Brilliant Buddy Reads discussion

Please join us for a buddy read of Three Dark Crowns starting November 16th 2016.



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.

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.

Up to Rolanth (pg 43)

Is it just me or does the entire premise of the governing body make no sense? I can get behind the battling of the triplets for the strongest and that one becoming leader. That's basically Darwinism at work. But then the fact that the chosen queen abdicates her throne as soon as the next set of triplets is born? Why? That guarantees sixteen to seventeen years of rule sans queen.

As is mentioned in the first chapter, Katherine's mother only ruled for 16 years. The Black Council ruled for the rest of the time, which I would imagine was greater than 16 years. So for perhaps a half of the time, sometimes more sometimes less, the kingdom isn't even ruled by the queens fighting to the death? Doesn't make the most sense to me.


Since the novel is told in third person omniscient, I'm curious as to why Blake picked Katharine to start with. Do you think, with this POV style, that the opening character typically has a greater impact and/or importance to the plot than the characters introduced in latter chapters? I noticed on the jacket cover synopsis that it introduces them in the order of Mirabella (last to introduce in the novel), then Katharine, then Arsinoe (second). Just a little musing.

Also, I thought Arsinoe was kind of an ironic name. It reminds me of arsenic, which would be better suited for Katharine (except maybe not after all lol).

Up to Greavesdrake Manor (the second chapter so titled- 16%)

I'm definitely enjoying this so far, although I thought Katharine's introductory chapter was better done than the other two. In particular, I found it odd how the Wolf Spring chapter was almost more from the POV of Jules than Arsinoe. As you say, it’s third person, so not actually from either of their POV’s, but the focus seemed more on Jules and her thoughts and feelings to me.

Which brings me to the very interesting point you make about the order the queens are introduced. We’ll have to wait and see, but I feel like in these opening chapters, Katharine is definitely the one I most empathized with. I do think that I connected with her a bit more because she was introduced first, but also because (view spoiler)[you really can’t help but feel awful for her, having to eat all that poison and failing. (hide spoiler)] So I wouldn’t be surprised if Katharine ends up being the more central character of the three or is even the one for whom we’re supposed to ultimately root. The order here is maybe more important than in other books, since these characters are going to be in direct competition- the reader can’t hope for all of them succeed.

As to a more general answer to your question… I would say in my experience that authors do generally introduce the more crucial characters to the plot early on. But as for impact on the reader, that really depends. I have greatly loved secondary characters who weren’t introduced till later or even the second book in a series. If an author has a character that really shines, as long as they give them enough page time, I think it can work wherever they are introduced. But I also know it bugs some readers to have a character come in later who is important either to plot or in connecting with the reader- I’m just not one of them.

I completely agree with you that it makes no sense for the queen to leave right after giving birth. If the island is able to function just fine for 16 or 17 years out of every generation with no queen, why bother having a queen and going through all this drama at all? At the same time, it would be potentially untenable to keep up this system if the queen was allowed to stay while her daughters grew up because it would be difficult to keep her from seeing them if she wanted (as she is queen) and getting attached. And then she's not going to want them fighting to the death for the crown.

I almost expected (view spoiler)[Mirabella to be powerless or nearly powerless as well. Like there was some sort of mix up, but seems not. I wonder what's going on with Katharine and Arsinoe... Could they somehow have different gifts than they think they do? Like I'm wondering about this war gift that has been mentioned. They've talked about ruling queens with the war gift- so how does that work? Is one of the three queens occasionally gifted in that way instead? Could Katharine and/or Arsinoe have a latent war gift? (hide spoiler)]

The audiobook pronounces Katharine and Arsinoe’s names totally differently than I would have- Katharine is pronounced Russian style, like “Caterine”. And Arsinoe is pronounced “Arsinoi” instead of with a last syllable like “foe” like I would have expected.
I had the same thought about Arsinoe’s name having quite a similarity to arsenic… maybe this will be an intentional irony or clue somehow, we’ll have to see.

Up to Rolanth (second time I believe) (page 87)

I also liked Katharine's introduction the best. Mirabella's only served to confuse me more by adding in priestesses to the mix. I'm still trying to figure out how they sort into the ruling class, or if they simply give favor from a religious standpoint towards their favored queen.

I think the fundamental issue with a novel whose plot is survival of one is that as a reader I find myself not wanting to grow attached to any of them since I know that two of them are going to die. Although, since (view spoiler)[neither Katharine or Arsinoe show any real power, and even Maribella seems to have her limits, I wouldn't be surprised if all three of them end up surviving and it becomes a story of sisters banding together to change the system instead of defeating each other. The cliche stronger together than apart, since their gifts aren't as developed as they should be. (hide spoiler)]

I have no idea how the war gift works. Or the seeing that was just touched upon in the last chapter. I hope Blake explains these at some point. That is a classic example of a dangling detail that will drive me bananas if never evolved and explained.

We are definitely getting a lot more of Jules than we are of the queen. It leads me to wonder, (view spoiler)[since they are just about the same age, if Jules might actually be the queen, switched with Arsinoe when they were young. But the plot already seems deep enough without adding this complexity. Also, it would make more sense if Mirabella was the odd one out since she is the only one who shows much power - though again it seems ever her power has limits as well and can be taxing. (hide spoiler)] I also kind of wonder if Blake does this to distance us from Arsinoe so we don't get too attached, instead putting our sympathy towards Jules if/when Arsinoe is killed off by one of her sisters. I definitely don't think things are looking up for her. Even when we are focusing on her character, her storyline still seems to revolve around Jules.

I am kind of hoping we might be able to have a male character in this novel that isn't a part of a romantic story tangent line, but it isn't looking hopeful. Joseph (view spoiler)[looks like he was paired with Jules even before he left - Jules again (hide spoiler)]. And Pietyr is already (view spoiler)[shocking Katharine by trying to kiss her (hide spoiler)]. So I guess we'll see.

