oh my god this had me literally gasping out loud, I was so shook. Would highly, HIGHLY recommend this series, just phenomenal.
I think that this has fast become one of my favourite series now. I couldn’t stop thinking about this world and these characters after finishing HMRC, to the point that I knew I just had to pick up the sequel straight away (not very often that happens for me!). This book is even darker and more twisted than the first, given whose perspective we are in for the majority, and I LOVED it. The stakes and the tension were dialled to eleven, and I was STRESSED reading this; everything felt like it was on the verge of exploding at any second and I couldn’t get enough. I can’t believe how long we have to wait now for Human Rites after THAT cliffhanger ending - I honestly didn’t think anything could beat the ending of HMRC, but oh my god this had me literally gasping out loud, I was so shook. Would highly, HIGHLY recommend this series, just phenomenal.
March 8, 2023
Feminism. Queerness. Magic. Demons. ‘The Shadow Cabinet’ is the perfect witchy to ‘Her Majesty’s Royal Coven’. It takes the story, characters, themes and world of its predecessor, developing them in ways that feel totally natural while remaining intensely exciting and gripping.
Like ‘HMRC’ before it, the ending is so momentous that I feel the need to read the next book right away (if only that were possible)! I love this series so much!
Like ‘HMRC’ before it, the ending is so momentous that I feel the need to read the next book right away (if only that were possible)! I love this series so much!
September 16, 2023
ARC received in exchange for an honest review.
I actually found this to be a lot more interesting than the first installment in the series, Her Majesty's Royal Coven, for several reasons. To give away one would be a major spoiler for that book, but suffice to say one character in particular has a very dark past that creates a lot of internal dilemmas this time around. And unravelling memories leads to new revelations. There's a lot of discourse around what makes a person good or bad - is it destiny, is it upbringing? Nature or nurture. I liked the hints of bigger things to come with Theo too. She takes a backseat this time round, dulled and cut off from her powers, however there's things to come with her. Dark and dangerous things no doubt. The cliff hangers and plot twists allude to as much. And they are some pretty big plot twists. My jaw was on the floor.
I was less interesting in Leonie and Ellen's plots, which had one searching for her brother and the other still dealing with marital issues. While there were some sparks to action, the two spend most of the book discussing the merits of witches, feminism... The usual stuff, which I just didn't find all that interesting. Give me the typical villain origin story over a hero any day. However I do love this group of friends. They all well developed individuals who just seem to gel well together as a friend group. Niamh is the do-gooder, Ciara the black sheep. Leonie the shining star and Elle is the friendly one. The one everyone assumes is a bit dim, a bit nice but secretly she sees everything, knows everything.
Luke's plot I also enjoyed, examining incels and masculinity but with a magical spin. Yes it's a bit obvious - there's no subtlety when the men are basically exclaiming that they need to kill all witches to regain their power, but it was a well thought out plot nonetheless that ultimated in a well worked showdown at HMRC.
Really enjoyable series that brings together the common witchy tropes and adds a whole new spin on the genre.
I actually found this to be a lot more interesting than the first installment in the series, Her Majesty's Royal Coven, for several reasons. To give away one would be a major spoiler for that book, but suffice to say one character in particular has a very dark past that creates a lot of internal dilemmas this time around. And unravelling memories leads to new revelations. There's a lot of discourse around what makes a person good or bad - is it destiny, is it upbringing? Nature or nurture. I liked the hints of bigger things to come with Theo too. She takes a backseat this time round, dulled and cut off from her powers, however there's things to come with her. Dark and dangerous things no doubt. The cliff hangers and plot twists allude to as much. And they are some pretty big plot twists. My jaw was on the floor.
I was less interesting in Leonie and Ellen's plots, which had one searching for her brother and the other still dealing with marital issues. While there were some sparks to action, the two spend most of the book discussing the merits of witches, feminism... The usual stuff, which I just didn't find all that interesting. Give me the typical villain origin story over a hero any day. However I do love this group of friends. They all well developed individuals who just seem to gel well together as a friend group. Niamh is the do-gooder, Ciara the black sheep. Leonie the shining star and Elle is the friendly one. The one everyone assumes is a bit dim, a bit nice but secretly she sees everything, knows everything.
