pagesbycaroline's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Second read of this book. It's been long enough since I read it the first time that most everything was a surprise, which was delightful. There are many twists that I did not remember, so it was almost like reading it for the first time. I very much enjoy the dark nature of this story and cannot wait to continue reading the series. I remember in the beginning, Katharine was my favorite, but now I am leaning more towards Arsinoe.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Murder, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood, Torture, Sexual content, and Physical abuse
carissa0906's review against another edition
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Medical trauma, Violence, Animal cruelty, Blood, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Murder, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Physical abuse, Torture, and Vomit
thaliareads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I had a bit of trouble with this book, and I think I might have had trouble finishing it if I hadn't been listening to it. I like the concept, but had some trouble with the pacing and inconsistent order and switching of POVs. I don't think it necesarily detracted from the book on its own, but I think that personally it led to some difficulties.
I liked the concept and the characters. The plot progression was good, if a bit slow at times, but I kept loosing track of how close or far they were from different milestones they'd need to reach.
However, I think the last handful of chapters really brought this up a notch for me. I was sincerely excited to read the next book to see what happens, despite not really enjoying this book as much as some of my recent reads.
I liked the concept and the characters. The plot progression was good, if a bit slow at times, but I kept loosing track of how close or far they were from different milestones they'd need to reach.
However, I think the last handful of chapters really brought this up a notch for me. I was sincerely excited to read the next book to see what happens, despite not really enjoying this book as much as some of my recent reads.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence
This book doesn't spare any details. This won't be for you if you don't like wounds to be graphically described. Additionally, the self harm/torture and physical abuse all relates to the intentional and repeat poisoning of one character to develop their resistance. This is however out of a desire to live, not a desire to die.thatbookishwriter23's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Every generation, three triplets are born, each with different powers of their own and shipped off to foster families. Mirabella is the strongest with the power to control the weather and call lightning down from above. Katherine is poisoner, able to engulf the deadliest of poisons, but her gift is weak, leaving her to put on a facade. Arsinoe, a naturalist, with the ability to conjure any flower or plant in the palm of her hand, except she can't, she is giftless.
After their sixteenth birthday, the triplets are supposed to meet, see their suitor, prepare to fight each other to the death for the crown.
Who will win?
To be honest, y'all, I didn't expect to love this book. I mean, you see all these reviews about how slow the pacing is and it makes you want to turn the other way.
Well, don't.
Please, don't.
ITS TRUE WHAT THEY SAY, THE ENDING IS WORTH IT!
I was skeptical while reading this, and I was afraid I would have not been invested enough to enjoy the end, but all that faded away once the ending came. The drama builds up, the pacing speeds up, and the tension intensifies. I cannot tell y'all how much this is worth it. And this not just about three queens training to fighting to the death. Oh, no, no, no. There's betrayal, assassination attempts, love, secret schemes, and revenge! By far my favorite queen is Katherine, she is meek and abused but she never really loses hope. My least favorite is Mirabella. THEY NEED TO MAKE THIS A MOVIE, PLS!
AND I GET WHY EVERYONE HATES JOESPH NOW!
PROS
▪Great ending
▪Good characters
▪Sneaky schemes
▪Sisters!
▪Triplets
Cons
▪Extremely slow pacing
▪Instalove
▪Joseph (one of Arsinoe's friends)
▪Mirabella
I rate Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake four stars out of five.
After their sixteenth birthday, the triplets are supposed to meet, see their suitor, prepare to fight each other to the death for the crown.
Who will win?
To be honest, y'all, I didn't expect to love this book. I mean, you see all these reviews about how slow the pacing is and it makes you want to turn the other way.
Well, don't.
Please, don't.
ITS TRUE WHAT THEY SAY, THE ENDING IS WORTH IT!
