Name: surtified™'s review of Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle
Item: Twin Crowns
Rating: 3
Author: surtified™

Catherine Doyle

Katherine Webber

A high-stakes fantasy rom-com about twin princesses separated at birth—one raised as the crown princess, and the other taken as an infant and raised to kidnap her sister, steal the crown, and avenge the parents' murders—the first novel in a new YA duology from bestselling UK authors Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber. Perfect for fans of The Selection,My Lady Jane, and Caraval.

Wren Greenrock has always known that one day she would steal her sister’s place in the palace. Trained from birth to return to the place of her parents’ murder and usurp the only survivor, she will do anything to rise to power and protect the community of witches she loves. Or she would, if only a certain palace guard wasn’t quite so distractingly attractive, and if her reckless magic didn’t have a habit of causing trouble…

Princess Rose Valhart knows that with power comes responsibility. Marriage into a brutal kingdom awaits, and she will not let a small matter like waking up in the middle of the desert in the company of an extremely impertinent (and handsome) kidnapper get in the way of her royal duty. But life outside the palace walls is wilder and more beautiful than she ever imagined, and the witches she has long feared might turn out to be the family she never knew she was missing.

Two sisters separated at birth and raised into entirely different worlds are about to get to know each other’s lives a whole lot better. But as coronation day looms closer and they each strive to claim their birthright, the sinister Kingsbreath, Willem Rathborne, becomes increasingly determined that neither will succeed. Who will ultimately rise to power and wear the crown?

Twin Crowns

Wren Greenrock has always known that one day she’d steal her sister’s place on the throne. Trained from birth to return to the palace and avenge her parents’ murder, she’ll do anything to become queen and protect the community of witches who raised her. Or she would, if only a certain guard wasn’t quite so distractingly attractive, and if her reckless magic would stop causing trouble. . . .

Princess Rose Valhart knows that with power comes responsibility—and she won’t let a small matter like waking up in the desert with an extremely impertinent (and very handsome) kidnapper get in the way of her duty. But life outside the palace is wilder and more beautiful than she ever imagined, and the witches she has long feared might turn out to be the family she never had.

But as coronation day looms and each sister strives to claim her birthright, an old enemy becomes increasingly determined that neither will succeed. Who will ultimately rise to power and wear the crown?

Aimee :)

His sword appeared in the next heartbeat a flash of silver in the corner of her eye. He angled it at Rathborne.

The Kingsbreath skidded to a stop. 'Drop your weapon, Gevran. I am not the enemy here.’

Rathborne turned to Alarik. 'Your Majesty, tell your soldier to stand down at once.'

Alarik cocked his head, watching the scene with glimmering fascination. 'No.'

'Very well,' she said, lifting her chin. 'It's a date.'

'Wonderful! I'll send word to Chapman at once.' Ansel's face brightened but it was Tor's smile that made Wren's blood sing.

The point of the blade appeared at her chin, while her hood was tugged away from her face. 'Good evening, Your Highness.'

T'm flattered that you want to be with me until the end of time.' Shen smirked as he unfurled the rope ladder and kicked it over the edge. 'And I thought you didn't much like me.'

Her grandmother had pulled her close, her cloak scratchy against Wren's cheek. 'I would kill a thousand men and more just to keep you from harm, but the time has come to set you free. To send you home. Will you raze a trail through those golden gates for your people? Will you raze a trail for me?'

Minnie Mazuera

She was dancing in the flames again, but oh, it was such fun. And it made a pleasant change from having to plot a murder.

Courtney Passio

Genesis (@whisperingchapters)

So. This book is definitely not bad in any way, I think it’d be pretty good for someone who’s trying to introduce themselves into the fantasy genre. It’s easy to read and the plot is so simple to understand. Plus, its magic system etc isn’t anything too unique. However i think these types of fantasies which are quite 2D aren’t quite to my taste. I like to read something with a bit more complexity to it, you know? And the dialogue in this book was really mediocre, the only romance that made me giddy was Tor and Wren and I don’t think I’ll be finishing this series off really. For some people, this book would be their kind of novel. I'd recommend it for someone who's new to reading or even new to reading fantasy. It's easy to understand and it's easy to read, but for me it's a little too easy to read. It could be seen as quite boring, and maybe lacking that edge and high stake. I don't think any of the characters are even likeable? So, give it a shot. Would recommend for ages 10-14.

surtified™

millena

Tor and the wolf are the only good things in this book

Jennifer Gosnell

4.75 ⭐️

Loved this! Went into it with no expectations and was very happily carried off on a fun, unexpected, adventure. Felt a bit like Prince and the Pauper x Frozen x Tangled x Dark Fairytale vibes. Loved the characters and the shenanigans. I would say the only pitfall for me is the pacing. The end felt a bit rushed… but I am interested in seeing what happens next in this series!

