while this title was just not for me, i can appreciate the unique magic system, religious and political machinations, and the aesthetically beautiful world this story comprises. i also very much enjoyed both Bastian and Gabe's characterizations, but personally i found Lore to be too wishy-washy and weak for someone who is supposed to be "special." she wants to be smart, sharp and the brains, but the one impressive thing she's got that nobody else has, she's freaked out by and doesn't ever step fully into her power. while i understand her arc, this sort of fmc just didn't land for me. fans of the romantasy genre will enjoy this for sure, but there just wasn't enough teeth to this for me.

This is YA with lots of death and cursing. I cannot get interested in the characters and the world is just.....vibes? And not vibes I'm into.

**Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for the eARC**

This book was so addicting that I couldn't put it down! Hannah Whitten is a very adept storyteller. Her descriptive writing drew me in immediately.

The Foxglove King is the perfect mesh of court intrigue, forbidden romance, necromancy, and high fantasy that kept my attention from page 1. The story follows our FMC, Lore, as she is thrust into the world of high society in order to uncover the suspected betrayal of her country's prince and discover what is causing several villages to become ghost towns overnight.

I absolutely loved watching Lore grown into her own and her powers. I cannot wait to see what happens in the next book!

I really enjoyed The Foxglove King! This was my first foray into Hannah Whitten's work, and it's definitely convinced me to pick up her debut series as well. The magic and mythos of this world are fantastic, death being something that can be manipulated and prolonged with doses of poison thanks to the death god burried beneath the city. Lore was a fascinating protagonist with her rare ability to channel the death magic, Mortem. I wouldn't necessarily call her "morally gray" since he girl has been through a lot and her self preservation instincts are understandable as she's drawn into the this web of courtly scheming and betrayals. As for the two male main characters, I loved them both for different reasons and for once I was really excited by the love triangle taking shape. The ending was a wild, dark ride and I'm absolutely excited to continue this series!

I'm not a big fantasy person - a book has to have fairly accessible worldbuilding and a really compelling plot for me to be engaged. And I think this book had both! Lore is a secret death-magic user, Gabe is an official death-magic user who's therefore some kind of warrior monk, and Bastian is the prince the two of them have been roped into spying on. It's a good time! Gabe's a big softy who's clearly regretting his vow of celibacy, Bastian is very devil-may-care-but-also-I-care-about-you-specifically, and Lore's just a gal trying to figure it all out.

Sure, the pacing falls apart a bit in the last third, and sure, the worldbuilding may be a bit inconsistent. But I had a great time, and if this isn't a setup for a throuple I will simply scream.

3/5 stars

Good blend of fantasy and forbidden romance. Love court intrigue and the excitement. Good new epic fantasy.

I forgot to leave a review for this, but I really enjoyed it! It's been out for ages, so I won't say much more than I need to for my star rating. <3

Oh this story is so gorgeously romantic and dark and filled with TENSION!! I loved reading this so much. It truly blew my mind away and the lore (lol) was so captivating. There's something really special about Hannah Whitten's writing and I think part of why I love it so much is how descriptive it is without being overbearing or too much. I really loved the relationships in this and the characters were interesting too. My one critique is that it did take a little bit to get going for me, so there is that to consider, but that's often the case for the first in a fantasy series so I won't hold that against the book too much. Overall, I really loved this and cannot wait for the sequel!

Thank you , Orbit Books, Hannah Whitten, and Netgalley for an arc of this book. I really enjoyed this story and am so grateful to have been given the sequel as well! This story had lots of plot twists and reminded me of Throne of glass series in some ways. I can't wait to hop into The Hemlock Queen!

"The Foxglove King" by Hannah Whitten is a mesmerizing fantasy tale that transports readers to a world of magic, intrigue, and ancient rivalries. Set against the backdrop of a lush and vividly imagined kingdom, the novel follows the gripping journey of its protagonist as she navigates the treacherous politics of court and uncovers dark secrets that threaten to unravel the fabric of her world. Whitten's evocative prose and richly drawn characters draw readers into a web of mystery and adventure, while the intricate plot twists keep them guessing until the very end. With its captivating storytelling and immersive world-building, "The Foxglove King" is a spellbinding read that will leave readers eagerly awaiting the next installment in this enchanting series.

