3.75

Amazing storytelling, writing and characterisation but unfortunately for me, the plot drags on a little too long and the last quarter of the book was a little disappointing. I think it would've been better if the last quarter was longer OR the first half was shorter.

Queen of None- Queens of Fate Book 1 of 3

By Natania Barron-new to me author

Publication 5/21/24, Read 5/22/24

Format: e-book 352 pgs.

Source: Thanks to NetGalley and Solaris for this ARC 💙! I voluntarily give my honest review and all opinions expressed are mine alone.

Genre: Historical Fic, Romance, Sci Fi, Fantasy

Tropes: fairytale retelling-Arthurian legend, royal romance, court politics, religion, misogyny, magic, revenge

🎭Characters:

Anna Pendragon (32)-Arthur's sister. Marries King Orkney to unite kingdoms. She has a loveless 20 year marriage. Anna has 3 famous sons-Gawain, Gaheris, and Gareth. Cursed w/ being born to be forgotten, given a book of spells to unlock her own magic.

King Arthur- King of Carelon/Camelot

Morgen, Elaine, Morgause- Anna's evil sisters

Merlin- Arthur's greatest counselor, all controlling with scheming priests

Bedevere-Anna's true love and one of Arthur's advisors

Lanceloch/Lancelot- new visitor at court, betrothed to Anna at Merlin's suggestion to Arthur

🤔My Thoughts: This was a story about female empowerment. Anna sacrificed for the greater good-her brother marrying her off to someone she didn't love and having heirs. There are no titles or powers she has because she is a woman. She's treated differently by sisters until she comes into her power. Her quest is one of revenge for all those that have held her down for years.

Rating 3.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

After how quickly I read the book before this one, the pace for this one slowed me down immensely. I’m not saying that as a negative, but the overall pacing was considerably slower. Anna is an observer, being mostly on the outskirts of things for a good chunk of the book, and we get to see her thoughts and opinions and feelings towards not just the people around her but also the events of the court.

Honestly a lot of this book is thought and memory and planning. If you’re looking for an action-packed Arthurian adventure…this is not that book. But if you’re looking for a thoughtful, calculating, drawn-out introspection on a different viewpoint towards what you know about Arthurian legends and tales, then this is a nice book to enjoy for a few hours.

There is so much going on with all of the various characters and how the stories all intertwine and blend and either collide or drift apart.

Oh, and it should absolutely be pointed out that there is queer rep in this story as well. No definitive labels are given for the characters, but several could be gay, lesbian, bisexual, or possibly pansexual.

There are a LOT of characters in this story too, and many stories from the expansive Arthurian lore get mentioned or hinted at, so if you’re already a fan of these stories and characters, there’s plenty of little Easter eggs to keep you entertained.

Even with this being a slower paced story, I still did enjoy the reading experience, and I am very curious to see how the sequels play out. I like seeing this female-focused twist on Arthurian lore, where the women try to play the game in a world where men are seen to have the power. I like seeing how they manipulate the system to eke out whatever power and benefits they can.

This wasn’t the usual fantasy story I tend to read. Normally I read faster-paced stories, and ones that have a whole lot more action and adventure going on. So there was something wonderfully different about this one, about slowing down and being a little more introspective.

Not my favorite book ever, or even of this year, but still a very solid reading experience over all.

Oh my days, I ADORED this book.
As a long time King Arthur nerd I was so ready for a fresh take on some of the best known legends and this was IT.
The Lancelot romance twist? Arthur’s sisters being BADASS? The history? The Intrigue?

I loved it. The language took a little bit of adjusting to as the author uses a mix of modern and medieval phrases but it wasn’t too bad!

A great read, highly recommend!

Anna Pendragon was destined to be forgotten. It was prophecized at her birth that it would always be this way. From birth, her happiness and wellbeing was always cast aside in favor of Arthur’s legacy and Merlin’s thirst for power. Along the way, Merlin had taken everything from the women of the court without a second thought, just to expand and increase the power that is Arthur. Now, older and wiser, Anna has decided that Merlin has taken enough.

