Book Review 📚
Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig - 4.5/5 ⭐

I requested to read this book based solely off the title and cover - I didn't read the blurb, but it sounded like something I would enjoy reading. That was naughty of me because I didn't know it was book 2! So, obviously, I had to go buy One Dark Window and read that first.

When I tell you this book is extraordinary, I'm not being dramatic. I devoured the first book, it had everything I love in. Gothic vibes, fantasy, and romance! Two Twisted Crowns was no different. I had my doubts thinking it would not be as good as book 1 but it was. It's not often you find a duology where both books are incredible.

Elspeth is an incredible character and I enjoyed following her through both books. She has depth and is really easy to read about continuously! The description throughout was phenomenal Gillig really uses a broad range of vocabulary to set the scene and guide you though.

I highly recommend both books and enjoy the wild and incredible ride it takes you on. Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers and of course the author for gifting me this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is the sequel to One Dark Window and is geared around Elspeth who has to face the consequences to what she has done.

Omg this book!! Could not put it down, was so excited as the first book was epic and this one was of equal proportions. Absolutely masterfully woven, full of suspense and adventure that had me on the edge of my seat and turning the pages so fast time stood still. Still managing to create beautiful depth to each of the characters whilst keeping to the plot and tying up loose ends - fantastic duology BUT I WANT MORE!

My expectations for this book were SO HIGH after book one, especially after that ending! Like where was Gillig going to take the story next after what happened in One Dark Window??

Well, my expectations were completely smashed. This book is hands down one of the best books I've read this year and this duology as a whole now has a place amongst my all time favourites.

Two Twisted Crowns picks up a bit after the first book finishes but Gillig is quick to catch you up on everything that happened. I didn't reread the first one before starting this one but I never felt out of my depth, or confused about anything. I was right there in the action, desperate to find out how our beloved characters were going to get themselves out of the trouble they found themselves in.

This book had everything I adored about One Dark Window - and then somehow made it even better? There was more Elm, more backstory, more Nightmare, more romance (!), more world building. Just everything was explained perfectly. There were no loose threads, nothing was left dangling. The ending had me in tears it was so good.

I am almost sad my journey with Elspeth and Nightmare is over but I'm comforted by the fact Gillig is working on a new novel and you can bet I'll be preordering it when I can. She's become an autobuy for me and I am so excited to see what she'll write next.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Orbit for an ARC.

When book one was amazing beyond words, I always get nervous about how book two is going to compare (particularly if it’s concluding a story) BUT THIS!

It was everything and more!
The plot twists & turns, the character development. . . It was perfect. So much history was given to us but it wasn’t overwhelming & kept pace with the story as it unfolded.

The story telling of Elspeth & Nightmare was consuming. I’ve never known a POV be able to pull you in the way this one does.
I’m sad it’s over but SO happy with the ending how it was wrapped up.

I can’t wait to read more from Rachel Gillig, she’ll be an autobuy author for me now

I definitely preferred book 1 to book 2. I felt there wasn't much going on in this one that held my interests untill the last 20% of the book. The end was a good conclusion to the story and I'm glad I read it but it wasn't my favourite.

This was incredible, an amazing sequel. I will 100% recommend this series to everyone!!! A perfect spooky read.

Utter perfection. This might just be the best sequel I've ever read - all of the might and magic of the first book is still here, this time with fresh character POVs and exciting story dynamics. I even managed to sort-of get over a character being called Ravyn, like some embarrassing rebellious and edge-lord ex-Mormon, and that was very big of me. Two Twisted Crowns just felt like a natural progression of the first book without being predictable. I loved every second of it.

9/10

The anxiety I felt in the last 20% was unmatched. Two Twisted Crowns was the perfect ending for The Shepherd King Duology and as someone who has forever loved an anti hero the Nightmare was a wonderful character. At first I felt myself waiting for every Elspeth chapter but Ione and Elm really came into their own. It would be nice to see them pop up in another book one day!

