I will not be giving feedback on this book as I couldn’t really get into it but I think others may enjoy it.

Despite not being a massive fan of the first novel in the series, Three Dark Crowns, I went in to the sequel hoping that the second book would improve upon the issues of the first and I'd find myself enjoying it. Alas, that was not the case. While the first book has an interesting concept, and this one upped the intrigue and stakes, the writing did not improve. Each character felt indistinguishable from the last, and I found it extremely difficult to keep up with the different side plot lines, motivations, and the main plot. I'm not sure I'll be continuing on with this series, as the writing really isn't for me.

I loved loved loved this book. This series is fantastic and I highly recommend!
The world building is genius and the characterisation is amazing

Book three in the Three Dark Crowns quartet about triplet Queens raised separately with different gifts, who must fight until only one remains victorious when they come of age. There's a fantasy element to this but it's not too heavy. There's almost a Game of Thrones feeling to it.

The series was supposed to be a duology and I think it might have worked better. While this book wasn't necessarily bad, I feel if one or two plots were cut it would have worked better maybe as a trilogy. As with a lot of popular YA series that get expanded, there's a lot more filler than needed. The premise is interesting and I enjoy the 3 main queens. It kept my interest and I did want to know what happened. My rating is closer to 2.5* really but not enough for me to mark it 3*. But I might still pick up the final book to find out what happens

This is a great continuation of a brilliantly unique series. with a steady plot and great pacing, this is an easy fantasy to enjoy.
Tense and political, clever and adventurous. This is a great read for all YA fantasy lovers looking for something a little different.

Just like kendare Blake’s other books I was hooked straight away, you never know what quite to expect with twists and turns but I always know that I’m going to enjoy any of her books.

This series has been my favourite series for 2017-2018. This story follows on from the events in Three Dark Crowns and One Dark Throne. The three queens are locked in a fierce battle for the crown. This particular book follows on from a pivotal point in the series, where everything is fractured. The writing style is quite slow and it can take a while to get into from a personal point of view, but it was definitely worth it. The character development is excellent and you can find yourself not knowing which team to be on. The world is interesting and rich, with diverse settings and characters.

I have been anticipating this book for months and was so excited and grateful to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

I absolutely adore the world Kendare Blake has created. I was worried going into this that I would struggle to remember the characters and places from the previous books but as soon as I was introduced again to the characters it felt like welcoming back old friends. Seeing the relationships develop between the sisters was not what I expected but I enjoyed it regardless. I like that these books don't seem to have the "and they all lived happily ever after" vibes that you expect from princess stories. It keeps you on your toes.

Unfortunately, I do think this is my least favourite of the three. I feel like there was a lot of world building and plot building ready for the later part of the books/series. It has made me eager for the next book, that's for sure.

I really enjoyed the flashback element of this story and I love learning more about the history of Fennbirn and the royal line. It's something I wish there was even more of, honestly.

Overall I enjoyed this a lot and I'd give it a 4.5/5 Stars.

This series just took a very DARK turn and I am SO here for it. If you haven’t already read the third book in this series then what are you waiting for? If you haven’t started the series yet then words fail me…

Two Dark Reigns picks up just where One Dark Throne leaves us. The world of the Queens of Fennbirn is now very different with Katharine in power and Arsinoe and Mirabelle exile from the island. It was really interesting to see how the Arsinoe and Mirabelle coped on the mainland. Their powers are diminished and they are trying to fit into the ‘normal’ world but the island is pulling them. Back on the island, things are getting quite mysterious. The unexplained mist keeps appearing, leaving death and devastation in its wake. Jules has unexpectedly become the face of the new rebellion, taking her place as the Legion Queen. Finally, with all the Queens back on the island we see the rebellion and the royal bloodline meet with devastating consequences.

I loved this book SO much. There was so much going on in so many different ways and I loved how the main POVs all came together for THAT climax towards the end. The very last few pages of the book had my heart pounding – I really, really hope that what is hinted at isn’t about to happen!! I’ll be so disappointed in that character if it does. Getting to see different characters coming more to the front in this book was a real treat as well as getting to know more about the island and its mythology. I adore the world building.

