A really fun read with plenty of excitement and tension throughout! Solid concept executed well and I really enjoyed it.

This is one of the best books/series that I’ve read this year.
The suspense and the trials are top tier and had me itching for more!!
Highly highly recommend!
🫶🏻
Also Nadir. Just him. That’s it.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
🌶

More of a 4,5 stars! ✨

If you open the review pages on Goodreads of this book, you’ll find a lot of bad reviews.
“It’s a bad SJM knockoff” or “Storyline/world building was bland” or “there’s no real romance in this”
I fully disagree!

I loved reading this book. It’s my first book written by Nisha and it definitely won’t be the last.
Immediately I was gripped into the story because of the MC. She felt different compared to all the other books I’ve read. She’s flawed and feisty and I loved it!

I loved the Fae aspects, the wold building, the many secrets, the action of the trials, the banter, the spicy moments….
Yes, it has some hints of The Selection and The Hunger Games, but I didn’t mind at all and I didn’t see it as a bad thing like many other readers.

I also really enjoyed the POV of Nadir. His chapters are a promise of more in the future. I’m dying to read the sequel now!

We follow Lor as she goes from being a prisoner to competing in the Sun Queen Trials with the ultimate goal of becoming the Sun Queen. This is, of course, the top layer of this story as Tuli weaves a mysterious second story under the surface that leaves us wondering, just who is Lor?

The story itself is a fascinating mix of fantasy, mystery, and romance with a swirl of spice mixed in there.

Lor has limited knowledge of her life before being put in prison as a child, and we see hints and teases that Lor really isn't what she appears to be on the outside. That aside, Lor is one sassy and determined individual!

Lor has to use all her cunning and intelligence to get through the Trials with a dash of help as well!

And the ending...? Just wow, I didn't see that coming.

The book also left me with my own theories on who Lor actually is and what happened to her in her childhood.

This book version is set to be published 19th October 2023 and I, for one, have already placed my pre-order as the  book also comes with exclusive character artwork.

My only sadness is that this novel is only available in paperback and for a book as gorgeous as this, a hardback would have been amazing! Here's hoping a hardback is released, too!

Highly, highly recommend this book.

I liked this book. It was fast pace and great to read. The world building was easy to get your head around.

The story centres around a deadly competition to become the sun queen hence the title and during this they competitors get one on one time with the sun king. I like the way these meetings between Lor (MC) and the king made it seem like a budding romance while showing the MCs clear instinct that something was wrong. Eventhough it was never directly said and he never didnt anything obviously bad, I as a reader could feel that something was off despite the fact someone else was being protrayed as a villian.

Their is POV chapter from the Villians (the aurora king) son in the book. It seems as though all of his chapters were a building up to the second book which I havent read yet. One of my only issues with the book was that it felt like it ended quite abruptly. I know that this was designed as a cliff hanger for the sequel book but with how fast paced the book was it made it feel half done. Im not sure if I could have read both books in one without reading the Rise of the Aurora King but I would have preferred a more rounded end.

And also the surprise information that we learn about Lor in the last chapter was too subtle a revelation in my opinion. I wish it had been a little more dramatic. I had to reread to see if I'd missed something.

Overall, great fantasy book. I really enjoyed it. Highly recommend.

(Review will be posted on instagram on the day of paperback release)

🌞Trial of the Sun Queen - Nisha J Tuli🌞

Lor has spent the last 12 years in a notorious prison under the control of the Aurora King. Whilst in isolation for fighting Lor is broken out of prison and wakes to find herself in the elegant, luxurious palace of the Sun King. Lor has been selected as the mortal contestant in the competitive trials to become the Sun Queen. The trials are challenging and deadly for the 12 contestants and nobody expects anything much of Lor despite her having the most to prove.

Tuli’s writing was completely enthralling and transporting with chapters of a perfect length. There is some dual POV although it doesn’t feature heavily and is primarily setting up for book 2. I was completely hooked and absolutely stormed through 400 pages, reading it in every spare moment that I had, which is testament to how much I really loved this book.