And what the heck is with the (view spoiler)[low magic? My head is already spinning from all the other elements in the story, and now we have the queen casting a love spell for her friend? This was really confusing and out of place, though I'm sure it is going to be very important later. (hide spoiler)]

Up to Greavesdrake Manor (pg 143) 36%

It appears Arsinoe is not the only one whose storyline seems to revolve more about the other people in the queen's life than the queen herself. Now with Mirabella we are going off on tangents with Luca and Rho. I figured if this pattern of POV was going to repeat, it was going to be Katharine instead of Mirabella, since Katharine doesn't have much control with her power. But I'm starting to see how the plot is going through the interactions of these secondary characters. Ho hum. I'm starting to worry the plot is going to be really predictable now that they suggested (view spoiler)[they don't think Mirabella will be able to kill her sisters and that they will have to be sacrificed instead (hide spoiler)].

I liked this quick line, "One ring in exchange for a marriage. He must be joking, but he looks so earnest." (pg 120) I have always thought the tradition is a little silly (though I sure as heck wanted one when I got married). I understand the symbolism (though it's been dressed up a bit since its original meaning), but on the surface it does seem a bit comical to exchange such a small item for a lifetime arrangement.

I also liked this interaction:

"Sometimes I wish that I was a queen."

Mirabella frowns. "Do not ever say that." (pg 102)

Though not subtle at all, it's a good call out to the fact that a lot of times we tend to say things off hand in passing that carry a much deeper meaning that we mean, but how meaning is conveyed through interpretation.

Sorry I'm behind, still recovering from the trip some (I'll message you and tell you about it soon :)). I'll work on catching up. You don't have to wait for me.


A few pages into Rolanth (second time) (24%, pg. 87)

The poisoners' gift is interesting because it's really more of an inverse/protective power than an offensive one. It doesn't appear they have any supernatural ability in poisoning others, from what I've seen, just in withstanding poison. And yet they have managed to turn it into enough of an offensive power to rule the isle and be feared by the other residents. I'm curious about how they manage this.

Changing between multiple storylines/ POVs seems to be a tricky thing to do as an author. Blake has left us on some cliffhangers, which keeps the reader turning pages wanting to get back to that character and storyline, but by the time we potentially get back to it, time and the story have moved on. Like with Mirabella in this chapter, (view spoiler)[we have to learn about what happened when she is supposed to sacrifice the young priestess after the fact and in very little detail. I am dying to find out what happens to Jules and Joseph after Arsinoe burned the charm, but wonder if by the time I reach Arsinoe's (and Jules'- she still seems as crucial a character as Arsinoe) chapter again, the same thing will happen. (hide spoiler)] So we'll have to see how well Blake deals with the challenge of switching between the storylines and keeping them balanced. So far, I'm not preferring one of the sets of chapters over the others (another potential pitfall with multiple storylines and POVs- the reader groaning every time it's one person's chapter or rushing to get back to another's), but it's early yet.

I agree that the religious aspect of this world hasn't been super well fleshed out yet, but maybe this chapter will help.

And yes, there definitely is some reticence to get very attached to characters in this type of story, since we don't know if the author is going to go through with killing two of them off or have a different solution/ ending. In most books (especially YA), you can at least count on the main character(s) surviving. I wouldn't be surprised if what you suggested came to pass, but also wouldn't be surprised if (view spoiler)[this book ends with one of the queens dying, maybe leaving the remaining two to band together (or maybe someone major dying protecting one of the queens instead). My bet would be on Arsinoe for exactly the reasons you outlined. Which is too bad, as I find the naturalist gift potentially the coolest. But then we'll probably have Jules vowing vengeance and trying to kill the other two herself...
(Arsinoe and Jules having been switched when young... I could totally get behind this theory except Arsinoe wasn't brought to Wolf Spring till she was six, I think, which would have been too old to make the switch without Arsinoe and Jules remembering. But it's still an outside possibility it somehow happened before that...) (hide spoiler)]

I agree that bringing in (view spoiler)[the low magic when we're just getting our minds around the powers and everything was too much and hasn't been well explained so far. Hopefully it will be better developed later on. (hide spoiler)]

Up to Rolanth (pg 161)

That's a good point. Hadn't really thought about the poisoners gift versus the other two. But you are totally right. Katharine has a defensive strategy where she plans to poison both her sisters to take the crown, but it is no proof of her skill as a poisoner. After all, she's a terrible poisoner from what we've learned. She's banking on using poisoning in general without the aid of her gift. It kind of makes me wonder why everyone doesn't just try to poison everyone else and to heck with the powers lol.

The elementals and naturalists almost seem one in the same to me, while the poisoners are starkly different (in part because of what you pointed out).

Excellent point about the fate of the main characters in novels. I originally planned on killing off my main character/narrator in my new adult fantasy novel I'm finishing the manuscript for, but now I've changed my mind. I've killed off a lot of secondary characters, but killing off the main character seems like such a big mistake after some of the YA novels I've read and the rage I've felt when the main character dies. Even when the Doctor regenerates or the companion changes in Doctor Who I get upset though you know by now it's an inevitable occurrence.

It feels like the plot is slowing a little bit. Blake is developing the interpersonal relationships and the characters, but I want to see more magic or powers or something. We still have months before the Quickening. Something needs to happen in the interim instead of just talking about it and meeting potential king consorts.

Up to The Road from Wolf Spring (pg 191)

What the bleep in going on?!?!?! (view spoiler)[Mira thinks Joseph loves Arsinoe. Joseph claims to love Jules. But Mira and Joseph just randomly sleep together with no build up AT ALL? What the heck? (hide spoiler)]

My brain is still trying to process what the heck just happened. I realize this is the result of the (view spoiler)[low magic, but seriously?!?! I'm kinda mad at the story right now for how sloppy and messed up that was (hide spoiler)]

Up to Greavesdrake Manor (fourth time- pg. 143/ 36%)

So I didn't comment on the male characters last time. This does seem to be a matriarchal society, and thus the book has predominantly focused on female characters. It is disappointing that all of the males so far are part of romantic entanglements, but I think that (view spoiler)[Pietyr has the potential to be a really fascinating character with his ambition and attempts to mold Katharine. Joseph and Billy seem pretty cut and dried, though, but Billy could surprise me, as I've seen very little of him so far.

