The Queen's Assassin (Queen's Secret, #1)

by Melissa de la Cruz

[bookishzelda]

The beginning of The Queen’s Assassin reminds me a lot of Sleeping Beauty. Girl living in a cottage with her Aunts who take care of her. Her mother does something in the palace and periodically visits her. Very suspicious. So I kept thinking of her that way even though at no point does she prick her finger.

I really liked Shadow. She has her moments where she is impulsive and doesn’t listen to anyone else. She can also be stubborn and won’t admit she is wrong ...very much like my own family. She’s pretty but she’s not one of those characters where she is pretty and doesn’t know it. She knows it, she just doesn’t really care. She wants to prove her worth as a Guild member and Assasin. The impulsive problem is that she sets out to do this with no formal training and without really knowing what’s going on. She has enough skills to take care of herself, especially since she does have magic on her side but she still often gets herself in trouble.

One of those impulsive situations is Caledon Holt. He is the Queen’s Assassin, a pledge that has been carried over from his father. Caledon actually dreams of the day when he can break away from that life but in order to do so he must fulfil a promise to find Deian Scrolls. I really liked Cal because he does his job but he also can be kind. Especially when it comes to Shadow and it’s not just his feelings that develop for her. I think that he just has a great deal of empathy for the fact that she wants to prove herself.

Okay so the book is told from two different points of view and in two different styles. First person and third person. The funny thing is that I probably would not have noticed if I did not recently read another book this way and someone had mentioned in a review. It does not bother me in the least to flip back and forth like that. I can see doing that if you don’t think you could do a character justice in first person. I’m just guessing on that honestly but again the flipping does not bother me.

I liked the story. Although I think the Deian Scrolls took a back seat in this book, I’m guessing they will play a bigger role later. This is really just the initial set-up and you can see that the arc only has more to go. Shadow has to make a particular choice at the end that I was surprised by but also really curious where it’s going to take the story in the future. I liked the story, even though it’s a fantasy it had a lighter feel to it. I enjoy my dark stories but it’s nice to read something that feels fun but also intriguing.