A great continuation of the series! The ACTION on this book in the second half omg! (Oh my goddess)

That cliffhanger though!!! I need book three NOW!!!

This has been my most anticipated read of the year for sure! I can't wait to get a physical copy! I love all the themes and messages of this book. Def check this out if you like magic and damning the patriarchy and accepting a trans girl into an all girls witch community.

Thank you penguinbooks

Absolutely fantastic sequel! Clever, dark, adventurous, fun. Will be featured on an upcoming episode of Your Rainbow Reads podcast.

3,5 stars

The ending of Her Majesty's Royal Coven was quite the ordeal. With two of our main characters dead and the whole of the royal coven in disaray, it is quite a feat to pull this all back together. Spoiler: they don't.

One of the things that drew me to Her Majesty's Royal Coven was Niamh and the way she managed to do the right thing, regardless of what was on the other end. Whether this was her sister or one of her best friends, she would always do the right thing. Her relationship with Theo was the high point for me.

But that was completely gone with the ending of the last book and it put us on new footing. Footing I didn't particularily like. Ciara, Naimh's replacement, is quite the opposite, despite being her twin. And this whole book was Ciara's redemptions arc. I didn't nessecarily care for that. Again, the book is another slow build-up that dragged a little.

I also cringe at the choices that were being made. Steps back for certain characters, as if to even the playing field to show that Ciara isn't all that bad either. Or just weird typical plot points. It didn't work for me. I also missed seeing more of Theo and hated how Ciara treated her. Leonie had her hero moments there and I think she grew on me more this book.

Yet, like with the first book, the ending was spectaculair. Just enough for me to want to continue on reading with the series. And yes I have a good idea of that very last bit to the ending. Which is why I want to read on with the series.

An incredible sequel. I love this magic system. I love these characters. Character driven, with multiple POVs.
I cannot wait for the next book, I might just have to re-read both of them again.

Wow, what a wild ride Juno Dawson’s The Shadow Cabinet is. After a psychic shockwave ending to the first book in the series, this sequel picks up right where it left off. What I appreciate about this series - in addition to trans, queer witches being absolutely badass - is how it’s not afraid to do the unexpected or push the envelope. It’s difficult to genuinely surprise me in books and The Shadow Cabinet got me so freakin’ good at several points. With more complex characters, higher stakes, and another ending that makes me need the next book YESTERDAY OMG, I really enjoyed The Shadow Cabinet and will continue to recommend this series freely.

Thank you to Penguin Books and NetGalley for an advance review copy. All opinions are my own.

After the great cliffhanger ending of the first book in the Her Majesty's Royal Coven (HRMC) trilogy (called Her Majesty's Royal Coven), I was super excited to see how it would all develop in book number two! And I was never disappointed.

Without spoiling the ending of the first book (since I would recommend the trilogy be read in order, of course), the main character opening up the second book is an unexpected addition to the character list. She's on her way to becoming the new high priestess, although she's hoping she'll never have such drab responsibilities. She's trying to solver her own quest of how she came to be where she is, and she's luckily got the help of Leonie, albeit not intentionally.

There are several major plot lines. Besides the selection and ceremony for a high priestess, there is also continued clean up and loose ends to resolve from the war which predates even the first book. Theo, the teenager who started living with Niamh in the first book is also still trying to solve the mysteries of what she can't remember of her own past.

I loved the second book at least as much as the first, and can't wait to read the third next year. The Shadow Cabinet got 5 out of 5 stars from me. I'd recommend this to my fellow witchy-fiction lovers, and also appreciated the representation of the witches, from the BIPOC coven that exists along side HMRC, to the diversity of the witches in HMRC or belonging to no formal coven.

