I received an ARC copy from NetGalley for an honest review.
I want to start out by saying Layla is an awesome, tough female MC. I enjoyed her friendship with Marv and her soul shard Keir. I even think she had a pretty great character arc and some really sweet moments.
The romance made sense to me in some ways, then not so much in others.
“We were both vicious people, but somehow it worked.”
And I agree with this sentiment. They are vicious and Rune keeps up with her well in that way. But I feel like we’ve barely scratched the surface of them as a couple so hopefully we can dig more into that in the next book because I want to love them together.
“Yes, you’re both terrible people with too many knives. Can you both shut up already and get some rest?” My favorite quote.
Overall good book, I would definitely recommend and will be patiently waiting for the next book.

4.5/5 Stars
This book has everything I could ever ask for, a FMC who doesn’t need a man but isn’t bothered by having one around, a mysterious MMC and lots of fantasy and spice. Our main character is Layla and her people call her the blood queen, because of one incident she had. Her parents were murdered, and she hopes to eventually find the murderer. She has to marry a foreign prince since it was one of the last things her parents wanted before they died.
I loved Layla, she was a fmc that i absolutely adored, because honestly sometimes reading about a fmc who doesn’t rely on a man is refreshing especially since most fantasies it seems the fmcs do. I loved Rune too, he was super mysterious and his character especially during the spicy scenes was hot. And the spicy scenes / romance scenes we did get 5/5 stars for spice, I loved every second of it.
The world building was okay, it felt like some things I should’ve known I didn’t which was fine at times but others I was just like what? Otherwise I enjoyed how the magic worked and the concept of soul shards. ( I absolutely loved Keir! )
The ending was a cliffhanger, and I can’t wait to read the next book! Thank you to Netgalley and Victory Editing for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ //5

Blood Queen
by: Caitlin Denman

THOUGHTS:

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Do you love a book that:

-Secret Identity
-Arranged Marriage
-Touch Her And D!e
-Banter
-Bonded Spirit Animals
-Cliffhanger ;)

This will be for you and it has even more within!

When I say that I devoured this delicious book—I mean it! This book had all the good elements from spice to action and romance twisted around every single corner. This book was a fast paced book that left me with the worst hangover afterwards. I spent an entire day dedicated to reading this book and I was incredibly sad to place it down. The characters were well relatable and I loved them as well as the world building/story/plot. I loved being there for the time that I could. Prince Rune YES YES I loved him to pieces & Layla was incredible! I love to see a strong FMC in a book and she was all that and more in this book. The SPICE in this book was perfection! It wasn’t too little or too much it was juuussssst riiight! I will be patiently pacing back and forth waiting for the next book I can read by this author and that book 2 comes SO FAST!

Thank you Netgalley for the Arc.

This was, something for sure. I started by liking it and ended up forcing myself to read it. To put it plainly, it was like biting into a chocolate cupcake that was supposed to be filled with a chocolaty inside, and it was just dry.

I did not like the Female Main Character. I'm 18, okay, I'm not the most mature person on the face of the Earth but holy god damn. You're 28, not 15. The male main character was uh. I just found him very similar to other book protagonists.

The premise was interesting, don't get me wrong. But I think it could've been spectacular. The spicy scenes were something alright, and I'm speaking as someone who enjoys them. The crow however, the pet companion of the Fmc was a great addition to the story. I don't know. I like pets.

I will not completely give up on this novel tho. I might come read again.

If you're like me and you love a stabby, fiery heroine, Blood Queen is the book for you. Our feisty FMC is basically a love child of Poppy from FBAA and Rhys from ACOTAR. Driven by the need to avenge her parents, Layla is not only a queen, but an assassin. Her people have dubbed her the Blood Queen, whether she's killing people for protection of her country or not.
Our MMC, Rune, definitely gives off 'Touch her and die' vibes, and actually says so a few times. While theirs may be an arranged betrothal, the two are a well met match.
With everything that Layla thought she knew being called in to question, and new secrets coming to light, will she be able to save her kingdom and herself?

