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A review by reginacattus
Queen of Coin and Whispers by Helen Corcoran
4.0
*Firstly, thank you to the O'Brien Press for the free ARC in exchange for this honest review - I was so excited to receive it!*
My goodness does this book bode well for the future! That Corcoran felt able to write this book, and furthermore that she has managed to get it published, makes me incredibly happy.
When I first started reading this book, if I hadn't really read the blurb I probably would have assumed that it was going to be Lia & Xania fighting over their mutual friend Matthias. But this is of course riotously incorrect, as all three are very much gay and it is magnificent. This is one of the first YA fantasy books I've read with fully realised LGBTQ+ protagonists, and it was an utter pleasure to read. Importantly, though, their sexuality isn't the sole thing driving the plot. Obviously, their love story is beautiful and very much gets told, but in this fantasy world, homosexuality in itself is a non-problem. An issue lies in producing an heir, sure, but that's pretty much it. The rest of the romantic tension lies more in the class divide between them.
I also loved the matter-of-fact presence of matriarchal neighbouring countries, and the understated prevalence of female characters in positions of power, but also those who have chosen to be mothers predominantly etc. There are also a good cast of male characters, such as Matthias but equally Xania's stepfather, with whom she (shock-horror) has a pretty positive relationship.
The characters are well-realised for the most part, though I would have liked to see more of Matthias, especially since he is pretty much the best friend to both protagonists. Naturally, they each have their weaknesses and imperfections, but that's what helps to make a character real. Thankfully, none of them were obnoxious to the point of making it annoying to read, though of course when the protagonists did something stupid I was silent-screaming (but tbh that's just a sign of a good book; you're invested enough to scream).
My only slight complaint was the slightly time jumps and prolonged periods of only Xania's POV towards the end - up until then, the pacing was so wonderfully tense I lost more sleep than advisable. I think it might have been possible to achieve the same level of tension while maintaining the ...X-L-X-L-X-L... chapter pattern from the rest of the book, and without giving too much away, but I do largely understand Corcoran's choices there.
This book has a similar feel to a lot of YA fantasy books (Throne of Glass comes to mind), filled with angst, knives, poison, books, assassins, secrets and passionate kissing. But at the same time there's plenty that kept me guessing, the fact it's not part of some long tiring series, and of course the LGBTQ+ inclusion, sets it well apart from other books of that ilk. So, if you're down for some kick-ass female characters, plenty of wholesome (and some villainous) men, thrilling action scenes, heart-wrenching tension, and some well-founded angst, this should 100% go on your 2020 to-read list!
My goodness does this book bode well for the future! That Corcoran felt able to write this book, and furthermore that she has managed to get it published, makes me incredibly happy.
When I first started reading this book, if I hadn't really read the blurb I probably would have assumed that it was going to be Lia & Xania fighting over their mutual friend Matthias. But this is of course riotously incorrect, as all three are very much gay and it is magnificent. This is one of the first YA fantasy books I've read with fully realised LGBTQ+ protagonists, and it was an utter pleasure to read. Importantly, though, their sexuality isn't the sole thing driving the plot. Obviously, their love story is beautiful and very much gets told, but in this fantasy world, homosexuality in itself is a non-problem. An issue lies in producing an heir, sure, but that's pretty much it. The rest of the romantic tension lies more in the class divide between them.
I also loved the matter-of-fact presence of matriarchal neighbouring countries, and the understated prevalence of female characters in positions of power, but also those who have chosen to be mothers predominantly etc. There are also a good cast of male characters, such as Matthias but equally Xania's stepfather, with whom she (shock-horror) has a pretty positive relationship.
The characters are well-realised for the most part, though I would have liked to see more of Matthias, especially since he is pretty much the best friend to both protagonists. Naturally, they each have their weaknesses and imperfections, but that's what helps to make a character real. Thankfully, none of them were obnoxious to the point of making it annoying to read, though of course when the protagonists did something stupid I was silent-screaming (but tbh that's just a sign of a good book; you're invested enough to scream).
My only slight complaint was the slightly time jumps and prolonged periods of only Xania's POV towards the end - up until then, the pacing was so wonderfully tense I lost more sleep than advisable. I think it might have been possible to achieve the same level of tension while maintaining the ...X-L-X-L-X-L... chapter pattern from the rest of the book, and without giving too much away, but I do largely understand Corcoran's choices there.
This book has a similar feel to a lot of YA fantasy books (Throne of Glass comes to mind), filled with angst, knives, poison, books, assassins, secrets and passionate kissing. But at the same time there's plenty that kept me guessing, the fact it's not part of some long tiring series, and of course the LGBTQ+ inclusion, sets it well apart from other books of that ilk. So, if you're down for some kick-ass female characters, plenty of wholesome (and some villainous) men, thrilling action scenes, heart-wrenching tension, and some well-founded angst, this should 100% go on your 2020 to-read list!