Luke's plot I also enjoyed, examining incels and masculinity but with a magical spin. Yes it's a bit obvious - there's no subtlety when the men are basically exclaiming that they need to kill all witches to regain their power, but it was a well thought out plot nonetheless that ultimated in a well worked showdown at HMRC.
Really enjoyable series that brings together the common witchy tropes and adds a whole new spin on the genre.
June 28, 2023
Juno Dawson's second book in the Her Majesrty's Royal Covern trilogy is another fast paced, action packed adventure. Characters established in the first novel return & there are some fascinating new ones to support them.
As before Juno Dawson mixes the world of the mundanes (that's us humans) with witchcraft & even some Greek mythology. There are plenty of shocks & surprises in The Shadow Cabinet, but the author injects some humour into the mix as well. I love the memo sent to a witch before her coronation as High Priestess asking her to bring two forms of photo ID to her induction!
For a 500 page novel The Shadow Cabinet is very fast paced. Dawson compliments the action with some excellent characterisation & I'm really looking forward to Human Rites, which will be the third novel in the trilogy.
As before Juno Dawson mixes the world of the mundanes (that's us humans) with witchcraft & even some Greek mythology. There are plenty of shocks & surprises in The Shadow Cabinet, but the author injects some humour into the mix as well. I love the memo sent to a witch before her coronation as High Priestess asking her to bring two forms of photo ID to her induction!
For a 500 page novel The Shadow Cabinet is very fast paced. Dawson compliments the action with some excellent characterisation & I'm really looking forward to Human Rites, which will be the third novel in the trilogy.
January 24, 2025
C’était génial, une très bonne suite et j’attends le T3 avec beaucoup d’impatience 🧍🏽♀️
July 24, 2023
What do you mean I have to wait a year for Book 3?? I guess I’ll manage, but I have spoiled myself by waiting a year to read
Her Majesty’s Royal Coven
, resulting in almost no wait between it and The Shadow Cabinet. Juno Dawson has created an excellent new urban fantasy series. However, I am going to be harder on this book than the first one for precisely that reason: she has set me up to expect great things from her!
As always, spoilers for the first book but not for this one.
The Shadow Cabinet picks up a few months after the end of the first book. Following the disastrous events that culminated in the execution of Helena Vance, previous High Priestess of HMRC, Niamh Kelly is poised to be crowned the new High Priestess. Except she isn’t Niamh Kelly—she is actually her evil twin sister, Ciara, who has swapped bodies. Ciara tries to conceal, with varying degrees of success, this veritable soap operatic twist while she uses her newfound consciousness and freedom to seek out Dabney Hale, disgraced warlock with delusions of grandeur. Leonie is on the case! Meanwhile, Theo and Holly push the bounds of their magic, Elle worries about how her magical life might impinge on the stability of her mundane one, and there’s something going on with simple, uncomplicated Luke.
This book took longer to get going, in my opinion, than the first one. Despite plenty happening, it felt like for several chapters nothing was happening. I honestly was much more invested in the smaller personal arcs of Ciara, Elle, Theo, etc., than I was Leonie’s cross-country hot pursuit of Hale and his evil plan for world domination. Yawn. It’s not a terrible plot as far as Bond-level plots go; nevertheless, Dawson’s ability to write interesting, complicated interpersonal dynamics is what The Shadow Cabinet showcases best. There is no better evidence of this than Ciara.
Look, I will level with you: an easy seventy-five percent of my reservations about this book have to do with how salty I am that Ciara replaced Niamh as one of the viewpoint characters. So you can imagine how frustrated I became when Dawson actually made me start liking Ciara or at least empathizing with her? As if she was a real human being with complex motives rather than an evil monster? What is this, 2020? I thought I was done with empathy, but no, apparently I still have a shred of it left over from somewhere. No, I never stopped hoping Niamh would somehow return from the dead to reclaim her body—at the same time, I started hoping that there would be redemption for Ciara. In fact, my prediction was that Ciara would eventually sacrifice herself to save the world (if not also Niamh). I won’t tell you if this prediction came true!
