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

The premise for this one was fantastic, and the beginning scene in the prison cell seemed promising and we were given some intriguing worldbuilding, from the way the Queen of Days extracted payment, to learning why Bal was after revenge. Unfortunately, that was the high-point, and the rest of the book failed to live up to it. I never felt fully grounded in the world, which made it very difficult to be invested with the events because I had no clear concept of where they were happening. However, it was the characters that ended up detracting from this one for me; and I'm disappointed because I thought Bal had promise at the beginning, but that disappeared leaving a poor leader (in a heist book) and someone willing to make decision - even life effecting ones - for those around him; and risking those that returned his affection, for someone who clearly didn't. And our titular character felt very side-lined later in the book, which felt like it defeated the object of the story; and that along with the predictiveness of the plot left the heist feeling lacking.

For the first quarter, I struggled to get a sense of place. We jump right into the action with only some exposition of the characters’ surroundings. What kind of land is the City of Ashaar? What do the homes look like? What kind of attire do the citizens wear? What or who do they worship? We don’t really get those lush descriptions I expect from a fantasy novel; there were a lot of fantasy-esque names dropped with little context of how they fit into the world.

What saved this for me was the characters. Kelly does a superb job of letting us love the Talion crew, even if their actions were purposely sometimes obnoxious. But that’s family, right? This is a dual-POV novel with Bal and Tess, yet the reader can still discover the unique traits, backstory, and motivations of the entire Talion crew. Also, the banter is epic.

As with most heist books, I found myself more engaged when the action got going. The setup always feels like a slog (Greta — it’s me, not you), but I couldn’t put this down when the proverbial shit hit the fan. Minor spoiler – something goes wrong and puts our heroes in a…scary position. If the heist was immediately successful, this would be a very short book.

Another aspect I enjoyed, without giving too much away, was the theme of science vs. faith, and how beliefs can shift when faced with the unthinkable. I’ve read plenty of books that approach this topic, but The Queen of Days gives it a unique spin.

The Queen of Days has a cast of unlikely allies on the quest for the second half of a magical statue (the first half of which Bal stole already) with the hopes of getting paid and not getting killed. Greta Kelly has written a fantastic fantasy heist story!

The Queen of Days swept me away with the characters! I loved the world-building, but the characters are the driving force of this story.

A heist, a god that takes payment taking days from your life, a god that takes bodies, a crew that’s a family and beautiful friendship? SOLD!

This book was so good y’all honestly one of the few times that I did not mind a book didn’t have romance in it. So so much happened in this standalone that was crazy oh and so many twists.
I really loved the concept of the gods and their abilities and backstory of the characters and their interaction. How everyone had their own opinion and they had to get to common ground or nothing was happening.
I disliked some character choices but I do understand why they did what they did although I wish hey had another way to do it.

All in all a really good book that deserves more attention.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me an arc in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 stars. The Queen of Days- perfect for fans of Foundryside. A heist for personal gain becomes a race to save the world when a crew of thieves cross paths with god-like beings intent on interfering with the human world. Humanity has no defense against vengeful gods that can steal and control Time, but maybe with the help of the Queen of Days, a mythical mercenary with a mysterious past, young Balthazar and his crew might just have a chance of saving their city.

This book was one of my surprise favorite reads of 2023. I absolutely see the marketing comparison with Six of Crows and Lies of Locke Lamora, but I want to lean into the Foundryside comparison because of the nature of the magic in this world. The Time magic is not quite as fleshed out as in Foundryside, but it's still a very clever use of logic and physics to create superhuman abilities.

I loved how the found family trope played out not within the crew itself, but with the character of Tass learning to trust and be accepted by her human companions after her lifetime of loneliness and rejection.

My main critique is with the crew leader Balthazar- he just read too young and inexperienced in comparison to the amount of trust and loyalty his other crew members exhibited towards him. The readers are told he is a good leader more than we actually see it on page. I definitely see the influence of Kaz Brekker from Six of Crows, but I don't think the author was quite successful in portraying that same level of leadership.

While this book doesn't outrank the other books it is compared to, I still had a great time with it, I heartily recommend it for readers who love a magical heist story, and I hope this author has plans for more books in this world.

As someone who is looking for more standalone books that still pack a punch, this was enjoyable to read.

