I was so excited to read this. I love this world that Rachel built. I love the magic and mystery of it all. The One Dark Window was one of my favorites books to read this year and Two Twisted Crowns did not disappoint. I think I may have loved Two Twisted Crowns more because we got a look into more insight into Elm, Ione, and the Nightmare as Rayvn and Elspeth were not the main characters. The secondary characters were brought to the forefront and I was here for it. I loved getting more is their stories.

The Nightmare. I loved seeing his thoughts and learning his history and about his family. The Nightmare was my favorite character and I loved his relationship with Elspeth. And Elm, I loved that we got to see who he was as a person and his heart.

I LOVED this duology. The magic, the world, the characters, the adventure, the romance, all of it was woven into this exciting, romantic, beautiful story. This is one of my top favorite reads of the year. This was my first time reading Rachel Gillig and I will definitely read anything she writes.

Thank you to Rachel Gillig, the publisher, and to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a wonderful conclusion to The Shepherd King duology! I really enjoyed getting to know Elm and Ione more. The plot was fast-moving and exciting the whole time. I did miss the Elspeth and Rayvn storyline, and could have used more of a reunion at the end. But the magic backstory and adventure was a lot of fun. Looking forward to what’s next from Gillig!

After flying through the pages of “One Dark Window”, I didn’t think I would find another book that would hold me captivated quite the same way - even knowing the second book in the duology was about to be released. But Rachel Gillig has a way with words, and no sooner had I read page 1 of “Two Twisted Crowns” did I find myself just as lost in her storytelling as I was before.

Follow Ravyn, Elspeth, the Shepherd King, and the others on their harrowing journey full of twists and turns that I promise you won’t see coming. Two Twisted Crowns picks up where One Dark Window left off, but leaves us as a reader feeling fulfilled knowing how the story ends.

I was graciously allowed access to read Two Twisted Crowns on NetGalley prior to its release, and cannot thank Rachel Gillig and her team enough for that opportunity.

This duet is so perfectly epic! It is very heavy on magical elements and was a little hard for me to keep focused on, but it is absolutely amazing! This is just barely under a 5 star for me.

This was a fantastic sequel. The added perspectives were a very appreciated addition to the pov of the first book. You just can't beat the atmosphere and the magic system is a refreshing take. A great dark fairytale vibe. A great Autumn read.

I found this to be a very worthy follow up to the first book and if you liked One Dark Window you should definitely continue on to reading this sequel. Gillig really does just as good of a job of building this gothic atmosphere in this one as she did the first and I liked the continuation of the story of the cards. This one did shift its focus onto a different main couple which depending on how you felt about the first couple vs this one this might work for you or not but I liked this second couple a lot better than I had liked the couple in the first book so I really liked this focus shift.

Oh. My. Goodness.

[This will be vague because a lot of Two Twisted Crowns will be a spoiler for One Dark Window]

I didn't think book two could match book one. I worried that I wouldn't enjoy the plot after the ending of One Dark Window. I didn't think I wanted to focus on the characters that were the biggest players in book two.

I WAS WRONG. I fell in love with new romantic pairings. I loved the adventure.

I cannot wait to re-read this time and time again!

Phenomenal.
This is surely in my top 3 favorite reads of of 2023. A sequel that outdoes the first book? We LOVE that. Gillig’s compelling gothic imagery intertwined with a riveting plot line keeps you on your toes. She is officially on my auto-read radar. If she writes it, I’m reading it 👀😮‍💨🤩

The Shepherd King duology felt like a movie. I received an advanced copy of Two Twisted Crowns through netgalley & orbit (thank you so much! these opinions are fully my own.) but once I finished the first one…..I went ahead and bought the physical copy because I knew I needed it in on my forever shelf. An instant favorite. Checked every box for me.

Read this if you love suspenseful fantasy plots, unique dark magic systems, & a touch of romance.

This book was such a great conclusion to the shepherd king duology. Gillig’s dark and atmospheric writing really shined through again in this one. Elspeth and Ravyn are on an adventure in this sequel to save the kingdom.

I grew more attached to the side characters and I loved the multiple POVs. I didn’t know I needed Prince Elm’s POV out of this book, but I loved him!