The same complex dynamics play out in the relationship between Theo and Holly. Theo’s transness was a key point of both plot and character development in the first book, which culminated in Theo’s literal transmogrification: her body changed into one we would typically associate with a cis woman. This complicates things a hell of a lot, and I want to take a moment to unpack this as a trans woman reading a book written by a trans woman.
First, I respect the hell out of Dawson for going this route and engaging with these ideas. My thoughts are messy because this is a messy thing complicated by internalized transphobia and internalized ideas of a gender binary. Theo’s reaction to her new body is given to us in Chapter 9:
Any trans person who uses gender-affirming care to help them feel more aligned with their body will recognize something in these words. Transition is literally a journey of rediscovery. When one has access to the care one desires, it is also a journey of wonder. Waking up each morning and feeling a little bit more like yourself because of how you look in the mirror, how your limbs move, how you smell, etc.—it’s not something to be taken for granted. It is a revelation.
Down the page, however, we start to get into the more complicated part of Theo’s experience:
(“Mundane” in this sense simply means not a witch.) Dawson gives voice to this again in this chapter, first with Theo musing to herself: “There; that stab of guilt again. She was too trans and not trans enough” and then with Holly, a bit later in the chapter, asking, “Do you still consider yourself transgender?” and Theo answering in the affirmative.
Theo’s transformation allows her the ultimate kind of passing privilege, the ultimate way to live “stealth” should she choose. It is very similar to Danny’s in Dreadnought , another great book with a trans character written by a trans woman. Fantasy allows both Dawson and Daniels to pose a hypothetical question about the nature of being transgender: what is it that actually makes one trans? Theo says, “I was born one way, and now … I’m another.” Is that all? A surface reading of this arc might open Dawson to charges of transmedicalism. However, I actually see the opposite here—reaffirming Theo’s understanding of herself as trans reinforces the idea that biology is not destiny and that one’s genitals do not make one a woman. This was a stance Dawson already loudly proclaimed in Her Majesty’s Royal Coven with Theo’s power level pretransmogrification already at witchy levels rather than warlock levels (the magic knows!). Instead, through Theo Dawson offers us one reading of a transition story—it won’t be every trans woman’s story, but it aligns with some women’s visions of themselves. Theo is still trans because she identifies that way—however, she also acknowledges that she has privileges many trans women don’t, and this affects how society relates to her along the axis of gender identity.
All of this is to say that I really like how Dawson explores these ideas. Theo figures much less prominently in this book than the previous one, something that disappointed me. However, what Theo we get in this story is very good. I admire Dawson for tackling big questions around what it means to be transgender, how we decide these things for ourselves, and how society polices these ideas.
As far as the other viewpoint characters go—honestly, there are just too many. Leonie and Elle again from the first book, but then Dawson tosses in Luke and even a few Chinara chapters? I can’t. Let’s do a quick Kara Kharacter Review Lightning Round.
Leonie: love her arc of realizing she needs to stop sidelining Chinara. Love the open relationship stuff and her need to find her brother. Again, I think she suffers from the dilution caused by so many POV—neither the overall plot with Hale nor Leonie’s journey receive the time and nuance they deserve.
Luke: suddenly turned into the fucking Riley (of Buffy) of this series. Do not like. I don’t see him redeeming himself in my eyes any time soon. Indeed, his role in the climax reminded me too much of Xander at the end of Season 6. (More thoughts on that in a few months on Prophecy Girls .)
Chinara: Barely a POV character, clearly a badass, would read a whole book about her but her inclusion here feels extraneous.
Would have appreciated more Theo, more Holly, even more Elle—honestly Elle is the unsung hero of this story, intentionally so, and I love her for it. Not every witch needs to be glamorous or 100. Elle’s got a heart of gold and must be protected at all costs—even Ciara thinks so!
The Shadow Cabinet is a rad sequel. Did I love it in the same way that I loved the first book? No, for the first book was new and shiny. However, there is no second-book syndrome here. This is an action-packed story with wonderful character development, and if parts of the plot are a bit clunky or predictable or the pacing is off … well, I read literally seventeen installments of The Dresden Files, and this is already way better. So there. If you like witchy stuff and all the juicy drama from the early-2000s TV shows Dawson clearly grew up on, this series is for you.
