The publisher kindly sent me a physical copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
A divided nation. Four Queens. A ruthless pickpocket. A noble messenger. And the murders that unite them.
Get in quick, get out quicker.
These are the words Keralie Corrington lives by as the preeminent dipper in the Concord, the central area uniting the four quadrants of Quadara. She steals under the guidance of her mentor Mackiel, who runs a black market selling their bounty to buyers desperate for what they can’t get in their own quarter. For in the nation of Quadara, each quarter is strictly divided from the other. Four queens rule together, one from each region:
Toria: the intellectual quarter that values education and ambition
Ludia: the pleasure quarter that values celebration, passion, and entertainment
Archia: the agricultural quarter that values simplicity and nature
Eonia: the futurist quarter that values technology, stoicism and harmonious community
When Keralie intercepts a comm disk coming from the House of Concord, what seems like a standard job goes horribly wrong. Upon watching the comm disks, Keralie sees all four queens murdered in four brutal ways. Hoping that discovering the intended recipient will reveal the culprit – information that is bound to be valuable bartering material with the palace – Keralie teams up with Varin Bollt, the Eonist messenger she stole from, to complete Varin’s original job and see where it takes them.
Four Dead Queens Review
Four Dead Queens is a book I have been anticipating for quite a while. It has a really intriguing synopsis as well as a beautiful cover, which totally draws me in! While it’s certainly not the best fantasy I’ve ever read, I really enjoyed it!
Four Dead Queens follows Keralie, a thief who lives in a nation ruled by four Queens with four quadrants. Each quandrant specializes in something such as technology or agriculture. Following the murder of the Queen’s, we see Keralie try and solve the mystery.
The characters in this book a really enjoyable. Keralie is extremely confident and I really love how feisty she is. She certainly holds her own but she’s also quite fragile. Varin is also gaurded but I love that he loosens up throughout the book. The banter between these two characters is also so much fun! The Queens are interesting characters – while they’re not my favourite characters ever, they are integral to the overall plot.
The plot of the book is also fun and entertaining. It’s a world that I thoroughly enjoyed but it’s also a weird murder mystery! I love murder mysteries and the whole “whodunnit” aspect, so I really liked that aspect in this book.
My only issue with the book is the “big reveal”. There is so much suspense throughout the first third of the book but it just drops off. The reveal is interesting but not shocking and the ending feels somewhat rushed.
Overall, I do recommend checking out Four Dead Queens! It’s an intriguing mystery that also has a fun mysterious twist. Astrid Scholte’s writing is really great, especially for a debut! I’ll definitely be on the lookout for her future books!
Rating: ★★★★☆
Favourite Quote
For a moment, I forgot where I was and what I was doing.
About the Author
Raised on a diet of Spielberg, Lucas and Disney, Astrid knew she wanted to be surrounded by all things fantastical from a young age. She’s spent the last 10 years working in film, animation and television as both an artist and manager. Career highlights include working on James Cameron’s Avatar, Steven Spielberg’s The Adventures of Tin Tin as well as Happy Feet 2 by George Miller. She’s a visual writer and aims to capture the vivid stories that play like movies in her head. When she’s not writing, she’s painting her favorite fictional characters and obliging her furry overlords, Lilo and Mickey.
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This has been a book on my radar for a while now and I’m looking forward to reading it. I think my Kindle copy actually downloaded the other day so it’s ready and waiting for when I decide to pick it up.
I hope you enjoy it! I’ve heard great things from friends as well 😊
This sounds like a great book with many interesting plot aspects. Enjoyed your review, Victoria!
It really is! Thanks, Stephen!