This book was so intriguing. I got a little confused with the world building and characters, but overall, I really enjoyed it. I really liked Boleyn and Seymour’s relationship, but I thought parts of their story felt rushed. I will definitely be reading book 2!

Six Wild Crowns is a fantastic historical fantasy that I could not put down! Holly Race crafts a world where all six wives of Henry the VIII are alive at the same time and bound to him through magic. Boleyn is the newest wife and determined to give him a son. But as secrets about the magic that protects the kingdom are revealed, Boleyn must work together with the other wives to reveal the truth.

I love this historical fantasy about the wives of Henry the VIII! The magic system was creative and exciting to explore. I loved the relationship between Boleyn and Seymour and how they connected with the other queens. The dragons, crones, and supporting characters were all excellent. You can read this book with lots of knowledge about the Tudors and appreciate the Easter eggs and research, or you could read this book with little background knowledge and still enjoy it. Readers who love complex politics, historical fantasy, and queer characters will enjoy Six Wild Crowns. I hope there’s a sequel featuring Elizabeth!

Thank you to Holly Race, Orbit Books, and NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Goodreads, Amazon, Storygraph, and Barnes & Noble etc.

🌟4.5 Stars🌟
Finally some good soup! I’ve read a series of mind numbing flops and it was so refreshing to pick this up. If you enjoy fantasy books that focus on political intrigue then I think this will be right up your alley. I loved the contrast between Boleyn’s machinations and Seymour’s naivety for the first portion of the book. What kept me from giving this five stars was the lack luster Wyatt romance. I think that either Seymour and Boleyn should have become a couple or Boleyn should have been solely devoted to Henry. I think the ending would have hit even harder if either of these choices had been made. I think that small change would have made the ending of this book hit similar to the Traitor Baru Cormorant. That aside I’m interested in seeing how this will progress as a trilogy. We don’t have a great understanding of the other queens and I’d be excited to get POVs from them.

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: on page sexual assault, on page spousal rape (not described in detail), murder, miscarriage historical, self induced abortion on page, child marriage

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book.

This was not what I expected, and in both a good and bad way.

I'll start with the good. The author blows the story out of the park with her alternate history take on Henry and his six wives, and the creative world building that it all takes place in. There was a great mix of the the history based with this new fantasy world, and because you didn't know what part of history would be pulled in, it was hard to separate fact from fiction in terms of knowing how to predict where the story would go. For example, there was a couple instances where I thought I knew what would happen (based on history) only to have the plot go in a different direction because, again, this a completely new world and set of events taking place. So I loved the plot for constantly surprising me.

Now for the bad. As much as I loved the story, I struggled to get through it. The entire thing felt even paced to the point that there was only a couple points were I wanted to keep reading non-stop. It was an easy to put down, but then never feel a rush to pick back story. While I enjoyed the alternate history take, there's not much else that is driving me to want to pick up another book in this series in the future.

Six Wild Crowns has all the elements which should be catnip to me. It has historical fantasy, sapphic vibes, and women uniting to take down a king. But unfortunately I needed a bit more depth. First of all, I think this is a pretty faithful re-telling of history - except for the glaring obvious differences - and that threw me a bit. I was expecting more deviations considering some of the larger jumps - all the queens alive and the magic. But this stays pretty close in terms of the queens rise and rumors circling which could be a good or bad thing for you depending on what you're expecting!

Coming to the characters, it's focused only on Boleyn and Seymour and I wish it had a bit more expansive look at the queens. I realize that it's mostly their story, but I wish we would have had more depth into the other queens. I know this is book one of a series, so there's room for growth, but I had a hard time with both Boleyn and Seymour. First of all, the sapphic promises aren't as strong as more pining with unrequited feels, which I think is a big difference to what you might be expecting when you hear sapphic. Secondly, I just felt like the lead up for the BIG movements were super slow. So you need to be invested in the characters pretty completely to make it there.

2.5 rounded down

This was pretty disappointing for me, I was thinking it was going to be more epic and feature more sapphic romance but it did neither of those things. The premise of the story was cool, what if Henry VIII was married to all six of his wives at the same time and there was magic and dragons. But the dragons were very minor side pets, the magic was rarely used and there was a lot of telling rather than showing. Also the insta love was way too much for me as someone who does not love that trope.