The Nightmare was such a complex character and honestly one of my favorites. I loved all the character development and the plot was intricate and came together perfectly. I did not want this story to end so I savored it until the very last word.

I requested to read this novel, not having read the first. It caught my attention that much between the synopsis and the beautiful cover art. When I received the email that I was being given a copy, I immediately purchased the first novel in this duology and started reading.

And I was NOT disappointed! Two Twisted Crowns is a beautifully crafted world whose characters have depth that attach the reader to their stories. Sometimes I find that when an author attempts to write from multiple character viewpoints, some of their development gets lost. This is not the case in Two Twisted Crowns. I contemplated after finishing the novel if I felt incomplete in any way, was there a character whose story was left too open, or under explained? No. The only incompleteness I feel is that I've finished the book and I wasn't ready for it to end.

I was also fascinated, as someone married to an arborist, to see how the characters (whose family names are after trees) relate to the image of the actual tree they are named for.

Please do yourself a favor and read this duology. My only regret is that I can't read it for the first time again.

This was one of my most anticipated reads this year and it was a nice follow up to One Dark Window. We were left on a cliffhanger for the first installment so I was thrilled that there wasn’t a super long weight in between books, enabling that I didn’t need to reread before this one as it was still pretty fresh in my memories.

I don’t want to go into too many spoilers for book one but just know that our main character from the first book isn’t as heavily featured for reasons. As a result, we get to know some of the other characters a bit more heavily. My favorite character from One Dark Window, outside of Nightmare, was Elm. So it delighted me to no end that he was one of the main POVs. We witnessed Elspeth’s love story in book one and this one features Elm’s, something I was hoping for.

Where book one grabbed ahold of me and never let me go, I did experience some lulls in Two Twisted Crowns. It wasn’t enough to dull my experience but it didn’t rate quite as highly as One Dark Window. There’s a good chance this is majorly attributed to the fact that I am going through a major book slump and went from finishing about 20 books a month to about 5. The fact that I still finished this within days is a major indicator of how wonderful this book was. The ending is so nicely wrapped up and I think a duology length was the perfect choice for these books. I don’t think I could want any more than what was already written.

Two Twisted Crowns was written with the same gorgeously dark atmosphere and has the same thread of humor throughout it. The magic system is still one of my favorites from any books I’ve read in the past few years.

Rachel Gillig has solidified herself as must read author for me. I’ll be picking up any future works that she puts out. I flipped between physical and audio is the audio was a major help with my book slump. Lisa Cordileone did a fantastic job at keeping my attention and lending her voice to the eerie nature of the book. Thanks so much to Orbit and Hachette Audio for the review copies.


Will be updated on Instagram and blog with reviews.

This book was everything that I need a sequel. As haunting as the One dark window, Two Twisted crowns unravels the mystery into the magic in this extraordinary story. I rated this book 5/5 stars and one my favorite duologys

“Be wary. Be Clever. Be good.”

Be ready for a wonderful, magical tale that takes all the stings of your heart and pulls them, refusing to release it until the very last page. This book is for the ones who wish for gloomy days, who celebrate the first frost, who love nothing more than to sink into the mist of another world, a magical world.

This amazing story was the perfect companion and ending to The Shepherd King duology. While I am so sad it’s over, this couldn’t have been a better ending to these characters. We all know and love Ravyn from book 1, but be prepared for the the amazing Elm. Elms character is so well developed and you get to spend a lot of time with him in Two Twisted Crowns. Each character feels so real, so broken and mended. You’ll feel happy, you’ll feel sad, you’ll feel anxious and mad. This duology is a must read this Autumn, if it’s not already, you NEED to add it to your fall TBR!

Rachel Gilling thank you so much for this series, these characters, and for Blunder, for you are it’s author.
I am extremely grateful to the publishers and Net Galley for allowing me to read this eARC. I’ve never been so excited to read an early copy!

wow! what a follow up to one dark window! two twisted crowns was one of my most highly anticipated books to release this fall and it certainly lived up to the hype. my favorite element of the book was the unexpected development of the relationship between elm & ione, especially in adding elm's pov chapters. i also enjoyed the backstory of the shepherd king which revealed him to be more of a hero(ish) than the villain we were led to believe he was in the first book. once elspeth entered his mind, it was fun to read their chapters and hear their banter. in addition, i didn't mind that other characters took the focus for this book. i also love rachel's writing style for the unique world building and magic system. it wrapped up nicely as a duology!

thank you to netgalley for the arc! :)

Thank you for the arc. Will be posting my review once I have completed the book. Looking forward to reading this anticipated sequel!

