Monday 17 July 2023

ARC Review: Queen of Gods by Katharine & Elizabeth Corr

I was so excited for the final book in this duology, and I was so glad when I got approved to read it early on Netgalley! I have loved all of Katharine & Elizabeth Corr's books since I read The Witch's Kiss, and I'm sure I'll love them going forward too. However, I do have a weakness for Greek inspired books, which this is - throw in some Gods and Goddesses and I'm hooked!

This is the finale to a duology (you can see my review of the first book, Daughter of Darkness HERE), and wow what a finale it was! Now I just need to wait for the pretty Forbidden Plant exclusive cover to get into my hands and I'll be even happier! Here's the book:


Return to the Underworld...

Deina has finally found what matters most to her in all the world. And lost it. To save the one she loves, she's bound herself to the Underworld and an endless future of darkness.

But not even her sacrifice is enough to secure Theron or her friends' safety in the mortal realm. Aristaeus has seized power in Thebes and his tyrannical reign is a constant, looming threat to their lives.

So when Deina is offered the chance to destroy him and the gods altogether, she sets out on a new quest. But to succeed, she must turn away from everything she holds true.

In a game with the gods, the rewards are infinite... but the punishments are eternal.

Be prepared for a nail-biting race for survival in the breathtaking sequel to Daughter of Darkness.

The blurb says nail-biting, and wow was that true. I breezed through this book in less than a day and can definitely say this was a stunning conclusion to this duology! In fact, I'll go as far as to say this is one of my favourite reads of this year so far, I'll definitely be picking it up as a re-read in the future. I thought the last book was a ride, but this had so many twists that you didn't see coming and it really kept you on your toes guessing what was going to happen next.

One of the most interesting parts of this book for me was that we got to explore some more places - in the last book it mainly focused on the Underworld, but in this you also get to see the House of Zeus and the House of Poseidon as well as some other parts of the Underworld, and you also get to explore some of the other Theodesmioi houses which was interesting. I always like exploring new places in series because it really helps with the world building, and it was explored so well in this book, threaded in perfectly to the main plot line.

Characters wise, I have to say I liked seeing more of Thanatos in this book, and I will have to admit that I was routing for him throughout, but considering I love when Death is a character in books I tend to always end up routing for him despite the weirdness. Did anyone else end up loving Thanatos as a character? The triangle between Deina, Thanatos and Theron was such fun to read, and I loved the dynamic that Deina had with both of them throughout. (I know who I would have chosen if I was Deina, but unfortunately I can't transport myself to the universe, so it's up to Deina what she wants to do *sigh*)

Overall, I really think this is my favourite series from Katharine & Elizabeth Corr yet, and I really can't wait to see what they come up with next! I couldn't give this less than 5 cats, and I would give it so many more if I could.



Queen of Gods is out on the 20th July, and I highly recommend you go get your copy (especially the pretty Forbidden Planet editions with the different colours!)