There is something about the stories of King Arthur and his round table that have always fascinated me. I read books about him and his ever heroic knights when I was a kid, and always wanted to grow up to be a knight of the round table. For that reason, this book fascinated me, but also made me sad. Unfortunately, if I were to have live in Carelon, I would never have been a knight, but maybe I would have been a witch.

This book gave feminine rage and power, and illustrated the tales of King Arthur and Merlin through different, forgotten eyes.

Thank you NetGalley, Solaris, and Natania Barron for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

💙 happy publication day! 💙

(?) do you enjoy books with historical aspects? / what time in history do you enjoy reading about?

Book: Queen of None
Author: @nataniabarron

the 2nd edition of this lovely read is out TODAY!

good things checklist:
✔️ female-centered King Arthur retelling
✔️ a fun mix of historical and magical elements
✔️ the relationship dynamics are messy & complex
✔️ great balance of plot and character development
✔️ stories about the women who changed history
✔️ finding power in a society that gives you none
✔️ beautiful writing

check this one out if you're a fan of historical books with a dash of fantasy! it was a super fun read - thanks to @solarisbooks & @netgalley for the e-ARC 🫶✨️

4.5 ⭐
1 🌶️

Queen of None is an enjoyable read from cover to cover. The author's writing was smooth and appropriate for the time her characters were inhabiting. It was easy to get pulled into the narrative. Anna's POV was at times frustrating because she did things and made choices that were questionable, but it was her story, and you were a witness to it. In many ways, I felt Anna's story was a feminist story of a woman who had all her choices taken away by men, and this is how she took back her narrative. That is an oversimplification, I know, but it was fun to read how a woman could do that in the time setting of the book. As I said, the author's writing was just lovely, and although she was given the language and atmosphere of the time, it was accessible and easy to read--very smooth with a nice pace. If you would enjoy an historical retelling of Arthurian legends with fantasy elements you will enjoy Queen of None.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the eArc of this book. These opinions are my own.

A fresh, feminist take on the Arthurian legends!
I found it hard to put down and I really loved Anna's character.

I really liked the way the author subverted the commonly accepted personalities of the main characters like Arthur/Lancelot/Guinevere/Merlin.

The book turner out to be something I didn't expect but I loved every moment of reading it. I look forward to reading more in this series!

Thank you NetGalley and Solaris for this eARC.

Queen of None by Natania Barron is an amazing spin on the Arthurian legends.
It is a historical fiction told from perspective of Anna Pendragon, the full sister of King Arthur, whose presence in the legends has been outshined by that of her siblings.

I applaud Natania for retelling these well-known legends in a completely unique and gripping way.
If you are, like me, still pretty new to stories of King Arthur and Merlin, you will find this book fascinating, especially in how history mixes with fantasy into this beautifully written world.
For more hardcore fans on Arthuriana, I still think that Queen of None is a refreshing read, since it brings to the forefront women of Carelon (Camelot), their everyday lives, struggles, and influence, so often overlooked but vital. Rather than focusing on bloody battles, Natania talks about conflicts between fate and choice, family and love, and even duty and loyalty.

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for an eARC of Queen of None in exchange for my honest thoughts!

First and foremost…I devoured this book in less than 24 hours, if that tells you anything about how much I enjoyed it and the readability of it. The writing was absolutely stunning, captivating, and had me completely enthralled.

I know absolutely nothing- zero, zilch, nada- about King Arthur. Think some common words usually associated with KA are Lacelot and Camelot…I think. That being said, I feel like I followed this story pretty well. I do think the author relied heavily on previous Arthurian lore knowledge; I think my reading experience (and overall rating) would probably have been much higher had I had some background info. However, as I stated I still thoroughly enjoyed myself reading this. It truly read like a fantasy book (it took me way too long to get that Breatan was, in fact, fantastical Britain lol), and I think that really helped.