While it did take me a bit of time to connect to the characters, Bal's constant need to care for those that he loved made me root for this group of thieves. If you are looking for a fast-paced, long weekend, heist, and hijinks, this book will be for you. The dry humor that Tass brings and Bal's salty personality had me chuckling at some of the dialogue.

I wish we were able to see more of the world and have a bit more action happening in different locations. At times the book felt stalled to me and it was hard to get back into the story. I understand it is hard to balance in one book, but. I think it would have helped make the story feel like it was moving along more.

Overall, a fun read with unique magic and a diverse cast. 10/10 recommend if you are looking for a standalone,

(3.5 rounded up to a 4)

The Queen of Days by Greta Kelly is a high fantasy heist adventure with a found family of thieves.

The publisher blurb mentioned this book is perfect for fans of The Lies of Locke Lamora and I definitely agree with that. Both of these books have action that keeps going and going.

I really enjoyed Kelly's Warrior Witch duology! The blurb from this one sounded cool, especially the mention of time magic. However, I didn't love this one as much as The Frozen Crown and The Seventh Queen.

The beginning really sucked me in; I really enjoy Kelly's writing and there is some cool world-building here. There were some pacing issues in the middle that pulled me out of the story. I didn't really identify with any of the characters, and I wish that we got a bit more depth regarding the rest of the crew.

Still an enjoyable read, though!

CW: violence, death, torture

The Queen of Days is a beautifully-written, action-packed, heist-driven fantasy. For Balthazar, nothing is more important than family. Well, except maybe revenge. Ever since the governor murdered most of Bal's family, Bal has been determined to get his revenge. While waiting for everything to fall into place, Bal and his remaining family survive by conning and thieving. The team's newest mission - to steal a priceless idol - could result in a massive reward. Bal is determined to steal the statue, gain the huge reward, and get his revenge, all while keeping his family alive. Unfortunately, this new mission brings the team into a world full of Gods, demons, magic, and death.

The Queen of Days is gorgeously written. The characters are all well-developed and relatable. There is plenty of action and excitement throughout the book. I will definitely be recommending The Queen of Days, as well as reading more by this author. It's an easy 5 stars!

The Queen of Days by Greta Kelly is a high-stakes fantasy heist novel with a lot of action. What's missing from the novel is the character development and interactions. This novel is marketed in-part as a found-family novel, but that element is in a far second place after the thieving/god-killing aspects of the novel. I would consider reading other novels by Greta Kelly, but I don't know that I would read a follow-up to this particular book.

I am a huge fan of Leigh Bardugo and the Six of Crows duology holds a special place in my heart...which is why I probably should not have requested this ARC haha going into it with high expectations did not help me to be subjective and I kept wanting to put this down and pick up Six of Crows instead. It was well written and an interesting story but it paled in comparison. I'd still order this book for the library, I know lots of people would love it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Stars 4.5/5.0
Fantasy heist, found family, and god killing? Of course I jumped at the chance to read this. This is a really solid and fun standalone to read. Most of what I read is apart of a series, so I’m used to character development and arcs taking a lot of time; however, even though this story only had the length of a standalone, it didn’t feel as it was rushed/awkwardly timed. The character developments of both Bal and Tess are very real and well paced.

What I think I appreciated a lot too was how real the motivation behind the characters felt. Characters didn’t jump to kill a god because why not? They don’t wanna die a stupid death. That is, until appropriate motivation comes into play.

This being said, the comparison to Six of Crows, even though I see why it’s there, if you read that and want to read this because of the heist, know that the heist planning and heist does not take up a lot of the book. Again, it’s not rushed, but it’s also not the core story.

Can I just say also, absolutely no pressure to Greta Kelly. If you don’t want to write another book in this world, I totally understand. You still have me as a reader because I’m definitely checking out of your other works. That being said, PLEASE CAN WE HAVE MORE OF THE SIDE CHARACTERS IN ANOTHER BOOK (totally not biased as I definitely don’t love a sarcastic character)??

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This one was just meh...

