I have loved the first two books in the HMRC series and was really excited for this prequel novella, but it just really wasn't for me. I think the biggest issue was the historical aspect, with it being set in the time of Henry VIII, but that's definitely on me. I think if you're a fan of historical fantasy and have enjoyed the HMRC series so far you'll really enjoy this!

Thank you to NetGalley, Juno Dawson and Harper Collins for allowing me access to this advanced readers copy of Queen B.

I am a huge fan of the HMRC series, the first book in particular is one of my favourite reads ever, so I have been very excited for the release of Queen B, which did not disappoint.

Summary

Although this is the third book of the HMRC series, Juno Dawson takes us back in time to the 1500s to witness the creation of the first ever coven.

The story features the infamous Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, but also a witch and the high priestess of her coven. After Anne's beheading, Lady Grace Fairfax is out for revenge for her lover, as she will do anything in her power to find the traitor within their coven to pay for the price of their Queen's execution.

Meanwhile Sir Thomas Cromwell leads a team of witch hunters at the order of the king (Henry VIII), at the front of those hunters is Sir Ambrose Faulke, who will also go out of his way to appease the king to rid the country of witches.

Review

If you loved Her Majesty's Royal Coven and it's sequel The Shadow Cabinet, then there is no doubt that you will enjoy reading Queen B too. It is a novella so it's a very quick read, but it also reads like a historical fiction novel in its own right. It is easy to connect to the characters and follow them on their own personal journeys as witches but also as ladies in waiting too.

Queen B features many well known topics of the Tudor timeline as well as some infamous lore. It also contains some really popular reading tropes including sapphic romance and friends to lovers.

This gripping title is a must read for those interested in witchy fiction, or even for those who just enjoy reading about the lore of witches and their covens.

Before reading, please do check the content warnings as there are some sensitive matters that are included in this book that some may find upsetting.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Queen B, as I had expected, being a fan of the series already. However HMRC does still remain as my favourite in the trilogy. Which is why I have given Queen B a 4 star rating. I feel like I really wanted to read more of this story and learn more about these characters. I will be purchasing this upon it's official release to sit beside the other two books in the series on my bookshelf and I will definitely be happy to recommend to those who love a great witchy read.

If you love HRMC you'll love this prequel with the Original Queen B! Giving us the backstory of how HMRC was formed, it's a fab story that sets us up for the modern day coven.

For a novella this really read like a whole novel - with wonderful character and plot development, that was easily as strong as the rest of the HMRC series. I adored the combination of history and fantasy, Dawson so perfectly wove in real historical figures and relationships with her own story and the witchy fun.

Queen B by Juno Dawson
Rating: 4/5

Queen B is the third instalment in Her Majesty’s Royal Coven. A quick novella, bringing us back into 1500’s with the story of Anne Boleyn and the formation of the witches coven.

This novella was fast paced and very enjoyable. I am definitely looking forward to the next instalment in the HMRC series.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, Harper Fiction/HarperVoyager Books for providing me with an ARC copy in exchange for an honest and fair review.

Just finished Queen B by Juno Dawson and I have to say, it's the perfect prequel to the Her Majesty's Royal Coven series. I was hooked from the first page and couldn't put it down. My only complaint? It left me wanting more!

I absolutely love this series. Anne bolyne is considered one of the first witches by certain groups so I was fascinated to see a new take on it.

I was not disappointed it was everything I expected and more! This book got me out of a real reading slump.

Wow. Juno Dawson never misses for me. I LOVED this book, what an amazing addition to the HMRC series. I loved the characters, even if they weren’t always making particularly great choices (something that I love in this series anyway), I loved the plot and getting to know the origins of a series that is a firm favourite. I just loved this book, the only thing I would say about this one though is that I wish it was longer. I wish we could have got more insight into the characters and their relationships, but I would always want to read more in this universe. Overall, this book did the job it was supposed to, it showed the origins of the story we have grown to love and introduced the first coven to us. I love it, I highly recommend and I cannot wait to read the final book in the trilogy when it arrives.