I ended up reading this in a single sitting. What a beautiful and satisfying conclusion to this story. As before, I absolutely adore Elspeth's relationship with the Nightmare. I'll admit I got a little teary-eyed at the end.

I don't think I can leave a real review without spoiling every single thing that I loved about it. While I wish we saw a bit more of the romance between Elspeth and Rayven, I liked what we got to see of Elm.

Gillig is off to an incredible start with these books. She is an author I will be auto-buying from in the future. I've never read anything quite like the Shepard King duology. I loved the magic system with the cards, her character development and the twists and turns throughout. It was just perfect!!!

4.5 stars

A continuation of the beautiful prose, magic and mist from One Dark Window, Two Twisted Crowns delivered.

We get more of the Nightmare and his insults and banter, more eerie rhymes, more trees (!!) and more totally bad villains — all while motives are revealed along the way and the mist continues to take what it's owed.

The book basically splits into two story lines that ultimately converge — and it really works; a small group including Ravyn and Elspeth journey to find a way to end the magical mist and heal the infected, while Elm stays behind at his Father's castle and stirs up his own trouble.

I loved the deeper dive into Ione's and Elm's stories in this book. I didn't think I'd like Ione much, but found myself ugly crying right alongside her. I do wish her backstory and POV were a little more developed, though, and not just from Elm's perspective.

Speaking of Elm. 🥵 From someone who loves morally gray, Elm is the cinnamon roll I didn't know I needed. Someone just needed to come along and tear open his gooey side.

I really wanted a Jespyr POV, but I guess that would have turned this into a trilogy (I mean, I wouldn't object ...) The plot was also a bit predictable in some ways but I still thoroughly enjoyed myself.

This duology has become one of my favorite new series and I'm really looking forward to reading more from Rachel!!

Thank you to Orbit and Netgalley for the advance copy. This review is my own.

Two twisted crowns lived up to all my expectations. What a good ending to a wonderful story! The characters were still fascinating, the plot was exciting and I really enjoyed getting to know Ione and Elm. I will be recommending this duology to all my friends and followers. Rachel Gillig is a new insta buy author.

Book Review of Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig
TWO TWISTED CROWNS was everything I wanted in a sequel and gave me the epic ending I craved.

Rachel Gillig writes a darker read with plenty of deadly consequences, turmoil and moodier atmosphere as Elspeth must come to terms with what she has brought upon herself and those she cares about.

“𝐄𝐥𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐞,” 𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐥𝐲, 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬—𝐬𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰—𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞. “𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮.
”
— 𝐑𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐥 𝐆𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠, 𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐬
I was surprised by the new POV’s in this book. In 𝑶𝑵𝑬 𝑫𝑨𝑹𝑲 𝑾𝑰𝑵𝑫𝑶𝑾 we had only Elspeth’s perspective and now in 𝑻𝑾𝑶 𝑻𝑾𝑰𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑫 𝑪𝑹𝑶𝑾𝑵𝑺 we also have Elm's and Ravyn's perspectives.

It completely works. These added voices really made all the difference. Seeing beyond Elspeth's viewpoint made the story that much richer and darker. My heart ached and faltered more than once.

If you're one to clutch your books in emotional turmoil then hang on because Nightmare is truly an unforgettable character. His interactions with Ravyn and inner dialogues, especially with Elspeth are everything.

The whole vibe of the book is that of a dark fairytale - gothic and brimming with danger.

There are mist-cloaked forests and deadly quests. The mysterious Providence Cards full of deceptions and ancient magic. A monster who wants retribution. A love with no boundaries. And, a kingdom cursed.

Treacherous and enchanting, a perfect conclusion.

A stunning sequel for a stunning story. I love the continuation and expansion of Elspeth's story. Additional points of view, new romances, and increasingly steep stakes made for a splendid and satisfying conclusion, even though I never wanted the story to end.