Firstly thank you to Little, Brown Book Group UK, Hannah Whitten & Netgalley for sending me an eARC of the Hemlock Queen.

The Hemlock queen is a dark and gothic fantasy which takes place straight after Book 1, The Foxglove King. Lore is a great FMC, strong and fierce, and she is a big part of why I loved book 1, but she does take a bit more of a back seat in this book.

The world building is on point and I loved the addition of the Gods in this book as well as all of the court politics! The romance does feel more developed in this book but it is still very much a slow burn and of course the love triangle between Lore, Gabe and Bastian is a big part of the book. They are also dealing with their new found positions of power and navigating all that entails!

I really enjoyed Hemlock Queen. Would definitely recommend for fans of gothic fantasy with a more YA romance vibe. Looking forward to book 3!

Did I not realise this was a sequel? Yes
Did I go and buy the first book anyways, absolutely love Foxglove King then get straight onto this one? Absolutely yes I did.

This was such an easy read, I felt I was able to follow along the journey without too much mental effort or having to go back to parts in the book to understand, or reread sections which I appreciate.
I also felt like while I loved the first book, the writing has also really improved for no2. The second book in a series can be tricky sometimes but this did great!

I think I'm now invested for the next one!

This sequel took everything I loved about The Foxglove King and dialled it up to ten. Hannah Whitten delivers a dark, atmospheric masterpiece full of intrigue, betrayal, and even deeper magic.

We pick up right where The Foxglove King left off, and Lore’s world is darker and more dangerous than ever. Now tangled in the web of court politics, death magic, and her own unravelling destiny, Lore is as fierce and complex as ever. I loved watching her walk the razor’s edge between power and vulnerability, life and death.

The relationships in this book are everything. The tension between Lore, Gabriel, and Bastian is impossible to look away from. Their dynamics are layered, emotional, and so full of angst I couldn’t get enough—especially as trust fractures and alliances shift. The slow-burn romance (and the heartbreak that comes with it) kept me glued to the page.

Whitten’s world-building shines yet again, steeped in gothic beauty and rich lore. The stakes are higher, the magic darker, and the rot creeping through the kingdom feels suffocating. I couldn’t tear myself away as secrets were revealed and the threads of the story came together in shocking ways.

By the time I hit the ending, I was reeling. The twists, the betrayals, the heart-stopping moments—I’m still recovering. The Hemlock Queen is everything I want in a dark fantasy sequel: atmospheric, emotional, and utterly unputdownable. If you love gothic intrigue, morally grey characters, and stories that blur the lines between love and power, this one’s for you. I need the final book ASAP.

The Hemlock Queen by Hannah Whitten
4 stars

I have only recently read Foxglove King, which was obviously a huge error on my part because it was absolutely brilliant. So I was beyond excited to get my hands on book 2. I highly recommend reading book 2 as soon as you finish book 1, there a re too many little details you’ll forget about if you leave it too long. Take my advice, I know this from experience.

I can hand on heart say, it was incredibly easy to connect with all the characters and be able to follow them on their journey. I absolutely love Lore, more than I can put into words. She's strong willed, badass and just gives off such a strong vibe to her. I started with a pure hatred towards Sebastian, but that comes to change through the story and now I’m routing for him!

The descriptions in BOTH books are absolutely out of this world - like I can’t even out into enough words how well Whitten goes to describe places, characters, literally everything. It’s all done with such precision and excellence. It is 100% the thing I love most about both books. Its visual pleasing to my mind.

The author says in her acknowledgements that 'middle books in a trilogy are weird' - and certainly they trip up a lot of very good writers. But despite apparently finding it difficult to write, Whitten has succeeded in producing an excellent central instalment. 'The Hemlock Queen' manages to be both an enjoyable and compelling read in its own right, whilst also bridging the gap between the start and finale novels.

The story picks up not long after the first book ended. The viewpoint character, Lore, is now the consort of the new king, Bastian. He has big ideas about ruling in a fairer and better way than his father, trying to improve the infrastructure and the lives of his subjects. However with a war looming, and fractures within the kingdom itself, it's doubtful he'll get the chance to realise his ambitions. And soon their worries are eclipsed by a far bigger problem - the return of a cruel, power-hungry sun god who wants to reign over the whole world, even if he destroys it in the process.

The books should be read in order, but if you don't remember the first too well, Whitten does a good job of jogging the reader's memory - partly because the first book made quite a strong impression it came back to me easily with a few prompts within the text. It's a compelling read and hard to put down, full of incident and drama. The characters are really loveable and I cared deeply about their fates, meaning I was fully engaged with the story and invested in the outcomes. The love triangle is convincingly written and unlike in most such set-ups, I found it as hard as the heroine to choose between her two options. Although romance is an important storyline though, it's not the only one or even the most important. Like the first story, the fantasy is quite dark, bordering on horror at times, with some very gory descriptions. But that element isn't overdone and although I dislike horror as a genre, I wasn't bothered by it here as it's not excessive.