I received an eARC thanks to Netgalley and Orbit. All opinions are my own.

I love retellings and reimaginings of the relationship between Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII. This reimagining takes huge liberties (I mean, it’s queer and there are pet dragons and magic) and it kind of reminds me of Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid in that it really could have just been its own story, except I actually liked this one. I enjoyed imagining these real people in a fantasy world, and hey, Henry VIII remains an absolute dick so it felt right. I can’t quite explain my favorite bit of “wow men suck” in Six Wild Crowns without spoiling anything but omg does that man suck and the feminist themes were seriously on point. There are also some darker themes so check TWs.

The book takes place in the fictional country of Elben in a world where queer relationships are normal. I loved that even though Seymour was in pain over her love and longing for Boleyn, she wasn’t ashamed of her sexuality because it was a completely regular thing.

Though Boleyn and Seymour grew as the story progressed, there wasn’t really a gentle path to the changes that felt believable. They both sort of just snapped into their growth, like one minute they were one way and the next, everything had changed. It just wasn’t gradual enough imo.

There’s not a whole lot of explanation of the magic other than where it came from, but the system isn’t really as important as the magic’s existence. The lack of a complicated magic system made it an easy read which is perfect if you’re in the mood for fantasy that still feels magical.

The ending wasn’t exactly a jump scare. It’s based on a true story, after all! But it left me interested in the next book.

This wasn't what I was expecting, but was still a nice ride nonetheless. Perfect for those who love a heavy dose of political/court intrigue.

As a woman alive in 2025, of course there is every part of me that has been obsessed with the Tudor history for as long as I can remember, especially King Henry and his six wives. I spent far too long on my honeymoon standing in front of the very spot Anne Boleyn was beheaded upon. So, when I read the description for this book, my heart RACED. Contrary to what several other people have said, I think the blurb for the book gave just enough to truly get me excited - and then from the moment I read the first pages, I was HOOKED. You're telling me I can have the Tudors, but with magic, strong women, and the sapphic yearning I keep within me at all times?!

Truly, this book is one of my favorites this year. I feel Holly Race did a superb job of taking the seeds of history that were planted centuries ago, and spinning a tale that was uniquely her own, and my only flaw was that I read it early enough I now have to wait for whenever the next book is coming out. I thought Race did an admirable job of creating a world and lore that gave you just enough to get hooked, and I can't wait to further explore it in future books.

I love the power she gave the wives, and how she made it uniquely their own. I love more than anything the alternative histories where those six women we know mostly through rhymes come alive, and have depth and character attached to them. Boleyn and Seymour gave a love story that wasn't a love story but was, and you can't help but fall in love with Boleyn yourself based on the way Seymour describes her.

I will be stalking Holly Race's social media until I can get another announcement on the next installment, and I absolutely cannot wait.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and to Orbit for the opportunity to read and review this title!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the advanced eARC. I was initially interested in the premise of this book, but it turned out to be different from what I was expecting. It simply didn't deliver what the blurb was promoting. The execution needed to be sharper. I found myself uninterested and DNFed at 15%.

Six Wild Crowns is a dazzling reimagining of Tudor history, bursting with courtly intrigue, ruthless ambition, and the fierce presence of dragons. The blend of real historical inspiration with high fantasy is nothing short of mesmerizing. Anne Boleyn’s scheming brilliance and Jane Seymour’s deadly grace bring a refreshing complexity to familiar names. The world of Elben is richly layered with rotting magic and deadly secrets, and the sapphic alliance that blooms between two queens adds emotional weight to the political firestorm. It's sharp, dramatic, and enchantingly dark, an irresistible ride through a twisted, dragon-laced court.

This book was very slow paced, and the beginning was very hard to get through. I would have loved to see more action, adventure, or personality from the characters.