Being back with Arsinoe, Mirabella, Katharine and especially Jules was such a highlight. I slipped right back into their worlds, their pain, their heartache, their ambition. This book definitely peeled back even more of the layers from some of our leading ladies and I can’t wait to see what will possibly be revealed in the final book. Whilst writing this I’ve just remembered something SO sad that happens in this book and I won’t be forgiving Kendare Blake for that any time soon. If you’ve read the book you’ll know what bit I’m on about.

Two Dark Reigns was the perfect third book in this quartet. It packed a punch with all the action and plot, the characters continue to capture my heart and a part of me even wishes to visit the island for myself. I’ll be so sad when this series ends, I have unexpectedly become totally obsessed with these Queens, their courts, their powers and their world.

To be honest, I’m not really sure why I requested this book from Netgalley. Following the release of One Dark Throne, I was ready to give up on the series, since I found myself struggling so hard to get into it. I wasn’t particularly fond of the characters, and while the premise was interesting, I didn’t think there was enough meat to the plot to satiate me.

But then I found myself with a review copy, and I figured that I should at least give it a go. And I am very glad that I gave this series a third chance.

There seems to be a lot more depth to the story this time round, with so much going on with every Queen. There’s a glorious sense of danger creeping into the narrative now, more so than when the Queens were told to kill each other. I think part of my struggle with the series up until now was that there was no real sense of threat. As much as the Queens talked and plotted to kill each other, there was never really any doubt in my mind that they wouldn’t follow through with it. And funnily enough, they didn’t. The inclusion of the mysterious Blue Queen definitely changes this up, and for the better. I liked trying to piece together her story, bit by bit, and I liked trying to guess where the narrative might take us next. I can’t help but feel like the series is a little like a child riding a bike with stabilisers. There was always potential there, but it never really deviated off the track. With Two Dark Reigns though, the tension is amped up, and for the first time I feel like Blake has let her story truly take off.

Character-wise, there’s nothing too much more to add to what’s already happened in the rest of the series. There’s something a little lacking in the story here, but at least for the first time, it seems to me that there’s actual characters to cheer for. Arisnoe shows her tenacity and her fierce bravery, and it made me like her a lot more than I have previously. Mirabella also showed some more of her soft side. Katherine, as vicious as she can be, goes through a whole lot of spoilery stuff in Two Dark Reigns that makes her one to watch in future books in the series. I still feel like we get much more of a sense of her advisors than we do of Katherine herself, but I think maybe this is just me being a little nit-picky at this point. Jules, more than anyone, gets a lot of character-development in this book, and I am again quite interested to see where the story might head next, especially for her.

Overall, I’m giving Two Dark Thrones 7/10 stars. It was definitely an improvement on the first two books in the series, and I feel like the author and her writing have grown as the plot progresses. I’m interested to see where the story takes us next, but I still wish there was a bit more character development to sink my teeth into.

I have been itching to get my hands on this book since I started reading the series, and I have read all of the current books in quick succession. I loved the way this book went, it has twists I wasn't expecting, and at points it had me guessing what could happen which is the best way for a book to be.
I really can't guess where the next book could take us - and I really can't wait to see just what the author comes up with. A beautiful series.

IN SUMMARY: TWO DARK REIGNS further expands the history of Fennbirn and beyond and stretches the dynamics between characters until breaking point, with a touch of magic and a touch of horror to add to the dark atmosphere.

MY THOUGHTS:

Reading this with ONE DARK THRONE, it’s difficult to separate the two, but as I did with its predecessors, I absolutely devoured TWO DARK REIGNS. It’s addictive, it’s grim, it’s even a little gruesome at times, but TWO DARK REIGNS offers this whilst giving its characters room to believe, hope and love.

What I find most interesting is the elevation of side character Jules, who was once just the queen’s sidekick and is now a ‘queen’ in her own right, turning her curse into a blessing. Particularly seeing more of the warriors and oracles, who have been lacking in the previous books, and their tactical manoeuvres to rebuke the very nature of their island and plant Jules on the throne.