Trial of the Sun Queen would be the perfect read for fans of The Hunger Games and ACOTAR. It is currently available on Kindle Unlimited for the ebook lovers but is also released in paperback today! A huge thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for gifting me an e-ARC for my opinions and best believe I am diving into the second one right away!!

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

I DEVOURED this book. I got totally invested from the first chapter, which I've really missed in my reading lately. I also couldn't put the book down, so much so I literally finished it in one evening.

The characters in this book were really well done, the worldbuilding was a tiny bit underdeveloped for me (but I have been reading a ton of HIGH fantasy so this wasn't a huge issue as so much was going on). I loved the trials, the deception, the friendship, the intrigue, the antagonistic fae males... I just loved it.

I'm itching to read book 2 and already book 3 when it's not even out yet ha! I'm really intrigued to see where the rest of the story flows. I had serious 'The Prision Healer' Vibes from this book (which I also loved). I can't wait to continue with the series, thank you Netgalley for an eARC!

Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for this eCopy to review

I loved Trail of the Sun Queen, it has great characters, a great plot, and a steamy romance

It was great seeing Lor grow after being freed from the Auroa King by the Sun King to take part in his Sun Queen trials. Why is he so sure she'll win? Why does he want her to win (Lor is the the last tribune a human - none of who have ever won the trials or even made it out alive) instead of one of the elven princesses? Despites the odds being stacked against her Lor is surviving the trials and even even helping the other contestants in a desperate bid to keep her freedom and earn that of her brother and sister who are still prisoners of the Auroa King.

A great escapist read

I Really Enjoyed This Book.👩👊🧜‍♀️🧝‍♂️🪽💥
A 4.25 Star Read.⭐️
Trial of the Sun Queen:

Lor, and her older sister Willow and their big brother Tristan, have all been imprisoned by the Aurora King for the past 12 years. Lor was only 12 yrs old when she was given a life sentence without a charge or trial.🥺

After being put on punishment for fighting, Lor, near de@th, is secreted away to a completely different kingdom. She is to compete to become the Sun Queen in the Aphelion Court Trials. She has no clue why the Aurora King suddenly allowed her to go free. The trials are deadly and they're heavily stacked against her, but she needs to win to save her siblings!🙏🏼

I was gripped throughout this book. I found it so engrossing. It isn't full of snobby, overly extensive world building (like acotar, for instance). It was pure entertainment and escapism, which was exactly what I wanted.😍⭐️

(Thank you to both Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me with a free ebook copy of this title, without obligation.)

Debbie, 1970, UK

First of all thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lor has spent 12 years of her life imprisoned by the Aurora Queen and has a desire to escape and get revenge. When she is whisked away to take part in a competition to become Sun Queen, she sees it as a way to get all she has ever wanted. However, she is competing against 11 women who have been preparing for this for longer, they aren't not happy she is there and the trials can be deadly. But why has she been chosen when she isn't a citizen of the Sun Kingdom? What does the Sun King want with her?

Now, from the description of this book, I wasn't aware that this would be dual-POV. This book has chapters in the perspective of Nadir, the Prince of the Aurora Kingdom, who has been tasked with finding Lor. Not that he knows that that is who he was looking for. I'm looking forward to reading more about him in the second book.

I'm excited to read more about the world, having only got a glimpse of the Aurora Kingdom, I am excited to read a bit more on it in the next one.

This book did well in setting up the reveal, which I had managed to guess, but I won't spoil it. The trials were interesting, and each trial was different from the last. Seemed similar to the Throne of Glass King's champion competition as well as the trials at the end of ACOTAR.

The characters in this book lacked a little something. Gabriel was a personal favourite, but he seemed to have clearer intentions and motivations than others. Lor wasn't as strong a character as you might want. For someone who is supposed to be mistrusting, she seemed to trust Atlas (the Sun King) far too quickly, and for what seemed like not much more of a reason than to further the romance. Atlas as a love interest seemed a little flat? Like, he looks good and is a little nice to the MC, but what more did he have?

Despite some of the inconsistencies in characterisation, I did really enjoy reading this book and I am looking forward to reading the next in the series. Would recommend to those who enjoyed Throne of Glass and ACOTAR. I realise those are both by SJM, but they are what I have read that's had a similar vibe.