Queen B is such a fun little book and if you've read and enjoyed the other books in the HMRC series then I'm pretty certain that you'll enjoy this one too.
Juno Dawson takes it back to the start of HMRC with the original Royal Coven being led by Anne Boleyn. As someone who dumped off History lessons at school my knowledge of Anne Boleyn and the court of Henry VIII is best described as rubbish but I really enjoyed this retelling of it and I found that as I read it I started wanting to learn more about her. I'm trying to work out how I can get the rest of my family to visit Hampton Court.
As a prequel to Her Majesty's Royal Coven you can pretty much guess that this book will have flying around, avoiding awful men, fighting for power and just generally being great fun and it totally delivers. Short, sweet and totally enjoyable.

This was a really good novella following the origins of HMRC. I enjoyed the historical input of a well known time period and characters to introduce the foundation of this series. It was a quick and easy read that reminded me how much I enjoy Juno Dawson's writing style. I am really looking forward to the continuation of this series and hope we don't have too long to wait for the next instalment!

I have read a bunch of Anne Boleyn fantasy retellings and this was definitely one of the best. Focusing not on Anne herself but on one of her ladies in waiting Grace Fairfax, this book is less about witchcraft and more about the relationships between women finding fraternal and romantic love in a world set to control and repress them. And yeah, there's also witchcraft! Which is not only fun but also traversed by social inequality! What else could I ask for!

A prequel novella to the Her Majesty's Coven series this is an interesting take on the history of England and re-imagining of the life of Anne Boleyn and her ladies in waiting. Whilst it doesn't zip along as much as the HMRC books it provides an intriguing alt-history perspective. (Copy received from Netgalley in return for an honest review).

Oh my days, what an absolute joy of a book. I loved HMRC and didn’t think they could be bettered until I read Queen B. It was wonderful to read about the founding and exploits of the Coven in 15th Century Britain and about Grace and Anne and it sets the background brilliantly. The only negative is that I WANT MORE! We definitely need to know more about Elizabeth for starters :)
I cannot wait to read more about Coven history and highly recommend them.

This was an entertaining interlude for those of us eagerly awaiting the third book in the HMRC series. It was great to go back to the origins of the coven and I loved the Tudor setting. The relationship between Anne, Grace and Cecilia was fascinating, although I would have liked a little bit more fleshing out of Cecilia and Grace's interactions. Overall, I enjoyed my time with this one.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I read HMRC before this book, though it could be easily read as a stand alone. I think HMRC sets up the world building and understanding of the witches and their powers that does add another layer to this book though.

With both books I couldn’t stop talking about how clever they are. They take history and rewrite it but it is done flawlessly. I cannot rave enough about them and I’m so excited to finish the series.

I truly enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to anyone!

This novella is a fun prequel to the Her Majesty’s Royal Coven series by Juno Dawson, exploring “what if Anne Boleyn was a witch”. The focus is on other members of the coven before and after Anne’s death, rather than Anne herself. Great for fans of the series and historical fiction.

Great story with all the drama and rounded characters expected from Juno Dawson. Very different setting from other stories in this series but you can see the connecting thread being woven. Can't wait for the next Her Majesty's Coven

I love Juno Dawson's writing and in particular her HMRC series. It was a particular treat, whilst waiting for the next instalment to be given the origin story for the witches. Lively, compelling and fascinating. I loved the blending of the historical and fantasy genres. Smart writing that grips you and doesn't let up. My only sadness was that this was just a novella. I wanted to keep reading.

I will greedily gobble up anything and everything to do with Juno Dawson’s HMRC trilogy, so this novella was very much appreciated by me. Queen B is a prequel novella that adds to the lore of the fantastic world Dawson has crafted in the original series, and packed such a punch in less than 200 pages. Full of witches, subterfuge and sapphic pining, it has everything fans of HMRC could ever ask for, set to a Royal Tudor backdrop. With multiple references to Anne Boleyn and her coven in the OG series, I’m really glad we got to find out more and it was fascinating to see the parallels to the witches in the modern day. It has made me even more excited for Book 3.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC. All opinions are my own.

Queen B. is the prequel to Her Majesty's Royal Coven series. The story is set in the 1500s and revolves around Anne Boleyn and her coven. It was a nice addition to the HMRC series. It was too quick for me and I like to learn more about the whole witchy storyline but I enjoyed it too. I can't wait to read the next installment. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy. I'll post my review closer to the publication date.