One of my favorite elements of The Shadow Cabinet has to be the ways it navigates the 'good' versus 'bad' sister. Ciara kind of stole my heart in this one and I'm not sure what that says about me? I am a sucker for the one who everyone misunderstands and makes some mistakes. She's unapologetic in her convictions, her past actions, and the ways she sees the world. Some of her scenes - especially the ones in the past when she's seen as the 'bad' sister and how she protects the ones she loves - broke my heart.

The Shadow Cabinet examines the relativity of goodness. Of the ways the world twists our actions to fit the image they have of us. It's a theme that was introduced in Her Majesty's Royal Coven with Theo and the prophecy, but it's only further explored here. If you love that kind of character, you should get the sequel immediately.

The witches are back and more scattered than ever. Helena has been executed, Niamh is dead, and her twin Ciara is living her life, mentoring Theo and generally making herself at home. The threats that Helena feared (and released) haven't faded, but the witches are too distracted to do much about them, or even to notice the dark clouds brewing. The younger generation is growing in power, and without Niamh's steady heart and gentle leadership, the future could be horrific. Picking up where the last book left off, The Shadow Cabinet left me more eager for a sequel than I would have expected going in. I loved Niamh (like everyone in the novel) and her loss left me feeling hopeless, especially watching Ciara live Niamh's life while neglecting Theo. The tight, angry feeling so expertly conjured by Dawson left me tearing through the pages until the final WTF moment. I don't know where this story is going, but I plan to be there at the end.

4.5/5 stars
I love everything in this series! I listened to the first book, Her Majesty's Royal Coven, and adored the narrators. But beyond that, the writing is impeccable. The Shadow Cabinet moved a bit slower for me, but tackled similar constructs of a "woman's place" and the "fear of a strong woman," as well as what it means to be a woman beyond the gender binary and basic gender constructs. All of the characters she writes are strong and yet they are still human, dealing with their own struggles, which is what pulls me into her writing. This book makes me want to go out and shout that my voice and my place in this world matter. Juno Dawson takes big, relevant topics such as privilege and makes them not only understandable but lights a fire in the reader to learn more and do more. My only problem with reading this book is that I couldn't keep all the characters' voices in my brain (I think I would have preferred the audiobook, but that's on me and not the author, obviously). I cannot wait for the third installment in this series!

Thank you to Juno Dawson, Penguin Books, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book :)

I would love to read and review but I cannot read the version sent to my Kindle as it has paragraphs that are chopped up and appear on different pages. Usually I can make it work but this particular version is unreadable, Happy to read if a better version is offered.
New version noted and reloaded!!!! EXCITED TO READ!
Updated review:
Thank you for allowing me to read and review this egalley. I was so happy it was fixed so I could read this book.
Please note if you have not read the first book in this series, you will be lost. Also you may see spoilers in this review.
I adore Dawson's writing. This book was no different. It picks up right where the first one left off. Devastation and destruction from the fight at the end of book one, The book is told from the POVs of the same witches: Elle, Theo, and Leonie plus we see some information coming from Luke (not who we thought he was!) and Chinara. And now we have Ciara's POV rather than Nimah since she is in her body. I love the idea of seeing this story from all these points of view, it gives a more grand sweep of what is happening.
Overall the story moves fast. The witches are looking for Dabney Hale, trying to stop him from whatever destruction he is bound to reek on the world. But we also see a new group of witch hunters from Luke's POV and come to find out his background is much more sinister than we could have imagined! So now there's much at stake from several areas.
At first I thought I'd hate Ciara, after all, she did kill Nimah and take her body. But I did find that I rather liked her overall. Plus she has some great growth, realizing her mistakes (though still with some power hungriness to her) and wanted to correct those wrongs. I am was a little surprised at how easily Leonie and Elle were ok with who she was and what happened. They seemed to join with her rather quickly considering what she did but I can also see they may have some forgiveness since part of how she came back was from the death of the previous high priestess who was possessed.
Theo's character also showed immense growth during this book. I love how she comes into herself, figuring out how to function in society as a female. Her friends showing her respect and acceptance. She has many complicated feelings she tries to explore. She's especially worried about her acceptance into a family as she was tossed around to many foster homes and wants to feel she has security in that.
The ending! UGH! I did not see it coming, I will be honest. I was a bit confused, like were all their memories altered about Milo and his past? How was it that no one remembered what had happened to him, including his mother? And why did his dad know? I hope it gets explained better in book 3 because I felt it was a bit of a plot hole even at the end.
And that naked foot, I have a feeling who it is, but don't want to say and I'm chomping at the bit to see in book #3! It was definitely a cliff hanger.
Overall, I think I may have enjoyed this book more than the first! Quite a few new characters and many of the ones we already know. I'm excited for this series to continue!

