The Queens of Innis Lear

I am full-on in the midst of major book hangover and I honestly feel unequipped to give this a fair review, one that properly explains how much I loved it, and why. So in order to give the appearance of coherent thought, let’s keep this brief: The writing is truly remarkable; I think possibly the most beautiful writing I have read in years, maybe EVER. Just amazing. The magic system is interesting, the characters fabulously fleshed out and with great character arcs, and the two things that I usually dislike — multiple POV and flashbacks — so well-executed that the story takes shape organically and (seemingly) effortlessly. Heartbreaking but also empowering, and incredibly beautiful. 5 STARS, without any shadow or hint of doubt. This feels miles above anything I could possibly read right now, and the comparison feels hugely unfair, but also I need to pick my next book and I cannot, because everything feels trivial and inconsequential. Also, this was a buddy read with Ashley, who is a. really awesome b. dealing with a similar book hangover So yay for fabulous book buddies, with whom we can share our book-related joys and tribulations 😂😂

The Queens of Innis Lear is an intriguing retelling of Shakespeare’s play King Lear where a mad king decides who shall rule his kingdom out of his daughters by who can say they love him the most. Gratton has taken this concept and built a whole new world for this dramatic play to take place upon. You can read it without knowledge of the play, but it adds something to the experience if you know the references. I’d recommend even just looking up a synopsis of the play to gain an understanding because once I did that I felt like I enjoyed the book a whole lot more. This is a woman powered retelling of a Shakespeare tragedy with all the best bits made new. With great representation, lyrical descriptions, epic world building and with a tragic story at its centre, this book makes for an interesting read. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, although it was slow at times, and do recommend it. Full review: https://mythicreader.wordpress.com/20...

Magnificent. Probably will be the best book I read this year. Epic, magical, tragic ... all the emotions you could imagine. Words on a page woven to create a world, bring it to life, a place painted in vivid, glorious detail ... I could smell it, touch it and live in it. A magic system natural, intricate and mysterious. Characters of flesh and blood, life and death, love and hate, strong and flawed. I wanted to see how the story would all come together but I did not want it to end.