The Girl King by Mimi Yu

The Girl King (The Girl King, #1)

by Mimi Yu

Two sisters become unwitting rivals in a war to claim the title of Emperor in this sweeping tale of ambition, sacrifice and betrayal for readers of Tomi Adeyemi, Kendare Blake and Samantha Shannon.

All hail the Girl King

Sisters Lu and Min have always known their places as princesses of the empire. Lu is destined to become the first female emperor, while Min is resigned to a life in her shadow. When their father declares their male cousin heir instead, his betrayal throws both their lives into chaos.

Determined to reclaim her birthright, Lu must flee the court in search of an ally. Her quest leads her to Nokhai, the last surviving wolf shapeshifter. After years in hiding, Nok is forced into an uneasy alliance with the girl whose family killed everyone he ever loved. Now they need an army to take back the throne.

Left alone in the volatile court, Min's hidden power awakens. It's a forbidden, deadly magic that could secure Set's reign . . . or allow Min to claim the throne herself.

But there can only be one emperor, and the sisters' greatest enemy could turn out to be each other . . .

Reviewed by Ashley on

3 of 5 stars

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I'm sad to say this book fizzled for me. I was quite interested at first, but then my interest just dwindled the more I read.

- I didn't like Min's character/chapters at all. I think she was just too young for my taste.
- I didn't like Set's character. Maybe because he felt too childish that I almost didn't take him seriously? It's like I couldn't even really hate him because he just seemed like a silly, cranky, spoiled boy.
- I didn't really get invested and lost interest in the plot as it went on.
- I'm not sure I ever fully understood or clicked with the magic system. I kind of got it, but I feel like it was only vaguely explained so it was hard to really get immersed.

It sucks because as I read the first couple chapters I was quite interested and thought I'd really like the book. But then it went downhill and by the last 15% I was skimming and just trying to get it over with. It wasn't a terrible book, it just wasn't really for me.

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Reading updates

  • 5 October, 2018: Started reading
  • 10 October, 2018: Finished reading
  • 11 October, 2018: Reviewed