Speaking of Joseph, is it horrible that I'm largely disappointed that his and Jules's relationship is so drama-free? That storyline is pretty dull at the moment, so I pretty much wish that Arsinoe destroying that love charm had created some major problem that had to be fixed, with the ensuing anger and guilt and turmoil. It seems weird that the author brought in the low magic and that whole scene with Madrigal (side note- I totally thought this was a name Laini Taylor had made up for Daughter of Smoke and Bone (which series I'm working on rereading), so it's weird to me seeing it here, especially in a pretty unsympathetic character) and Arsinoe at all if there wasn't going to be any result from it. Although I'm sure you're right that the low magic will play some important role down the line. (hide spoiler)]

I'm not sure what to think of Elizabeth. I'm definitely wondering if (view spoiler)[she has ulterior motives and perhaps is planning on betraying Mirabella to help Arsinoe later because she is a naturalist. Elizabeth acting so unlike all the other priestesses, not giving up her familiar, and befriending and ingratiating herself with Mirabella so pointedly seems suspicious to me. (hide spoiler)]

My thoughts on the queens are changing as we get to know them better. Katharine is quite the bloodthirsty little thing, isn't she? I'm definitely becoming less sympathetic towards her and more towards Mirabella, who doesn't want to have to kill her own sisters. I'm still trying to get a handle on Arsinoe. With so much of her chapters devoted to Jules, I still don't feel like I really know her or what she's thinking and feeling about her situation.
Although I'm liking Mirabella, I get what you're saying about (view spoiler)[how her lack of ambition/killing instinct/bloodthirstiness is not necessarily helping make the plot interesting. I think Rho's whole having the people sacrifice the sisters idea has some potential, though, depending what the author does with it. I think it would be true in a situation like this that there would be many important players with many different agendas involved, not just the three queens fighting it out. Wherever there is a lot of power, there will be a lot of ambitious people fighting for their piece of it. So I can see how the book might have to cover many POVs and get a bit complicated. So far, I feel it's been a bit lacking in drama and complexity, honestly. (hide spoiler)]

The idea of the poisoners also (view spoiler)[having healing powers is interesting. Is that why Katharine's power appears so weak? Because her real power is in healing?
It is pretty logical healing would be a part of their power if you think of the ability to resist poisons as just the ability for them to heal themselves. But it doesn't make sense to me that it would be an aspect of their power that the poisoners would forget about/that would fall into disuse. While it wouldn't be as useful for someone in power, it is a much more practical ability that would be very sought after and thus useful to the less wealthy, more common people with the poisoner's gift. So why would all the poisoners stop using their healing abilities? Or wouldn't someone heal without knowing they could do it, and thus rediscover the ability? Maybe I'm making way too much out of a stray comment and the poisoners can't heal at all, but if they can, I hope some of this is addressed. (hide spoiler)]

It quite surprised me to learn that the suitors come from off the island. The island just seems like a very insular society, for one thing, and it seems the people would want the king consort to have a gift. But I guess that would complicate the issue of which gift is in power. This way, the king consort has no real power to challenge the ruling queen, the queen has somewhere to go after giving birth to her daughters and leaving the island, and it maintains ties with the mainland. That detail Billy mentioned about only being able to reach the island when he was supposed to be going there/it not being there when he sailed in that direction previously intrigues me, and I hope that is fleshed out.

Man would I hate to only be able to wear black! I love color way too much.

I'm hoping we find out more about the war and prophesy gifts soon- it's starting to bug me as well having them hinted at but not explained. What exactly are the powers the war gift even gives someone?

I agree that it was interesting to look at the idea of wedding rings from an outsider’s perspective. It does seem a small thing in exchange for a lifetime, but it is something that can be worn constantly to remind the person (and others) of his or her commitment and his or her spouse’s love. If I ever get married it would certainly be important to me that both I and my husband wear rings.

Yes, that interaction between Bree and Mirabella was unsubtle but highlighted several important themes, including the high costs those in power must pay, especially in this world. I doubt the majority of the ruling queens in the book’s world would say having to grow up parentless, kill their sisters, leave the island and their daughters, and other costs were worth being queen. Even in our own world where the costs are much less extreme, there are major trade-offs one has to make to be powerful, like incredible stress and responsibility, damage to personal relationships, having to make questionably ethical decisions, constant scrutiny by the press and public, etc.. I have never been particularly ambitious myself- even the upsides have never greatly appealed to me.

Pietyr is interesting by unfortunately I feel like even his plot is romance driven. I liked him at first as that ulterior motive you talked about is definitely intriguing, but (view spoiler)[now he and Katharine are suffering from spooning under the table and not being able to keep their hands off each other while he "trains" her how to kiss other guys. (hide spoiler)]

As for Jules and Joseph, that is how I felt in the beginning too. Now... well... yeah. Not sure what to think.

I think Katharine's personality has been sculpted a bit by the nasty Genevieve. Any time Katharine "acts out" or does something they don't approve of, she gets punished. And it seems a lot of it is just shy of torture. So I can understand her personalty a little. They've forced her through a version of operant conditioning to toughen her up to what a poisoner queen ought to be. Considering how the women raising her have acted towards her, I'm a little surprised she isn't more vicious. I think (view spoiler)[Pietyr is opening up her softer side (hide spoiler)].

I've noticed as the story progresses, we're getting more and more chapters of Arsinoe and Mira and less of Katharine.

As to your point about Mirabella, I've noticed that the personalities of the queens have made the minor character really run the show so far. We still spend just as much time following them from the POV as we do the queens, almost to the point where I'm starting to think the queens are the minor characters instead. Blake's narrative choices have definitely been interesting.

I don't think Katharine's (view spoiler)[healing powers are all that strong. In the chapter I'm in the middle of, they mention when Genevieve pinches her it is going to leave a nasty bruise. Also, all the poison she ate at the banquet really did a number on her for a while. So while healing seems a part of the poison gift, I think she's still showing she's a dud with her talents (hide spoiler)].

The whole concept of the island is strange. I don't remember who was talking, but I swear I read that (view spoiler)[mainland has its own queen. Which just makes the social structure on the island that more confusing. (hide spoiler)] But I like what you point out about the king consorts. Hadn't thought about the gifts that way, but makes total sense.