3.5 stars! Hannah Whitten is a great story teller and I loved the court intrigue and forbidden romance aspects of this story.

I admit in the beginning I had no idea what was going on and it took me many attempts to start and stop this. But now I’m very excited to read the next installment.

I do think maybe too much emphasis was put on Gabe having one eye. It got mentioned A LOT.

Unfortunately, this book didn't work for me and I ended up DNFing at 16%. I had a difficult time connecting with the characters and found my interest in the plot line waning.

Since I did not complete, I will be leaving it unrated on goodreads and other platforms.

The author excels at world building. I was immediately drawn into this magical world. I enjoyed the complexity if the main characters.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC.

This book was amazing!! I loved the storyline and the characters were well done!! I would highly recommend this book to everyone!!

The Foxglove King is the first book in The Nightshade Crown series by Hannah Whitten.
Lore is a poison runner. When on a run she is caught and found to have a unique magic, she is brought to the Presque-Mort. The King tasks her with figuring out why entire villages have been dying and how to stop it. Now Lore is thrust into the strange world of court and must figure out how to survive.
This was an action-packed fantasy romance with a great main character.

In The Foxglove King, Hannah Whitten returns with a brand-new trilogy brimming with necromancy magic, a love triangle, court intrigue, and a looming magical threat. All of these elements combine to create a book that I didn’t necessarily love, but that I had an absolute blast with. As we are starting to move into the summer months this would make an absolutely fantastic fantasy beach read. There is enough substance to keep you engaged without feeling overly heavy or overwhelming as you are enjoying the summer vibes (and for my Southern Hemisphere friends it also works as an autumn read as well!).

The Foxglove King follows the main character, Lore, who is a powerful necromancer in a society that is prejudiced against death magic. However, she is called to court by the king to help them solve a problem – entire villages are being wiped out by some unseen force. Lore is tasked with reviving the dead (bringing humans back to life is a very rare skill) and asked what happened to them. Lore is then ensnared in a political plot that runs far deeper than she even thought possible.

The marketing of this book is a bit misleading because it pitches this book as this dark and gothic romance….which the book is definitely not. While there are some darker moments involving necromancy, on the whole the tone of the book is fairly standard fantasy fare. The blurbs on the made me think I was going to get a book closer in tone to Krystle Matar’s Legacy of the Brightwash, but I would say that it is even less dark than Whitten’s Wilderwood Duology. While the magic system is cool, don’t pick up this book if you are looking for a book dripping with gothic romance because this will not be the book for you.

However, the magic system is really well developed and cool. One thing that I have liked about all three of Whitten’s books so far is that she doesn’t let her romance storytelling get in the way of building out her world. The Foxglove King is no different, and it is chock full of magic related to both life and death. Essentially, people who experience a near death experience (or who do die and are resuscitated) have the ability to control Mortem, or the power of death. There is also life magic, Spiritum, which is much more difficult to control being Spiritum holds on to beings a lot more powerfully than death.

It is clear that Whitten has thought about how her magic system would impact people’s behaviors and actions. I don’t want to get too deep into here (because, spoilers), but the magic system is deftly integrated into the court intrigue politics in a natural and organic way. The magic system doesn’t feel ham-fisted into the book just to have magic, but is central to the overall plot and class structure of the society.

Outside of the magic system the worldbuilding is a bit sparse. Whitten gives us just enough detail (mostly in terms of the political structure, class structure, and religion) of the world to get by. This left the world feeling relatively generic and uninteresting. As much as I was engaged by the plot, I never felt the desire to explore Whitten’s world. I didn’t feel immersed in the setting, which felt like every other generic medievel-ish fantasy world out there. This was a bit disappointing because one of my favorite elements of Whitten’s previous Wilderwood Duology was the lush descriptions. I wasn’t getting that here, and I think that also threw the tone of the book off; the lack of detail kept those darker tones the author was going for from really being able to seep through. I was also thrown off by some of the prose decisions where the language felt a bit too modern, which also detracted from that dark and gothic vibe.

