This was a very well written fantasy novel that was easy to follow. I had wonderful world building, while also having great character development.

The book was slow on the uptake but I am glad I stuck with it because the ending was oh so satisfying. I loved the main character, Princess Kateri, who had to fight her way to proving she is not weak and that she can indeed rule the desert.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a solid fantasy read with a strong female lead and who loves desert settings.

I am such a huge fan of the inspiration for this book, and while I don't believe that this really holds a candle to that source material, I still think it was an entertaining romp. I'd be willing to try other books by this author in the future.

I gave this a four out of five stars. I really enjoyed this book so much. I enjoyed the story and the characters. I would be down if there was more books in this world!

I really wanted to like this book because it was a retelling of “The Lady or The Tiger”. “The Lady and the Tiger had always intrigued me because it made me wonder which one she would choose. Thus, I did not think that this retelling justice to the classic short story. This story was very predictable and had no character development. The plot often went astray from the original short story that I wondered if I was reading a retelling or an original story. Thus, I would have liked it better if it was an original story rather than a retelling because it was not a faithful adaptation.

This book had such a fascinating premise and atmosphere! The main character was a strong role model but I would have liked to have seen her to be more human and to find out more about different relationships between the characters.

This was such a fantastically written book! Annie did a great job at describing the scenes with such detail that you actually felt as if you were in the story. You were right there alongside the characters as they trudged through the desert and yearned for just a drop of water.

The author was able to evoke a spectrum of emotions, from sadness to happiness and overall joy, all with the wonderful writing and explicit detail she was able to incorporate throughout the entire story.

There was no lack of character development and I did not end the book feeling as if I had any unanswered questions about the characters, why they did what they did, or where they came from. There was such rich depth to each character they felt real!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

You guys know that I can't resist a retelling! Tiger Queen, written by Annie Sullivan, retells Frank Stockton's The Lady or the Tiger?

Due to ancient law, Princess Kateri must battle in the arena to take up the mantle and rule like her family before her. As much as Kateri wants to rule, and more than that – protect her people, Kateri knows she cannot win.

So she makes a deal with the devil. It'd be more accurate to say that she's about to make a deal with somebody she never dreamed of working with, but the desert is the only one providing a solution to the predicament she's in.

"I would be the desert's justice, mightier than any tiger."

I went into Tiger Queen with such high hopes – the cover, the description, the promise! It's all there, and it was more than enough to get me really excited to see what Anne Sullivan had created here.

Maybe it wasn't entirely fair of me to have gotten too amped up, though, as ultimately, I did find myself to be more than a little disappointed. The feminist themes that I thought would be dominant here (titles like Tiger Queen and the promises of a woman doing what it takes to protect her people)... wasn't as strong as I had hoped.

I think what disappointed me the most is Kateri's sincere belief that she couldn't handle this situation independently. More than that, she didn't believe she could do it without breaking the rules that her people have come to rely on...which felt kind of problematic.

Overall, this was a decent read. Not what I hoped it would be, but still something capable of holding my attention.

Tiger Queen tells the story of Kateri, who is a desert princess trying to fight for her place in her kingdom. In this story women can only inherit the Throne by physically fighting for it and proving themselves worthy. She fights for her Throne and her people who are suffering due to a long lasting drought which has been made even worse by the water thieves known as the Desert Boys.
This was a wonderful and empowering story that teaches us to question stories and find strength in ourselves while recognizing our own limits. I loved the pace of the story and the characters. The best characters are young, hopeful, and full of life when it is constantly being threatened.

I really wanted to like this book but it was just meh for me. I think the dialogue could use some work and that’s why I struggled with it. However, there is a sand dance scene that was beautiful. I felt it and I could almost see it clearly in my head. The climax was also great. I was worried about the main character and her love interest. I was excited to see how it would end. If the rest of the book was more like those two scenes with stronger dialogue this could have easily been a 5 star read. But we will give it a 3.

Thank you NetGalley for this ebook!

Tiger Queen touches on some really relevant issues like how water scarcity in the future can really fuel terrible leaders ready to take advantage of that. I really liked how Latia was portrayed, but found the dance scene really weird. It's a decent read and I'd like to see more by this author!

I actually enjoyed this book a lot--totally here for all the Aladdin feels! The romance was sweet and I liked the characters and the world-building was wonderful. Also, the fire dancers element was gorgeous.

While the book was very enjoyable, I think it missed that little extra *something* to take it over the top. Honestly, a solid YA fantasy read though, with a very unique "fairytale" basis.

I will note that I went into this book thinking it was from a Christian publisher, so I was a bit off-put by the fact that they essentially worship the desert.

This title has adventure with a splash of romance. Kateri is worried about pleasing her father and rising to the status of queen despite tradition. Her journey to the truth is aided by first vengeance and then friendship with a group called the Desert Boys. Tigers are in the story, but are not center stage. The story has action, fight scenes, and a message about prejudice and corrupting power. Recommended for older preteens to young adults. I mainly listened to the finished audiobook of this title.

Thank you to Blink and NetGalley for the e-galley. My reviews and opinions are my own.

Kateri is the crown princess of a desert kingdom that is ravaged by a severe drought, worsened by the Desert Boys who steal what little water there is for themselves. Before being forced to wed her worst nightmare, Kateri runs off to the desert to seek out the Desert Boys' leader, Cion, who is her only hope to escape this union.

