I absolutely love these books. Blair is a fantastic writer. She is weaving an engaging story with traditional fantasy characters seen in new lights. I am completely hooked and eagerly anticipating the next book. The characters are well written though I will say Damien is definitely one sided. I also greatly appreciate the way the mystery is being revealed slowly to the readers. Definitely a fun read.

In this sequel, there is an exploration of themes such as power, darkness, and the blurred lines between good and evil. The novel raises thought-provoking questions about the human condition, as the characters grapple with their own inner demons and confront the consequences of their choices. This is a book that will appeal to fans of dark fantasy and suspense. The pacing is well-maintained throughout the story, ensuring that the tension never wavers, and the surprises keep coming. With its richly developed characters, atmospheric settings, and intricate plot, this book holds readers spellbound from beginning to end.

A Shadow Crown is the riveting sequel to a Broken Blade by Melissa Blair. I jumped onto the Broken Blade train a bit late but I loved the first book in the Halfling Saga nonetheless and was very excited to read the second! And can we talk about the cover(?!) for this book! Its so beautiful!

This sequel picks up directly (and I mean directly) after the last page of A Broken Blade. I loved how the book started and how we got answers to some things quickly.

This book also expanded the series in a beautiful way. I loved the new settings, characters and lore that was introduced. Especially with the new setting of Myrelinth - it was described in a breathtaking manner! The intricacies were very cool to read about. I could practically imagine myself there in the trees with Keera and the gang!

I also felt like we got to learn a lot more about Keera herself in this novel and I loved that! Rather it was her backstory or her personality, I loved being in her head! And don’t even get me started on her and Riven…! I could talk for hours on how much I love their relationship.

The plot also took surprising twists and turns that I definitely wasn’t expecting! And then the ending of the novel was suspenseful and jaw dropping! It just left me aching for the next one! (which is going to be such a long wait - I don’t know how I will manage!!)

I definitely recommend all lovers of A Broken Blade to check out its sequel, A Shadow Crown. If you haven’t checked out the first book (I’m not sure why you’re reading this review…but to each their own…) I definitely recommend if you love all out favorite booktok tropes of fae, magic and spice!

Thank you to TBR and Beyond Tours and the publisher for a copy of this novel and A Broken Blade. All thoughts and opinions contained within this review are my own.

This was a great follow-up to A Broken Blade, and I devoured this book the minute I got the ARC. I cannot wait to see where the author goes with the story, as well as what they might do outside of this story in the future. Can't wait to see what they come up with next!

When I say I was excited that I was approved for an Arc of this book from Netgalley, I’m not lying. I absolutely loved A Broken Blade, and I could not wait to jump back into The Halfling Saga world!

In the second book, we continue following Keera, who is basically an assassin for the king. There is mystery, a lot of sneaking around, and death. That ending had me shook! Plus all the representation with LGBTQIA+, disability, and consent! Love to see the Indigenous culture nods throughout the series too!

A great sequel and continuation of this fantasy series with some twists I didn’t see coming! It’s great to have a MC that is actually mature and understands people’s rational for keeping secrets instead of being hurt and refusing to move past it. Some points were predictable, but a lot of stuff tied into the past book well and I definitely found myself immersed in the world and caring about all of the characters. I’m a bit worried that there are hints a love triangle is forming, which I’m not a fan of, but I’m definitely looking forward to the next book, and to learn if all of the characters are ok!

Thank you, NetGalley and Union Square & Co!
I absolutely loved the first book, and I loved the second book as well. This is an extremely strong continuation of the series, and I can't wait for the next book. With every book, Blair gets stronger as a writer and more confident, and I am so excited to see where the series goes from here. Especially with the ending of A Broken Blade, I think this did a great job of building on the emotions the first one invoked and setting the stage for later in the series.

“War had not even begun and the kingdom had already taken enough to haunt me well after my body was in the ground."

Whenever I love book 1 of a series, I'm always a little hesitant about book 2 because I'm worried about being let down. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE!

“Don’t let a moment of fear and grief convince you that’s all your life is made for."

This book was just as magical, just as driven, just as emotional as book 1. We start off right where book 1 ended, with the secret everyone had been keeping from Keera - <spoiler>that Killian was leading them - and punching him in the face. Which he deserved!</spoiler> What was also deserved was when we finally see Riven again and Keera shoots an arrow at his face, I almost died LMFAO.