This was so good! I loved One Dark Window so my expectations were high.
It did not disappoint. The pacing was great, the world building was lush and the slight change on leading characters was immersive and exciting.
It gave strong tortured gothic vibes. There's more lore and explanation for some of the Providence cards which I really enjoyed. More back history for the Shepherd King which was excellent and extensive. The love story that develops between two characters was hot and honest and illicited all the emotions. There was a bigger feeling of urgency in this book which was relevant and engaging, I couldn't put it down. I feel the story was wrapped up brilliantly, I'll take all the spin offs in this world please!

I absolutely loved this book. Perfect for the spooky season, just like the first one, and I really enjoyed it a lot. I loved being inside the nightmare's head, delving into their past, understanding everything that led them to become who they are now. It was fascinating to see how both the protagonist and everyone around her interact with the entity possessing her body. I also loved Elm's storyline, who remains my favorite character in the whole series, even though Ravyn gained many points. The writing continues to be a strong point, and the setting is just dark enough without crossing into horror. Truly a book I would recommend, especially during this time.

Follows on days from the end of One Dark Window, Two Twisted Crowns sets a blistering pace through Blunder and into the Mists to find the Twin Alders card.

The same characters, though differing storytelling in book 2, the book is absolutely fantastic, and I found it hard to put down. The story was tense and kept me hooked. Again, the magic system was fresh and different, and I loved how it was expanded upon.

I enjoyed seeing more of Ravyn and Elm, and of course Elspeth. I loved the Nightmare so much in this one, especially as his back story began to unravel. The expansion of Ione's story was very well done and to be honest it was just a fantastic read.

A very satisfy conclusion to a hauntingly beautiful story.
I loved that we had even more characters points of view and thoroughly enjoyed the time spent on Elm and Iones relationship.

I didn’t think it would be possible but I loved this book more than one dark window, we still follow Elspeth but we are given pov’s from the other characters, although theirs are in 3rd person but I didn’t find that hard to follow as Elspeth’s are still in first, we find out so much more about the Shepard King in this book and it’s a lot darker than the first but I couldn’t put it down.
This has got to be the easies 5* I’ve given and I can’t wait to read more from Rachel Gillig. I will definitely be rereading this duet again

I loved this book ,in short it's amazing,I expected this book to follow the main 2 characters as the first one did ,even though it was they're story ,other characters were rounded out which was really nice to read.
I love the plot ,the characters are loveable, j would definitely read this series again and any other future books from this author.
If you love unique magic systems ,creepy woods ,character development and an immersive world read this book

A great conclusion to this duology. I really love the tone of these books, very dark and magical. I can’t wait to read more from this author.
Unfortunately the formatting made it very difficult for me to read.

4,5 / 5

I liked One Dark Window way more than I thought so naturally I had to keep reading and Two Twisted Crowns did not disappoint!

It was even better than book 1. I really really enjoyed the writing and the atmosphere of the book. I am a sucker for a good rhyme and both books delivered on that front paired with a very intriguing story.
Do I dare to say that the characters of book 2 were almost more interesting than from book 1 ? Maybe.

While One Dark Window was entirely from Elspeth’s perspective, Two Twisted Crowns is told from several pov’s and I am happy it is, because after the end of ODW, I was curious how the story will progress from there.

We got the full backstory on the Shepherd King’s past and how it connects with the present. Some of the things you could guess from book 1, but nothing that would ruin the story.
Did I cry at some parts ? Yes. Obviously I did.

Besides the Shepherd King, Ione and Elm (loved them together!) and even Hauth, to some degree, turned out to be very interesting characters.

I can wholeheartedly recommend this duology and I am excited for any future Rachel Gillig books.