I think the premise of this book had me ready for a different type of story, and I was just never truly invested in these characters or their story.

this was a very slow read for me
This is a fantasy loosely based on Tudor England but with Henry supposedly ruling alongside his six Queens. The belief is that Henry was given magic that is tied to the land and this story begins his sixth wife to be crowned her name is Boleyn. Seymour is sent to spy on Boleyn by Queen Aragon and assassinate her.

the synopsis is very misleading and a lot of books I choose to read are because of the synopsis, this is not a dragon book don't get your hopes up, yes there's treachery and danger but the only dragon in the story is the pet that is given to boleyn and it's not a tight political story. It is about women trying to regain the power that was meant to be theirs in the first place, The more I read the more I disliked Henry Boleyn truly grew throughout the story and became her own hero, Seymour perhaps went through the biggest transformation from sad and lonely being told what to do by her family to actually stepping up (eventually).
the magic and how it was used was a disappointment and was not really touched on I was left wanting more, I found rating this quite highly because I did find myself continuing to read it and finish it, but it fell flat in aspects of world building and magic.
these thoughts are my own and I believe are fair.
thank you to net galley and orbit books for the arc.

Walk into this one with zero expectations regarding the synopsis and you’re going to absolutely fall for this book. The dragons are more cute than brutal, but a lovely addition to the mythology and lore built in this fantasy version of Henry VIII and his wives. I enjoyed how Race was able to turn the story on its head a bit and turn into something completely new. The Priory of the Orange Tree is a great comp as this is filled with sapphic yearning and political intrigue.

“You are the storm, and I have been lost in your tornado for so long now that I no longer desire the sun.”

Thank you to @orbitbooks_us for the ARC. All thoughts are my own.

4.5 stars

This one had a very slow start. I had to restart the first two chapters at least four times before I could get into it. It was just not clicking in my brain. As someone who was mildly obsessed with the Tudors (hi, Philippa Gregory phase), this alternate-history fantasy version was such a fascinating twist.

Set in the fictional kingdom of Elben, the book offers a clever spin on England’s past. There are recognizable names and echoes of real events, but it’s not a one-to-one retelling. This is a land with dragons and magic. Henry still has six wives, but here they’re all married concurrently. Each queen is magically bonded to one of six castles that uphold a protective barrier called the bordweal. Or…that's what they want us to believe.

The worldbuilding was fantastic. I loved how each castle reflected its region and its queen, and the queernorm society was a refreshing touch. Our main characters are Boleyn and Seymour and the POV switches between the two frequently. The characters had just enough of their historical counterparts to feel familiar, but there was plenty of creative reimagining too. For example, Seymour's unrequited crush on Boleyn. The yearning was real y'all. Unsurprisingly, Boleyn was my favorite. She’s always been the most compelling wife to me, and I loved her fire and determination in this version.

In trying to help her husband, Boleyn starts unraveling a web of secrets, betrayal, and conspiracy that makes the second half of the book impossible to put down. The queens aren’t supposed to speak, much less become allies, but watching them slowly form connections and consider rebelling against a powerful king? That’s the kind of narrative I live for. Strong women working together to take down the patriarchy? Yes, please.

Despite the rocky beginning, I’m so glad I stuck with it. Elben has me intrigued, and I’ll definitely be picking up the sequel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the eARC!

I kind of loved this. Fantasy with political intrigue and sapphics is basically what I live for. The prose is beautiful, the two POV characters were distinctive and compelling, and the climax was exciting and definitely hooked me for the sequel. I will say that a lot of this felt more like laying the groundwork for future books/plot machinations, but the plot we got still intrigued me, and wow that ending. It might not have been necessary to have the Tudor inspiration be so obvious, but I still had fun with it, and I looked forward to seeing how the character arcs developed compared to history. (Does Seymour die in childbirth? Will Boleyn be executed? What role will Thomas More play?)

The sapphic yearning wasn't quite what I was hoping for. Obviously I wanted sister wives in love. Instead of that, queer Seymour is in love with straight Boleyn, and their friendship (maybe friendship isn't a fitting word... they're allies? loyal to one another and their dream of the future? a complicated relationship) is a key part of the book. It's heavily implied we could have a sister wife romance in the sequel (love me a muscular lesbian farmer queen Cleves), so there's that to look forward to.

The island kingdom of Elben must always have a king that marries six queens in order to maintain the magical barrier that protects the kingdom from invaders. Boleyn marries the current king Henry for love and Seymour marries him for safety. The two form an unlikely bond when they are supposed to be enemies. Together they will discover the dark truth behind the source of the island's magic and then have to try to escape Henry's ire with their lives....

