This was one of my anticipated reads this year. I loved the Foxglove King and immediately needed to read the sequel when I could. Whitten writes with such nuances that make you want to pick apart every detail. She makes you fall in love with character development while also driving the plot forward. I will say this book is more action then the previous one. My one big flaw was a lot of the movement to a lot of different scenes/backgrounds and sometimes felt a bit choppy. I did understand why there was a drive to move characters all around to tie up things from the previous book. But part of why I loved the first book was the fact that the dialogue and banter drove the story instead of a change in scene. The court politics was less which understandably why. The characters are trying to find the answer to how to reverse everything from the ending of the first book.
I really like the development of Lore, Bastian and Gabe. I felt like all three have different motives but are tangled into each other. Whether that be to support or block the others motivation. I absolutely love that we are not doing a you have to pick one person to be in love with. Whitten always writes her characters with complex emotions that own their flaws without being ashamed of them. At least for Bastian and Lore that is. But this book really pushed Gabe's character even though he was not in it as much as the other two. I can't wait for the conclusion because it seems like we will get multiple POVs versus just Lore. Overall this book was not a placeholder second book in a series. It really held its own and at some points was better then the first plot. Thank you again for the opportunity to read this amazing series!

First, thank you, netgalley, and the publishers for letting me read the ARC, i was beyond excited when I got approved for it.

This will have spoilers if you haven't read the first book. P.s. Why did I think it was a duology? The spoiler it is not, lol.

This book was everything and more that I wanted for the second book. It answered so many questions and created so many more.

This has romance, love, neyrayal, court politics, lore trying to decide what's best for her heart (bastain or gabe)

At the end of book one we realize that they have god powers, and we see what that means for the 2 of them in the second book, we also see how gabe and Lore deal with gabe betrayal and how it effects their relationship.

This is like this first book where we discover sercrets and prophesies and see what that means for our character and see if what was prophesied about lore will come true, and if so, can they stop it. Take what happens in book one and amplify it by 10 in regards to the stakes. In the first book, it's lores life. In the second, it means her loved one and the world.

I loved reading how bastain deals with being king and what role Lore now has. It ended on a clif hanger like the first book, and I can't wait for the next one!!!!

This one was almost as good as the first one! I can tell we are building up to a painful and explosive finale in this series. Normally love triangles feel very unbalanced to me, but Hannah Whitten knows how to write a good one. Full of longing and genuine conflict. There never feels like an obvious choice for our main character. I could feel Lore between torn both ways. I still adore the magic system in this series and enjoyed it even more now that we are seeing some elemental magic! I loved that this book dove deeper into the mythology of the world but it also was a bit overwhelming at times. There’s a lot of history that our characters have been tangled into to. At times I was confused how some of sub plots and character pertained to the story but it was all tied up together so nicely in the end. And made so much sense. Once I figured out some of the plot twists, I could see all the clues that the author had left for us. I will obviously be continuing this series and am already eager for book 3, even if this book technically isn’t even out yet.

I really liked The Foxglove King, but the expansion of the world that happened in The Hemlock Queen made me love this series even more. The Hemlock Queen incorporated more of the backstory of the gods and the inherent creepiness that I love in Whitten's writing. The first half of the book dragged a little bit, with a lot of will they-won't they between Lore and Gabe and Lore and Bastian, but things really picked up in the second half. I wasn't really liking the way the love triangle was going in the first half either, but I felt a little more optimistic about the outcome by the end of the book, even though the love triangle wasn't much closer to being resolved. I also wish there had been more scenes with Bastian, although I completely get why that wasn't possible. I continued to love Lore as a character, and I started liking Alie a lot more too, as she was given more of a supporting role in this one.

I love this author and this series! The writing is amazing and I feel like I’m living this story through Lore. Might be the best epilogue I’ve read.

Much like with "The Foxglove King", I think I still prefer Hannah's "For The Wolf" duology to this series. I find myself often tired by the characters, despite the fact that I continue to root for them all and wish them the best. There's a lot of interesting aspects of world building in these stories, and the potential is there, but something continues to be missing for me to really love these books the way that I want to. A part of that is the tireless love triangle that feels unnecessarily complicated and tangled. It leaves me feeling annoyed every single chapter, and not in a way that makes me want to keep reading. Beyond that, it's important to reiterate that the ideas here are interesting, and I will always love Hannah's writing. I just wish it was making me feel more than just annoyance.

I’m so thankful Orbit books and NetGalley gave me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

Hemlock Queen is one of my top anticipated reads and it didn’t disappoint! This book kept me on my toes!! Lots of action and Gods!! Love triangles and castle politics! That ending!!! Now we wait for book 3!!

Be sure to pick this up April 11,24!

In the second installment of New York Times bestselling author Hannah Whitten's lush, romantic epic fantasy series, a young woman who can raise the dead must navigate the dangerous and glamorous world of the Sainted King's royal court.

I am not the target demographic for this series or book, I usually stay away from anything romantasy. Having said that, this was one of the better ones. Book one was ok, but I felt like this installment took a big step forward. I had a good enough time to enjoy it for what it was, but I still will not be continuing the series...