I’m disappointed there wasn’t a deeper look into the mainland. Though the book provides a map of the nations beyond Fennbirn, we don’t see further than the unnamed coastal area in which Billy’s family resides, but it was interesting to see how their traditions and culture differ from that of the island, even at a foundation level of matriarchy vs. patriarchy. Arsinoe’s particular refusal to adjust made me appreciate her character more.

As usual, I also loved Mirabella, Arsinoe and Katharine, and how they acted as foils to one another. Katharine I’m most excited to see in the next instalment, as that cliffhanger ending… oh my. I’m so sad I have to wait another year for #4!

WILL I READ ON? You bet I will! Calling it now: #4 is FOUR DARK QUEENS.

I do think this book suffered by being the third book in a four-part series. It had the problem that some sequels do, where it has to move the plot along but it can’t really resolve any plot so you’re just left feeling a little confused and somewhat unsatisfied. I think this book just lacks a lot of the conflict, the scheming and the plotting that the first two books had. The three queens working against one another or people around them doing so was far more exciting than the weird conflicts that popped up in this book.

There are some interesting elements to this story. I think this is probably the darkest book in the series so far, which some readers may enjoy. It also has some of the heaviest ‘fantastical’ elements to it, though the entire series is fantasy from the start. The worldbuilding and the history and mythology of the world are also stretched in a way that it hasn’t been in the previous two books.

All this should perhaps have made this a more exciting book in the series for me, I quite enjoy somewhat darker fantasy books, I like worldbuilding and history and mythology. So why didn’t this book hit the mark for me?

I think it comes down to the characters. I think, over the course of the three books, I’ve come to not like the characters as much as I did in book one. Things that could have been excused as immaturity, or traits to grow out of in book one, are now just a bit painful to read. This is entirely personal preference, but I like to see characters grow and develop through a series (a great example of this is Kellen in Spellslinger) but I don’t feel like these characters have gone very far across three books. I actually care far more about the minor side characters such as Elizabeth and Bree than I do Jules, Arsinoe, Mirabella, or Katherine (who used to be a favourite so that’s sad).

I do think that the conclusion to this series is going to be great, and I do fully intend to read it. I just feel like this was a book that was necessary to move the plot along and didn’t do much else? It felt like moving the pieces into the right places for the epic finale, and I don’t need a whole book for that.

This is still a good series, it has some lovely moments and the core concepts are still ones that interest me, I’m just not that excited about the storyline or the characters in this particular ‘episode’ if you will. I’ll be very interested to hear what everyone else thinks of it, and how the series concludes – though I’ll be waiting until 2019 to find that out!

My rating: 3/5 stars

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley, Kendare Blake and Pan MacMillan for my ARC of Two Dark Reigns.
Well, Kendare Blake sure brought the fire with this one. Oh. My. Goodness. I thoroughly enjoyed the first two books in this series but this one just blew them both out of the water, I don't think I could possibly wait until 2019 to return to Fennbirn. Luckily, Kendare has brought our 2 short stories which are now happily on their way to my house.

So, as always with a sequel here is my warning. There will be no spoilers for this book but there may be spoilers for the first two books where necessary to the story.

Arsinoe and Mirabella are trying their best at life as exiled queens on the mainland. But although Billy is making them as comfortable as he can, his mother and sister are less accepting. Not to mention that Arsinoe in particular feels she will never fit in outside of the island. Meanwhile Katherine is struggling on the throne when her people still see her as an 'undead' queen and nobody other than her loving Pietyr seem to want anything to do with her.

This book was far more intricate than the previous two. While the first two were fantastic books in their own right, the world building went so much further in Two Dark Reigns and the reader gets to know a lot more about the island's past and how it has come to affect the future. It's also tons more creepy and sinister than the first two and I was holding my breathe at points, unsure what was going to happen next.

This series has been completely absorbing to me but even more so now. I'm absolutely desperate to see where this story is going to go and what will happen next. I genuinely feel that just like allegiances change in the books, my allegiances change too. I can literally close one book certain on which characters I love and hate, pick up the next one and have it all turned on it's head. It's delicious. On that note I also feel like there's a level of anticipation on where allegiance's lie in the story too. From three sisters who love one another, to two who align but hate the other, to all that being flipped over and changed again now. I need the next book already!!!