“Nikolai was too preoccupied waving at the group to notice what my rage had set into motion. I pulled my bow free in one smooth movement, my arm already reaching back for an arrow…I nocked an arrow and aimed it at Riven’s head. His violet gaze locked on mw with magnetic focus. I took a deep breath, ignoring the scent of birchwood and dew that filled the air, and let my arrow fly."

Poor Keera can’t catch a break from heartbreak and betrayal. I think I was more upset at that than she was, considering she, in the end, understood why everyone kept the secret from her.

"<i>I sat along the edge of the island—my feet dangling off the cliff— as I stared into the abyss below, willing myself to jump into the sharp shards of rock that pierced through the violent sea.</i>"

There’s not much I can actually say without spoiling a bunch, and my love for this book can mostly be described as “vibes” - and I may have taken too long to write this *oops*

“My fears do not outweigh the needs of war, Riven. Nor your pain. We will be asked to endure both in the days to come.”

The twists and reveals that come along, most I didn’t see coming, and some heartbreaking ones I did.

Did I mention this book was emotional and heartbreaking and amazing?? I don’t think I did.

“It’s easier for those of us who lived in the kingdom to see the difference between the true monsters and those who must wear the mask of one.”

If you like:

🗡️ Enemies to Lovers
🗡️Some spicy spice
🗡️Bound Hands and Neck Grasping
🗡️ Emotional Damage to your heart
🗡️Character growth
🗡️Found Family
🗡️ Morally grey-ness

"She understood sometimes the pain was so bad that chasing an escape was worth everything, even our life."

This novel really surprised me. I loved A Broken Blade but I wasn't sure where the story line was headed. Once again the world building was beautifully done. The magic system while a small part of the story is complex and interesting. I really enjoy Keera, I like that she is fighting her own demons in the story as well as trying to move forward with her life. I love that she does her best to honor those that she has wronged and tried to make some amends. The story of her lineage is so interesting and complex and I was really excited to finally get the answers as to what and who she is. I still absolutely love the side cast and Riven is definitely the brooding male we all need. This series is the new epic fantasy we all need!

this is the sequel to A Broken Blade, which I read last year and looooved so much. it gave me such ToG vibes. this one unfortunately had real second book syndrome. it felt like a whole lot of nothing happened, characters fell flat, things happened that made no sense. this entire book the characters knew there was a mole/traitor in their group but made absolutely no effort to figure out who it was, and every time something happened where it was clear they were betrayed it was just like “aw, man! that pesky mole again! oh well, moving right along” 🙄🙄🙄

A review will be published to Tiktok under @Brwnskinnedreader. and on Instagram, Goodreads and Story graph under @brownskinnedreader.

Melissa Blair is officially one of my new favorite authors. I was in a Fantasy slump since November and her books pulled me right out of it. I was approved to read the ARC of A Shadow Crown through NetGalley. I was so excited since A Broken Blade was on my TBR, so I saved it to read back to back.

Now let's talk about A Shadow Crown! This book put me though multiple emotions! At the end of A Broken Blade I was pretty upset about the betrayal of the few people Keera had learned to trust and thought of as friends. I was also irritated with Keera at times in the first book, but I grew to love and feel for her in A Broken Blade. Growing up not knowing anything about your kind or who you are can be difficult. I love how this book showed Keera healing from the struggles and pain that she had suffered through over the years. This book walks her through the journeys of finding love again, trusting people to help and finding a place she could call home. Although she may still be hard headed (she really don't think before she does anything), she experienced a lot of growth in this book. One of my favorite parts in the book is her loyalty and love for Nicolai. I won't give you spoiler but their friendship was solidified in this book thanks to Keera.

I am so ready to read the next book in this series! Although if I knew it was going to be a third book I may have waited to read the others! Now I have to wait wondering what will happen next.

I enjoyed the first book in this series so I was looking forward to the second. I know that the author is relatively new to the fantasy genre so I tried to temper my expectations based on that . Although the world building was decent in the first book, I felt it was a bit lacking in this one. The pace felt very "hurry up and wait" with the majority of the action happing in the last few pages. I also wanted more in the character development department. There was a lot of unexplained absences when it came to the characters whereabouts which I wasn't sure was intentional for the plot or if it was just easier with a large cast of characters. I'm interested to see where the series goes, but I'm hoping for some improvement.