Yes. I loved this book so much! This has everything I love...dark fae, mystery, challenges and deceit. The first book in a new NA series. Lor has been kept in the fierce and dangerous prison of Nostraza, where she's learnt to fight and fight hard in order to survive.

Lor suddenly finds herself in the Sun Queen trials, alongside the strongest, most beautiful fae in the Sun Kingdom who have trained for this moment their whole lives. Lor doesn't expect to survive but then she catches the eye of the Sun King and finds something worth fighting for.

I've seen this series likened to ACOTAR and although I can see a bare similarity I don't think it's overly fair as this a great and unique series in it's own right. If like me, you're a sucker for a morally grey fae enemies to lovers, slow burn with a kind yet strong MC you'll really enjoy this book.

I'm fast becoming a huge fan of Nisha's writing and I'm diving straight into the next book to find out what happens.

Thank you so much to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in return for an honest review.

[ARC provided by NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group UK, Orbit. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Trial of the Sun Queen.]

Rating: 3/5

Trial of the Sun Queen is the type of book that can easily be binged in a couple of days but doesn’t leave much of an impression. The plot was fairly entertaining and I was keen to find out how the story would develop but ultimately there was nothing that really hooked me. The worldbuilding was weak and the characters were quite frustrating at times. I also didn’t love how new information was revealed to us and felt that some of the plot twists weren’t impactful. However, although I didn’t love this book, I definitely think there’s a lot of people that will.

The story follows Lor who has suffered for twelve years under the Aurora King’s rule in a brutal prison setting. One day when she is put away from the other prisoners she is taken by a mystery rescuer and thrust into the Sun King’s court, and also into the Sun Queen Trials where she must compete against other tributes to take the throne. If she doesn’t win she could die, or worse, be sent back to the Aurora King.

It's a fun premise and admittedly I stormed through this as it was a fairly easy read, but I think it was such an easy read because there just wasn’t much substance to it. I got no sense of the worldbuilding and the snippets we do get felt vague and not fleshed out enough. The characters also felt quite two dimensional and I never got a good sense of who they were. Lor was especially frustrating because for so long she acts like she doesn’t know why she is a focus of attention but near the end we learn that she’s known all along! I don’t think information regarding her backstory was revealed in a way that works and there were a lot of elements in this area that just didn’t make sense for me.

And then there’s the trials that made even less sense to me. Tributes are subjected to various life or death situations and at the end are put before a mirror that will ultimately decide who the Sun Queen will be, so why didn’t they just do that at the beginning with all of the tributes? Perhaps I missed something here and I suppose this could be attributed to standard fae cruelty but this didn’t work for me.

I’m also not going to spend much time speaking about the love interest in this story because there really isn’t much to comment on.

I’d still recommend this to anyone looking for a quick and easy fantasy read and I think that if you enjoyed ACOTAR then you might like this one too.

This was good, immediately better than my last read that I DNFd. I could tell straight away. It actually had a similar plot to my last 5 star read, but this was a tad more predictable.

I did expect the twists, but that didn’t stop me enjoying the read. The chapter sizes were good, the descriptions weren’t too detailed (which I hate), I’m looking forward to going straight into the next book!

Conceptually, this is my shit. Girl against the world? Cruel Fae? OTT obstacle courses? Sign me up.

Unfortunately, the book didn't deliver.

Firstly, no one has mentioned that the two POVs CHANGE TENSES. Are you kidding me? Lor is in present tense and Nidir is in past tense but they're on the same timeline, what kind of shoddy writing craft is this?? I had hope initially that it was some clever time manipulation of the audience, but... nope.

Secondly, Lor's pick me vibes are off the charts. She doesn't want to get in trouble but then just keeps literally starting fistfights. She's deadly afraid of being put in the Hollow but attracts the prison warden's attention. Wtf? Girl if you're so desperate to stop making trouble, then just stawp. No one's making you!!

She also keeps knowing things she's not supposed to know, which kept taking me out of the story. She kept having moments where she was like The harp music was beautiful, I don't know what a harp is because I grew up in a prison. If you don't know what a harp is why do you know it's harp music!!!!!!! Happened at least ten times and then I stopped keeping count.