I'm of the same mind with wedding rings. Since it is an ingrained tradition in society, I would shoot my husband if he didn't want to wear his lol. I'll admit I don't always wear my engagement ring because it can be a bit meddlesome when I'm working as it tends to get caught on things, but I always wear my wedding band.

I agree, even in today's normal society I would not want to be royalty. Just the idea of the public life on display by the press is enough to deter me. I like my privacy from the public eye (even when it comes to social media).

Up to The Western Coast (first time- 46%)

I agree fully about the plot/pace at this point. We've stalled out in the characters thinking about what might happen instead of actually doing anything.

Regarding Arsinoe's story- I don't (view spoiler)[trust Madrigal even one tiny bit. I bet she'll use all this stored queen's blood for her own purposes. I think the whole plot line of the low magic would have a lot more impact if we'd seen any evidence that it actually works. The only specific charm we know they've tried to cast- the love spell on Jules and Joseph- Arsinoe destroyed, and it had absolutely zero appreciable effect. (hide spoiler)]

With Katharine- (view spoiler)[She and Pietyr have turned totally lovesick to the exclusion of anything else, which is frustrating and boring. (hide spoiler)]
You make excellent points about her upbringing. Definitely (view spoiler)[an abusive situation. All three have grown up under such messed up conditions, raised in isolation until they were six, then separated and told they would have to kill each other and with all the focus put on the strength of their gifts... Although at least Arsinoe and Mirabella have some friends and bonds of affection, some normal. But Katharine… wow. I certainly don’t blame her for wanting to be the one to survive or planning to poison her sisters. But there was one line about how Katharine didn’t want to be denied seeing Arsinoe “clawing at her throat after it had been poisoned shut” that seemed a bit extreme. (hide spoiler)]

Can I just point out that the map at the beginning doesn't correlate with the story at all? According to the map, heading (view spoiler)[south from Rolanth would not only put Mirabella on the EASTERN shore, it would have her heading toward Prynn and Indrid Downs. I hope she's smarter than to walk straight into the arms of the poisoners. Plus the location of Trignor doesn't really make sense with what Joseph said about his trip- on the map it's about as far from Wolf Spring as you can get on the island. Having an inaccurate map frustrates me, I'd rather there not be one at all (although with the three different locations of the story so far and now one of the main characters on the move, it would definitely be nice to have one that makes sense). (hide spoiler)]

Regarding the poisoners gift- the big advantage I can see in being resistant to poisons is the ability to poison food or drink shared among you and your intended victim. In our world, it's tricky to poison only your victim without danger to yourself or bystanders. In the book's world, a poisoner could poison away without threat to him or herself or (usually) those he or she cares about. However, in being so blatant with their gift and eating so much tainted food, I doubt anyone shares meals with poisoners, so they've given up some of their advantage. Most of their offensive position at this point seems to stem from the knowledge about various poisons and the stores of them they have built up over time.
You make a good point in relation to how the strength of the queens' magical powers might not ultimately be that important if one of the sisters is adept with a more mundane method of killing the others. If (view spoiler)[Katharine is good at actually poisoning others, it won’t matter if her gift is weak. Arsinoe seems to be thinking outside the box, if still in the realm of magic, with Madrigal’s prompting to use low magic. And all Mirabella’s power certainly might not matter if she won’t use it. (hide spoiler)] If I were in charge of the training of one of the queens, I would have been having them train in martial arts and weapons, plus other offensive and defensive skills (like say, antidotes to poisons?), in addition to their gift. (view spoiler)[Madrigal at least seems to have somewhat the right idea in seeing beyond Arsinoe’s (lack of) gift, and Pietyr’s awareness that there are more players on the game board than just the queens, including pawns Katharine could potentially manipulate is certainly intriguing. But it seems too little, too late, IMO. (hide spoiler)] Not to mention that no one seems to have spent any time educating the queens on what they will need to know to rule the kingdom well, if they are the one to survive.

I wish I could say that there is in theory the possibility of an author killing off the main character and it working, but I’m really not sure there is, IMO, at least in YA fantasy/dystopian and without it being an emotionally devastating and depressing book/series. In the kind of books I like/read, the main character is generally also the hero or heroine, and if the author is doing things right, I really like that character and get too attached for it to be acceptable to me for him or her to die. It’s totally unrealistic that the heroes and heroines of fantasy and dystopian stories face such dangers and almost always survive, but it’s one of the reasons we like books, isn’t it? That things turn out better than they usually would in real life? And there has to be some degree of safety net for us to invest emotionally in the characters. In the classic example in YA dystopian literature where the author did kill off the MC… I thought she did a pretty decent job of it. But I didn’t love that series after the first book. By the conclusion, I felt pretty disconnected from the MC and thought the books had fallen off the rails quite a bit, so I wasn’t really invested in how it ended (I almost didn’t finish, TBH). In other series, I’m not sure I could have accepted such a conclusion.

They have mentioned (view spoiler)[mainland queens. As Billy pointed out, there are a number of different mainland kingdoms, it seems, so some might also be ruled by queens, but I think in at least some the queen might be just the wife of the ruling king (I get the feeling that mainland society is not matriarchal like island society.) There was mention in the 4th Wolf Spring chapter (about 43%) about how there are stories of queens from the island going on to rule mainland kingdoms after giving birth and being banished. I don’t know if that was due to their king consorts being princes/kings in their own right on the mainland or what. (hide spoiler)]

Up to page 232 (58%)

I'm gonna have to take a short hiatus as I had to return my overdue copy to the library yesterday. My replacement copy is in transit from the library, so I should be able to pick it back up in a couple of days =) Sorry!

I think the low magic finally did have some effect, but it felt so long and drawn out since the initial incident that it didn't feel natural at all. And the whole way Blake had it play out still makes me angry.