Anna was such a unique character. I’ve always loved historical fiction, and I love fantasy. So mix those together and add in a woman scorned main lead and I. AM. THERE. Really felt like she was the embodiment of Female Rage: The Musical. The personification of Whose Afraid of Little Old Me. I rarely enjoy character driven books over plot driven books, but once again this was an absolute exception to the rule. Anna was messy; she didn’t often make the best decisions (not that women of the time often got to make any) and struggled with her roles as wife, mother, court member, while trying to also be (and find) herself. She has lived her life as a political pawn, and while she did her best to find joy and happiness, there is also much heartbreak and sorrow.

While I did enjoy my reading experience, there were a few things that kept this from being a true 5-star read for me. The first half of the story, the pacing felt really strong, but the second it was very fast-paced and felt rushed. Particularly when Nimue came into play. I would have loved to spend more time with her character. I think this goes back to being character vs. plot-driven, but I very often wished we went deeper into some scenes and situations.

Bottom Line: I truly, truly enjoyed this and definitely plan to read the next book in the series when it comes out later this year. I had moments I truly forgot I was reading; I rarely have “movies” playing in my head while reading and with this one, so many times I did. Whether or not you are typically interested in Arthurian lore, I highly recommend this one. Looking forward to continuing with this series (and definitely getting my shelf trophy of this one)!

I have to confess that everything related to the Arthurian legends although I do not have great knowledge about it fills me with great curiosity, that is why when I discovered that this had inspiration in them and also focused on a character left aside and give great depth.

The author has created a great character giving him an interesting story and with the exact touch of magic to allow to have a remarkable point in the story, it is also refreshing since it reads fast and allows to enjoy a little more of the myth that is King Arthur and all the round table, but from the point of view of a woman who must face her gender in a time where everything was complicated for a lady.

Thanks to netgalley and publisher for allowing me to read this book early.
#QueenofNone #NetGalley

A great take on the Arthurian Legend. I love that women and the background of the Legend has been given more depth in this book. I felt like I had actually stepped into the tale!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to review this book. All opinions are my own.

This was a fun book that allows you to really peek into the lives of people who would typically have only ever been a side character. It’s so fascinating to see them as three dimensional people rather than just a face in the background.

In terms of the story itself it was a bit slow paced. I’m intrigued to see how the author will turn this into a trilogy! I would be interested in reading the next story!

I’m giving 3 stars because I did get to about 70% of the book. I ended up just losing interest in the story. I’m putting it down for now, and I’ll be picking it back up at a later date.

Was literally on the verge of killing myself when I finished this book. Blank and bleh. I wish I looked at the eclipse.

Did not finish.

I just could not get into this book and there are simply too many books out there to struggle through one that doesn't grab me.

I could see a true lover of Arthurian legend truly enjoying this book.

Honestly, it was fine. I think others may be interested. I just was not captivated while reading and it was a very slow start that did not command my attention.

I JUST COULDN'T FINISH

I made it to 83% percent and thought I could get to the end - but then I realised that this wasn't the end, because it's a series, and I just couldn't bring myself to finish.

What I liked

👍 Twist: The one thing that did kind of hold my attention was the twist to the 'original' story of King Arthur (if such a thing even exists). I especially liked the part Arthur played in what would otherwise normally be his story.

What I didn't like

👎 Beginning: Getting into this book was actually a bit difficult. I found the beginning to be slow and bogged down by too much background information.

👎 Characters: Sadly, I wasn't really feeling any of the characters. I just didn't connect with them, though I didn't sympathise with Anna and her plights.

A good fantasy and an original take on the Arthurian myth. Well plotted, gripping and entertaining.
I liked the characters, the scheming court, and the well plotted characters.
Can't wait to read the next one
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

4.5 stars rounded to 5
It always brings me great joy when authors decided to give a spotlight to lesser known characters in history and legend, specially forgotten women. The story was rather slow, a bit more that I am used to, but it did not make it boring by any means. It was a journey through Anna's story and, even though I felt like the plot was a bit lost at times, it always bounced back to tie things together. The magic was interesting and it felt so fitting for the time period that it's set it. The writing style was captivating and personal, first person narration is quite hard to do in my opinion and Natania Barron made wonderful use of it to really put us inside Anna's skin.

I'm positive I will be reading the second book!