Nadir's POV is almost entirely redundant. He's the secondary point of view and yet the summation of his part in the book is: he doesn't know who this girl is, his father is keeping secrets, aaaaand... he really doesn't know who this girl is.

The Fae in this story were somehow cruel but also too bland. Atlas is a knob, saying things like Of course the Fae sleep with multiple people, can't expect them to be like humans, etc etc. Gabriel's main crime seems to be that he doesn't like her, he is late to things and that he has a lot of sex. ...Okay?? (Incidentally, a fluffy white-winged Fae called Gabriel is a bit on the nose, no?) The main rival in the trials just does petty mean girl name calling. Like, yeah. She's rude. But I wanted them to be balls to the wall crazy nonhumans. Put some knives in her bed or conjure snow in her room or do some Fae magic and make her believe she's being chased by dogs only she can see, I dunno.

The trials don't make sense. I mean let's start with the disparity between asking contenders What is the name of queen so-and-so's two sons? And What is the King's favourite colour. Nadir makes a point to tell us that the Hollow is a dangerous pit for a human but an easy jump out for a Fae and then we immediately forget this difference in physical ability when we're doing an obstacle course. And of course the big one - the winner of the trials doesn't matter because in the end the Mirror chooses the Sun Queen. Mate!!!!! Just stick them all into the Mirror and see who it spits out???!?!!

And lastly, the big twist. Lor is the heir to the Heart Queen's throne, of course. But she knew it all along?? She spends the whole book telling the reader that she doesn't know what's going on, she doesn't know why she was imprisoned as a child, etc etc. BITCH SHE FUCKING KNOWS!!!!!!! Also she can't be the heir to the Heart Throne because she has TWO OLDER SIBLINGS. THATS NOT HOW HEREDITARY MONARCHY WORKS.

Things I wanted (but am not gonna get):

- an Atlas and Gabriel history of hate fucking. This is the main ship I got out of this book, I just want them to have an absolutely awful toxic push pull Master Pet obsession thing that's been going on that everyone has been politely ignoring for two hundred years

- that's it, I don't care about any of the rest of the actual plot

I received a free arc in exchange from a review from netgalley.
I loved this book - the pace was great and i really loved the character progression! I literally could not put it down. I cant wait to read the next book as this one ended on a cliff hanger!
I recommend this book to anyone who reads fantasy/romance.
If you like eg. lightlark you will like this one - while lightlark may not have good reviews, this book is honest as to what it is and the description really does match the content.

Highly reccomended.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 stars rounded to 5

I absolutely LOVED this book! It was such an easy and entertaining read, with a fun and relatable FMC in Lor and plenty of mysterious court intrigue. I hate when books promise some kind of trial or competition and then that barely takes up any room in the book - Trial of the Sun Queen actually takes you through each trial as they happen, showing how hard Lor has to work to pass them with no formal training like her competitors.

There's a little sprinkling of steam in this book, but the romance subplot doesn't detract from the fact this is a very well thought out and developed fantasy world, with Fae courts and deadly creatures and political scheming. I'm now kicking myself that I didn't apply for the sequel too and I'll have to wait for it to come out! This is a series I'll for sure be continuing and recommending to my friends.

2.5/5 Stars, rounded down

I want to thank Little Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this copy in exchange for an honest review.

I get why people like this book. It is indeed a little bit of Selection mixed with Hunger Games mixed with Faerie courts. There is an intense romance, rivalry and friendship, and a lot of trials the protagonist has to make it through to win.

My issues with this book (and the reason why I won't continue) are these:
- It is advertised as an Adult Fantasy Romance, but it is written in a style that is heavily YA, but with sexual activities. The topics and themes don't feel very Adult to me, so I would rather classify it as New Adult.
- The first chapter was 100% tropes and 0% character. That threw me off so much.
- The plot twists are very predictable. I prefer reading a book that is capable of surprising me.
- The author refers to Fae in this book as "males" and "females" and honestly this bugged me SO MUCH, like?? we are not talking about animals? Generally there was a bit of terminology sprinkled throughout the book that simply didn't sit right with me.