I really didn’t think i would be in the mood to read these books, and i’m still not sure how i feel. for example i feel like the romance is very rushed, since it’s a trilogy and all of this is happening in the first book, i love a slow romance so it’s not doing much for me. I did find the dialogue or action a bit childish at times, but this is a YA book so what can i expect? not that it really effects my view on this book overall. I loved the idea of this, although it was very quick, but i don’t know what else is in store. I got through this book really quickly, and i never got bored

3.5 stars rounded down

as much as i love adult fantasy, ya is just so fun and easy to binge.

very much enjoyed the characters and romances (tor especially) and will probably be continuing this series

A very interesting book. Idk what some people read, cuz if it was after their reviews I would have never read this masterpiece. It's not so predictable how people say, but for a person who read a lot of fantasy some things can be a little, but the plot it's pretty original. I couldn't let the book out of my hands until I finished it.

Andrada Nane

Janice

It took quite a long time for the story to get going, I feel like some parts could have been left out especially since this book is already 500 pages so it didn't need the page fillers. Once the story really got going though it became very interesting but it took too long for me to say that I loved this book. So I'll stick to "I like this book" and keep my rating at 3 stars.

Izzy

ngl i probably would have dnfed this one if i didn't have the audiobook. 
it was alright just nothing special, i feel like the book lacked depth and the writing was probably one of the weakest points of the book.

really good and entertaining ya fantasy read

Hannah Williams

Veronika

Sasha

Beatrix Haase

I need more Tor and Wren.
Rose got better towards the end. 
I need the 2nd book.

Thank you for listening to my Ted Talk. 

Bea

Fairyloot Edition 

This was refreshing, it felt like a fun spin on the princess and the pauper but including witches and magic! It was honestly really good and I got through it pretty fast bc the plot was quite simple, I was all in for the world building though, I hope a sequel is soon!

I would have given this 5 but honestly the romance felt a little overpowering, don't get me wrong I enjoy the ships but man am I sick of romance being main plot points.

Aislinn 

5 ⭐️ This book was so good. It had everything I could want in a book. Definitely the best fantasy i’ve read in a while. I cannot wait for the second instalment.

grace richards

3.5,, there’s something about books involving two sisters which ticks all the boxes for me

Kourt

Nichole Bogard

Can we take a moment to admire the book cover because it is AMAZING 🔥

This story is everything you want in a YA book! Witches, danger, curses, villains and strong female leads! 

Wren and Rose are the perfect opposites and twins. What one lacks the other males up for. Separate at birth due to unimaginable hatred, Rose grows up never knowing she has a sister and Wren grows up preparing to take her sister thrown. 

Each have lived their lives believing two different things while only one was right. 

This story is absolutely worth the read and the mystery is all part of the fun!

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced Copy in exchange for my honest review

Author: Catharine Doyle & Katharine Webber

Twin Crowns contains several elements of YA fantasy stories I love. However, I ended up feeling disappointed. Sometimes a book has potential but falls short in execution.

Twin Crowns is the story of twin sisters who were separated after birth. Rose is raised to be the future Queen of Ina, while Wren is raised by the witches to eventually replace Rose before her coronation. I have several issues with the plot. The most important issue was the abundance of plot elements that were executed poorly. For example, Wren who is supposed to be prepared on her mission, was not prepared at all, and kept making mistake after mistake. Furthermore, the plot was often predictable and unrealistic. The prejudices against witches will not be magically solved when a witch queen is crowned for example. Due to all the plot elements, the two romances suffered greatly due to lack of page time and chemistry between the love interests. Sadly, the ending was rushed, and characters were conveniently removed from the story.

In general, the characters could have been developed more. Of the two main characters, Rose was the most interesting twin with significant character growth. Her passion for Ina and her vision for the future did not only make her a better candidate for queenship but also a more sympathetic character. Wren, sadly, remained one dimensional with her motives solely based on the will of her grandmother. Furthermore, it was annoying to read about every selfish decision she made or irrational behaviour she displayed. She was not the champion the witches deserved. Of the side characters, the love interests were the weakest. They were one dimensional and had no chemistry with their love interests. This made the romantic scenes come across as awkward. I did love Rose’s best friend, Celeste, for her sass, courage, and loyalty to Rose.  