Originally posted on Kara.Reviews, where you can easily browse all my reviews and subscribe to my newsletter.
As always, spoilers for the first book but not for this one.
The Shadow Cabinet picks up a few months after the end of the first book. Following the disastrous events that culminated in the execution of Helena Vance, previous High Priestess of HMRC, Niamh Kelly is poised to be crowned the new High Priestess. Except she isn’t Niamh Kelly—she is actually her evil twin sister, Ciara, who has swapped bodies. Ciara tries to conceal, with varying degrees of success, this veritable soap operatic twist while she uses her newfound consciousness and freedom to seek out Dabney Hale, disgraced warlock with delusions of grandeur. Leonie is on the case! Meanwhile, Theo and Holly push the bounds of their magic, Elle worries about how her magical life might impinge on the stability of her mundane one, and there’s something going on with simple, uncomplicated Luke.
This book took longer to get going, in my opinion, than the first one. Despite plenty happening, it felt like for several chapters nothing was happening. I honestly was much more invested in the smaller personal arcs of Ciara, Elle, Theo, etc., than I was Leonie’s cross-country hot pursuit of Hale and his evil plan for world domination. Yawn. It’s not a terrible plot as far as Bond-level plots go; nevertheless, Dawson’s ability to write interesting, complicated interpersonal dynamics is what The Shadow Cabinet showcases best. There is no better evidence of this than Ciara.
Look, I will level with you: an easy seventy-five percent of my reservations about this book have to do with how salty I am that Ciara replaced Niamh as one of the viewpoint characters. So you can imagine how frustrated I became when Dawson actually made me start liking Ciara or at least empathizing with her? As if she was a real human being with complex motives rather than an evil monster? What is this, 2020? I thought I was done with empathy, but no, apparently I still have a shred of it left over from somewhere. No, I never stopped hoping Niamh would somehow return from the dead to reclaim her body—at the same time, I started hoping that there would be redemption for Ciara. In fact, my prediction was that Ciara would eventually sacrifice herself to save the world (if not also Niamh). I won’t tell you if this prediction came true!
The same complex dynamics play out in the relationship between Theo and Holly. Theo’s transness was a key point of both plot and character development in the first book, which culminated in Theo’s literal transmogrification: her body changed into one we would typically associate with a cis woman. This complicates things a hell of a lot, and I want to take a moment to unpack this as a trans woman reading a book written by a trans woman.
First, I respect the hell out of Dawson for going this route and engaging with these ideas. My thoughts are messy because this is a messy thing complicated by internalized transphobia and internalized ideas of a gender binary. Theo’s reaction to her new body is given to us in Chapter 9:
This body. This amazing new body. It made no sense, but it was incredible.
Over the summer, she and Holly had watched The Little Mermaid, and Theo knew just how Ariel felt when she looked down and saw her legs for the first time. Only in this case it was a vulva.
Any trans person who uses gender-affirming care to help them feel more aligned with their body will recognize something in these words. Transition is literally a journey of rediscovery. When one has access to the care one desires, it is also a journey of wonder. Waking up each morning and feeling a little bit more like yourself because of how you look in the mirror, how your limbs move, how you smell, etc.—it’s not something to be taken for granted. It is a revelation.
Down the page, however, we start to get into the more complicated part of Theo’s experience:
She also felt guilt. The day of her first menstruation could have been momentous, and it was in a small way. At the same time, she mostly felt bad for the countless other mundane trans girls who may never truly get all they wished for.
(“Mundane” in this sense simply means not a witch.) Dawson gives voice to this again in this chapter, first with Theo musing to herself: “There; that stab of guilt again. She was too trans and not trans enough” and then with Holly, a bit later in the chapter, asking, “Do you still consider yourself transgender?” and Theo answering in the affirmative.