I fully confess that I almost never even glance at the maps if/when they are included in novels. I can't paint that mental image and carry it in my mind while I read, and it never seems required to understand the plot. And when they do include it, sometimes it's more frustrating than useful, like you pointed out with this one. The same issue with cover art is perhaps my biggest pet peeve with novels. When I finish a story and then go back to the cover and A) it has nothing to do with the story or B) (even worse) the model(s) selected for the character(s) looks nothing like the character descriptions in the book, I just want to chuck the book out the window. I read that they wanted Beth Revis to describe the ship in Across the Universe for a map to be included in the novel. And she admitted that she had no idea what the entire ship looked like outside the few parts they explore, so it was largely made up. At that point, who does the map help? Seems like a waste. But I've gone off on a tangent, sorry!

I agree about the poisoners. Anyone outside of court would/should be smart enough not to eat or think anything given to them by a poisoner or at court, etc. The only advantage I see would be if a poisoner were able to conceal their identity as a poisoner somewhere else. But that's not going to be useful at Katharine at all. Which begs the question, how have the poisoners succeeded in this stronghold that they've had on court for years and years? How did all these poisoner queens take the crown? That would be more interesting to me right now than the current arcs the plot is taking.

I agree with you. All this training in low magic and building up a body's tolerance to poison seems like a waste of time when you realize the main objective for the queens. Just give the girls some throwing stars and teach them how to use them. Also agreed that no thought at all has been given to training any of them to hold the actual position when they win. It almost seems like an honorary title, like the queen of England who really doesn't run much of the government but is more of a figurehead. Which again begs the question of why they go through such lengths to kill each other off for the pleasure, expect that it feels like different political parties veying for the right to fill the court with their own kind (though there aren't really any political motivations in this story, except the poisoners wanting to keep the court and the other two trying to throw them out. What do they fundamentally agree on? Do they even disagree? The whole buildup of this system falls apart faster and faster the more I think about it.

You have a good point about the mainland. If I were a queen looking down the barrel of the Reckoning, I would be trying to escape like Mira tried to the mainland, magical mist be damned.

Sorry if my thoughts above are a little incoherent. I stayed up far too late finishing Gilmore Girls last night and my brain is sluggish today.

Oh, no! I'm so sorry that I've been slowing us down! I will catch up to you and then wait till you get the book back :)


Up to The Road from Wolf Spring (pg. 191/ 51%)

Well, ok. This is an interesting turn of events. Not sure how the author is going to turn it from (view spoiler)[what I look ahead and see as being localized, highly intense, but not long lasting drama (Joseph comes home and tells Jules what happened; there’s a huge fight. They either break up, or Jules forgives him. Arsinoe feels guilty and tries to figure out what happened.) into something more significant to the book, characters, and plot, but I'm pretty confident she will. Considering how Joseph and Mirabella can't keep their hands off of each other, maybe Joseph won't go home at all. (hide spoiler)];

I agree that it wasn't really very well done. (view spoiler)[I think we were maybe not supposed to realize it was Joseph at first or something- but you'd have to miss a whole lot of clues to not figure that out. And yeah, no build up to them sleeping together made it confusing. But I agree there is no doubt it's because of the low magic charm.
I think the Western Coast chapters might have worked better if those whole scenes or a large portion of them had been from Joseph’s POV. I would like to know what he is feeling. Are his feelings for Jules still there? What was seeing Mirabella for the first time like? Is it a compulsion to be with her or love at first sight or why can’t he stop himself? (hide spoiler)]

So, (view spoiler)[the charm. Here are my thoughts on what could have happened with it, although I’m making guesses pretty much in the dark since we know so little about the low magic.
-The hair. If this truly was Jules', then the whole theory that Jules is really the queen (and sister to Mirabella) gets some credence, as I can see the spell treating all the triplets as one and the same. Or maybe Madrigal somehow got Mirabella’s hair and betrayed Jules and Arsinoe in utilizing it in this way for her own motives.
-Maybe Mirabella is Joseph’s “soul mate” or some silliness, and the charm brought them together for an unknown reason. I don’t believe in the whole concept of soul mates or fate. (I certainly believe in love, even true love, but believe too much in free will to think our lives are preordained. And if our lives aren’t set in stone, what’s the likelihood anyone would find the one person out of 6 billion meant for them? I believe there is choice and work and compromise involved in successful relationships, and that, as unromantic of a concept as it is, there is more than one person out there who could fall in love with someone and make him or her happy. (But as we’ve discussed a bit before, I’m also a huge believer in commitment.)) If this is the answer, it will annoy me, as it would cheapen any connection between any couples in the book by removing any element of choice in the matter, if that makes sense. In fact, I’m going to be a bit annoyed if Joseph ends up staying with Mirabella in the end (assuming they both survive), as
-Arsinoe’s blood. Maybe this forged a bond between Joseph and Mirabella, who shares Arsinoe’s blood.
-Or this could all be because Arsinoe threw the charm in the fire. OH! I just had a brainwave: Mirabella is an elemental, and particularly likes fire. I bet the charm malfunctioned as it was being destroyed and forged a bond between Joseph- the subject of the charm- and Mirabella- the person with Arsinoe’s blood and a fire power.
-They’ve also discussed the cost of the low magic. This is something that I wish we had been given more of an example of or seen played out in some small way before now. Maybe the cost of the charm or the cost of Arsinoe destroying it was for this love triangle to develop.
[I wrote this quite late at night right before falling asleep, so sorry for all the theorizing on too little information and if I sound a bit loopy ;) I thought I was quite brilliant for coming up with the charm in the fire/elemental fire power angle at that time- now I think the cost aspect is more likely. I just need to post this and keep listening to see if we get any answers ;)] (hide spoiler)]

Also seems I was wrong about several things:
-The map is definitely still messed up, considering the whole confusion about whether (view spoiler)[Mirabella and now Joseph are on the western or eastern coast, but not as messed up as I thought, since Mirabella really is stupid enough to head straight towards Indrid Downs and the poisoners.
I've found that I often enjoy having a map to refer to in fantasy novels, being a visual person (otherwise I can't keep much track of where things are in relation to one another). They're frequently not needed in YA fantasy, but when I occasionally read more epic fantasy, they can be crucial. (Especially if we're talking about a bunch of made up countries- then I need to see them to remember.) I also like to look up real world maps for books set in foreign countries or involving travel. But I usually don't bother with maps or trying to keep track of what is where if everything just takes place in a city and its environs (whether a real one or a fictional one). But authors should certainly only include a map if they had one (mentally or physically) when writing- otherwise that's just asking for things to not match up.
-The low magic love charm did have an appreciable effect, even if we are just seeing it now. This is quite the demonstration that it does something, even if we have no idea what or why. Could Mirabella’s dreams driving her out of Rolanth and Joseph having to sail to Trignor all be part of the charm’s workings, pulling Mirabella and Joseph together? (hide spoiler)]