Twin Crowns was written by two authors and their writing style blended beautifully together. In general, the writing was easy to understand and to read. The descriptions were lush and beautiful, which made it easy to visualise scenes. Furthermore, I appreciated the distinction in vocabulary between Wren and Rose, indicating their different upbringings. Nonetheless, I wished the writing had a little bit more personality and chemistry.

My favourite aspect of the book was the world building. Compared to the other elements of the story, the world building was the most developed. I loved the history of the world and how this history was still relevant for the current story. Moreover, I loved the descriptions of the different places in Ina and the political conflict. The world building could have been improved with more structure to the magic system and more details about the culture and traditions of Ina.

In summary, Twin Crowns has a good bone structure but missed the mark in terms of development of the plot and characters. I think the authors were too ambitious and the book could have been improved by focusing on fewer elements and developing those elements more. Unfortunately, Twin Crowns was not for me but might be interesting for people new to the YA fantasy genre.

Rating breakdown: plot (2.5/5), characters (2/5), writing (3/5), worldbuilding (3/5), overall enjoyment (2/5)

Trigger warnings: Graphic violence, death of parent, manipulation.

Lisa van der Heijden 

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW

 

Title: Twin Crowns

Author: Catharine Doyle & Katharine Webber

Narrator: Ann Marie Gideon & Ell Porter

Length: 14h 35m

Published: May 2022

Rating: 2.5/5.0

 

Twin Crowns contains several elements of YA fantasy stories I love. However, I ended up feeling disappointed. Sometimes a book has potential but falls short in execution.

 

Twin Crowns is the story of twin sisters who were separated after birth. Rose is raised to be the future Queen of Ina, while Wren is raised by the witches to eventually replace Rose before her coronation. I have several issues with the plot. The most important issue was the abundance of plot elements that were executed poorly. For example, Wren who is supposed to be prepared on her mission, was not prepared at all, and kept making mistake after mistake. Furthermore, the plot was often predictable and unrealistic. The prejudices against witches will not be magically solved when a witch queen is crowned for example. Due to all the plot elements, the two romances suffered greatly due to lack of page time and chemistry between the love interests. Sadly, the ending was rushed, and characters were conveniently removed from the story.

 

In general, the characters could have been developed more. Of the two main characters, Rose was the most interesting twin with significant character growth. Her passion for Ina and her vision for the future did not only make her a better candidate for queenship but also a more sympathetic character. Wren, sadly, remained one dimensional with her motives solely based on the will of her grandmother. Furthermore, it was annoying to read about every selfish decision she made or irrational behaviour she displayed. She was not the champion the witches deserved. Of the side characters, the love interests were the weakest. They were one dimensional and had no chemistry with their love interests. This made the romantic scenes come across as awkward. I did love Rose’s best friend, Celeste, for her sass, courage, and loyalty to Rose.  

 

Twin Crowns was written by two authors and their writing style blended beautifully together. In general, the writing was easy to understand and to read. The descriptions were lush and beautiful, which made it easy to visualise scenes. Furthermore, I appreciated the distinction in vocabulary between Wren and Rose, indicating their different upbringings. Nonetheless, I wished the writing had a little bit more personality and chemistry.

 

My favourite aspect of the book was the world building. Compared to the other elements of the story, the world building was the most developed. I loved the history of the world and how this history was still relevant for the current story. Moreover, I loved the descriptions of the different places in Ina and the political conflict. The world building could have been improved with more structure to the magic system and more details about the culture and traditions of Ina.

In summary, Twin Crowns has a good bone structure but missed the mark in terms of development of the plot and characters. I think the authors were too ambitious and the book could have been improved by focusing on fewer elements and developing those elements more. Unfortunately, Twin Crowns was not for me but might be interesting for people new to the YA fantasy genre.

 

Rating breakdown: plot (2.5/5), characters (2/5), writing (3/5), worldbuilding (3/5), overall enjoyment (2/5)

 

Trigger warnings: Graphic violence, death of parent, manipulation.

I have to admit, the first thing that got me very excited about this book was the cover when it was first revealed, only for my excitement to come back tenfold when I started seeing early reviews from people on Bookstagram. Many claimed this to be one of their favorite read of the year and dubbed it a Fantasy Romcom. Romcom, you say? I’ve never read this much romance in my life as I am now—despite loving it immensely—so I bought the book without even properly reading the synopsis. I was confident this was going to be a five star read.