Theo’s transformation allows her the ultimate kind of passing privilege, the ultimate way to live “stealth” should she choose. It is very similar to Danny’s in Dreadnought , another great book with a trans character written by a trans woman. Fantasy allows both Dawson and Daniels to pose a hypothetical question about the nature of being transgender: what is it that actually makes one trans? Theo says, “I was born one way, and now … I’m another.” Is that all? A surface reading of this arc might open Dawson to charges of transmedicalism. However, I actually see the opposite here—reaffirming Theo’s understanding of herself as trans reinforces the idea that biology is not destiny and that one’s genitals do not make one a woman. This was a stance Dawson already loudly proclaimed in Her Majesty’s Royal Coven with Theo’s power level pretransmogrification already at witchy levels rather than warlock levels (the magic knows!). Instead, through Theo Dawson offers us one reading of a transition story—it won’t be every trans woman’s story, but it aligns with some women’s visions of themselves. Theo is still trans because she identifies that way—however, she also acknowledges that she has privileges many trans women don’t, and this affects how society relates to her along the axis of gender identity.
All of this is to say that I really like how Dawson explores these ideas. Theo figures much less prominently in this book than the previous one, something that disappointed me. However, what Theo we get in this story is very good. I admire Dawson for tackling big questions around what it means to be transgender, how we decide these things for ourselves, and how society polices these ideas.
As far as the other viewpoint characters go—honestly, there are just too many. Leonie and Elle again from the first book, but then Dawson tosses in Luke and even a few Chinara chapters? I can’t. Let’s do a quick Kara Kharacter Review Lightning Round.
Leonie: love her arc of realizing she needs to stop sidelining Chinara. Love the open relationship stuff and her need to find her brother. Again, I think she suffers from the dilution caused by so many POV—neither the overall plot with Hale nor Leonie’s journey receive the time and nuance they deserve.
Luke: suddenly turned into the fucking Riley (of Buffy) of this series. Do not like. I don’t see him redeeming himself in my eyes any time soon. Indeed, his role in the climax reminded me too much of Xander at the end of Season 6. (More thoughts on that in a few months on Prophecy Girls .)
Chinara: Barely a POV character, clearly a badass, would read a whole book about her but her inclusion here feels extraneous.
Would have appreciated more Theo, more Holly, even more Elle—honestly Elle is the unsung hero of this story, intentionally so, and I love her for it. Not every witch needs to be glamorous or 100. Elle’s got a heart of gold and must be protected at all costs—even Ciara thinks so!
The Shadow Cabinet is a rad sequel. Did I love it in the same way that I loved the first book? No, for the first book was new and shiny. However, there is no second-book syndrome here. This is an action-packed story with wonderful character development, and if parts of the plot are a bit clunky or predictable or the pacing is off … well, I read literally seventeen installments of The Dresden Files, and this is already way better. So there. If you like witchy stuff and all the juicy drama from the early-2000s TV shows Dawson clearly grew up on, this series is for you.
Originally posted on Kara.Reviews, where you can easily browse all my reviews and subscribe to my newsletter.
September 20, 2023
Vielversprechendes Setting (moderne Hexen, Ü 30, in Großbritannien) mit interessanten Charakteren. Leider ist der Plot für mich nicht logisch und die Gesellschaftskritik zu in-your-face.
Für mich also nur 2,5 / 5 Sterne.
Für mich also nur 2,5 / 5 Sterne.
November 14, 2023
There were a lot of smaller issues I could see past in the first book because I was really hooked on the story. But in this one, the story just wasn't able to save it. A lot of the plotlines were just dry and repetitive, while others were just really nonsensical. I lost interest as soon as Luke's witch hunter identity was revealed. It didn't help that I really liked Niamh as a character and she was done so dirty. When Ciara's identity is revealed in the end none of the other main characters really care. They forgive her immediately. Wtf. I started skipping pages halfway in because it was such a struggle to keep on reading. The best thing about the book were the maps and floor plan of HMRC in the beginning
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2023
would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book
i tried really hard to like this book but i was struggling with it.... and so i have to say it wasnt for me but i can see others have liked it ....you have to give a book a go before you can properly judge it and i tried
i tried really hard to like this book but i was struggling with it.... and so i have to say it wasnt for me but i can see others have liked it ....you have to give a book a go before you can properly judge it and i tried
July 10, 2024
4.5 RTC
March 22, 2025
Non sono riuscita a finirlo. Va bene lottare contro il patriarcato ma poi devi anche scrivere dei personaggi non bidimensionali. Mi sembra tutto talmente inquinato dalla versione Instagram del femminismo che la storia non conta più (e gli adolescenti, se non li sapete scrivere non lo fate)
August 4, 2024
This series is so unique and compelling and although it can get very heavy at times I’m enjoying it immensely. I love finding books that stand out, and this series does exactly that!
