One Dark Throne (Three Dark Crowns, #2)

by Kendare Blake

Preparing for the queens' sixteenth birthday celebration and navigating the fallout of the Quickening, the sisters reassess their strategic paths to the throne using new understandings of their powers and destinies.

• ISBN13: 9780062385468
• Publish Date: 19 September 2017
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Collins
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 464
• Language: English

Reviews

[cornerfolds]

Review to come!

[Veronica 🦦]

A+ | People always talk about “second book syndrome” and I can tell you straight up? This book absolutely does not suffer from it. It is everything I had hoped for and more. This book is so good that I didn’t even notice it was midnight on January 1st because I was so enthralled. It is fast-paced and it doesn’t leave you time to breathe because there is always something happening.

I loved Katherine even more in this book. If I had to rank which queens are my favorite, it would be Katherine, Mirabella, and Arsinoe. They are all compelling, interesting characters, but I think that Katherine has become the most interesting one. She is ruthless, out for blood, and I gotta say, I’m looking forward to seeing what the next with her (& her sisters, of course, but mostly Katherine).

[leahrosereads]

This was a fast paced and decent continuation to the story.

[alindstadtcorbeax]

Star Rating: 5 SHIMMERING STARRRRS 🥳

[Stephanie]

Still #TeamKatharine

[ibeforem]

I thought the first book in this series was dark, but somehow this one got darker. Our three triplet queens are now in their Ascension year, and are actively trying to kill each other to be the one remaining Queen to rule them all.

Well, mostly Katharine is trying to kill everyone. Mirabella and Arsinoe are very much in “can’t we all get along and not do this whole killing thing?” territory. And after the events at the end of the first book, Katharine is certifiably off her rocker in this book. Not even her family really understands what she is doing. Mirabella is just keep on keepin’ on, and Arsinoe is wondering what the heck her powers actually are.

After the sometimes slow buildup of the first book, this one is non-stop action. Katharine’s murderous rampage is probably the most entertaining part, but I did enjoy some of the political machinations that are happening behind the scenes. By the end, you think things are going one way, and then everything gets turned on its head. And everyone important is still alive!

I really enjoyed this book, and I will definitely be continuing this series!

Side note: I listened to the audiobook (it’s been SO LONG since I listened to an audiobook), and apparently “Arsinoe” is not at all pronounced like I expected. I eventually got used to it, but it threw me the first several times I heard it.

[Kait ✨]

SO GOOD. There were many directions Blake could have gone with this follow-up but this one surprised me. I love all the queens and the ending of book two has me even more anxious for the third book than I was for the second, if that’s possible. I found the pacing a bit slow in One Dark Throne at the beginning and it took me a while to get into it, but the plot is action-packed especially in comparison to the first book. This is shaping up to be a fantastic series, and I’m excited to see what Blake does next!

[Sam@WLABB]

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Wow! A lot of really huge things just happened, and the ending left me with an ache in my heart.



Pro: Blake packed this one with lots of surprises that were real game changers. The physical and mental battles being waged are quite intense.

Pro: The queen I named as my favorite in order to get this ARC at BookCon is still my favorite after this book. In fact, I like her even more after this book.

Pro: I loved that Blake gave her supporting characters meaty storylines. They are fully realized and never feel like afterthoughts.

Con: I am still sort of on the outs with Joseph. Sorry.

Pro: This drama escalates quickly as the three queens must deal with the fallout from their last family get together, and we get a lot of clarification on what really happened at the end of the last book.

Con: The next book doesn't come out until May 2018, and I sort of need some answers right now!

Pro: We get a little peek into the early years our queens shared together, and we actually see some sisterly bonding going on. This really made me like another queen more than I previously had.

Pro: Alliances are muddied and backroom deals are made, as the politics in this one gets turned up a notch. There are many "oh no she didn't" moments, which kept me on the edge of my seat.

Overall: A fantastic sequel with lots of twists and turns, which left me with heartache and wanting more.

Check out what Kendare Blake has to say about ODT.


**I would like to thank the publisher for the advanced copy of this book.

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[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

4.5*

Oh, how I adored Three Dark Crowns when I read it last year! It was one of my all-time favorites, so when I got a copy of One Dark Throne, I was both excited and nervous to start it. But I'm happy to report that I adored it. Not quite as much as TDC, mind you, but close. 

One of the things I was most excited about in this book was finally having a favorite queen! I had rooted for them all in TDC, but in this one, one particular queen stood out for me as a definite favorite. Which is to say, they became even more fleshed out. The character development in this book is quite phenomenal. There were characters I loved, characters I loved to hate, and those I just flat out hated, but every character elicited a certain feeling from me, which is impressive. 

For the most part, the plot was pretty badass. There was a lot of action, but certainly not overwhelmingly so. I shipped certain ships (again, being super vague on purpose because you people can't be trusted with spoiler tags) and wanted certain characters to crawl in a hole and die- or maybe be killed by other, better characters. My point is, I was into this book, super invested in the outcome and the characters' fates, and I'll be crying in the corner for more until 2018. The only minor issue I had with it is that certain things seemed pretty much to be a setup for the next book, but I suppose that's the price you pay for loving a series ;) 

Bottom Line: Can I have more please? I adore these characters and this messed up world where killing your sisters makes perfect sense. It's at times dark, at times messed up, and at times utterly heartwarming. My feels love it.

Copy provided for review

[layawaydragon]

This didn't go how I thought it would at all.

The audiobook did feel a little bit too long, but I was hooked the whole way through. Using maps to keep track is VERY important. I used these two:

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/three-dark-crowns/images/c/c8/Map-of-Fennbrin.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20180131212935

https://i.imgur.com/MO4PkBA.jpg

I have no idea how this is going to go. I was expecting a duology and just found out it's going be a quartet. What?? Is?? Happening??

I will say this: This cover is an ugly photoshopped mess. IMHO it'd be better if the chair was covered in all three things instead of the odd sectioned off chair. Like covered in vines, and snakes and it's all on FIRE.

I don't know how to review this because *waves frantically* I complained about the first being slow and kinda obvious but that's not the case here. Totally paid off.

I will be continuing the series when the next one comes out in September.