The Foxglove King is a dark atmospheric read, with a fascinating plot and an heir of mystery mixed in. Whitten's writing is lush and captivating, keeping you hooked on every page.

With this book I am finding that death magic is not for me, and that I am more of a character reader than I thought I was. Wit this book I was unable to connect with any of the characters. They are not unlikable just not any that I was able to get attached to. I was wanting to like this book as it has such a pretty cover but it is just not a book for me.

I will try more from this author and I hope that I have better luck on others.

I enjoyed the book a lot. I've read the author before and I'm tempted to say that right now is a must read each time she publishes a new book.

This was such a good intro to a new fantasy series and a new fantasy world. I had such a good time learning about all the new characters and the world-building was done so well. I am very excited to read the sequel especially with how this one ended.

Such a fun read! I can't wait to continue this series.
Love a good fantasy romance with a dark setting and a messy love triangle.

Lore is cursed with the power of a disgraced death goddess, so when she’s caught by a group of monks, she’s offered an ultimatum: she can either work for them or be burned at the stake.

Not wanting to die, she accepts their offer and agrees to infiltrate the Court of the Citadel and spy on the Sun Prince himself, forcing her to navigate the deadly court.

The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten paints a gothic and decadent dark fantasy filled with secrets and catacombs.

For me, I’m a huge sucker for stories with death magic, so I thought this book’s worldbuilding and magic system was conceptually really cool. For instance, beneath the city lies a buried goddess who leaks mortem (the essence of entropy/decay) and monks constantly have to redirect and channel her power into inert matter. Otherwise, the whole city will deteriorate.

However, what I didn’t like was the lack of subtle intrigue—especially since Lore herself brags about being an excellent spy, yet she proceeds to be non-stealthy and very obvious with her line of questioning. Maybe I’ve been spoiled by Game of Thrones, but I would’ve liked to have seen more cunning from the characters.

I’m still intrigued enough to see what happens with sequel though.

DNF - I only got about 50 pages in. It’s not the book for me. I struggled to connect with the main character.

Very atmospheric. Interesting world building and magic system. I’m excited to see where the story and world goes next.

Slow and a little hard to follow in the beginning, but the book finds its groove eventually.

Recommend to fantasy and fantasy romance lovers!

A captivating and amazing story! I cannot wait for the second book! IT ENDS ON A CLIFFHANGER!!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Thanks a lot for the ARC for this book!

Unfortunately, this book was not it for me! The plot was ok-ish, it felt more like a collection of scenes that something coherent till the very end, which is clearly an issue, but i found that the characters and the worldbuilding were ever weakear.

The world building was weak to the point it constantly distracted me from the main plot, it has some very interesting ideas and compelling concepts, but it was not executed well.

I guess i enjoyed Lore, the main character, a bit, i found her quite childish and underdeveloped. However the two male leads, Gabe and Bastian, bring the book down a lot, especially Bastian who was a very weak and flimy character i could not bring myself to care about at all

I really enjoyed this book! The writing was great but at times it felt like a vocabulary lesson, but I learned some new words!

I really loved the premise of this book, and I found myself engaged here and there. Unfortunately it just wasn’t the most engaging and entertaining read for me. There was a lot of parts that didn’t totally make sense, and felt kind of half explained.
I’ll be sticking around for The Hemlock Queen though to see if the series as a whole blows me away.

I like that this book didn't have an overabundance of romance and thought it was well written - especially Gabe's disability. The magic system was well thought out and the pacing was good. A fun, quick read.

Intriguing magic system! I’m always one for a forbidden romance /political fantasy so this was wonderful!

Thank you for the ARC!

I found the book to be boring , and had no connection to the characters. That said it was not awful. I always like when books shine a light on some of the more negative sides of religion, and that was probably my favorite part of The Foxglove King.

I really tried to get into this one but it just was not for me. The premise was confusing and try as I might I couldn’t follow. The book was fine. Just not for me.

The premise of this book was very intriguing with the ability to harness the essence of death called Mortem. I love magic in all its forms and was excited to read a relatively new take on how magic can be used.

Our FMC Lore has a sharp personality, is hiding secrets and finds herself stuck between a difficult choice to be sent away to wither away and die or spy on the prince to see if he is in fact committing treason!

Lore finds herself caught between two love interests both very different from each other despite sharing a strained friendship. She feels a connection to both Bastien and Gabriel feeling as if she has known them both for a long time. Turns out there is something to that feeling, but I won’t tell you what.

I thought the world building could have been more detailed and explained better. I found myself becoming lost in not fully grasping the world, it’s deities and where the plot was going.

I wanted more from the reveals a bit more explanation. I wanted more from the relationships that were developing and I wanted to understand more of what Lore was capable of with her power to wield Mortem and understanding of the catacombs.

This books ends on a cliffhanger and I will more than likely read book two, but unlike other series where I typically do a reread of the prior books I probably won’t for this one, but skim over the last chapter or two.

The book was an enjoyable read but it did not leaving me dying for more and I was content for time to go by between pick ups.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

2⭐️

unfortunately i have to say that this book wasn’t for me.

the foxglove king had so much potential and it started out great for me. for the first couple chapters i was totally intrigued, until i wasn’t.

my biggest problem with this book were the characters. i didn’t feel connected to any of them since they felt really shallow to me.

i probably won’t be reading the sequel but i might change my mind because some questions were left unanswered.

Wow y'all this book was so good!

I really loved Lore and I didn't mind as much that there was a love triangle. The world building and use of different poisons was really interesting and I can't wait to find out more about mortem.

The twists were really well played and I'm still in shock lol those people were evil!!! Also there's a specific scene from chapter 36 that will hunt me forever!

I really liked the end and I cannot wait for certain characters to use their new acquire power.

After finishing this book, I enjoyed it much more than I originally thought I would. Lore is a great main character because she feels very natural with her decision making; unlike some protagonists who make you want to strangle them half the time. She doesn't just accept her fate every single time things are shoved on her. I also love how she acknowledges other people's traumas and how that might shift their choices for who they side with.
At first I wasn't too sure about Bastian's character, but at the end I was completely hooked on his shift and hope to see him evolve more in the next book after the events of the final chapters. As for Gabe, I want to smack him 90 percent of the time. It might be my distain for his character that makes me feel as though the love triangle is a little bit forced, but I would have enjoyed it more if it didn't come across as Gabe perpetually getting in Lore's way "for her safety". She is a grown woman who can make her own decisions in life whether they fall through or not, and it shouldn't be Gabe or Bastian's prerogative to stop her at every move.
That being said the relationship between characters was fairly interesting and I think the ending was a great set up for the next book since everyone's moral standpoint on the situation is so up in the air. I look forward to seeing where book two will take us.