Picking up where the first book left off, the HMRC has been left in shambles and must have some type of regrouping before they're able to carry out their duties again. Through the chaos, they come across even bigger issues of understanding themselves, mysteries, conspiracies, and betrayals. This is such a fun read, and it truly sets up well for a finale to this series. I can't wait to see where the story goes from here!

The 2nd installment in the fantasy trilogy for Her Majesty's Royal Coven. This one picks up where the last one left off. And thank goodness that this series is a trilogy!
HMRC is in a bit of a shambles - the previous High Priestess is dead, and the one that's about to take her place is not who people think she is. Other than that, young Theo is struggling with her failing powers, Leonie travels to rescue her brother from one of the worst villains the world has known, and Elle deals with marital issues in possibly the worst way imaginable. Can't wait for #3! No spoilers here!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for this e-arc.*

What's it about (in a nutshell):
The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson is book 2 in the Her Majesty's Royal Coven series. I did a quick read of Book 1 before reading Book 2, but I don't know that you really need to read Book 1 because The Shadow Cabinet is almost like a related but new story. It read to me that Her Majesty's Royal Coven set the base, but The Shadow Cabinet tells the beginning of the tale.

Bullet Point Review:

• Book 1's ending is positively jaw-dropping, and I loved that Book 2 picked up right where Book 1 left off. I also loved the main character changes from Niamh to her "evil" twin sister Ciara. Ciara is a much more interesting character in her moral greyness. I even question whether she will be a hero or a villain, which is fun to read.

• Theo is my favorite character. She is a trans witch who had the coven in turmoil in Book 1. She plays a minor part in book 2, but reading about how she navigates life as a girl is still interesting.

• There are lots of dark thrills in this story in each plotline. I enjoyed them all and can't wait to see where the story goes in the next book.

• I also loved all the different kinds of magic and how they play out. There are even levels of power within each type of magic, which is an exciting take on determining the most powerful witches. The magic system is well thought out, adequately explained, and intriguingly complex. My favorite aspect of this series is the magical system.

• The one issue I had was the political-inspired bashing. Parts of the story are a commentary on politics in our world, which is fine. Still, when it comes to the outright bashing of political parties and figures and promoting issues that are obviously current in our world, I quickly tune out. Give me metaphors and let me draw my own conclusions, but tell me how to think, and you will immediately lose me. I've said that about a few other books, which is valid with this one.

• The narration is split between several characters. I believe it was four in total. Each character showed a different side of the story and a different look at issues for women and witches. The characters are much better developed in book 2 than in the first book. What makes them tick and where their weaknesses lie became so well-defined that I knew each of them very well.

• I found the pace to be rapid. The story is almost 600 pages, but I never felt like it was anywhere near that long. It read more like a three-to-four-hundred-page book.

• The Shadow Cabinet takes the reader around the world. Set mainly in the UK, the characters travel all over that side of the world. There's a secret island setting that I particularly loved.