- I like multiple point of view books because they tend to keep my attention more, and I end up connecting to the characters in different ways but in this one, I didn't like any of the characters. One makes very bad decisions, and he's supposed to be the leader?! Also, one is written in first person, and the other one in third?
- It does have some action packed scenes but it is very predictable as it is heist, and it follows the same type of elements you see in all heist movies, books, etc.
- It was OK at the beginning, blah in the middle, and then good at the end... Magic system was different which is good.

Just wasn't for me.

3.5/.75 stars.

Thank you netgalley for this arc.

I liked this one. The highlight was definitely Tassiel, especially her and Mira’s relationship. Also, still waiting for Tass and Baz to kiss😒. While this definitely does have that soc vibe, something’s missing. The storyline and worldbuilding was good, but I think the scenes needed more intention/energy. They didn’t always promote me to keep ready, they were sometimes just there. I feel similarly about the characters. While I love Tassiel, she has some good quips and I wish we had more of that. I wish some of the personalities felt stronger and more distinct. I really like the chapter/s when they went into Tass’s world. The description of it and how different it was, was fun to read.

It was an interesting read about a band of misfits and I really enjoyed the relationships between the crew. I looked that the world building wasn't confusing and that we were thrown right into the action. Readers who enjoy heist books will devour this. I enjoyed reading it.

Greta Kelly’s The Queen of Days initially held great promise for me, especially following my positive experience with her brilliant Warrior Witch duology. The prospect of a new adventure—a heist story, no less, which is like catnip for me—set in a world teeming with gods and demigods immediately piqued my interest. Ultimately though, I believe the novel would have benefited from a more in-depth exploration of the individual characters and their dynamics.

When the story begins, readers are introduced to Balthazar, a former member of the ruling class whose entire life was upended when his family fell under the attack of a vengeful political rival. Only Bal and his younger sister Miraveena survived, along with a few members of his extended family like his half-brother Malakai, cousin Zeelaya and her husband Edik, all of whom are now on the run. Forced to steal to survive, they become thieves for hire, targeting the nobility that had let them down. But now, they’ve been offered their biggest score yet. Bal’s mysterious patron has hired their crew to steal the idol of Karanis at the grand gala to celebrate the construction of the new temple to the sea god. Sure, it would be difficult in front of all those in attendance, but the pay alone would ensure all their futures. To Bal, nothing is more important than his little sister, and if they pull this off, Mira would be set for life.

There’s only one problem. For unknown reasons, their patron will only give them the job if they agree to take on a sixth member, the legendary thief known as the Queen of Days. Unwilling to let this chance of a lifetime slip through his fingers, Bal reluctantly strikes a deal with the mysterious figure, who introduces herself as Tassiel. When asked about her fee, however, she asks him to pay with thirty days off the end of his life and the same for each of his crew. Skeptical and disbelieving, Bal accepts.

This is just the beginning of what promises to be a whirlwind journey that will challenge not only our characters’ skills as thieves but also their very understanding of the rules that make up their universe. As they’ll soon discover, there is nothing traditional or even ordinary about the ceremony they’re about to crash, and the idol they’ve been tasked to steal is a magical artifact of immense significance, one that will change the fate of both mortals and gods. For Bal, this will mean fighting to maintain the fragile unity of his crew and learning to trust in Tassiel, at least long enough for them to survive this whole ordeal.

Yet while Kelly succeeds in portraying this band of thieves as a loveable found family, I felt that having an ensemble cast both strengthened and challenged the narrative. Yes, having more characters undoubtedly made the story more interesting, but because the focus was also very divided, I found it more difficult to connect to any of them. Notably, the author should have made a stronger case for Bal as the mastermind, the role traditionally filled by the crew’s leader in a heist story. There were several reasons why I found this unconvincing, the main one being his poor decision-making skills and lack of good judgment. His impulsiveness was not a good look and made it harder for me to feel sympathy for him or even root for his success.

Needless to say, I preferred Tassiel’s chapters over Bal’s, though the point-of-view shifts between the two from first-person to third-person took some adjusting. It also resulted in putting a bit of distance between the reader and her character, though in the end, it didn’t prevent me from warming to her personality as more about history was revealed (meanwhile, the more time I spent with Bal, the less I liked him).

This being a heist story, it should also come as no surprise that it stuck hard to heist crew archetypes. That said, I wish we had gotten more complex characters and that the plot moved beyond the usual predictable patterns. Granted, this was by no means a bad book, but nothing about it truly surprised or inspired me.