Katharine (view spoiler)[does seem to be left out of the current drama, which I bet is why more chapters in this midsection go to Arsinoe and Mira. We’ll see how the balance of chapter is realloted after everything with Joseph settles down some.
As for the healing gift, she is certainly a dud if the poisoners' supposed healing gift is limited to healing themselves. But what if she can heal others, but just not herself? (hide spoiler)]

Can I just say that if (view spoiler)[Joseph’s family really does have to pay for the boat- that was a bad deal they negotiated. It was the customer’s boat- Joseph was just delivering it to him. Therefore, as owner, the customer should be liable for a horrific storm sinking the boat when Joseph had no hope of saving it. (hide spoiler)]

What happens if two or three of the queens are still alive a year after the quickening? I am very curious.

Where is (view spoiler)[Mirabella going? Does she have any sort of plan? (hide spoiler)]
Either I’m not listening with my full attention or there are a number of connecting details that are getting lost between the different stories, I’ve noticed. Just for example, (view spoiler)[how and why did Jules end up finding Arsinoe and Madrigal when they were practicing low magic? It’s not really important, Jules was going to find out at some point, (hide spoiler)] but I like stories to flow logically with enough detail included to link cause and effect. With not just jumping between characters but also forward in time in random seeming increments, some things are falling through the cracks. If they stay minor, it’s not a big deal, but it might be indicative of greater issues to come.
As you said, a lot of the author's choices in how she is telling the story have been interesting- not necessarily in a good way. It seems a little all over the place to me, and I agree that the queens haven't been the dominant forces in the story in the way I would have expected. Now this could be a theme the author is trying to develop- how the queens are really just pawns for other people and groups seeking power- but it's not making for a great story, at least so far, IMO.

I am quite curious about the questions you bring up about how the poisoner queens gained the throne and the poisoners have maintained power as well.

Yeah, beyond some juvenile insults and people being somewhat understandably fearful of the poisoners, the author hasn't really explained how the various groups of gifted (plus the temple) differ politically or what anyone hopes to gain through their chosen queen beyond general political power and the boost to the gifted having a queen with the same ability on the throne supposedly gives them. The reasons for this queen system have not been well developed at all. At this point, it does seem the only real advantage this it provides is in (up until recent times) allowing the different gifted groups to trade off power and providing each with boosted gifts at various times. I'm guessing there are supposed to be other benefits to the ruling queen having a strong gift and having been able to kill her sisters, but the author hasn't helped us see these. (A strong elemental queen could help with a war, but if they have the mist, what threat could the mainland pose? The only factor I'm really seeing is that if there was a famine, a naturalist queen could help provide food.)

I would certainly be trying to get off the island too! Although (view spoiler)[Mirabella's thought of just fading into obscurity is interesting as well. Not that I get the feeling the island is big or populated enough to hide her or her level of gift. (hide spoiler)]

Sorry- I've been going on way too long in my comments in this buddy read. I'll work on that.

I've been caught up to you. Let me know when you get the book back. :)

My only further thought is that I really hope we actually (view spoiler)[find out what went wrong with the charm and caused the whole Joseph/Mirabella situation, preferably sooner than later, because so far we're very lacking in answers. (hide spoiler)]

Sorry I've been MIA. The book should be here in the next day or two (it finally shows it isn't transit but actually checked out to me). I'll hop right back into it when I get it (and will let you know).

No worries- I've been MIA too in that I haven't messaged you in way too long. I'm super sorry. I'll go send you at least a short update right now.
Let me know when you get the book back, and I'll start reading again along with you :)

Finally got my copy today! I'll work my way back into it tonight =)

In response to your last reading update post:

I agree that to miss the fact that (view spoiler)[Joseph is the sailor caught in the storm you'd have to miss a whole lot of clues. While I'll admit I didn't catch it at first, it did become obvious pretty quickly as she worked to save the lone guy in the boat (hide spoiler)]

In Joseph's case, I think (view spoiler)[his reaction to Mira was the magic gone bad. I think he's inability to control himself and just throw himself at her was the result of the spell not being done correctly. I doubt he has any feelings for her/I think he still loves Jules. But I'm also thinking the side effects of the bad magic have not yet finished running their course (hide spoiler)]. I agree that it would have been more interesting told from his POV.

HAHAHA. I cannot stop laughing about your comment on Mira's stupidity. I had a long day at work and that really just made my night =)

That's a good point on Katherine I hadn't thought about. Because we clearly know she's pretty terrible at (view spoiler)[healing herself, but if I recall correctly she did something to heal Pietyr right? Hmmmm. Interesting thought. I'll have to pay attention to that now (hide spoiler)]

I think (view spoiler)[Mira should be responsible for paying for the boar. After all, she's moseying down the coast line and this sudden storm breaks out. She's a fierce elemental but can do nothing to stop it? Come on now. I know the narrative mentioned something like it wasn't her stronger element, but on the synopsis on the jacket cover it proclaims she is "a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers". Yet she could barely even save his life, let alone control the storm. (hide spoiler)]

My exact thought! What if they all just decided to not kill each other? Although I think your question about two or three of them remaining touches back on one of the subplots. (view spoiler)[Since they are already worried Mira won't have the stomach to off her sisters, they are planning on doing the sacrifice themselves in her name. So I think if it was starting to drag out and none of them had died, the others would start trying to off the sisters for their type of people (poisoners, elementals, naturalists, etc) to rule. (hide spoiler)]

Another good point. I swear I thought I knew where she was going, but now that I'm trying to type it out my mind is drawing a complete blank. (view spoiler)[She was leaving for fear of having to kill her sisters, if I recall, but I don't remember a precise logic of where she would go (hide spoiler)].

