Sometimes you read a book cover to cover and when you finish you question why you didn't just DNF it... It doesn't happen to me often, usually I just DNF it when it doesn't feel right, but this one fooled me into thinking it was going to be interesting. The ending was so anticlimactic.

The writing was decent enough. The plot was a bit strange and all over the place. I'm not a big fan of religious plot lines and this one was all religion and no other things to focus on.

The characters were pretty flat. Bastian was pretty funny at times, love me a relentless flirt, but still very flat. Where are their personalities? I could barely keep all the characters straight because they all read the same.

I'm sure there are many bookdragons out there who will love this book, but it wasn't the book for me.

Book Review 📚
The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten - 4/5 ⭐

Now this had become a pretty anticipated book and that always makes me dubious and skeptical. But, I went for it anyway because the cover was beautiful!

And surprisingly, I absolutely loved it. I was pleasantly surprised to find out it was the first book of a series, so more greatness to follow. The main thing that sells me about this whole thing is how much it has the Throne Of Glass Vibes. And I say this knowing I'll get some hate, it was better then ToG!

Bastian - I will love you forever. You have become the new Rhysand/Zade (depending on your genre). Absolutely brilliant character development and storylines. They really suck you in and keep you intrigued.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

Thankyou NetGalley for an arc copy
I really enjoyed this book, the storyline was good, although the worldbuilding was a little confusing at times, the magic system was unique.
The vibes of the book was quite dark/gothic but all in all a very good read, I will definitely be reading the second instalment

When starting this book I really hd no idea of what to expect. I hadn’t heard much about and I wasn’t really sure what it was about, but I enjoyed it so much!

This book follows Lore, a poison runner who acts as a spy for her adoptive mothers in a city ravaged by an addiction to poison that can extend your life. However, the past that has spent the past eleven years running from is about to catch up with her. She was found by her mothers when she was 13 having recently escaped the catacombs she has lived in up to that point, a place plagued by dark magic that she was born with the ability to channel.

One day, when a run takes a turn for the worst, Lore uses her repressed power to cause a distraction and finds herself hauled away to the citadel to await her fate. However, while the punishment for her magic is usually death or exile she finds herself faced with a different offer; to stay in the citadel pretending to be the cousin of a member of the court and befriend the Sun Prince. A rise in strange deaths have been occurring and they want her to see if the Prince is responsible, using her skills as a spy.

Little does she know that fate and forces out of her control are guiding all of them like pieces on a chess board in something greater than solving the mysterious deaths.

I throughly enjoyed this book from start to finish. The world building was exceptional and I found myself drawn to the characters for their complicated personalities and faults as well as the things that made them badass. Lore, Gabe and Bastian are all complicated and intriguing characters fighting their own battles within themselves and the world around them. While I’m not usually a fan of live triangles the one hinted at in this book kept me hooked as the draw they all feel to one another is seemingly beyond their control.

It’s safe to say I can’t wait to get started with book 2, The Hemlock Queen!

This is perfect for Romantasy fans who like things a little darker like Belladonna and One Dark Window.

This book surprised me in a good way.

I thought the storyline and especially, the magic system were well developed. The characters too were memorable and made a lasting impression. That said, I definitely could have done without that love triangle and I would have loved to see some more world development in general.

Overall, I'd say this is one of the books which could be a good entry point for the adult fantasy genre. Looking forward to reading this series further.

I’ve been eyeing this book for about a year and I don’t know why I waited so long to read it, because it was really good!

The beginning was great and easy, I honestly was prepared for worse. I can’t really say I was constantly hooked throughout the whole book, though I also wouldn’t say it fell flat or that I was particularly bored.

The book did not only deliver the vibes, but also a solid plot to go along.
There’s a cult, a (questionable) church, a court where no one can be trusted, necromancy and gods. And betrayal. Everywhere.

Generally, I really enjoyed the characters! The combination of Lore, Bastian and Gabe did something to me. Especially Gabe. I will say though, the maybe-maybe not love triangle was…? I didn’t particularly hate it, but I am also glad it didn’t evolve into more than what(ever) it was.
What I would have really loved to see were more one on one scenes of Lore and Anton (head of the church). I think this could have been some great passive aggressive dialogues.

The ending was great, especially the epilogue. I’m really excited for the sequel!

Thank you for gifting me this arc to review. I had heard such incredible things about the book and it did not disappoint. I have now purchased on my kindle to read again. Would highly recommend

DNF @ 33%. I may come back to this one but for now I've found it very difficult to get into, and mostly just cliche situations and characters. I have read other reviews saying it gets better, but for now I'm putting this down.

Received via netgalley as a free arc to review

Author has shown improvement in this book from previous, unfortunately it still falls flat.

First of all, I would like to thank NetGalley and Orbit UK for providing me with an ebook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Foxglove King is the first instalment in the Nightshade Crown series in which we follow Lore as she is taken by the King of Dellaire, who asks her to find out why villages in the kingdom have been dying overnight with the help of her magic.

