A review by sophiesmallhands
The Winter Duke by Claire Eliza Bartlett

emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

 I’ll be the first to admit this was a total impulse, cover-buy! A sapphic re-telling of The Goblin Emperor? Yes please! 
 
But while the story was set up with political tension, a unique magic system and a fantastic love interest; it was let down by a slightly flat (and dare I say it, whiny) protagonist and an over excess of slightly dry politics that threatened to eclipse the tension of the plot. 
 
Although, the highlights were the queer-normative society in the book. No-one is assumed to be completely straight and there are non-binary characters with “they/them” pronouns that no-one questions. In addition, the titles in the book are not gendered at all which was totally refreshing. I really would’ve liked to have the relationship between Ekata and Inkar better fleshed out but since the entire plot takes place over 6 days, this didn’t really happen! 
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