I was skeptical while reading this, and I was afraid I would have not been invested enough to enjoy the end, but all that faded away once the ending came. The drama builds up, the pacing speeds up, and the tension intensifies. I cannot tell y'all how much this is worth it. And this not just about three queens training to fighting to the death. Oh, no, no, no. There's betrayal, assassination attempts, love, secret schemes, and revenge! By far my favorite queen is Katherine, she is meek and abused but she never really loses hope. My least favorite is Mirabella. THEY NEED TO MAKE THIS A MOVIE, PLS!
AND I GET WHY EVERYONE HATES JOESPH NOW!
PROS
▪Great ending
▪Good characters
▪Sneaky schemes
▪Sisters!
▪Triplets
Cons
▪Extremely slow pacing
▪Instalove
▪Joseph (one of Arsinoe's friends)
▪Mirabella
I rate Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake four stars out of five.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail and Violence
yuidf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death
emtees's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book because the premise makes it sound like part of that trend of YA fantasy with really gimmicky world-building. An island nation where the queen always gives birth to triplet girls with different powers, where the girls are raised to fight to the death for the right to be the next queen, only to give it all up after their own daughters are born? But Kendare Blake is really good at taking what should be contrived storyline and fleshing it out until it feels real and believable. Instead of questioning the way the world works (I still have a lot of questions, but I’m willing to be patient), you find yourself invested in the twisty politics, the rival factions and the misunderstandings and conflicts that lead to the climax of the story.
The book follows three royal sisters - Mirabella, Arsinoe and Katharine - who were split up as children and have been raised by rival foster families, each of which shares the girl’s magical gift. Mirabella is an elementalist, with control over natural forces, and the only one of the sisters who seems to be truly powerful. The favorite of the Temple, devotees of the Goddess whose influence has been fading in recent years, Mirabella is expected to be the winner in the upcoming battle to the death. But she is also the only one of the three girls who remembers their time together as children and the love they once shared, and she doesn’t want to kill anyone. Then there is Arsinoe, a fun-loving tomboy raised by the free-spirited and modest naturalists, who have power over the earth and animals. Arsinoe’s gift has never manifested, and despite her lighthearted attitude, she has lived her whole life in the shadow of her powerful foster-sister Jules (the fourth protagonist of the story and a great character in her own right) and knowing she was going to die. Finally there is Katharine, the sweetest of the sisters but also the only one who has been raised as an experienced killer. Katharine is a poisoner, but like Arsinoe, she hasn’t manifested a gift, and so her life has been a horror of trying to train her body to withstand the poisons that the people around her can touch and even eat without a problem. But despite the darkness of her environment, Katharine has a close relationship with her foster-mother Natalia, who has been ruling the country in all but name for a generation, and is the only one of the sisters who seems to truly want to win the throne.
The story begins with the girls’ sixteenth birthdays and covers a few months leading up to the moment when they are formally recognized as Queens and the Ascension Year - the time they have to kill each other - begins. It jumps back and forth between the three sisters in a way that keeps the plot moving quickly. I found the book hard to put down. While Arsinoe’s story was the most compelling, I didn’t really have a favorite sister; they were all interesting and sympathetic characters and I was always glad to catch up with one after a few chapters away from her. Their stories start out very separate, but as the book goes on the plot threads begin to weave together across the different storylines, giving the reader a better understanding of the situation than the characters themselves have. The two sections, covering the Beltane festival where the girls are finally brought together, are extremely tense and full of surprises, setting up the story well for the sequel.
The book follows three royal sisters - Mirabella, Arsinoe and Katharine - who were split up as children and have been raised by rival foster families, each of which shares the girl’s magical gift. Mirabella is an elementalist, with control over natural forces, and the only one of the sisters who seems to be truly powerful. The favorite of the Temple, devotees of the Goddess whose influence has been fading in recent years, Mirabella is expected to be the winner in the upcoming battle to the death. But she is also the only one of the three girls who remembers their time together as children and the love they once shared, and she doesn’t want to kill anyone. Then there is Arsinoe, a fun-loving tomboy raised by the free-spirited and modest naturalists, who have power over the earth and animals. Arsinoe’s gift has never manifested, and despite her lighthearted attitude, she has lived her whole life in the shadow of her powerful foster-sister Jules (the fourth protagonist of the story and a great character in her own right) and knowing she was going to die. Finally there is Katharine, the sweetest of the sisters but also the only one who has been raised as an experienced killer. Katharine is a poisoner, but like Arsinoe, she hasn’t manifested a gift, and so her life has been a horror of trying to train her body to withstand the poisons that the people around her can touch and even eat without a problem. But despite the darkness of her environment, Katharine has a close relationship with her foster-mother Natalia, who has been ruling the country in all but name for a generation, and is the only one of the sisters who seems to truly want to win the throne.