Two Twisted Crowns, the highly anticipated sequel to One Dark Window was a satisfying conclusion to Elspeth, Ravyn and the gang’s intense journey to solving the mist and the torment the Providence cards have ensued.
After a dramatic ending to the first book, Elspeth is now imprisoned in the palace after Nightmare, or the Shepherd King took over her mind and body entirely. Ravyn is trying his best to get Elspeth back, but the only solution appears to be collecting all twelve cards, although Nightmare keeps saying she’s gone for good.
What I enjoyed the most in Two Twisted Crowns was Elm and Ione’s chapters. I was definitely more invested in what was happening with them. After Ione’s betrothed, Hauth, was critically injured at the hands of Elspeth, she is being kept on a tight leash in the palace as the King suspects she was aware of Elspeth’s infection. Elm, the other Rowan prince is on edge since the King had turned his attention to him in case Hauth doesn’t recover and Elm will be expected to be heir. Ione and Elm find friendship in each other as they hunt for Ione’s Maiden Card. It was strange seeing Ione with no emotion to anything really, but it appeared she had a tiny reaction to Elm’s charms. It was awful seeing how she was manipulated and abused at Hauth’s hands, and I really hoped she would escape that marriage.
Meanwhile, Ravyn and the Nightmare leave the palace on the hunt for the Twin Alder cards. These chapters focused on Ravyn, Nightmare, Jespyr and a few others as they followed clues to find their destination. I struggled with these chapters. Not much was happening, and I ended up skimming at points.
Elspeth did have her own P.O.V as she was in some sort of dreamscape with the Nightmare’s deceased children which was strange. Again, it was all a bit boring.
I think the penultimate moment between Ravyn and Elspeth was really dismissed and happened so quickly that I honestly don’t remember much of it.
Elm and Ione’s story was spicier and more interesting for me but overall, it was a good conclusion to this duology. I look forward to seeing Rachel Gillig’s next work.

I can’t tell you how excited I was to read the eARC Two Twisted Crowns. I absolutely devoured the first book and regretted not picking it up sooner.
This book was amazing and once again had me drawn into this magical fantasy world that the author created. The multiple POV’s were great, I especially loved the new POV that we got as I felt that it added great depth and a new perspective to the story.
The POV’s were Elspeth/Nightmare, Ravyn, & Elm. Elspeth takes more of a back seat in this book compared to book one. Elm was such a delight to read and understand. I loved that stories wove perfectly together and I felt that the romance was perfect too!

I really love the authors writing style and found it flowed so nicely throughout the book. The world building was woven perfectly with the magic system and I loved learning the history of the magic cards and the system.

The plot had a good steady pace throughout the book and I love that nothing felt rushed or unfinished to me.

This was such a beautiful duology and I can’t recommend it enough.
It was such a unique fantasy that I will definitely have to reread in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley, the Author and the Publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I AM SO SAD THIS DUOLOGY IS OVER.
Rachel Gillig has created one of the most unique magic system and world ever existed! Two Twisted Corwns is the perfect disclosure to The Shepherd King duology and it was perfectly delivering action, darkness, love and redemption.

I loved that in this second book Jespyr, Ravyn and Elspeth/The King went on the journey to find the last card from the deck and they had to face a lot of hardships, danger and riddles from the Spirit of the Woods. We were also able to follow Ione and Elm’s shenanigans in the castle and their blooming alliance.

All in all, this was fantastic, I flew through the pages and wish there would be more! OBSESSED WITH IT.

Thank you so much the publisher for this eAr!

Be wary. Be clever. Be good.

This book had me clasped by the throat from the very start and did not let go until the end. The perfect October read - lush, atmospheric, gothic, TERRIFYING.

This has everything a second book needs - the stakes were higher, the story unwinds further, and the reveals leave you reeling. We get to know certain characters so much more in this one, and it adds a great new perspective to the story. The pacing stays consistent, with equal care being given to exciting plot points and action sequences, as well as introspective character development and relationship development. Overall, I’m left completely satisfied (and also slightly broken - I was crying by the end…) with how the duology comes to a close.

My only complaint is a nitpicky one, and not enough to tarnish the 5 stars this book wholly deserves. However, I would kill for just one more chapter - paragraph, sentence, anything. I felt like the book was building and building towards a certain scene, and there was zero pay off in this regard, and I’m slightly heartbroken about it.

Thank you to Little Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC. All opinions are my own.