Whitten took us to a new world, a new cast of characters. The world building was really good, the characters deeply endearing. Moderate love triangle, but like, it’s the first one I’ve ever read that I didn’t hate. I loved all three of them and I don’t know who I want to get together. I just want all three precious babies to be happy.

I loved a lot of aspects of this book; some good plot twists, some good symbolism, some slow burn romance. Whitten loves the courtly drama, the religious symbolism and church and state butting up against each other. All made for some exciting stuff. I also loved the mystery that unraveled slowly and left the reader guessing. One of my favorite bits was the way female relationships/friendships were shown to be nuanced, positive, and not catty or one dimensional, as women are too often used against each other as plot points in novels.
Anyway, read this. Whitten made a strong comeback and shows she’s got some serious fantasy chops.

In the ARC I did find some typos, one use of a character’s name in the wrong spot, and the epilogue was added twice. But I assume all of those things will be corrected in the final copy. Also the last chapter was a bit clunky, IMO, and I hope it’s polished a little, but it wouldn’t be the worst if it wasn’t. Everything leading up to the end is gold.

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit for this gifted copy in exchange for my review.

I loved this book! It has all my favorite elements: gods and deep religious/mythological history in the world-building, interesting magic, pining and love triangles, and a heroine who is just trying to figure out what her place in all the chaos is. I think that with the title I thought that poison would play a lot bigger role in the story than it ultimately did, but I found this to be a story I was glued to as soon as I started reading. I can’t wait for this to come out on shelves!!

By far this authors best book! Absolutely loved this! So well written and wonderful characters and the story was amazing! Couldn't put it down! Definitely 5 stars!

***Thank you so much to Hannah Whitten and Orbit books for allowing me to read and review this ARC. I have been so excited to get to this book!!***



This was my first Hannah Whitten novel and she is now a must read author for me! I will be purchasing some of her previous work in the new year. I love the way she weaves her words into a story that seems both delicate and fierce at the same time.

When reading a lot of high fantasy novels in short succession, plot sometimes becomes generic and predictable with character development becoming the only unique attribute. This is NOT the case with The Foxglove King. I am newer to the sub genre of necromancy but this book has very distinct plot in addition to expert character development!

In full transparency the book was a solid 3/5 star for me until the final 25% of the book. The first three quarters was quite a bit of mundane world building and historical accounting. This is not necessarily a bad thing because I’ve found that many high fantasy series have a first novel in series that really has to be powered through to make it to the meat of the drama. Some aspects of the world and character building bordered on generic and predictable in the beginning but as the novel drew closer to the arc of the story, The Foxglove King definitely distinguished itself as a very unique story. I wish that this didn’t take up 75% of the book. I feel like that is a lot of work for a small reward; however I am hopeful that the series building will pay off and future books will be packed with drama and action.

The last 25% of the book hooked me into the series. It went from driving on a straight country road to a winding road with many obstacles and turns—some predictable and some surprising. It was light on the romance in this book but I can see so many ways that might evolve over the coming books. The last chapters of the book elevated my rating to a 4/5 and made me want more!

Who is this for? YA readers, those that love high fantasy with necromancy and darker death themes, and fantasy readers.

Trigger Warnings: child death

I liked this!

The beginning of this book felt very cliche - I would give the first 1/3 of this a 3 star rating… but then it kicked up!

I did find a fair amount of this to be predictable, as I read a lot and this pulls on some common tropes. However, the ending was NOT entirely predictable and I liked that. I think the predictability of some plot points means that foreshadowing was done well here.

The overall tone of this was dark. The magic system was interesting but definitely odd. I found a lot of the characters blatantly unlikable - and I enjoyed that. I think Bastian was my favorite but I liked Lore as well! Most of the others I found annoying, but they suited their purposes and fit into the story well. I enjoy morally gray characters and I feel like some of these characters fit that mold - though I do think they are still good at their core for the most part.

The ending of this is what gets it up to 4 stars. I liked watching things develop in the last few chapters and feel like there is a LOT of potential for the next book.

A few major gripes: some of this felt very tropey and a little forced.
The love triangle
The use of internet slang phrases here and there. I remember a phrase about “being salty” which I found a little jarring.

Overall really entertaining! I’d definitely recommend this to friend and I’ll definitely read the sequel.

DNF @ 60%

I tried my absolute hardest to stay invested in this book. My best effort, people!

But the plot and pacing are just so glacial, tedious, and boring that I had to throw in the towel.

I had tried to read Hannah Whitten's debut "For the Wolf," but ended up DNFing that as well. However, I could see glimmers of lovely writing shine through, so I was willing to give her another shot with this new series, "The Foxglove King." Now, there are still some shining moments in this book. In particular, the characters and their interactions/conversations are entertaining and engaging. Lore is a whip-smart protagonist, and easy to root for. Gabe has a fascinating dichotomy of being quite invested in his faith, but maybe for reasons more manipulative than he realizes (and I always love religious complexity). Bastian is probably the weakest in terms of motivation and complexity, but he's got the personality and banter to make up for it (think Nikolai Lantsov from the Grisha trilogy, but hornier).