Do I recommend this book? Ish. I personally am not a fan of the typical YA writing style, but I do see how this might appeal to some older YA or NA readers. In case of uncertainty, read the first chapter and you'll know immediately if this is something that will click with you.

Are you a lover of ACOTAR? Have you missed Prythian? Do you need an enemies to lovers, smoking hot, fantasy led by a seriously kick-ass sting female and loads of hot fae? If you answered yes to any or all of these, then you need Trial of the Sun Queen by Nisha J Tuli! I devoured this book in hours and I defy you not to!

Central to the story is Lor, a prisoner of the Aurora King whose life is so downtrodden and desperate, she’d risk being thrown into isolation of the deadliest sort for a scrap of perfumed soap! Along with her brother and sister, she has been imprisoned since childhood and sees no future outside until suddenly she’s abducted from prison and thrown into the centre of the Sun King’s ‘Sun Queen Trials,’ in the kingdom of Aphelion. Lot has no choice but, to battle her competitors to win and become bonded with the Sun King as his queen or return to prison.

Tuli delivers a kick ass fantasy that brings magic, trials, serious spice and of course a whole fantasy adventure that will transport you. Plus, great world building, strong characters, some serious steam and did I mention Fae!

Just be aware, there’s nothing new or unique about this story but, there’s no denying that once picked up, you won’t want to put this book down! I didn’t! This book takes rollercoaster to the next level and I absolutely loved the whole adrenaline filled ride!

Thank you so much Little, Brown Book Group UK and Netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

This book REALLY took me by surprise!! I’m not a huge fantasy reader (but definitely still like to give it a go every now and then) and after having a little bit of a break from the genre I decided to give Trial of the Sun Queen a try because the description gave me major SJM vibes. And LET ME TELL YOU I was not disappointed. I ate this up.

Lor is a prisoner in the Aurora realm. One day after causing a bit of a stir, she’s thrown into the Hollow as punishment. However, what she doesn’t expect is to be whisked away to Aphelion to partake in the Sun King’s ‘Sun Queen Trials,’ where she is forced to compete against nine other tributes in the hope to become bonded to the Sun King himself, a dazzling Fae who seems to take a particularly special interest in Lor as she begins to fight for her survival.

This is in no way a completely unique story, nor the most well-written fantasy you will ever read. But honestly this had no impact on my reading journey- I loved basically everything about this book. The strong FMC, the world, the Trials themselves, EVERYTHING. I was hooked from the begin, from the very first “that bitch took my soap” haha!

If you don’t like heavy fantasy, or don’t want to jump headfirst into ACOTAR or something crazy, then I definitely recommend giving Trial of the Sun Queen a try. It is such an easy and fast-paced read, with an accessible world that never leaves you dumbfounded (like I usually am when reading a fantasy lol).

I would only give tinyyyy criticisms about this book:
1. Sometimes I found some chapters a bit rushed, like we’d just jumped from one thing to the next without much detail in-between.
2. The ending wasn’t my fave- again, maybe not built up as much as I would have liked :(
3. The ‘spicy’ bits didn’t really feel like they fit with rest of the book?? I don’t know, might just be a preference thing!

Again though, these didn’t spoil the actual reading experience for me at all- I kind of just accepted them and carried on because I loved Lor and wanted to know what was going to happen to her! A wild, wild ride, and I’m so happy I picked this up!

Thank you NetGalley for this gem of a book <3 CAN’T WAIT FOR BOOK 2!

I want it all. I want love and passion. I want my revenge. I want the magic and power I was denied.

I think Nisha Tuli's really great strength as a writer is her opening chapters. This is the second of her novels that I have read recently, and I am sincerely grateful to her and to Netgalley for sending me copies in exchange for my unbiased review.
The opening chapters are intense introductions to characters, plot, setting- I was fully immersed and really excited to keep going.
Unfortunately, from about a quarter of the way in, it just kind started to slip. The characters became more juvenile and a lot of the dialogue became quite repetitive. Once the plot started to really take shape it became almost painfully predictable.
That's not to say I didn't enjoy it. I'm always a sucker for the competition-rivalries secret identities plot, but it just wasn't executed well here. It's definitely setting up for a series, but even the sudden twist at the end wasn't enough to get me invested in reading any further.