In other words, unlike Greta Kelly’s The Frozen Crown which I felt was a glorious debut, this one simply didn’t shine quite as bright. Don’t get me wrong, for readers who are looking for a pacy, entertaining, and action-packed heist story set in a fantasy world, I think The Queen of Days will be perfectly satisfactory. Nevertheless, those who are very familiar with the conventions of the genre and are looking for something more by way of characters and plot may find it somewhat wanting.

What’s it about?

Inspired by her love of D&D and other tabletop games, Greta Kelly’s latest book sends us on a heist adventure with a crew of loveable, and at times annoying, adventurers. We follow Bal, the leader of the Talion, who signs up his crew for a dangerous mission – without their knowledge, at first: steal an idol of the god Karanis from the brutal Governor Paasch during an opening ceremony and return it to a mysterious man known only as The Curator. Simple enough, he thought – until Tess, the titular Queen of Days, enters to help. Why is this god-like, infamous woman, who wears a silver mask, called to aid in this mission? Her appearance means one thing – this heist is dangerous. How far will Bal go to protect his found family?

How was it?

For the first quarter, I struggled to get a sense of place. We jump right into the action with only some exposition of the characters’ surroundings. What kind of land is the City of Ashaar? What do the homes look like? What kind of attire do the citizens wear? What or who do they worship? We don’t really get those lush descriptions I expect from a fantasy novel; there were a lot of fantasy-esque names dropped with little context of how they fit into the world.

What saved this for me was the characters. Kelly does a superb job of letting us love the Talion crew, even if their actions were purposely sometimes obnoxious. But that’s family, right? This is a dual-POV novel with Bal and Tess, yet the reader can still discover the unique traits, backstory, and motivations of the entire Talion crew. Also, the banter is epic.

As with most heist books, I found myself more engaged when the action got going. The setup always feels like a slog (Greta — it’s me, not you), but I couldn’t put this down when the proverbial shit hit the fan. Minor spoiler – something goes wrong and puts our heroes in a…scary position. If the heist was immediately successful, this would be a very short book.

Another aspect I enjoyed, without giving too much away, was the theme of science vs. faith, and how beliefs can shift when faced with the unthinkable. I’ve read plenty of books that approach this topic, but The Queen of Days gives it a unique spin.

The verdict:

This is well worth the read, especially if you love Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, tabletop RPGs, and witty banter.

reviewed by Erin Hawley for RIOT-US.com

The Queen of Days is a high-stakes, action-packed fantasy featuring a crew of thieves and a time-eating demon.
It's told through dual POV which follows Bal and Tass as they go from simply working together to complete a single mission to fighting to save the world. I really liked the character growth and friendship that develops between Bal and Tass throughout the book. I also adored the entire crew.

There’s honestly so much to love about this - hijinx, wrathful gods, magic and great world-building. I’m only taking a star off because it took me several attempts to really get into this. But once I did mange to get into it, I was absolutely hooked and couldn’t get enough.

I definitely recommend picking this up if you’re a fan of Six of Crows!

Epic fantasy heist. Those three words in the subject line of an email were all it took for me to windmill slam “yes” on getting an eARC of The Queen of Days from NetGalley and publisher HarperVoyager. Some marketing person knew the magic words that would pique my interest instantly. I was excited to dive in, and thankfully, the book lived up to the hype! This is a delightful, powerful adventure that left me wanting more in all the right ways.

Balthazar, aka Bal, is a scion of a noble family that has fallen on hard times. He now makes a living as a thief in the city that his family once ruled, and his latest heist sees him reluctantly partnering up with the mythical and mysterious Queen of Days. The heist, as heists often do, goes pear-shaped. On the run and outgunned, Bal and his crew and the Queen of Days find themselves as unlikely allies on a quest to kill a god, save their city (and possibly the world), and keep their skins intact.

The book opens with Bal meeting the Queen of Days, whose name we soon learn is Tassiel, or Tass. From there, we quickly move into meeting the supporting cast and the heist itself. I appreciate this pacing—I don’t mind when a heist book builds up to the heist-as-climax, but I also like when they do what Kelly does here. The heist, you see, is actually an appetizer before the real plot takes off. After a brief diversion into a mysterious Archive for some exposition and raising of stakes, Bal and Tass and the crew are back out into the city, on the run, trying to figure out what to do next.