These characters are the only reason I could give this book 2 stars, as opposed to one, and they are the only reason I kept trying to finish this story. I wish they had had a story worthy of their banter and tenacity.

The plot, as mentioned, is a BIG problem. For example: Lore is recruited by the king to uncover how entire villages are being killed in their sleep. High-interest concept, it's already got me engaged. Now, I got to 60% (!!) in, and NOTHING had happened yet to further move that plot point forward. And this is the main conflict of the damn story!

There's so much discussion of the villainous side characters that they were no longer evil, just irritating. Whitten has some really cool concepts here, like the religious fanaticism, the gods, the Buried Watch, and the French cultural inspiration. But, the plot was so horrendously slow that I couldn't wait out any longer for things to get interesting.

The Foxglove King, I believe, saw a pretty great writing improvement from For the Wolf. I am not typically drawn to third-person narrated books, I feel more immersed within a story reading 1st person POV (ex. Daughter of the Moon Goddess or ACTOAR)

However, overall I think it was an enjoyable story. There was some parts of the world building I wasn't connecting with that just felt very exposition-heavy. Like I was told what was happening rather than being shown?

Parts of this novel I that I did enjoy was the MC, the magic system, and the political side of the story. Those are what kept my interest through the end rather than the actual plot line/attempted romance. Additionally, when you read the synopsis you get a sense that this book is going to have a heavy romance subplot, when, in reality, that is just not the case. The half-thought-out love triangle I feel clouded the best parts this book had to offer, and there was so little connection to be felt between the characters within the story that I am left confused as to why it's advertised that way?

This book is a nice first installment for what feels like a series (or at least trilogy). It sets up our 3 main characters, who form a trio with a lot of chemistry, secrets, and power. I think my favorite part of the whole book was the relationship that the 3 of them have, as a trio and among them as individuals. There are so many layers to their communication and understanding, and what is left unsaid is often palpable. And having a bit of a love triangle never hurt nobody, and that’s the truth.

Also, the characters are so well-described that I kept wanting to google fan art to see interpretations, and then kept remembering that as an ARC, there isn’t any fan art yet! I firmly believe there will be fan art in the near future, and I can’t wait to see it.

This book also sets up a world where life and death magic can be channeled and wielded with precision. In terms of world building, the premise of being able to channel death magic and the world that has been set up is interesting, although I will admit that I got lost in it sometimes. Particularly confusing was the timeline of historic events, as well as how the legends and lore tied in to how religion and politics functioned in present day.

As the book progresses and the stakes become higher, the action picks up considerably, and while some of it was pretty easy to predict, there were parts of the action that I did not see coming. I thought the end of the book was a satisfying conclusion to this particular series of events while still leaving ample room to answer big-picture questions in the next book.

I’m giving this one a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5. Recommend for fantasy folks who like a bit of intrigue and some dark magic vibes.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I went into this book completely blind and what a wild ride it turned out to be!

When Lore was 13, she emerged out of the catacombs and has been a spy for poison runners ever since. But when she’s caught in a raid and brought before the Sainted King and his twin brother, the head of the Presque Mort, everything changes. They know about her powers to wield Mortem (death magic) and threaten to send her to the Burnt Isles if she doesn’t spy on the Sun Prince and help them figure out who or what is killing entire villages of people.

I really loved Lore and her journey to understand the depths of her power, as well as figuring out who she could trust. Her relationships with Gabe and Bastian were well-developed and I loved every interaction and adventure they had. The romance in this first book was light and definitely a subplot, but the small moments were so sweet!

I did have little bit of a hard time getting into this story in the beginning. There was a lot of information to process about the world and magic system. It was also darker and more gruesome than I was anticipating. But I am so glad I kept reading because I ended up really liking it!

I am already looking forward to seeing what happens in book 2!

Read if you like:
Political intrigue
Religious lore
Love triangles
Forbidden romance
Magic
Mysterious deaths

Content: Kissing, descriptions of reanimated dead, recreational poisoning

**My review will be posted on Instagram closer to publication date

Lore can feel death in her veins, able to harness it she has spent her life running from the Presque Mort, a religious order aligned with the King. But when she gets captured, she isn't killed like she expects and instead finds herself thrust into court politics involving the prince.

This is a fun fantasy with a romance involving a love triangle so I'd recommend it to readers who enjoy such setups.

this book was amazing! i loved the author's other book, for the wolf, so I had to read this one, and let me say my expectations were exceeded I was expecting it to be super good, and it went beyond even that
the romance was chefs kiss and the characters were so well developed
5 stars

I am telling you, this will be the best fantasy novel of 2023. The vast world building, mystery, tension, court intrigue, and ghastly death magic all combine seamlessly, resulting in an epic adventure that is hard to put down. Everything clicked together by the last page, and I am now left wanting more. This is on the same level as FBAA by Jennifer Armentrout and ACOTAR by Sarah J Maas. If you are a fan of either, pick up this series - you will not regret it.