January 26, 2025
Une des lectures les plus rapides, les chapitres s'enchaînent et les intrigues aussi !
Dans ce tome 2, certains personnages, déjà présents dans le premier, sont d'avantages développés pour notre plus grand plaisir.
Vivement le tome 3 !!!
Dans ce tome 2, certains personnages, déjà présents dans le premier, sont d'avantages développés pour notre plus grand plaisir.
Vivement le tome 3 !!!
December 7, 2023
2.5 stars
I was so disappointed in this one! Stream-of-consciousness spoilers beyond tags because that's the only way I can express why I felt so let down.
It sucks that this book was such a bummer for me because I loved the first and could hardly wait to get my hands on this one. At this point, I'm not sure if I'll read the third. I'm not nearly as invested as I was after finishing the first book, and so while I still want to know what ultimately happens, I might be just as satisfied reading a summary.
I was so disappointed in this one! Stream-of-consciousness spoilers beyond tags because that's the only way I can express why I felt so let down.
It sucks that this book was such a bummer for me because I loved the first and could hardly wait to get my hands on this one. At this point, I'm not sure if I'll read the third. I'm not nearly as invested as I was after finishing the first book, and so while I still want to know what ultimately happens, I might be just as satisfied reading a summary.
January 25, 2025
Si j'ai pas le suite dans 2 minutes je vais faire un malaise
June 27, 2023
I'm slightly disappointed with the sequel to HMRC. My main problem was the editing: The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson reads like a first draft, filled with grammar mistakes, suspect dialogue and very little to make up for it. The chemistry and sisterhood between the three main witches that was so compelling in the first book has vanished and so has much of the nuance that made the first book crackle. Ciara is poor substitute protagonist for Niamh and I'm not sure why we're supposed to feel sympathy for her - because her mother was mean?
November 21, 2024
Ich bin völlig begeistert von dieser Fortsetzung. Da Teil 1 schon länger her war, hatte ich Angst, nicht gut in die Geschichte zu starten. Aber Dank eines Personenverzeichnisses vorne, wusste ich relativ schnell, wer wer war. Die Story setzt direkt nach Band 1 ein und führt sie in einer Art und Weise fort, die mir sehr gefallen hat: Der Fokus auf die Hexen und ihre Stärke, der Fokus auf ihr Frau-Sein. Dazu die Queerness und die unterschiedlichen Charaktere in allen Lebensstufen. Das alles wird vonn einige Überraschungen und ein Cliffhanger gekrönt, der verboten gehört. Ich freu mich aufs Finale!
September 3, 2025
4.5 ⭐️ Tyckte boken var lite spretig i början men efter ett tag är den helt otrolig. Nämen jag älskar denna serie!
Och slutet?!?!?
Och slutet?!?!?
June 17, 2023
OMFG, if you like witchcraft and the occult, this book is for you. Also very current, funny and witty. You fall in love with the characters, loads of mystery. LOVE IT
July 10, 2023
This series went from a dive to a belly flop. Man oh man has a series never not stuck the landing as much as this.
Niamh Kelly was DONE DIRTY let me tell you. And then it’s all just swept under the rug? And then surprise, Elle is a super powerful witch too? And surprise, Jude and lucifer???? Just WHAT.
I’m honestly convinced Juno Dawson wrote herself into a corner and didn’t know how to undo it and then we were lumped with the awful self righteous characterisation of Ciara for a whole bloody book.
Urban fantasy is literally my favourite genre ever but this is just not it.
Niamh Kelly was DONE DIRTY let me tell you. And then it’s all just swept under the rug? And then surprise, Elle is a super powerful witch too? And surprise, Jude and lucifer???? Just WHAT.
I’m honestly convinced Juno Dawson wrote herself into a corner and didn’t know how to undo it and then we were lumped with the awful self righteous characterisation of Ciara for a whole bloody book.
Urban fantasy is literally my favourite genre ever but this is just not it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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