And, despite the world being underdeveloped, it is often presented in an info-dumpy kind of way. This didn’t bother me too much since I don’t mind a little info-dumping in my fantasy books, but other readers might be turned off by it.

Luckily the weak worldbuilding is made up for a bit by a strong central character. Like with Whitten’s previous protagonists, Lore is a character that is easy to root for and is a strong female character without being a “strong female character”. She is assured in our agency and sexuality while also being flawed. However, also like Whitten’s other protagonists there is just a hint of “generic protagonist” within Lore. She is a developed enough character to carry the plot, but character development doesn’t run too deep.

This is a problem with most of the characters in the book. Whitten draws them with only the lines that she absolutely needs to, which means they can sometimes come across as a bit two-dimensional and single minded. As I also mention below, this mostly impacts the character of Gabe, who seems to shout the same thing over and over again to the point where as the reader you just want to say “Gabe, we get it” (Whitten also seems to have a fixation with him having only one eye as if that is his only interesting feature).

The plot moves swiftly so a lot of the times you don’t even notice how shallow the characters actually are. Again, its a beach read fantasy romance. You’ll get sucked into the plot and then when it is over you’ll pull yourself out of the book and barely think about it again…while also eagerly waiting for the next volume.

If you are a fan of the central love triangle in the Shadow and Bone series (note: I am basing this off the TV show version and not the book, although I am told they are fairly similar) you’ll love what Whitten does here. Lore is trapped between two men: her childhood friend and now warrior monk Gabriel and the dark, brooding heir to the throne Bastien. Whitten nicely develops both of Lore’s potential love interests, crafting them as flawed yet viable objects of Lore’s attentions. Gabe is noble (and technically celibate) but is single-minded in his devotion to his religion while Bastian is insecure but sees the larger picture. What was also refreshing is that Bastian, while definitely modeled after the “antagonist the girl thinks she can change” type, doesn’t fully fit that archetype. He isn’t evil incarnate (although his true motivations and allegiances are one of the mysteries running through the book) and he is not a complete jerk. He is level-headed and kind enough that you can see why Lore might be attracted to him while also acting as a good foil to “good guy” Gabe.

If you are looking for a fun read to give you a breather from heavier works, or if you are a hardcore fantasy reader looking to try out some non-spicy romance, you could do a lot worse than The Foxglove King. As much as it is a heavily flawed novel, I absolutely do not regret reading it. It was that perfect fast-paced read that I needed, and so keep this one in mind if you ever need that book that is just kind of a mindless breather.

Concluding Thoughts: Mismarketed as a dark romance, Hannah Whitten’s The Foxglove King is a perfectly serviceable fantasy romance with an interesting and fast-paced plot with a fun death-based magic system. Whitten keeps the book swiftly moving to the point where the thinly drawn characters and underdeveloped world fade into the background as you join Lore in exploring a far-reaching magical and political conspiracy. What this book lacks in depth and detail is made up for in sheer readability and engagement. A perfect beach read or palate cleanser between other books.

Sometimes you just need a deep dark fantasy to make you realize life isn't really so bad after all. This book had all of the aspects of an epic tale that you want. There was political intrigue and religious strife, dark disturbing treachery and back stabbing, the struggle for survival and the pull of romance. Whitten created a vibrant magical world with wildly complex characters. A wonderful beginning to what harkens to be an epic series!

Hannah has done it again! I read this book in one sitting! After her debut duology, she instantly became one of my favorite authors. Her writing style is so engaging and her worlds and characters are so wonderful. I really appreciated how this book tied in the title, with the characters, with the poison and how intertwined and well thought out everything was.

interesting concept and wasn't what I was expecting but really enjoyed it. I really like Hannah Whitten's writing stye and I hope there's a sequel

A strong idea but in the end the story didn't live up to it. The delivery wasn't at the level the idea was at.

I loved the Wilderwood series and Hannah Whitten for her gothic aesthetic in her works. I really thought I was going to love this book. I did enjoy it but I didn't love it. It had an excellent premise and I really think with a different approach or a revisit to the main character or a few characters it would have reached that level.