I didn’t hate the book. In fact, in the Book Talk With Wifey readalong chat I was among the few to defend the sisters were others found them too childish or sloppy. Many lamented the fact that Wren shouldn’t have had so many slips while playing the part of Rose, while I defended that she’s not an international superspy, and that things that come naturally to her—like not being afraid of spiders, or eating cinnamon—are bound to happen. Others had a vendetta against Rose because she was too sheltered. Well, duh. That’s how she was raised to be. She’s not a warrior princess, and I really liked Rose for her good heart and steely determination for the throne. So as far as the characters go—the twins, but also their respective love interests Tor and Shen, Rose’s friend Celeste, and their grandmother Banba—I liked them all a lot.

What made my enjoyment start waning was the romance. Both romances were cute, but I found there was 

 of it for a book that people claim to be a romcom, and this frustrated me a lot because I was waiting for a romance that was taking too long to come. Apart from being funny—and I think this book didn’t have a particular comedic streak—romcoms have a heavy dose of romance and, more often than not, the plot is there to string together a series of scenes between the main couple until we reach the HEA. Twin Crowns had definitely too much plot for it to be a romcom. 60% into the book and there hadn’t been much happening in the romance department, and while that isn’t a bad thing as a general rule, why call it a romcom? This is a YA Fantasy with two romance subplots, pure and simple.

If I hadn’t been lied to by the hype, I would have enjoyed this book a lot more instead of spending half of it being frustrated. That being said, I’m curious to see how the series continues, and now that I know what to expect, I’m hopeful that I’ll enjoy the sequel more.

Maria Elena Vitale Zelaia

I have to admit, the first thing that got me very excited about this book was the cover when it was first revealed, only for my excitement to come back tenfold when I started seeing early reviews from people on Bookstagram. Many claimed this to be one of their favorite read of the year and dubbed it a Fantasy Romcom. Romcom, you say? I’ve never read this much romance in my life as I am now—despite loving it immensely—so I bought the book without even properly reading the synopsis. I was confident this was going to be a five star read.

Alas, it was not.

I didn’t hate the book. In fact, in the Book Talk With Wifey readalong chat I was among the few to defend the sisters were others found them too childish or sloppy. Many lamented the fact that Wren shouldn’t have had so many slips while playing the part of Rose, while I defended that she’s not an international superspy, and that things that come naturally to her—like not being afraid of spiders, or eating cinnamon—are bound to happen. Others had a vendetta against Rose because she was too sheltered. Well, duh. That’s how she was raised to be. She’s not a warrior princess, and I really liked Rose for her good heart and steely determination for the throne. So as far as the characters go—the twins, but also their respective love interests Tor and Shen, Rose’s friend Celeste, and their grandmother Banba—I liked them all a lot.

What made my enjoyment start waning was the romance. Both romances were cute, but I found there was too little of it for a book that people claim to be a romcom, and this frustrated me a lot because I was waiting for a romance that was taking too long to come. Apart from being funny—and I think this book didn’t have a particular comedic streak—romcoms have a heavy dose of romance and, more often than not, the plot is there to string together a series of scenes between the main couple until we reach the HEA. Twin Crowns had definitely too much plot for it to be a romcom. 60% into the book and there hadn’t been much happening in the romance department, and while that isn’t a bad thing as a general rule, why call it a romcom? This is a YA Fantasy with two romance subplots, pure and simple.

If I hadn’t been lied to by the hype, I would have enjoyed this book a lot more instead of spending half of it being frustrated. That being said, I’m curious to see how the series continues, and now that I know what to expect, I’m hopeful that I’ll enjoy the sequel more.

TWIN CROWNS had a lot of potential. We have two sisters separated at birth, witches, a brewing rebellion, betrayals, two romance stories. On paper, it has everything I need. Sadly, I think most of this potential went unused and I ended up being disappointed by this read.

 is an incredibly readable book. The authors’ writing styles were seamless, and flowed really well in a light, humorous way. I also enjoyed the characters for the most part, though I did find them to be too childish at times. The bond between Rose and Wren has ground to develop into a very cute sibling relationship, and some secondary characters could have interesting developments in the future.

My issue with the book though is that everything felt underdeveloped, resulting in a lack of tension in the plot and in the romances. Many of the scenes felt repetitive, with fun dialogues but no moments that propelled the plot forward. When such scenes were present, they were either stunted with conveniences or skipped altogether and “told”. This is a shame when the plot lends itself to a political intrigue, especially with Wren’s character who is a key player with the witches and the sister we see most at court. Instead, she simply takes over Rose’s life, but there were neither moments where I feared her true identity would be revealed, nor was she actively doing anything but waiting for her coronation. She goes through no character development, which made it hard for me to feel much for her. This is less true for Rose, but unfortunately most of her growth happens within a time jump, and we only see the end result.