The plot is pretty standard: the princess runs away from home to meet a rebel leader and learns the truth behind her people's suffering before coming back to reclaim her throne and become a better leader. Oh, and of course she falls in love with the rebel leader, who also happens to be the first cute boy she's ever met. The secret lies in the execution of this plot. Sullivan did a good job in creating a sense of camaraderie within the Desert Boys, and I appreciate the fact that the romance wasn't entirely instalove (even if it was rather quick nevertheless). Kateri's personal journey was interesting to follow as she learned to un-repress her emotions and open up to people. I thought it was sweet that she was able to discover the true meaning of family outside of the lonely existence that she had under her father's thumb. That being said, I was never at all worried about any stakes, because every plot point was predictable. I also dislike the little red herring thrown in at the end; unnecessary misunderstandings are the bane of my existence.

Another thing I noticed was that this book is certainly not OwnVoices. I don't mean to gatekeep writers, but a lot of the naming conventions and worldbuilding felt dissonant as a result. For instance, the heroine is the descendant of a hero named Tamlin (Yes, the same Tamlin from ACOTAR and from the Scottish ballad Tam Lin), the main love interest's name is Cion, the big bad's name is Rodric, etc. When I think about other books that are set in a fantasy desert kingdom, they are able to pepper the worldbuilding with an added element of richness. In this book, the characters live in a desert kingdom but wear strappy gladiator sandals (that's how you get sand in your toes and sunburns on your legs). That being said, I did appreciate that there was still a fair amount of thought put into the worldbuilding, like having beetle dye (aka carmine) that went out of style because water became scarce and how intricate sand dancing was.

No tea no shade, but god, I hate sand now. This book is all about sand, and it made my eyes itch every time someone had sand thrown in their face. Kudos to the author, in that sense! The imagery certainly translated.

This book was a very average, predictable YA story. The main character is a princess with the sole goal to train to be a strong warrior worthy of ruling her kingdom, which is a desert empire plagued with drought and the "Desert Boys" who steal more than their share of the scarce water.

Weirdly, despite life-long training, she doesn't fare very well with her combat and is basically forced into marriage by her uncaring father (who she inexplicably cares for deeply), since she is unworthy. Then, she runs off for help from the hated "Desert Boys", who, of course, are not so bad after all.

Unfortunately, I DNF'd at 45%. The characters just seemed to be acting out roles, and I could not connect or really care about any of them. And the plot felt so predictable, I just found myself uninterested in finding out what happens next.

I received a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review
This just did not tickle my fancy at all. I felt like the main character was kind of emotionally empty and any attempt to show proper emotions was a big miss..

FEEDBACK
I loved the desert scene for this book. It’s not too often a book provides a desert for it’s scenery. This was perfect for this story though. Since there was a drought and little water to go around, living in a desert definitely provides a harsh environment. This is the basis for the whole story. Sullivan described it in such a good way also. I really loved how they used lizards, snakes, and scorpions as their delicacies. While using this scenario as her backgrounds, the story itself was very predictable. Princess runs away to complete a task to save her people. Princess runs to who she thinks are bad guys for help. Learns they aren’t bad guys. Falls in love with the leader and then saves the day. While it is a little more than that the events happened exactly how I thought they would. Even with it being very predictable, it was still very well done. The pacing was fantastic and I wanted to keep going. But I just wouldn’t expect any surprises.

I loved Kateri. She was exactly what I wanted her to be. I loved that she was a fierce warrior but at the same time she knew when she couldn’t win. She also had compassion for her people which is always a great attribute, even if she was a little misguided at the beginning. One of the things I really like that Sullivan did was how fast Kateri realized she was wrong. It didn’t take her long to realize the Desert Boys weren’t actually the bad ones. This saved a lot of unnecessary fighting and more getting straight to the plot. I thought this was a fantastic thing to do for this book. Kateri’s development was so well done with this book and I couldn’t imagine a better Tiger Queen.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Overall, Tiger Queen by Annie Sullivan was a good book. I absolutely loved the desert setting and was so happy this is what she used. It really brought a new environment to the book and was set up perfectly. Even with a fantastic setting, this book was definitely predictable and easy to anticipate what was going to happen. Kateri was a great character to follow. I loved watching her grow into a better leader for her people and how she learned to trust the Desert Boys. I would definitely recommend this book if you’re looking for a quick, easy, fun fantasy read that you can easily get lost in without much concentration.

3.5 stars

I did not enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed Touch of Gold.
The MC was a bit off putting to me, as characters who try so very hard to be cold emotionless don't create a connection with me.
Looking forward to trying future books from this author.

Loved loved loved this! Annie is quickly becoming one of my favorite YA authors. This is a very interesting take on the Lady or the Tiger!

Kateria has seen how the accused have a choice and a chance for fate to intervene but she does not. The pricness who must fight in the arena to not be shackled to a would be king from a barrae of warrior suitors all in order to preserve her right to rule and to earn the admiration and respect of her father. Or so she thought. Forced to make a choice between the threat within her kingdom or the threat outsdie of its walls, Kateri finds so much more in the desert than she thought possible as she searches for an elusive warrior thief to train her. This is an excellant story showing once again that one has a choice even when it looks like there is no choice. This story pulls in classism and sexism and shows how there is always more than one side to any story and that we are in fact the author of our own tale be it of tragedy, survival, love, or hope.