I have to say that hewing so close to Tudor history in terms of names and interpersonal relationships may have been a mistake. For readers who are very familiar with that time period, the book doesn't quite hit the mark of reinterpreting these historical figures in a satisfying way. And for readers who are not familiar, they will get a more pop history version of these people. That being said, the entire magical system and world of Elben were well constructed and interesting. I almost think the book would have been better with wholly original characters or a loose interpretation of the historical figures. That being said, I do wish we had heard more about the outlying kingdoms and their cultures, particularly as two of the six queens are foreigners.

I also think the book would have benefit from a 3rd POV from another queen. In particular, adding Parr as the 3rd POV would have made SO MUCH more sense than giving her only one spoken line in the entire book. If any of Henry VIII's six wives would have joined Anne Boleyn in a rebellion to overthrow the patriarchy, it would have been motherf***ing Catherine Parr. She acted as regent when Henry went abroad to war with France in the real history! And you're telling me her fictional counterpart wouldn't have jumped at the chance to be a queen regnant of her own territory?! (And don't even get me started on the character assassination of Mary Boleyn). And this is why this book would have been better if it didn't pull so directly from history as my complaints listed above wouldn't be an issue if I didn't already have knowledge of who these people were in history.

That being said, both Boleyn and Seymour were great main characters and their journeys were compelling. Boleyn was an interesting study in what it is like to still love a person who has hurt you terribly and how hard coming to terms with that can be.

And one more slight nitpick. The eldest daughters in Elben are given their father's last names as their first names in order to carry on the family line in some way. This should have been changed prior to publication. It was used solely to get the name recognition of real six wives without any in universe reason of why these names exist and also weren't accurate to the real history so what was the point? (E.g. Anne Boleyn, Anne of Cleves and Katherine of Aragon were not the eldest daughters in their families. ) Jane Parker is renamed Rochford which isn't her father's name in real life, it was her husband's title. It is a nitpick I know but it really irked me everytime I read it.

Overall, I am intrigued to see where the series goes as Race did build up enough suspense by the end and left the story on somewhat of a cliff hanger. I will give credit where it's due.

Reviews going live on Fable, Goodreads and Storygraph on 6/10 and tiktok on 6/12

While I love fantasy and historical fiction novels, I don't think this particular combination worked for me in this specific book. I'm a huge fan of Tudor fiction, particularly the works of Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir. While liberties are taken in their works, the history, for the most part, remains intact. That is why I had a problem with this book; way too many liberties were taken that I couldn't overlook, and therefore couldn't fully enjoy the story. Now, if this had just been a generic king and kingdom in a fantasy realm, I think I would have had a better time reading the story. If those are things that don't bother you, then I think you'll enjoy this story, but for me, this just didn't work.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ALC and eARC in exchange for an honest review!

From the very beginning of Six Wild Crowns, the writing is immersive and when listening to the ALC, the narrator did a fantastic job with the all of the various characters/accents. I'm always a fan of court politics and this book was full of it. I was slightly disappointed that even though the blurb mentioned dragons, magic, and high fantasy elements, those were very small details in the book. Also the back and forth between Boleyn and Seymour just wasn't believable. The longer it went on the more annoying it became.

That said, overall it was a fine book and I will probably continue the series. I might just not rush to get the second book right at release.

ARC Review: Six Wild Crowns by Holly Race
Pub Date: June 10

Thank you to Orbit books for the eARC and to Hachette Audio for the ALC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

As someone who read basically every Tudor historical fiction when she was in high school, I was SUPER excited for this book inspired by the Tudors, but with sapphic yearning and dragons!

However... for a book that boasts dragons, they were shockingly not much of a plot point? Like yes, they were there and I do love the concept of a lap dragon but...not sure that they really added anything to the story? But thanks Orbit for the little 3D printed dragon, I do love him! and I'm taking name suggestions.

I did really enjoy the concept of Henry as polyamorous and having all 6 wives at the same time - this is allegedly so he can have access to all the magic to keep the kingdom safe (or something like that). As we got further and further into the book, I was really excited to see Boleyn and Seymour have more agency and take Henry down. The end of the book went really quickly and I was really wondering how we were going to wrap everything up...and then I realized this is supposed to be the start of a series.

Truthfully though I didn't hate this, I wasn't particularly compelled by it and likely won't continue with the series unless my FOMO gets me.