The Shadow Crown picks right up where A Broken Blade ends, Keera has just learned that things are not as she knew them and she is caught off guard. Keera continues to be the character we know and love. Fierce, loyal, determined, and so strong. She discovers a lot more about herself in this book and I loved learning more about her history and the history of the Fae and Elverin. I loved the continued build between her and Riven and enjoyed more character development with Nikolai as well. Such a thrilling read! I loved every page.

I was just coming out of a reading slump when I started this book, so it was slow going at first, but once I got into it, I could hardly put it down. I loved the world-building in this book. I do think there were some pacing issues, especially if you are comparing it to the action-packed first book, but I still really enjoyed it overall. There was a lot of plotting, introspection, healing, and character development. A lot of questions left over from the first book were answered, and at the end of the book my only question was, "What comes next, though?"
There are obviously going to be twists to the story, and while a couple of them seemed obvious to me from the start, there were also some that I had no idea were coming and really surprised me. I will definitely be buying a hardcopy to reread and display on my bookshelf, and I'll be recommending this to others. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Union Square & Co for the opportunity to read this e-arc.

A fantastic second installment in the Halfling Saga, A SHADOW CROWN continues Keera’s story as both King’s Assassin and as a double agent working towards the Revolution which will hopefully bring about fair treatment of elves and halflings. Add to that, she’s also working through her own personal demons, and she’s definitely juggling a lot this time around. There’s no room for error as the stakes are much higher than they were previously.⁣
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Where book 1 had a lot of action and adventure, this second installment is all about intel gathering, political moves, and plotting and planning,. The pacing this time around was much slower than book 1, but that can attributed to the aforementioned political moves and schemes, all of which require time and patience This one focuses a bit more on the characters and their relationships with one another, which I really appreciated. I adore found families and this series has one of my newest favorites. ⁣
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Bottom line — this series is fantastic. Diverse characters who are flawed and relatable, a hint of romance, and a a fantastic storyline centering around oppression, inequality, and the mistreatment of peoples deemed lesser. This series has quickly grown to become my favorite, and I can’t wait for the next one. 4.5 stars.

"A Shadow Crown" is the sequel to Broken Blade, and continues to follow Keera as the King's assassin. She works as a double agent trying to win over the rebellion. Which is difficult, because they suspect she is the leak to the enemy. She is faced with proving her evidence.
The second book continues to explore genocide and racism, and contains tropes that we all know and love. Blair does a great job of continuing to build the amazing world building from the first book. I think one of the best parts of both books is the amazing setting and how Keera has to deal with her addiction.
The supporting characters really make this a book that I would recommend to others.

A Shadow Crown is a sequel committed to character development. I loved being able to witness Keera navigate loyalty and trust. Not only does she have her own reservations, but she has to figure out these new alliances. A Shadow Crown pokes at Keera's past and how she deals with and explores her mistakes. The ways she has been forced to compromise to survive. It is a surprisingly tender sequel with unexpected friendships and truly charming moments.

Keera has to figure out her own powers and while this may not be an extremely action packed quest, it ended up being an element that I loved. The past can cause memories and grief, but it can also cause joy and discovery. Seeing her navigate these new abilities and also wonder where they, and she, came from resonated with me. Throughout Blair also explores this idea of protection. Of allowing people to make their own decisions, while also wanting to protect them

I was first introduced to Keera and the world of Melissa Blair’s Halfling Saga last year when I received a special edition of A Broken Blade from The Bookish Box. Having just gotten back into reading thanks to the works of Sarah J. Maas, it wasn’t difficult for me to get lost in the romance and lore Blair creates in her writing. I loved every moment of the first book and could not wait for A Shadow Crown to be released.

I was not disappointed. The story continues exactly where A Broken Blade leaves off with quite the opening scene. From there we are swept back into a world where mortals led by an evil king rule over halflings while the Dark Fae and Elves remain in the Faeland. The plot moves along quickly, building on what was established in the first book, and will keep you guessing as to whom Keera can trust until the very end. It is an exciting read with everything a fantasy reader could hope for, and beautifully sets up what is to come in the next installment.

Blair’s writing is descriptive yet easy to follow. She paints vivid images of the settings and characters without slowing down the pacing of the book. I also love how the chapters are a perfect length for those of us who stay up late claiming we’ll read ‘just one more chapter.’