Never apologize for that! That's the best part of doing buddy reads =)

Up to The Beltane Festival (pg 281)

I liked the quote:

"I only meant that nobody cares whether the new queen is an elemental or a naturalist... as long as she is not a poisoner." (pgs 242 - 243)

It relates to the saying 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'. The poisoners have been in control for so long that while I'm sure the different factions would prefer their queen to win, they would prefer the other (elemental or naturalist) over Katharine. But on the level of the book, I think the quote falters. The whole plot of this story so far has been building the interpersonal relationships between these characters. Joseph and Jules care a lot if the naturalist versus the elemental wins. I thought that was an interesting quote coming from such a character.

I'm interested in finding out (view spoiler)[why Natalia worked so hard to get Joseph banished. Did I miss something/has that already been explained? Why did she want to kill him in the first place? You would think that having Arsinoe out of contention for the crown would have gotten rid of half of Natalia's battle to keep the poisoners in control under Katharine's reign (hide spoiler)].

We saw a little bit of action in this last section with the (view spoiler)[insane hand stabbing and then Arsinoe deciding to confront a bear because she thinks it's her animal - what? (hide spoiler)]. Unfortunately, I don't think it did much to add to my interest in the story. It all happened extremely quick and I wanted to punch Arsinoe in the face for being so stupid. Everyone kept telling her it was a bad idea, but noooooo she had to do it anyway.

I'm sorry! I read right away but getting my thoughts written down took me forever... (My youngest brother also has been home, so we've been doing lots of family stuff.)


Up to The Beltane Festival (pg. 281/ 74%)

I don't have much to say about this last section. The (view spoiler)[messed-up bear (hide spoiler)] was a fine enough turn of events, but I'm mostly feeling fairly "meh" at this point. I agree that (view spoiler)[everything that happened with Arsinoe and the low magic didn't add as much to the story as I think it was meant to. Plus the focus was almost entirely on the Wolf Spring storyline and not on the other two. (hide spoiler)] Hopefully I'll get more caught up in it, now that we've reached the event to which this book has been leading up.
I didn't have the entirely the same reaction to (view spoiler)[Arsinoe's stupidity as you did. During the "insane hand stabbing", I was like "well, what did you expect, trusting Madrigal?". But I can relate to how I think she must have been feeling when she thought she had finally found her familiar. It's so hard to be denied things that you grew up expecting to be yours and that you watch your friends enjoy... So deluding herself into thinking it had finally happened for her? I can understand that. (hide spoiler)]
What do you think of (view spoiler)[Arsinoe's reaction after the bear attack? I'm pretty impressed with how stoic she has been over her injuries and scarring. As for her planning to try it again... On the one hand, she is obviously quite desperate and her life is on the line. On the other, planning on having Jules there again after Camden got permanently injured the last time??? It's one incredibly stupid, but potentially understandable thing to risk herself, but risking those she loves is not ok to my mind. (hide spoiler)]

It will be interesting to see what happens if (view spoiler)[Billy succeeds in getting Arsinoe off the island, but I can't really see that happening. I'm hoping nothing too awful happens to him for his attempt... (hide spoiler)]

I'm getting annoyed at the magic system in this book- it's so nebulous and unspecified, especially (view spoiler)[the low magic. There are no rules that we have really been given for what is possible to achieve with the different gifts or what the limits are. As you brought up- if Mirabella is so strong, why couldn't she have done more to stop the storm Joseph was caught in? Do all poisoners have limits to how much poison or what types they can ingest? What all can naturalists do? And we don't know why the low magic keeps going wrong- something to do with Arsinoe, with Madrigal's teaching, with the nature of the magic? What all can it accomplish? (hide spoiler)]
And there just hasn't been enough use of magic in general to hold my interest as much as I would have hoped. I guess that makes some sense given that (view spoiler)[Arsinoe's gift is pretty nonexistent and Katharine's is weak (and the poisoners' magic is very unflashy to begin with), but still. I would expect Jules and Mirabella to use their gifts much more often, even if just in small, everyday ways, given how strong they are. Why didn't Mirabella call up a storm to cover her tracks when running away, for example, or use her gift to fight being recaptured? (hide spoiler)]

You're right- the author hasn't really demonstrated the quote that many people would be willing to support Arsinoe if she became powerful instead of Mirabella. Maybe the temple would switch its alliance, but as you said, the story is mostly being told on an interpersonal level. It goes back to the political differences between the factions and why people are opposed to having another poisoner queen not having been explored nearly enough.

You make an excellent point- I don't know (view spoiler)[why Natalia was so upset at Jules and Joseph trying to help Arsinoe escape. Other than them just trying to overthrow the order of things and her authority as ruler in the interim between ruling queens. But as you said, it would have made things easier for Katharine. Maybe there are rules even Natalia is has to follow, and she then decided to try and break Arsinoe by punishing her friends. You would think it would more be the temple who would have been in charge of making sure the queens remained where they were supposed to. (hide spoiler)]

Sorry for the delay, this week has been hectic squared.

Up to The Arron Encampment (pg 308)

I also don't have much to say about the last section I read. I, too, and feeling very "meh".

I'm really peeved that (view spoiler)[Joseph and Mirabella are just apparently picking up where they left off, even though Joseph JUST said he wished it hadn't happened the first time. Then POOF, here it comes again, rearing its ugly head (hide spoiler)].

Good point about Arsinoe. I don't think I've ever been in her shoes in that type of situation, so I probably didn't relate well to the situation. I just wish Blake could have written some of that emotion into it. It all just happened so fast with little description.

I was extremely surprised that (view spoiler)[Billy and Arsinoe have apparently sailed off into the sunset. Another frustrating byproduct of the changing POVs. Who knows how long it will be before we find out what happened in that plot line (hide spoiler)].

I'm in the same boat on the magic. It seems so important/intrinsic to the plot, yet it isn't developed at all. Unless it is a secret on purpose, for a huge twist at the end (I'm wondering if this might be the case).