The story begins with the girls’ sixteenth birthdays and covers a few months leading up to the moment when they are formally recognized as Queens and the Ascension Year - the time they have to kill each other - begins. It jumps back and forth between the three sisters in a way that keeps the plot moving quickly. I found the book hard to put down. While Arsinoe’s story was the most compelling, I didn’t really have a favorite sister; they were all interesting and sympathetic characters and I was always glad to catch up with one after a few chapters away from her. Their stories start out very separate, but as the book goes on the plot threads begin to weave together across the different storylines, giving the reader a better understanding of the situation than the characters themselves have. The two sections, covering the Beltane festival where the girls are finally brought together, are extremely tense and full of surprises, setting up the story well for the sequel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Vomit and Injury/Injury detail
catherinedsharp's review
This just wasn’t the book for me. I bought it years ago as a teenager and haven’t read it. The blurb is misleading in my opinion of what the text is, and there is very brutal treatment of characters done ‘out of love’ which just does not agree with me.
This fantasy is an interesting premise but the cruelty it shows in comparison to the YA style of writing, just didn’t agree with me.
This fantasy is an interesting premise but the cruelty it shows in comparison to the YA style of writing, just didn’t agree with me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Emotional abuse
em_davies7019's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Blood, Infidelity, Animal death, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Vomit, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, and Gore
Minor: Sexual content and Confinement
anastasiamakes's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I was expecting this book to be very Hunger Games / Battle Royale-y but it actually focused a lot more on the characters, their relationships, and the politics of their world. A dark romp with strong female characters throughout and some good twists. Enjoyed it more than I expected!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Vomit, and Blood
Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Torture, and Violence
rinku's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Three Dark Crowns had so many things I love to see in YA fantasy: a predominantly female cast, main characters that have different world views, and a story with a political dimension. If it wasn’t for the flat romances, this would’ve been the perfect book for me.
I loved the general premise of this novel so much: the three sisters Katharine, Arsinoe and Mirabella have grown up in different families and cultures on the island Fernbirn and now have to kill each other to determine who the new queen of the island will be. Those three families include the poisoners, the elementals and the naturalists, each with their own abilities.
The whole story and the politics of the world are so intriguing. Yes, the story is slow, but I didn’t mind it. By this, we could get to know the characters and the different political groups better. I just love to see how different the lives of the three sisters are and how they and their family dealt with the situation. Furthermore, thanks to the third person view, we get more insight in what is happening around the sisters and other characters which I enjoyed so much. The settings of the story were great as well.
Just during this first book, the sisters develop so much in different ways, and I can’t wait where the series will take their characters: .
Spoiler
Mirabella trying to escape (and failing) was so dramatic. It was even more dramatic when Arsinoe tried the same and failed as well (which was a bit tiring tbh) and Mirabella saved her from being executed – this was Mira’s defining moment in this book. At the end, Katharine gets thrown in a gorge, but she survives it. Her returning was such a creepy and well-written momentI also really liked all the characters. From the sisters, I was rooting the most for Arsinoe, then Mirabella and Katharine but I would like to see them all winning. It was so interesting to see how different the sisters see specific people and how some people seemingly randomly meet each other. The thing I liked the least about this book though was the romance. Literally every girl had an insta love which was so annoying. Additionally, the guys are also all so jealous and one of them is a cheater; the only one I liked was maybe Billy.
Nevertheless, Three Dark Crowns was a great novel and I’m excited to see how the series will continue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Infidelity
Moderate: Violence and Sexual content