When I first began this book I was taken in by the idea that it would be fantastic. With having a character like lore who had the power to manipulate mortem and having the book set in a magical world I was sure it was going to be good. However, I felt as though this novel fell flat. Lores power wasn't as useful or interesting as I had hoped it to be; with such a useful skill I thought she would utilize it more through out the novel instead of learning to stifle it.
Additionally, I was pretty excited for the romance to develop either between the prince or the monk but I was left with a love triangle that didn't satisfy the graving for a romantic partner that I believed Lore was to have.

Over all, I would say the book was subpar but It had so much potential.
Im really upset and surprised that I feel as I do.

I just reviewed The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten. #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

I was given a copy of this book by the publisher and netgalley in exchange for an honest review. From the beginging of when Hannah posted on instagram that this was her new book coming out I was so intrigued. Not only was the cover beautiful but the story line was super interesting. Hannah did an amazing job with the story line and wanting to keep the reader interested in finishing the book, but for me, she lost me with some of the word building getting the story across. After reading her debut novels, this one is so much better! If you are a forever fan of Hannah then pick up this book, I am sure you will love it. If you have never heard of her but want a good court and fantasy book this one could be for you!!

The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten is the first book of The Nightshade Crown Series.
 
The story is set in a dark and glamorous world that is infused with dark magic coming from death and that creates an amazing atmosphere. I loved to learn more about the Sainted King’s royal court and the city of Dellaire. The stunning world building was my favorite part of the book.
 
The protagonist Lore is such a strong person who had to be independent from a young age. She works with poisons and death magic, which is highly sought after and dangerous in this world. One time something goes wrong, and her power is revealed. A group of monks called Presque Mort, who work for the Sainted King, take an interest in her and force her to work for them.
 
What Lore experiences then is fascinating, and the plot was very well done. A lot of strange things are going on in the world and the Sainted King‘s court is unreliable, and you can’t trust anyone. While that was interesting, it made it difficult for me to connect to the characters like Gabriel or Bastian. And that was an aspect that made me like the book less. I’m still interested in the second book, and I hope I can connect to the characters more.
 
Overall, The Foxglove King introduces you to a stunning dark world, but I didn’t fully vibe with the characters. 3,5 stars.
 
(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

Thank you NetGalley, Orbit Books, and Hannah Whitten for the eARC!

This Foxglove King reminded me a lot of Throne of Glass, just with more magic and no fae (at least yet?). I can’t wait to read more about Lore, Bastian, and Gabe!

Hannah Whitten writes beautifully and illustrates her characters so well with many layers underneath. Amazing world building as well.

4.5/5 stars

When I saw The Foxglove King on NetGalley, I requested to review it as soon as I could and I am so grateful that I could get an arc of this book for an honest review.

I absolutely loved reading the author's other series, Wilderwood. It was amazing and I couldn't wait for more of her books to come out.

The Foxglove King follows a girl named Lore, who has the ability to control Mortem, magic that is created from death. One day she gets caught by the Presque Mort, a group of warrior-monks that use Mortem and work for the Sainted King. The King tasks her to spy on his son Bastian, thinking he is behind the destructions of villages where all the citizens have been dying overnight. With the help of Gabriel, a Presque Mort, she starts to find the hidden secrets the crown tries to hide.

Nothing is as it seems and once Lore thinks she can trust Bastian or Gabriel, something changes and she is no longer certain. There are hints of a love triangle throughout the book and while certain things do happen, I think the triangle with become more present in the next book. Of course, as of right now, I want her to end up with a specific guy, but the way everything unfolded at the end of the book I have no idea who she might pick in the end.

I enjoyed reading this book because I was presented with a story that I have never heard before. The essential parts of the story were there, but the way Hannah Whitten described Mortem, the Presque Mort, and the gods themselves, it made the story more unique. The only reason I gave the story 4.5 stars instead of 5 stars is because at times I felt as if the story dragged or focused on things that didn't seem relevant. Maybe those things will be relevant in the next book, but that's something I wont know until the second book comes out.

I can't wait for this book to come out so that everyone can read it. I will 100% be buying a copy to add to my library!

I have been holding off writing this review because I do not think I will ever be able to come of with the words that will adequately describe my insane love for this book and Hannah Whitten's ability to write. Her characters are complex, well thought out and their arcs are even better. I have and forever will declare Hannah as the queen of world building and the cusses she creates for her worlds are everlastingly engrained into my brain. I will not rest until every fantasy lover has read this book.

The Foxglove King is one of my favorite reads of the year. It has dark magic, fallen gods, a slowburn love triangle, and a fabulously morally grey female heroine. An Ember in the Ashes, but Adult and with mysterious dead Gods. 
I loved the host of characters, who each have their own wants, fears, strengths, and hopes which inevitably influence the flawed but flowering relationships between them. This first in a series struck a nice balance between court politics, romance, and the developing magic system, all three working in tandem to build the story. The character development and world building were both superb. I can't wait for the next installment! 
If you're looking for a well written adult fantasy with romance, suspense, court intrigue, and pretty cool magic system, this is for you.