Caitlin did a fantastic job with the world building in this book. I could not put it down. I'm on the edge of my seat, unfortunately, waiting for the next book. That cliffhanger was rough, but I know the next book will be worth the wait. The characters were well developed and there were definitely a few plot twists that I didn't see coming. If you're a romantasy fan, I cannot recommend this book enough.

Oh, what to say about this book.

It started off pretty strong for me. I started liking the FMC and I immediately loved the MMC, but somewhere in the middle, it all fell apart. The 28-year old FMC acted like a 12-year old at the best of times, she's supposed to be the queen and yet it never felt like that for me personally.

Unfortunately, it all fell flat for me 70% through the book and I had to force myself to finish it. The first half of the book saved it from being a one star read for me. Plus the talking crow.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you for the opportunity to read Blood Queen.
This book will immerse you into the world of a young queen, who does know a thing about her kingdom because she would rather be out helping her people in the guise of another. She meets up with the Prince from another country and hell breaks lose!
Great read. Low Spice. 4 Stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for providing the ARC.

So I will start off by saying that I do think this book has an interesting take on some of the more popular romantasy tropes. However, I didn't quite jive with this book as much as I wanted.

What really threw me was how naive Layla seemed at times. For a character that is supposed to be a queen/assassin, there is a lot left to be desired when it comes to her ability to intuit the world around her. I personally felt like the plot 'twists' in this book were fairly obvious, so to see a character be so oblivious sometimes pushed the narrative out of alignment, so to speak.

Other than that, it can be a solid romantasy book for a lot of readers. There were parts of the book that I enjoyed - I am always a sucker for an enemies-to-lovers arranged marriage story. But I wish that there was a bit more where Layla was concerned.

*side note that I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review*
Ohhh this book! The enemies, the romance, the twists and turns-! I love love love a strong female lead, and it delivered! And the plot twist at the end had me yelling. The cliffhanger was done beautifully- and I’m not so patiently waiting for a book two!
Now the reasons it’s not a 5star- the world building could’ve been done a bit better, there were things unexplained or not built well IMO- and I lived the main character- when I forgot her age- when I reminded myself that she was supposed to be in her late 20s, it reduced enjoyment- the main character came off as late teens instead often, and it took away some enjoyment-

Review posted on Goodreads and linked below

“I wanted to murder him, rip out his heart, and feed it back to him. I wanted to take out all my aggression on him. But then why did I also want to feel his hand against my skin and feel him inside me once more?”


Thank you so much NetGalley and Caitlin Denman for an arc of Blood Queen in exchange for an honest review.


Tropes
• Arranged Marriage
• Dark Romantsy
• Touch her and 💀
• Enemies to Lovers
• Secret Identities
• Morally Grey FMC
• Cliffhanger Ending

A book that had everything I needed and it sure didn’t disappoint! I can’t wait to read book 2!

I received this ARC by Victory Editing NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

First, thank you to the author and NetGalley for giving me this arc! This was definitely a fun read. Blood Queen is a NA Fantasy that follows the main character, Layla, as she attempts to bring stability back to her kingdom after a slew of murders plague her people. Things get thrown off course for her upon the arrival of the foreign prince that she has been promised by her parents to marry.

The book was fairly quick and the world building was easy to keep up with. My only complaint is that the banter between Layla and Rune was fun, but their relationship felt too rushed and ran too hot and cold. I absolutely love an enemies to lovers, but the constant attempts to kill one another made this story feel juvenile.

With that being said, it was a fun read and after the ending, I am highly anticipating reading the sequel!


This review will be shared on Goodreads (November 13), Amazon (November 14), and my book review instagram (November 14).

This was a very predictable romance fantasy. I had the plot figured out within the first couple of chapters. However, it was a pleasant, quick read.

I did like the magic system and the soul shards. Whilst not original, it was well done.

The two protagonists are annoyingly frustrating, but I guess that is deliberate to ramp up the sexual tension between them.

It ends on a cliff hanger, so be aware of that.

Overall I really enjoyed this, the build up of tension kept me hooked. I would definitely read more by Caitlin in the future.

First of all, I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the possibility to read and review this ARC.

