Jodi Meadows

The Orphan Queen

"Wilhelmina has a hundred identities. She is a princess. When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom's capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne. She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace and Melanie's behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable. Wil can't trust anyone. She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina's magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil's magic, she will vanish like all the others"--Jacket.

The orphan queen

Courtney Gendreau

Original review can be found: www.literarychaos.com 

In the spirit of honesty, I would never have picked this book up for myself. The synopsis didn't excite me and, for me, there was just no real pull to the book, but I picked it up anyway because I knew a friend of mine would love it. I decided that it wouldn't hurt to buddy-read it with her and I am very glad I did. I enjoyed it far more than I had expected; I found it to be a good reminder that sometimes it is good to branch out and read something I normally wouldn't. 

I really enjoyed the worldbuilding in this novel. I took me a couple of chapters to really understand the inner workings of the world and the various aspects of the magic. However, once I got that down I felt that it really hit the sweet spot, the world wasn't too complex nor did it leave me feeling like I needed more. It was actually quite straightforward for a fantasy novel which I found quite refreshing.

I really liked Wil, she was strong, fierce, and an amazing fighter. All things that make for a great main character, but what I liked most about her was her sense of morality and loyalty, not only to the nation she lost but also to her close-knit group of friends. Wil didn't always make great choices but she made them not while thinking about herself but about those she loved, which only made me love her all the more. Her loyalty made her seem more human and less that inhumanly perfect warrior queen that seems common in literature.

In fact, the only reason the book received four instead of five stars was due to the fact that I was able to call some of the plot twists. I felt that while I loved the journey, there were too many instances where the book had foreshadowing just felt too obvious and made it too easy to guess the plotline. This being said, it has a killer cliffhanger that I did not see coming and has left me jonesing to get my hand on the next book.

Wynne Aretae

Orphan Queen remains one of my all-time favorites

Hannah

4.5

i loved this?? total surprise, definitely here for it

Pamela Alvarado

I did not fall head over heels for this book but I enjoyed it greatly! Good pacing, an ingtriguing plot and world-building too. I especially loved twist. Yeah, you can add that to the things I'm a whore of. You know, a cover and a plot twist one ;). I figured it out halfway into the book, but still, I liked it because it was done well. I almost wish I hadn't figure it out that soon. 

The cliffhanger also didn't bother me as much as I initially thought. I mean, I finished the book this morning and I'm already over the ending, thanks god. 

The dynamics between Wil and Patrick is what I liked the most. A queen whose people only listen to her 'general'. That's gotta suck.

An epic fantasy filled with adventure, intrigue, and romance from Incarnate series author Jodi Meadows. This duology is perfect for fans of Graceling by Kristin Cashore, The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson, and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. When Princess Wilhelmina was a child, the Indigo Kingdom invaded her homeland. Ten years later, Wil and the other noble children who escaped are ready to fight back and reclaim Wil’s throne. To do so, Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate the Indigo Kingdom palace with hopes of gathering information that will help them succeed. But Wil has a secret—one that could change everything. Although magic has been illegal for a century, she knows her ability could help her save her kingdom. But magic creates wraith, and the deadly stuff is moving closer and destroying the land. And if the vigilante Black Knife catches her using magic, she may disappear like all the others. . . .

The Orphan Queen

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