My Five Word TL:DR Review: Brilliant, I absolutely loved it

I’m just going to be honest – I’m not usually a fan of spin off books or prequels – and yet, I loved this.  It was such a good read and I think, in all honesty, even if you haven’t read the other books in this series, you could read this as a standalone – and, in fact, it might be a perfect way to discover if you love this world or not.

The story focuses on Eline and basically how she becomes a Queen’s Man.

I’m actually not going to go into the plot.  I’m going to focus on what I really enjoyed.

First and foremost, the writing.  McLean has some writing chops.  This isn’t my first rodeo and I literally fell into this with ease.  I really enjoyed it.  This is my fantasy, grimdark if you will, kind of story.  It doesn’t pull the punches, it’s raw and gritty, maybe a little bit shocking, but it isn’t gruesome or gratuitous.

I loved Eline, her story is so fascinating.  Horrifying and yet hopeful.   She is one resilient woman. I can’t event begin to contemplate what she went through and yet she is a strong woman, and clever.

The rest of the cast are also really good.  Eline has this motherly quality, she has two children of her own and she extends those feelings to the people she finds herself amongst.

I can’t say too much more.  Other than, this book is so good.  I absolutely loved it.  The characters, the setting, the story – all perfect.  I would love to read more about Eline and what comes next, or maybe this is as much of her back story as we’re going to discover.  For me, this was such a good read, I can’t recommend it enough.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks, the agove is my own opinion.

My rating 4.5 of 5 stars