The found family vibes are strong here. Kelly alternates chapters between Bal and Tass’s perspectives. Something I really liked is how the chapter titles for Tass evolve. At the start of the book, they provide her full name and title; as the story continues, they shorten to “Tassiel” and then eventually “Tass,” signifying her acceptance of this identity and her connection to Bal and his crew.

The mystery of Tass’s identity—who she is, where her magic comes from, where she herself comes from—is one of the earliest and most central mysteries in this book, and it’s fun. The way that Kelly teases out the mystery, not giving us everything at once yet also never lingering too long before dropping another clue, is tantalizing and kept me reading. I needed to know more about Tass, more about the magic in this world—and the others. Kelly artfully combines several standard tropes in a way that breathes new life into them.

Similarly, Bal’s own character arc, though less dramatic, is no less important in this story. At the beginning, he is fixated on revenge and protecting his kid sister. That second desire never changes, of course. Yet Bal must confront what “revenge” means against the backdrop of bigger, more existential threats, and it’s in this crucible that he demonstrates his ability to be heroic. I really like how his friendship with Tass develops. There is a kindness to the core of his character that often feels lacking in male protagonists of his mould. He isn’t quite a lovable rogue, and he also isn’t a blustering blowhard of a fighter. Kelly has carved out an unique and interesting man who, despite numerous flaws, brings people together in a way that is its own kind of magic.

Though I praised the pacing earlier, if I were to critique anything about this book, it would actually be how too much happens. This is a book with a lot of side quests. Not all of them held my interest. I’m thinking of one in particular, a foray finally into Tass’s home—I can see why Kelly includes this, but at the same time, I kept thinking, “I just want us to get back to the main conflict here.” This is the problem when you try to write an epic fantasy story that also wants to be a cozy, family-centric heist story: the two genres are difficult to mash together since they have diametrically opposed atmospheres. That Kelly manages to make them work as well as she does is, in and of itself, quite impressive.

If one of those two genres wins out, it’s the latter. The Queen of Days is indeed epic on paper; there is no denying that. There are gods. An entire city trembles. The stakes are real. Yet we don’t really care about that. The readers are here for Bal and Tass and the lovable crew that surrounds them.

The Queen of Days raised me from a reading slump. It elevated my resting, reading heart rate. If you could hook me up to a faucet of hot-and-cold running fantasy in this style, I would be a happy woman. As it is, I am left wanting more—in a good way—and I can’t recommend this book enough to people who want epic fantasy with cozy characters.

The Queen of Days is a richly developed fantasy story that features a band of misfits that intend to embark on the heist of a lifetime. Balthazar is convinced that this heist will be their last, and that the windfall will fund their early retirement. The only thing is, he’s been asked by his patron to recruit the mysterious and unpredictable “Queen of Days” to their team. Nevertheless, he’s convinced that the heist will go off without a hitch, giving him both the money and the revenge he craves. But you know what they say about the best laid plans…

The strength of this story lies in the rich worldbuilding that’s inserted into the text so casually amidst the action. The story leaps off the pages in lyrical prose, with vivid settings and a complex magic system. The story is told in first person, past tense, both from the point of view of Balthazar, the crew’s leader, and the mysterious Queen of Days. It’s immediately apparent that the Queen of Days is not human–at least not entirely–and without spoiling anything, one of my favourite character arcs of the entire story is hers. While I loved Balthazar, his younger sister, and the Queen of Days, I wasn’t as enchanted by the other characters. They weren’t quite as well developed. This makes sense for a novel with a complex plot and setting to not spend as much time focusing on secondary character development.

This book is about revenge and relationships with blood family, but it’s also about found family. It’s heartfelt, but features lots of fighting and action scenes to keep the blood pumping.

This novel is a standalone, but there’s potential for a sequel, or maybe even a series set in this world. I know the author has other fantasy books, but I’m not sure if they’re set in this world. Regardless, you can go into this book without any familiarity with the author’s other work.

All in all, this book is recommended for those who enjoy a fantasy heist novel with an emphasis on worldbuilding.