I found Blood Queen to be a really fast-paced and enjoyable book. It's one of those books that has kept intrigued since page one. Layla, the FMC, is more than your average queen and is willing to do whatever it takes to keep her kingdom safe. Tune, the MMC, is your typical morally grey MMC, which I don't mind at all. They had great chemistry. My objection was the depth of their relationship, somehow it feels based more on passion than deeper feelings. Still, I am waiting to see how the story progresses further.

Thank you to the author Caitlin Denman and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book so much that I finished it in 2 days! It is such a page turner with so much mystery and dark secrets unraveling throughout.

The Blood Queen - Layla is a badass, fiery FMC who also happens to be an assassin, she's been hunting for her parents killers since their mysterious deaths. I love her character because while she is obviously strong in a lot of areas she still has room to grow and learn. Especially as she finds out a lot of things have been happening in her kingdom that she didn't know about.

Then we have Rune. He is the perfect amount of morally grey and possessive, with some dark secrets up his sleeve. I loved the dynamic that Layla and Rune have together. The spice is so well done, I just loved the sexual tension bubbling between these two!

The villain in the story, while maybe a tad predictable, was just awful - they made my skin crawl.

Things really unfold at the end and we get some pretty big shocking developments and then it just... Ends! It has such a teasing cliffhanger!! I already can't wait for the next book!

this book was... not for me.

i barely made it through, skimming the last 25% or so, and the only thing keeping it above 1 star was a cute little side character. also the talking crow.

the main character really irritated me - for a 28yo the fmc had a maturity level on par with a 16yo. her default was hating everyone and running away, and while sometimes that was warranted, sometimes it was... not.

the worldbuilding was also lacking. i'm so sorry but i had no idea what was happening, out of nowhere this gang became a massive plot point having never been mentioned before, and then monsters appeared out of the blue?? and i guessed 99% of the plot twists, even while skimming - and my brain was not working its hardest. the author also had opinions on sex work that i disagreed with, and showed a fair bit of fatphobia.

basically this one was not for me. nonetheless, i thank the author, publisher and netgalley for the arc.

I freaking loved it! The feisty-ness of the FMC was awesome and I loved the occasional commentary given by the FMC re: male masculine ego. Not a fan of the cliffhanger, but that's b/c I don't like cliffhangers in general. Overall, a great book!!! I can't wait for the next installment.

*Thank you for the ARC from Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op in return for my honest review!*

I absolutely LOVED this book! I wanted to rate this a 4.5 if I could which is saying a lot because I rarely give out 5 stars! This book captured me quickly and had me gasping in surprise or amazement at certain moments. The tension between the characters, the mystery, suspense, and twists in the storyline, the moments of the main character finding her own voice and power, absolutely beautiful. Wonderful world building too! Everything flowed well. Such a memorable read! I most definitely plan to buy the physical copy once it's out and am looking forward to (at least really hoping🤞) for another book to continue this story.

I couldn't put it down!!! Murder, romance, magic, animal sidekicks, betrayal, it's all in there. If you like romance and fantasy then this book is a must have. From page one you are drawn into the world of Esfer and entangled in Layla's life. Her struggles after the loss of her parents, her trying to find her own way and be a queen that would make them proud. She learns the old saying keep yours friends close and your enemies closer isn't as cut and dry as it seems when you don't even know who your enemies are. It's a beautiful mix of spice, plot, mystery, and action that will leave you on the edge of your seat. This was my first ARC read and I want to thank Caitlin Denman for allowing me the chance to read this wonderful story.

Blood Queen - Caitlin Denman
5⭐️
Wow, you really going to leave us hanging like that? That is not fair, I need to know what happens! From the first page I was sucked into Layla and her world. The murderous Blood Queen, I feel like maybe she is a bit inspired by Elizabeth Báthory since the towns folk say she bathes in blood to look young. And her betrothed reminds me of Vlad III (vlad the impaler) since they say he put his enemies heads on spikes. What a match made in heaven;) they were either trying to kill each other or seduce the other, you never knew which one until after.
I liked the pacing of the story, it was easy to follow and kept my attention throughout. The twists came at me when I least expected it, keeping me on my toes at all times. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes
✨Arranged marriages
✨Stabby FMC
✨Anti-hero
✨He falls first
✨Touch her and die

Thank you NetGalley, Victory Editing and Caitlin for this ARC!
I am leaving this review voluntarily