The Hemlock Queen was a wild ride. I wasn't sure how this book was going to go after finishing the first one -- there were a few different roads Whitten could have taken -- but DANG. She picked the most entertaining one, for sure. I really don't want to spoil the 'reveal' that we get in this book, so you get a pretty darn vague review, sorry friends.

If you pick this up and spend the first half of the book totally annoyed with Bastian let me tell you there is a perfectly good explanation for why you feel that way. And once you figure it out, WOOF. You feel bad for feeling the way you did. My poor Sun prince.

The romance is still present here, but it's fraught. Shaky and nebulous and leaves you feeling maybe a little on the dirty side. (Not in a good way.) The triangle is still here, but it starts to feel less like a triangle, and more like a possible polycule WHICH WOULD BE SO REFRESHING AND INTERESTING if Whitten decides to go this route eventually. Lore loves both Bastian and Gabe, and I truly don't see a reason why she has to pick between the two - especially when they both care for each other, too.

Lore makes some interesting decisions in this book, ones that I hope she'll get to see pan out. At the end of the book, I am flat out terrified for her, but knowing her as a character I am sure that she'll figure out how to save herself.

WHAT AN INTERESTING PREMISE THIS SERIES HAS. I am fully on board with this, and I can't wait to see where Whitten goes, and what the end game is here. Four and a half stars. I cannot wait to read the next entry into this series.

This book was something of a first for me. This is the *only* book with a love triangle that I’ve *ever* read where I found myself thinking “a threesome would actually solve most of the problems here.”

This book has more of what I’ve come to expect from Hannah Whitten: lush writing, a very character-driven story, and interesting worldbuilding that isn’t explored as much as I would like. I’m not going to go too deeply into the plot of the book because I don’t want to spoil anyone who hasn’t read *The Foxglove King*, but things moved generally in the direction I expected, though the path taken wasn’t necessarily what I would have predicted.

What I was probably most excited about was how much we learned about the Bleeding God and the Buried Goddess and all the events around the Godsfall. There’s an interesting history there, that trickles out over the course of the story, and I’m definitely looking forward to learning more about it in book 3.

Now, I wasn’t the only one reading book 1 who was a little confused about how something marketed as a romance managed to have no one having any sex. That trend continues here, though there is a *little* sex this time. Anyone who has read the first book will know who I am referring to with my threesome comment above - I spent a good deal of time growling at this book “will you guys just f— already?!”

My only real complaint about the book - aside from the three protagonists' chronic unwillingness to get it on - was the pacing. There were definitely segments of the book that dragged. It would have been significantly stronger if it was like three-quarters as long.

But a minor complaint overall. I put this in the same category as *Foxglove King*: a book that I enjoyed reading, and would be a great choice for a beach or an airplane.

5/5

Betrayal, lies, and deadly secrets invigorate this poisonous sequel to the Foxglove King, as Lore battles a war within her own heart and a divine force intent on overtaking the entire kingdom. The Hemlock Queen elevates the stakes of The Foxglove King, barbed with court politics and fraught dynamics between its core trio, now at odds. Still reeling from the fallout of book one, Lore comes to terms with her new role and fights the cost of her own survival. Whitten bridges the world of gods and humans until they meet on a knife edge, where they remain until its heartwrenching conclusion. It’s safe to say Hannah Whitten knows how to write epic sequels. This twisted high fantasy trilogy continues to astonish and The Hemlock Queen shifts it from sensational to absolutely legendary.

Full review to be posted on my blog closer to publication

Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was so excited to see that the sequel to The Foxglove King was coming out! The Hemlock Queen by Hannah Whitten is the second book in this adult fantasy series. The story revolves around Lore, a necromancer who is supposed to be in love with Bastian, who is going to be the new King now that the former King is dead. They should be happy, but they are also dealing with the ramifications of what happened in the previous book. While they try to defeat their enemies on the outside, can they also deal with the enemies within?

Here is an exciting excerpt from Chapter 1:

"There were many things Lore didn’t feel like doing today. Getting up early. Choking down breakfast. Her head felt like it was inhabited by a thousand tiny men with hammers, courtesy of the wine she’d downed before bed to make sure she didn’t dream. The combination of ache and dry, sour mouth made even the most delicate pastries taste like something from a refuse pile. Getting dressed also wasn’t high up on her list of things she wanted to do, and she’d let Juliette, her lady’s maid, stuff her into a pale-peach gown that really did nothing for her coloring just because she didn’t have the energy to fight about it. That was typical for her, these days. Not having the energy to fight about things.
But out of all that, entering the catacombs was still number one on her list of things she absolutely, positively, did not want to do."

Overall, The Hemlock Queen is an adult fantasy book that will appeal to fans of the author's previous books. One highlight of this book is the love triangle, which is much more than your typical love triangle. There are complicated emotions and relationships, and I couldn't really decide who I wanted Lore to end up with. There are good things about Gabe and good things about Bastian. I'm hoping there's more romance in the next book.

Another highlight of this book is the original world-building. There are a ton of terms like the Sainted King. I loved how much thought the author put into the background of the world. I felt like I was in a different world, and it never felt too much. I always understood what was going on. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of adult fantasy books in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in April!