The actual synopsis is way better than the once-sentence one I tried to come up with, but let me tell you: I really enjoyed this book. I requested this book on NetGalley because I kept seeing good reviews of this book, and it did not disappoint.
The plot is really interesting, full of magic, necromancy, betrayals, treasons, mysteries, court intrigues and religion. It feels heavily inspired by France because of the names of the characters and the worldbuilding elements that are in latin or French, and French royalty, but don’t even ask me which Louis it is because there are too many of them (I would say Louis XIV though, because he was really into Christianity and religion). I do suggest reading the trigger warnings on the author’s website before reading this one because there are quite a few. The worldbuilding is what amazed me the most, as there are two very distinct kinds of magic, and each one has its purpose! The three main characters (Lore, the Mortem-wielding lady ; Gabriel, a duke turned Presque Mort (litt. Almost Dead) and monk ; Bastian, the arrogant heir to the throne) have a really interesting dynamic/relationship and I loved seeing them together because there is a love triangle between the three of them. The reason I gave this book four stars and not five stars is because the pacing felt really slow at times.

The Foxglove King is an adult romantasy, perfect for fans of Belladonna and Vespertine! The second book in this series, The Hemlock Queen, will be out on April 9th, 2024, so don’t forget to pre order your copy!

WHAT A WILD RIDE IT WAS!

I had few attempts to start it, but the beginning hadn't interested me, but when I finally got into it, since like chapter 5, it was absolutely delightful, I couldn't stop reading, I wanted to know what happened next, I NEEDED to know what happened next and basically devoured 300 pages in one sitting, but then at the end I lost interest again.

Still I really liked this book, in the middle I considered it one of the best books of the year, it was very unique and complex and kept me on my toes.

THE CHARACTERS WERE GREAT, I'm talking about you Bastian, cus omg I'm always gonna fall for the prince in the love trianges.

Overall it was really good book, definitely will read other books from the author and can't wait to read book 2.

Thank you Netgalley for providing digital advanced copy in exchange for honest review.

I feel like the world building wasn’t done extensively enough and it tried to introduce too much at once.

This book wasn’t as good as I’d hoped it would be, it was better ! At the beginning of the story I was and it just was so hard to put down, I found it very hard to just stop after a few chapters. When I needed to go to bed. I loved the ideas of death magic , Hannah Whitten’s writing is just brilliant and by the final part of the book I was gutted to be near the end, but it was a great set up to the next book , but I just wish I had it now

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was my first encounter with both this author and the subgenre. I must admit, I did not expect the novel to be this good. Set in a quasi-Gothic world, full of court intrigues, ancient gods, poisons, and magic, but also an incredibly skillfully woven romance into the whole. The novel took me to a world to which I want and will definitely return in the next part of the series. A somewhat slow pace at the beginning was fully compensated by an amazing finale, but above all, by the atmosphere of the novel. I sincerely recommend it to everyone.

This is the first book in the Nightshade Crown series, and we are introduced to Lore in a setting that is dark and intriguing. It has a slow beginning but a very interesting plot with an interesting magic system that was well developed and made the story quite engaging since the start.

We have a little bit of everything, court intrigue, lost gods, romantic angst, necromancy, poisonous plants, and gods. The characters are unique and likable, the world building was well accomplished and while the court and political setting was a bit tricky it was well explained.

The finale of this book was fantastic, and the gothic atmosphere really add something to it. I was hooked and read it in one sitting, and I cannot wait to read the next book in the series.

Thank you, NetGalley & the publisher, for approving me to read this arc and write this review.

Well this was an experience to read,.

Most of the time reading it I was getting Throne Of Glass vibes.
While not a bad thing it didn’t exactly set this book apart from others in the genre.

That said it was a good book with lots of interesting twists and turns, the magic system/terminology took a hot minute to wrap my head around and honestly I’m still not sure I understand what was going on after almost 500 pages.

Loved the vibe of this book. I love her darker fairytale style, and I’m excited to see where the story is going.

I enjoyed reading this book, at first I found it hard to read at the beginning, I felt some if the descriptions of scenes etc was a bit long winded and it seemed to lose its flow for me. But the twist I really did not see coming and the ending I found very good, so much so it makes me definitely want to read the next book

DNF at 32%

I think this might be a case of "it's-not-you-it's-me" kind of thing?

Honesty, I've spent so much time and effort going through those 30%.
Although the writing style is good - I couldn't connect with the story and characters.
And time is way to precious to try to push through a book like this.

I really enjoyed this book having not read anything from the author before.

The world-building was slightly confusing but quickly became very interesting and intriguing. The characters were wonderful and new. The Main character, Lore, is a wonderful read.

There were many unanswered questions in this first installment of the book but I'm hopeful that they will be explained and fleshed out more in the next book

All around, I thought the book was entertaining and I'm interested in continuing to read this story