I'm already looking forwards to the conclusion, which has been set up very well and promises to be as exciting and moving as this book and the first. I'd highly recommend the series to fans of fantasy adventure and 'romantasy'. If you're looking for a really enjoyable read that you'll be sorry to finish, you won't be disappointed.

3.5 stars. This was a pretty good second book. I quite like where the series is going and I think Whitten has improved as an author.

I loved this continuation in the series! Hannah Whitten's writing is lush and evocative but still accessible and I was absolutely hooked from start to finish. I read this so quick! I can't wait for the next one and I am so invested in anything Hannah writes next!

I adored this book. I fell more in love with the characters that we met in the first book and can't wait for the third book to come out! Wonderful. I will definitely read more Whitten going forward

Whilst there were some passages where the pace dropped, overall I enjoyed this sequel. In particular I thought the final act was brilliant! I loved Lore in the first book but didn't find her quite as compelling this time - I'm generally not a fan of love triangles so definitely think her indecision in this area influenced my opinion a bit, but she did start to find her strength again towards the end and I think HW has set up nicely for the next book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

After really enjoying The Foxglove King, I was excited to read the second installment. Now, I have a lot of mixed feelings.

I still think Lore is a really fascinating character, and the world-building of book 1 was so immersive and unique. However, this book has taken a very radical turn from what the first one was, and I'm not really sure it's for the better.

The plot line of "is someone taking over Bastian's body?" went on for so so long with no progress in any plot direction, then suddenly we got absolutely info-dumped on with a very spelled-out, simplistic villain motivation. Apollius doesn't want to die. That's his motivation. And that could be interesting in an esoteric, how does one defy death way, but the incredibly superficial way it's depicted is incredibly uninteresting. And he's completely aware of his own compulsion, which makes me think a more likely course of action would be getting him some therapy and moving on.

The characters also do not feel consistent from who they were in book 1. Lore becomes an alcoholic for the first 20 pages and then it's never addressed again. (I guess she's cured?) Everyone decides they couldn't care less about Bastian, and want to overthrow him. Gabe ditches his cult/religion/obsession in about five minutes off-page. And Gabe and Bastian are into each other sort of? I don't know.

There is so much nothing happening in the book, and what does happen makes no sense. The reveal of Nyxara and Apollius' backstories really doesn't make much sense with anything we know about the Tracts or the religion as a whole. The Buried Watch makes even less sense, and there's no effort to explain these major inconsistencies.

Also, Horse fans, he's basically not in this book. :(

Maybe this book suffers from second-book syndrome, but I'm loathe to see how a third book could fix the massive issues this one has caused. 2 stars for the last book's set up.

Hannah Whitten’s The Hemlock Queen is a gripping sequel that deepens the lush, gothic fantasy world introduced in The Foxglove King. Centered on Lore, a young woman with an affinity for death magic, the story weaves a dark and suspenseful tale of political intrigue, forbidden power, and the weight of destiny.

Whitten’s prose is both elegant and haunting, perfectly capturing the eerie beauty of the world and the morally gray complexities of its characters. The narrative is driven by a thrilling blend of courtly machinations, ancient secrets, and personal stakes, keeping readers hooked as Lore navigates alliances and enemies in her quest for truth and survival. The themes of trust, betrayal, and agency resonate strongly, adding emotional depth to the high-stakes drama.

With its richly drawn world, nuanced characters, and a plot brimming with tension and surprises, The Hemlock Queen is a must-read for fans of dark, atmospheric tales that linger long after the final page.

This book has tested my patience on the amount of religion woven into the plot. Similar to the first book, things only got exciting at the last 30%. Everything was leading up to the final chapters—action, betrayal, plot twists. It was burst after burst.

The love triangle between the mcs are getting on my nerves too. JUST PICK A SIDE. Would you consider this as slow burn? I really hope it doesn’t end with one of them dying just so she doesn’t have to choose.

Chapters I thoroughly enjoyed were the flashbacks to pre-godsfall era! It wasn’t just the explanation but the writing fits smoothly and those particular pages flew by quickly! A good respite from the dreary mentions of church and prayers and his holiness.

Ngl I had higher expectations since book 1 was enjoyable. Nevertheless, I am no quitter so yes I will be reading the last book too! Thank you NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group for the arc!

This felt sluggish in comparison to the mastery felt in The Foxglove King. I'm not sure if it's because it's setting up for the final book in the trilogy, but the entire plot felt clunky and repetitive and I really struggled to push myself through to the end.

After reading The Foxglove King last year via NetGalley, I was so glad to receive an arc copy of book #2 also, The Hemlock Queen.
I thought TGK provided such a great set-up for a fantasy, a really strong world of politics and religion whilst establishing a clear set of characters. In THQ, I only found myself liking Lore more over the course of the story, as well as many of the other characters. The love triangle is also doing the most in this instalment! This series has such an interesting world and the fantastical elements that Whitten has created are so fascinating and finely tuned.
There isn't much I can say about a sequel without spoilers but wow, what a strong second book this has turned out to be. It was a good length for a fantasy, with great pacing and a nail-biting ending.
I am looking forward to the third and final book in this fantasy series.
4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Little Brown Book Group UK and Hannah Whitten for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.