Kendare Blake is an author I have been meaning to explore for quite a while, and recently I had totally devoured both 'Three Dark Crowns' and 'One Dark Throne'within a matter of days. This was a thoroughly enjoyable addition to the thrilling series. I am really impressed by how exciting, interesting and heart-poundingly good this was, and although I wasn't such a fan of the second book, I feel that Blake upped her game once again for this novel. You won't find a more riveting fantasy no matter who you look to in order to provide it!

The history and background of the island had me really intrigued, and I found myself wishing there was more of that sort of information given to the reader. Each character is so beautifully painted and vivid. I found them believable and could relate to them and their struggles throughout the story. I love how they've evolved and developed as the series has gone on. I did feel as though the pace dipped in the middle section of the book, but it soon picked back up again and resumed at a normal speed. This is a fantastic fantasy with incredible worldbuilding and a plot that fizzles with kinetic energy. Blake ratchets up the tension like a master right up until the explosive conclusion that lays the foundations for what the final book has in store.

I look forward to the following book and wonder exactly how it will all end. Highly recommended to fantasy fans. As this simply does not work as a standalone, I recommend you read the two previous books before diving into this as it will leave you very perplexed otherwise. Events in the previous two have a massive impact on the happenings here. Brutal, bloody and very, very entertaining - what's not to like?!

Many thanks to Macmillan Children's Books for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

A lot of people have said this is their favourite of the series and I can see why. Blake has really stepped it up a notch. A lot of annoying tells are gone now and the characters have come so far. I was dubious about the duology becoming a quartet but I honestly think it has worked here – the world has become huge and it has enough story to warrant the extra space. Everything is up for grabs and while I have theories, it honestly could be anyone on the throne at the end of the series. Enjoyable fantasy with a dark bent.

Two Dark Reigns is a fantastic addition to the Three Dark Crowns series. There is plenty to offer here in terms of history and back-story, which really adds to the world-building for the overall series. The story is still very fast-paced with all the complex characters we have grown to love. You'll once again find yourself switching who your favourite sister is. The plot is so great. Really looking forward to the fourth book in the series! If you haven't yet started this series, be sure to check out the first two asap! And if you've been awaiting this next installment, you'll be over the moon because it is even better than the last two!

The latest installment in this epic series does not fail to live up to the drama and excitement of the previous books, Three Dark Crowns and One Dark Throne. ( A word of advice, this book does not work as a stand alone, it is important to read the earlier books in order to understand what is happening in this one.)
While we still follow the adventures of Mira, Arsinoe and Katharine, the three dark Queens , we also spend more time learning about Jules, and how her unique combination of powers may make her an entirely new kind of Queen. It is impossible to reveal any more of the plot without spoiling not just this book, but also the rest of the series but suffice it to say that there is plenty of plotting and scheming to keep the reader's attention.
A little slower paced than the previous books, but with more to offer about the history of the mysterious island of Fennbirn , and an even darker tone , this is a book that allows the tension to build gradually before an explosive conclusion that paves the way for what promises to be an epic finale.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher,all opinions are my own.

This is the third book in the Three dark crowns series and i must say i was quite impressed. I was a huge fan of the first book but i wasn't totally bowled over by the second. This book however reignited my interest in this series and left me wanting more.
I really loved the flashbacks and the history that was featured in the book and found myself wishing for more of the history of the island.
Two Dark Reigns also succeeded in completely redeeming one of my least favourite characters in the series (Katherine). By the end of the book I found myself really rooting for her and empathising with her struggle.
All of the characters in this story are dynamic and incredibly likeable leaving me with conflicting thoughts on who i want on the throne!
It did did take a few chapters for me to really get into the book and the pacing felt quite slow in the middle but once past that it was gripping and i was excited to see how everything panned out.

Props to the author as i'm three books into it now and i still have no idea how this series is going to end!