Up to The Ascension Year Begins (94%)

What in the what just happened?

First of all, Arsinoe and Billy (view spoiler)[are just back? Like that? Did I glaze over something or was there no detail AT ALL about how they returned? I was flabbergasted because I don't ever recall a good explanation of what the heck happened! (hide spoiler)]

Then we have Jules and Joseph. Ugh, I don't even want to get started in on it, but I have to say something. (view spoiler)[Joseph gets all kissy face with Mirabella AGAIN and then doesn't even tell Jules? Are you kidding me with this crap? His choice is to, instead: "Just let me hold you," he says. "I just want to hold you." (Loc 4699). Someone gag me. She deserves so much better. (hide spoiler)]

When Bree makes the comment, "There is something in the air... that I do not like." (Loc 4751) my thought was 'Yeah me too, it's called the plot of this story.

And what the heck is Arsinoe still doing (view spoiler)[messing around with low magic? Seriously, hasn't she realized by now that every bit of magic they have done has gone horribly wrong? AND Jules is suddenly okay with Arsinoe using magic? Not just using it, but Jules is the one telling her to drink the potion! WHAT IS GOING ON?!?!?! The whole world has gone mad. (hide spoiler)]

And then back to Joseph. If (view spoiler)[Mirabella is covered in flames, how does he not get burned alive when he leaps to her and envelopes her in his arms to protect her from the bear. He's kissing her hair and her shoulder while she clings to him. He should have like tenth degree burns. (hide spoiler)]

And then poor, stupid Katherine. If she had (view spoiler)[pushed Pietyr a little harder to explain what he meant about the "bloodthirsty temple" instead of just falling to mush because he said he loves her, maybe she could have pushed him into the pit instead. (hide spoiler)]

Very ranting this time around, I apologize.

Up to "The Quickening"

I waited a too long between reading and writing this, so I don't remember some of what I was going to say. But mostly, I feel like this last section was just the characters repeating themselves, the story going in circles. Especially this whole (view spoiler)[Jules/Joseph/Mirabella situation. And Katharine/Pietyr too. And we had Arsinoe and Mirabella have an encounter with a similar emotional tone to when they met in the woods. (hide spoiler)]
I find where the author is trying to go with (view spoiler)[all the plots and scheming below the surface by the secondary characters- the things that will probably end up mattering at least as much as the actions and wishes of the queens- interesting in theory, but in actuality, not so much. (hide spoiler)]

It would be nice if the lack of world building regarding the magic was for the sake of a plot twist, but I don't have your confidence. And I would probably be annoyed that the author couldn't find another way to have such a twist instead of short changing her book in the world building aspect.

Up to "The Ascension Year Begins"

Ok, well, at least I didn't see that coming. Well, I did at the start of that last chapter, when (view spoiler)[Katharine goes running to Pietyr and it's like, "why in the world would he have her meet him right next to a gianormous pit?", but still, an ok twist.
I really hope we get an explanation and backstory on Pietyr and why he betrayed Katharine, though, considering we're STILL waiting on any sort of satisfactory explanation for how that love charm went wrong and made Joseph and Mirabella all hot for each other...
There are lots of gaping holes in this story. We've also still never gotten any more information on the war or prophecy gifts. (hide spoiler)]

Speaking of, as for Arsinoe and Billy (view spoiler)[showing back up, there was a brief sentence about how they got stuck in the mist for days before it spit them out right in the harbor where the disembarking took place, causing them to be found. But it was very weak and confusingly done. It had seemed like Arsinoe was taking more of a central role in her part of the story, but then while she was missing, the narration followed Jules, not Arsinoe, so guess not. (hide spoiler)]

I agree that Joseph and his choices, regardless of (view spoiler)[what part the charm played in forcing some of his feelings and/or actions, has not impressed me at all.
You make a fabulous point about the fire- definitely a plot hole there. (hide spoiler)]

Haha- yeah, I'm definitely disappointed with this book all around. Its premise is fairly interesting, even if it doesn't really make practical sense, and it has a few intriguing elements to the outline of the story, but its execution fell completely flat, IMO. Nothing managed to truly capture my interest, neither the characters nor the intrigue and definitely not the magic.

I totally agree. Despite her desperation, Arsinoe should have (view spoiler)[figured out that the low magic not only doesn't work, it backfires every time. The plan of having Jules control the bear while Arsinoe pretended to was good enough in and of itself. Simplicity can sometimes be better. (hide spoiler)]

Quite possibly, but (view spoiler)[I felt like that was very in character for Katharine. By this point, I really could have cared less about Pietyr killing her. I don't think I really would have cared about any of the characters, but I was particularly rather sick of Katharine's lovesick antics. (hide spoiler)]

Finished (finally)

Wasn't Pietyr brought onto the scene by Natalia? I think (view spoiler)[he betrayed her because, even though he fell in love with her, he was Natalia's insurance policy for something. But it doesn't explain why he tried to kill her. After all, the poisoners would want a poisoner as queen. (hide spoiler)] So really, I have no idea.

I agree that there are a lot of gaping holes in this story. I ended up rating it two stars, but even that I think is a bit generous. There isn't a single character in this entire story that I like. I liked Jules for a while, but after the way she "deals" with Joseph, even she disgusts me some.

And then the ending! Is that supposed to be a cliffhanger? Because I felt extremely disappointed. I kind of even laughed, like 'after drudging through this entire novel, you think THAT is going to make me come back and read another book?' It wasn't even all that surprising. We talked about/I brought up the possibility of (view spoiler)[Arsinoe and Jules being swapped at birth (hide spoiler)]. You made the good point that it wasn't really possibly based on the situation, but it makes sense that (view spoiler)[Katherine and Arsinoe could have been swapped. (hide spoiler)] Unfortunately, Blake's little tease there at the end, in my opinion, shattered her world building even more. Because it brings to mind the question (view spoiler)[Why did they select each sister to go where they did? Surely they ought to have looked into the detail a little more because deciding Katherine was the poisoner and shipping her off to the tutelage of the poisoners, and Arsinoe to the naturalists. (hide spoiler)].

In the end, none of this book made much sense at all. Pretty disappointed in this read.