Read if you're in the mood for:
• A dark, tense, and mysterious fantasy story.
• A story with strong LGBTQ+ and BIPOC representation
• A morally gray character may be a heroine or maybe a villain.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

i tried really hard to like this book but i was struggling with it.... and so i have to say it wasnt for me but i can see others have liked it ....you have to give a book a go before you can properly judge it and i tried

The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson is an action packed thrill ride with witches, demons, friendships, betrayal, sex, social commentary and pop culture references. The second book in Her Majesty’s Royal Coven trilogy, we know the story is building up to a big finish and this sequel doesn’t disappoint. Although this book ends with a cliffhanger, I gasped when hit with a bigger reveal in the moments before the end. Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Books for the ARC.

The Shadow Cabinet is a thrilling sequel that delves deeper into the intricacies of the characters introduced in the first book. The author's attention to detail in crafting each character's unique story is truly impressive and makes for an engaging read. The novel seamlessly blends the complexities of modern life with the fantastical elements of magic and witches. The rules governing this world are fascinating and add an extra layer of depth to the story. Dawson fearlessly pushes the established boundaries, creating a world with limitless possibilities.

What a great sequel!! Kept me on edge the whole time and was so easy to fall in love with these characters again

The Shadow Cabinet is an incredible sequel to this series, which doesn't always happen. I was pleased to be hooked from the beginning. It was hard not to be when I was ready to find out what everyone would do with the bombshell cliffhanger at the end of the first book.
Dawson does an excellent job of building the urban fantasy element of the story while incorporating social commentary on gender, race, and the current state of the world.
Every incorporation of social commentary served a purpose and added to the story, which isn't always the case. There was no hamfisted attempt here, just excellent storytelling and characters mindful of the world they live in.
Ciara, having been in a magical coma for a decade, is surprised to see how things have changed. She notes the creep of gentrification in familiar areas and the changes in the ways people interact with each other. Being in the middle of it, it's hard to note those changes since they do creep in little by little. Having a character outside of it and her commentary was nice to see.
Also, we're calling out the history of white men "discovering" and stealing artifacts! Yes, please! Dabney Hale is off trying to find some super warlock relic since he's a mediocre white warlock who resorted to using demons to boost his power. Call! Him! Out!
The sense that something is rotten in the government isn't necessarily fictional either. The way it's shown that anti-witch sentiment crept into the government is spot on for how the current political climate is.
I found the parallels between demon summoning and addiction especially compelling as we dive into the mind of Ciara. Ciara reflects on how she would go days without eating and wake up in the middle of a forest covered in cuts and mud. Sounds a lot like addiction to me, and her road to recovery is just starting.
And Theo! Oh, sweet baby Theo! I just want to give her a hug. She has way too much to deal with in here. The moments of her ruminating on the changes in her body made my heart ache for her.
Throughout the book, Theo faces questions on her identity now that she has a body that matches her gender identity, like she's "too trans and not trans enough." It doesn't help that her abilities are dampened at the same time causing more turmoil.
She's also worried about not having a home since the woman she believes to be Niamh, who was incredibly kind and loving to her, is suddenly cold and distant. Growing up in the foster system, it make sense, but again, I just want to give her a hug.
If you can't tell, I loved this book. The action and storytelling kept me engaged throughout, and I couldn't put it down! On top of all this, The Shadow Cabinet ends in a cliffhanger just as explosive as the end of the first book.

The second book as part of the exciting trilogy HMRC and as much as I loved the first in the series, I was really looking forward to this one. Unfortunately it didn’t quite live up to the first novel, as it felt a little uneven in pacing and disjointed.

I missed the main character from the first novel of Niamh and after what her sister Ciara did, I was surprised to find this character as the primary narrator, acting more on a path of redemption and self discovery of past memories and not as much as the villain as set up in the first novel and ultimately not feeling as flushed out to be the main character

I did still enjoy this novel, primarily for Leonie’s side quest and what little we got of Theo’s POV, and cannot wait to read the third book when it comes out. Definitely hold out through the slow start for a twist of an ending- this book wasn’t quite 4 stars for me but would feel comfortable with a 3.5, 3.75