Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas

Long May She Reign

by Rhiannon Thomas

Freya was never meant to be queen. Twenty third in line to the throne, she never dreamed of a life in the palace, and would much rather research in her laboratory than participate in the intrigues of court. However, when an extravagant banquet turns deadly, and the king and his courtiers are poisoned, Freya suddenly finds herself on the throne.

Freya may have survived the massacre, but she is far from safe. The nobles don’t respect her, her councillors want to control her, and with the mystery of who killed the king still unsolved, Freya knows that a single mistake could cost her the kingdom – and her life.

Freya is determined to survive, and that means uncovering the murderers herself. Until then, she can’t trust anyone. Not her advisors. Not the king’s dashing and enigmatic illegitimate son. Not even her own father, who always wanted the best for her, but also wanted more power for himself.

As Freya’s enemies close in and her loyalties are tested, she must decide if she is ready to rule… and, if so, how far she is willing to go to keep the crown.

Reviewed by Ashley on

4 of 5 stars

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FACTS:

- It's not really a romance. There are a few bits and pieces, but it's ultimately sooo not the focus of the story, which is kind of appropriate.

- It seemed like it would be a fantasy book, but it's not really. I mean, it is, because it's about some imaginary land/kingdom. But I guess it didn't feel like a fantasy since it's so rooted in science and there's no magic.

WHAT I LIKED:

- I really liked the overall story. This girl who never in a million years expected to be queen is suddenly queen.

- I liked the main character a lot. She was super down to earth and probably ended up being the best possible person who could become queen.

- It has a good mystery. The whole book is really a murder mystery. The MC is trying to figure out who killed everyone. I enjoyed her investigation!

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE:

- The ending felt anti-climactic to me. We went through so much to get to the end, then it just fell a bit flat. I think because the murderer ended up being a nice (but misguided) person so it was hard to really truly hate her, and the MC clearly felt the same way so she let her off easy. I think this just made the whole thing feel unsatisfying. I wanted to be able to truly hate someone and see them punished, but I didn't get that.

- The book was missing a little X factor that would have made me truly love it. It wasn't a soul shattering, all-consuming type book. More like a fun, enjoyable read that may fade from my memory pretty quickly. I enjoyed it, but I don't see it lasting with me forever, if you know what I mean.

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Reading updates

  • 4 August, 2016: Started reading
  • 5 August, 2016: Finished reading
  • 5 August, 2016: Reviewed