She also handles the romance aspect of the story well, finding a good balance between describing the intimate moments Keera has with her love interest Nothing in the descriptions is gratuitous, making it suitable for mature teens who have read books like The Throne of Glass series or even the first few books of ACOTAR. Finding a way to portray those moments without turning it into smut is such a fine line, and this book is a wonderful example of how to keep a book appropriate for a wide variety of readers.

The characters in the book are incredibly diverse in nearly every sense of the word. I love that not only does Blair continue to the LBGTQ+ and BIPOC communities, but there were characters who used sign language and characters who were disabled. It’s so refreshing to see such a realistic and wide variety of characters in fantasy fiction.

Keera, the main character, continues to be one of my favorite characters. She has done horrible things in her past while still trying to save as many of her people as she could from the king. Despite her training and the things she has done and experienced, she has a heart and she fights throughout the book to always make the right choice. She continues to be an endearing and heartbreaking character whose story I will gladly continue to follow to its conclusion.

This book is a 5 out 5 for me and I would give it a 2 out 5 for spice. I can not recommend this series. It is beautifully written with amazing characters and if you love fantasy this is one you must check out.

Thank Union Square & Co and Netgalley for the arc!

I was pleasantly surprised by the first book in this series, which I read in order to get to and finish this sequel! The story starts right where the first book left off and (without giving spoilers) dives head first back into the action and politics set in in the first book.

I definitely enjoyed the first half of this book better than I did the first book (which I found was a bit slow initially) and I found that Blair was better at developing the background of the fantasy world a bit more in this second book. I also still enjoy our main character Keera and the journey she goes on to discover her past.

While the world building is better in this book it is by no means perfect and I am still confused about the longevity of everyone’s life and the difference between elves and fae. I also found that the story slows right down in the middle up until the final few pages. While I did enjoy the ending (another cliffhanger, so I really feel like I need to pick up the third book) the mid-point of this book is very repetitive. There’s only so many times the Elverin can distrust Keera and mistreat her and Keera in turn hides things from them to cause them to distrust her before it starts to get a bit dull.

I will say I really enjoyed Killian as a character - maybe a bit too much. It’s so clear he’s a secondary love interest who is never going to replace Riven. And plus theres the whole “fated mates” trope which I hate as a trope and also hate because I actually like Killian and think he and Keera have an interesting dynamic.

I’m intrigued enough by the ending to keep reading this series, but I hope the third one has a bit more action and a bit less repetition. If the next book could be like the first half of this one it would be great!

This series gets better with what feels like every PAGE, I swear!

I absolutely devoured this book. I binged the first book right beforehand, and it was so many things that I feel like I have been looking for for a LONG time in a fantasy series. We've got a high fantasy world with elves, dark and light fae, halflings, forest monsters, a long-powerful evil king, an assassin hidden beneath shadows. There is truly SO much to love, & Melissa Blair excels at including many different races & cultures as well as queer representation to a level I don't feel I see very often in similar fiction. I adore the fact that Keera is flawed, she makes mistakes, she is recovering from harmful alcohol use, & she is experiencing a very realistic expression of trauma that she has been spending her life running from. The oppression of the elves & halflings in this world is explored so fully, and it leaves the reader feeling a deep sense of how sinister and threatening everything is.

In book one, we got to scratch the surface of the history, magic, and lore of this world, but book two took a DEEP dive and I loved every moment of it. It feels like every chapter introduced a new and exciting fantasy detail, and the magical forest backdrop of the Faeland that we got to explore in this book was SO picturesque and enchanting, I truly felt like I could see every detail in my mind because of Blair's excellent description and imagery. We also got to dive deeper into Keera's past, which was so heart wrenching & raw, both the parts she remembers but we hadn't heard about as well as her exploration of the memories she has lost. This all intermingles with the lore of the world fantastically, & firmly cemented Melissa Blair as a master at world building for me.

I feel like I could go on for ages, but I will end saying: if you've been chasing the high from Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas or Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent, make this the next fantasy series you pick up. The Halfling Saga carries a similar sense of threat & danger, and the gradual & organic world building never feels overwhelming or confusing. Melissa Blair's talent is remarkable, and you can tell she wrote this series for the bookstagram & booktok community because she worked to include lots of things we love, while still presenting something fresh & exciting that we haven't read before. Thank you SO much to Union Square & Co and NetGalley for the eArc of this title!