Now, most of these plot grievances I could have overlooked if I’d gotten the fantasy rom-com I was promised. However, the romance doesn’t really pick up until much later in the story. Between the two pairings, I prefer Rose and Shen, but both suffer from lack of build-up and move from strangers to love too quickly for me to be invested.

 was average, and it’s a shame because it could have been incredible. It makes for a light read, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t enjoy YA reads that lean toward the younger side.

Chiara Vitale Zelaia

TWIN CROWNS had a lot of potential. We have two sisters separated at birth, witches, a brewing rebellion, betrayals, two romance stories. On paper, it has everything I need. Sadly, I think most of this potential went unused and I ended up being disappointed by this read.

Twin Crowns is an incredibly readable book. The authors’ writing styles were seamless, and flowed really well in a light, humorous way. I also enjoyed the characters for the most part, though I did find them to be too childish at times. The bond between Rose and Wren has ground to develop into a very cute sibling relationship, and some secondary characters could have interesting developments in the future.

My issue with the book though is that everything felt underdeveloped, resulting in a lack of tension in the plot and in the romances. Many of the scenes felt repetitive, with fun dialogues but no moments that propelled the plot forward. When such scenes were present, they were either stunted with conveniences or skipped altogether and “told”. This is a shame when the plot lends itself to a political intrigue, especially with Wren’s character who is a key player with the witches and the sister we see most at court. Instead, she simply takes over Rose’s life, but there were neither moments where I feared her true identity would be revealed, nor was she actively doing anything but waiting for her coronation. She goes through no character development, which made it hard for me to feel much for her. This is less true for Rose, but unfortunately most of her growth happens within a time jump, and we only see the end result.

Now, most of these plot grievances I could have overlooked if I’d gotten the fantasy rom-com I was promised. However, the romance doesn’t really pick up until much later in the story. Between the two pairings, I prefer Rose and Shen, but both suffer from lack of build-up and move from strangers to love too quickly for me to be invested.

Overall, Twin Crowns was average, and it’s a shame because it could have been incredible. It makes for a light read, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t enjoy YA reads that lean toward the younger side.

Kacy Rulison

Love the dual POV. Had several twists I didn't see coming. Some predictable plot lines. Hoping there are future books and there is spice introduced in them. Only thing this book was missing for me. Seems to be a slow burn but eager to see where the hopeful next book goes.

Marissa Donis

This book was a cute and quick paced story. I enjoyed it so much I read it in basically one sitting. 

I don’t want to get in to too much detail because it would provide spoilers for the book. 

However, if one horse trope, forbidden romance, and found family are some of your favorites this book is for you! 

Judging on how the book ended it seems to be the first book in a series so that will be exciting. No real spice in this book definitely more of a Young Adult book but a fun story none the less. 

The only reason I gave this 4 stars is because it was a bit predictable in parts of the story and there was some grammatical and spelling errors in my hardback copy but I still highly recommend this book and can’t wait to get into anymore books of these two sisters.

kendall p

SO CUTE - 
I loved this book. It had some of my favorite tropes - enemies to lovers, forced proximity, long lost princess like UGH 
it immediately jumps into action and we are beside the characters at every obstacle. 
the magic aspect, the world building, the comedy - it was so fun to read. it felt like a refreshing breath within the fantasy genre. 
the sisters are amazing. i love a strong fmc & that’s exactly what we got. 
the romance ughh - enemies, slow burn, romcom. it literally couldn’t get better. i loved seeing the romance grow and i thought it was paced out really well. 
the world is enchanting & sucked me right in. i loved every bit of detail we got. i felt like it was such a well thought out world with so many interesting parts. 
the back story to the witches and the lore of the land that we got added so much more to the story! 
i cant wait for book 2
- thank you harper collins for an ARC! release date : may 17th

even though this started off pretty slow and i thought i wouldn't enjoy it, it spun around at the halfway point and i actually liked it quite a bit. 

Tor and Elske were by far my favourite (despite how things ended with Tor) and Shen was so freaking great. i loved Wren's dry humour and her personality in general. 

the ending of this book was the best part of it and i won't even lie when i say that Ansel's death had me laughing (oops 😬🤣). 

anyways, another great book and i will for sure be buying the sequel!

hannah :)

even though this started off pretty slow and i thought i wouldn't enjoy it, it spun around at the halfway point and i actually liked it quite a bit. 

Tor and Elske were by far my favourite (despite how things ended with Tor) and Shen was so freaking great. i loved Wren's dry humour and her personality in general. 

the ending of this book was the best part of it and i won't even lie when i say that Ansel's death had me laughing (oops 😬🤣). 

anyways, another great book and i will for sure be buying the sequel!

Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle