The Queen’s Huntsman by Tanya Anne Crosby – Book Review

Mar 19

3 min read

The Queen's Huntsman by Tanya Anne Crosby Book Cover

Book Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Series: The Goldenchild Prophecy (Book 2)

Genre: New Adult Historical Fantasy

Spice: Medium

Summary:

Princess Gwendolyn believed that marrying Locrinus and uniting the Dragon Banners would fulfill the prophecy given to her at birth that would save her people. But Locrinus turned out to be a snake instead of a dragon. In what her people call the Feast of Blades, after Loc and Gwen were married, and he whisked her away, his soldiers cruelly slaughtered both their fathers to usher Loc into power. Since, Gwen has been confined, essentially a prisoner, to a simple room in Loc’s stronghold. Luckily Loc doesn’t seem interested in consummating their marriage, but she is visited by Loc’s mistress who has taken to wearing Gwen’s wedding gifts to taunt her. Gwen is also left pining for her former protector, Málik, who she’s had complicated feelings for since he kissed her then abandoned her to her ill-fated marriage. Gwen would try to escape, but her best friends Bryn and Ely are kept close by Loc’s mother, the calculating Queen Innogen, and Gwen will not abandon them. In the treacherous Loegrian court, Gwen will have to gather her strength to have any hope of escaping or saving her people.

Reaction:

I thought this book was a great second effort for the series. It had a lot of what I enjoyed about the first book, and I thought the FMC, Gwen, was much less annoying. She is more thoughtful in her actions and gains new self-awareness. I found it easier to relate to her as she had to endure real adversity and take ownership of her decisions. In a transparent example of character development where she did not consider her actions’ impact on her friends in book one, they are her top concern, even over her people at large, in this book. The book continues to build on the fantastical elements introduced in the first installment. I enjoyed those elements of the story, and how they contributed to the plot and relationships of the characters. For me the story does take a while to develop but leads to a great ending with high stakes. Like the first book, the thing that ultimately keeps me engaged in the story are the complicated relationships between the various characters. Overall, I enjoyed The Queen’s Huntsman and have already started the next book in the series.

What I enjoyed:

· This book introduces some new vibrant characters that injected new life into the story for me. All the characters that come to mind are a bit mysterious in their motivations, and Gwen oscillates between considering them friend, foe, or rival.

· An often-used theme in literature, Gwen’s hair is used as a symbol of her power throughout this book. The prophecy of Gwen’s golden hair plays into this theme beautifully, and like any woman liberating herself from a toxic man, Gwen will use the symbolism of cutting her hair to take back control of her destiny.

· One thing that is evident to me from these two books is that the author, Crosby, knows how to write a great ending. Again, I devoured the last quarter of this book – it was packed with action, tension, and both resolved and created mysteries to be explored further in the next installment.

What I didn't enjoy: