2.5 Stars.

Upon starting The Promised Queen, I was intrigued and drawing into the story, however I dnf'ed around 30%. Though I felt the world building was detailed and there were the bones of a good story, I struggled with the character of the FMC and as others have said, her language/ dialogue felt out of place. Ultimately, it just wasn't for me. Please also read the triggers as there is a lot of discussions around fertility and 'bedding and breeding'.

Unfortunately chose to DNF this book. While the premise was quite interesting and the story progressed quickly from the start I could not get past the writing style of this book. It read very much like a middle grade book yet with adult concepts and connotations. I can see others enjoying this as it is very fast paced even in the very beginning but unfortunately I couldn’t overlook the use of “nah” and other slang words while in the FMCs internal monologue. If you are looking for a fast paced story with easily digestible albeit immature characters this book may work for you!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC! When I started the prologue, it reminded me of Inej from Six of Crows which had me so excited - I really wanted to enjoy this book! But it was unfortunately a bit of a let down.

The biggest issue I had was the main character’s tone of voice - she uses words like “ain’t” and “shitting fuckbollocks” which feels weird in a high fantasy setting. I’m not sure if it was intended to make her look uneducated or less polished, but for me it mostly just took me out of being immersed in the story and was jarring. Some of the language she used felt far more modern than her world seemed to be also… while I wanted to just chalk the way she spoke up to her being from another world, the world she was from had barons and mining as a key industry and horses as primary transportation.

I did, however, generally like Rhaell and his storyline. At first I was a bit skeptical because Rhaell is described as model hot but seems to think he’s ugly because he has scars on his back… Jamie Fraser would like to have a word! It does all make sense by the end, and I thought he was an absolute highlight character in the book.

That said, there was never a moment early on which made sense for them to start having feelings for each other. It kind of just came from nowhere - Rhaell constantly tells himself “you can’t have her” but it’s not super apparent why he knows he wants her? Or what it is he wants? The entire beginning of the book felt incredibly rushed in all honesty. It felt hard to believe that Ember was a thief because we really just see her steal one thing that kicks off the book and are TOLD she’s a thief. It was hard to understand what the point of Ember’s way of speaking was because we see almost none of her world before she gets transported. And we don’t really see why the main characters develop feelings, we just get told they do.

I really enjoyed the mystery behind the stones and the adventure to gather them all - this is right up my alley for the kind of stories I like. I wanted more in all honesty! I feel like this easily could’ve been stretched out to two books to really take the time to build up the romance, but also flesh out the world we’re in and spend more time getting to know the Rakaa for example. I think it would’ve been much stronger for the book to span 6 months to a year in time, versus what was seemingly a month max.

Overall, while there were aspects of the story I liked and see a lot of potential with, for me personally I struggled with the pacing and the main character’s way of speaking. If those types of things don’t typically bother you and you care more about the overall storyline, you might enjoy this book more than me! It seems like there might be a sequel from the way the book ended - while the book itself for me is getting a 3, I don’t think I will be picking up the next book unfortunately.

The Promised Queen

The story follows FMC Ember who is thrown through a portal to another world and arrives as The Promised One, the one an ancient prophecy foretold would restore magic to the land.

Ember’s only wish is to return home but in order to do so she strikes a deal with captain of the guard Rhaell. They agree to work together to restore the magic and thus be able to send Ember back to her home world.

I struggled a bit with the first half of the book. I don’t know what it was, I felt like it was well written and a lot of things happened but it just wasn’t clicking with me. I got a bit confused with the characters, whose pov it was and some of the fight scenes had me lost with what was going on.

Having said that, after the halfway point it did pick up and then the last 30% was really good. (Bit of a spoiler but trying not to give too much away) the big twist around this point blew my mind, I did not see that coming (even though I questioned the prince having horns earlier on nothing more really occurred to me).

I hope to see a follow up book to this, I’d really like to see where the story goes.

I’m rating this book 3.75 stars (rounded up to 4)

This book was a lovely read, I particularly enjoyed the descriptive language used in it, and how well everything was always explained from everything to clothes to the smells that could be smelt. It felt I credibly immersive which I absolutely adored.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publishing company for allowing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was sadly not great. There was a weird fixation with the FMCs breasts, and every time it was mentioned (which was often) it took me out of the story. Some of the romance elements felt a bit forced and rushed at times

Thank you to Netgalley and One More Chapter/HarperCollins UK for the ARC, but The Promised Queen was just not for me.

I’m not going to lie, I have mixed feelings about this book.
Overall, I enjoyed it! It had a a wonderfully sassy and snarky female main character. It had a misunderstood and broody male main character. It had dragons and a magic quest. It had interesting creatures and politics. It had multi POV and flashbacks. There is a lot going for this book!
What threw me off, though, was the pacing and that the multi POV changed partway through the chapters. For me, it made the flow a little choppy. I’m still not sure about the twist in identity, it felt a little out of left field.
Saying all that, there were definitely more positives than negatives and I am looking forward to where the story goes!

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for the digital advanced copy of The Promised Queen by Kate Johnson. This review reflects my honest thoughts and opinions.

The Promised Queen is a fast-paced and entertaining read, but ultimately, it fell short for me. It leans heavily on familiar fantasy romance tropes—Ember, a thief, wakes up in another world where she’s hailed as the prophesied savior, expected to marry a beastly prince and bear his children. Determined to escape and return home, Ember joins forces with Rhaell, who offers her a deal: help him recover magical stones needed to heal the sacred tree and restore magic, and he’ll send her back.

The book struggles with underdeveloped plot points and a writing style that often muddles action scenes. Key moments lack clarity, leaving me confused about how certain events unfolded. The central “reveal” near the end of the book is particularly jarring—it arrives without any narrative buildup, making it feel disconnected and unearned. Foreshadowing could have significantly improved its effectiveness and emotional resonance.

One of the book’s strengths is its pacing. The story moves quickly, and the characters are constantly in motion, facing one challenge after another. These conflicts, while initially intriguing, ultimately remain surface-level. I started the novel hopeful, but by the end, I felt unsatisfied.

Ember and Rhaell have potential as leads. Ember is portrayed as witty, strong, and independent—a refreshing departure from the passive heroine archetype. However, this characterization is frequently undermined by repetitive and overly sexualized descriptions, particularly of her physical attributes. While she’s described as a master thief, her skills are rarely demonstrated in a convincing or plot-relevant way. Rhaell remains an enigma throughout; his motivations and background are unclear, and the reader learns little beyond his quest for the stones and his self-perceived ugliness. Their romantic connection lacks emotional depth and seems driven more by physical attraction than shared experience or vulnerability. Supporting characters are similarly underdeveloped, which weakens the emotional stakes and world-building.

There is a meaningful theme at the heart of this story—female autonomy and reproductive rights. Ember’s horror at being seen primarily as a vessel for childbirth in a society plagued by infertility is a compelling premise. Unfortunately, this theme is diluted and inconsistently explored. It never reaches the emotional or narrative weight it deserves and dissipates by the book’s conclusion.

One of the strongest aspects of the novel is its setting. Kate Johnson has created a rich, imaginative world with intriguing magical elements and a compelling backstory about the sacred tree and the significance of the stones. These aspects held my interest and hinted at the novel’s potential.

Despite its strengths in pacing and world-building, The Promised Queen didn’t deliver the emotional or narrative payoff I was hoping for. I won’t be continuing with future installments, and I wouldn’t recommend this one to fans of fantasy romance looking for well-developed characters and stakes.

4.5 stars 🌟

OMG what a wild ride! This book kept me guessing, the twists, then I second-guessed myself the whole time, and I loved it.❤️

This book was so much fun and had everything from:
• dragons 🐉
• magical creatures 🦄
• portals ✨
• men with wings 😇
• enemies to lovers ❤️‍🔥
• only one horse 🐴
• twist and turns 🤯
• a promised one 💍
• royalty 👑 & secrets 🤫
• spice 🔥
• a beastly prince 🤴
• betrayal 💔
• and death 💀!


It just gave absolutely everything a romantasy should! 😍 If I had to recommend a book to a first-time reader of romantasy, this would be it! Rhaekl is absolutely adorable, and I loved his POV. 🥰 Ember was feisty, badass, and showed her softer side—so likeable! I'm so excited for the next book! 🤩 Definitely reading more from Kate Johnson! Thank you @publisher @author @NetGalley for the ARC! 🙏

I ended up having to DNF this.

While the premise is intriguing, the writing wasn’t enough to draw me in. There was little information on Ember’s home world, and little world building on the world she fell into. For a romantasy, it lacked much romance and I didn’t feel a connection to the characters.

The POVs of other characters were quite random and I fail to see their significance. Ember constantly bounced between wanting to escape and seemingly accepting of her position. There were also multiple paragraphs that could have realistically been left out for they were just filler.

However, above all of this is I have a few issues:

1. The excessive mentioning of tits and bosoms. I cannot believe I read “… her bosom heaving”.

2. The improper usage of speech tags. If you ask a question, you didn’t say it. You asked it.
3. The overuse of adverbs. “She sobbed prettily.”

As well, I need someone to explain to me what colour “hair the shade of something you’d find in the privy” means, because I still don’t get it.

Overall, it wasn’t my cup of tea but I can see how it would be someone else’s. Good luck to the author in her upcoming release.


Thank you NetGalley and One More Chapter for this ARC.

Thank you to Harper Collins & Netgalley for approving me to read this book, I’m rating it 4.75 stars.

This book had me hooked omg!

It was truly hilarious, I love a foul mouthed FMC. I love that the FMC was also highly suspicious of everyone, naive characters jar me a little bit and although she didn’t have a clue what was going on, she was definitely the queen of adaptation.

This story had scheming, prophecy, heist like situations and arranged marriage and so much more. I highly recommend this to everyone it was a true delight to read.

Rhaell and Ember are cute together and I enjoyed their relationship at the start ❤️ but it didn't grip me.

The world building was ok but there wasn't enough depth to the characters for me to really get sucked into this world. Everything was very surface level and the story just kept getting worse.

The twist is very obvious and very annoying. To be honest the entire story about getting her pregnant was just awful.

I only read this book because I got it as an Arc otherwise I would of DNF'd.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was such a fun ride. It has so many elements to it and the twists and turns kept me guessing until the end. Ember is a fantastic character, dumped into a strange world she doesn't understand but comes to empathise with and on a quest where her old skills are very much needed. Great world building and and characterisation. Loved it.

This is a fast-paced, fantasy romance that has a solid plot that will keep you engaged.
The first half was a bit hard for me to get through at times. I almost feel like the world building isn’t expanded on enough for the layers of plot to flow but as I got further into the book, that was forgotten about anyway. The romance is a slow burn, and one that was done very well. I spent a lot of the time trying to guess where the plot was going but the author did a fantastic job at keeping me on my toes with the plot twists.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins / One More Chapter for this E-arc

Content warnings: abortion, maiming, infertility, imprisonment, violence, betrayal, murder

Ember's forced to steal to ensure her clockmaker father and two brothers have food to eat. Not because they're poor, but because her brothers spend all their money on women and booze. Then Ember breaks into the wrong house. She saves a beautiful woman chained to a table, but then Ember becomes their sacrifice.

With a dagger in her heart, Ember falls from the sky into another world. The citizens have been waiting for Ember because she is their Promised One. The world she entered may be new and strange, but it could be even more dangerous than the world she left.

Filled with twists and turns and an end you (maybe) won't see coming, the novel is a good choice for fantasy readers who don't mind some romance. Although billed as a romantasy, this is closer to fantasy with a dash of smut.

Thank you to Netgalley and One More Chapter/HarperCollins UK for the ARC.

1.5 stars, DNF at 10%.


The bones of this book are good. Even at 10%, I feel like the world is unique and interesting. The concept, where a girl falls through a portal and becomes queen in a parallel world, is super cool. The execution just leaves much to be desired. I really, really liked the idea that our world (or something similar) is the Iron World and a magical fantasy land is just a portal away.

The bad: I am not convinced this book wasn't written by a white man in 1985. Emphasis on Ember's cleavage, sobbing prettily (Literally a line from the book), constant reminders that Ember is Ugly!! The king of Yskara wants her... bedded and bred. Look, there is value in using tropes like this to up the stakes. Girls of Paper and Fire did it beautifully, so I know it can be done. But this was just to up the stakes of the romance between Raell and Ember.

Ember also somehow talks like a modern British person. She is barely literate, has a crippled father, two younger siblings that rely on her...I'll let you draw your own conclusions here.

When Ember Hart steals the High Lord's Stone, she hopes only to buy her father more medicine. She certainly doesn't expect to find herself in a strange new world, where she is declared to be The Promised One who must produce an heir with the prince known as The Beast. Ember's only hope of getting home is to restore magic to the kingdom, which means joining forces with Rhaell, Captain of the Guard, and trying to not to get distracted by how ridiculously handsome he is...

Romantasy is a little outside my comfort zone, but I loved Kate Johnson's Hex and Hexability so much I couldn't resist this one. I made sure to read it slowly to take in all the details - which was not easy given how much I wanted to race through it - and I found the plot really clear and easy to follow without becoming repetitive. I loved all the world-building, which felt new and exciting, and I particularly liked the interpretations of various mythical creatures (dragons!). I also thought the plot was really strong, as each of the stones that Ember and Rhaell hunt down to restore magic to the kingdom provides its own adventure while driving the overall story. I would personally have preferred a more definite ending, especially since ending The Promised Queen in a way that seems to pave the way for a sequel does introduce quite a lot of new elements into the story at its end, but I did appreciate that it this book has a satisfactory ending in its own right. And I found the first chapter that suddenly switches to the subplot pulled me out of the rhythm of the story, but I could soon see how these chapters contribute to the book as a whole.

The romance plot is every bit as good as I'd hoped, with some unique takes on familiar tropes and plenty of spice. I read The Promised Queen in one sitting, and it has reminded me why Kate Johnson is one of my favourite authors. But readers might want to know that this book deals with some difficult issues, including abortion and the threat of sexual violence, although always sensitively.

So, I struggled to get through the first 20-30% of this, and it looks like that's where a lot of people seem to give up. There were some chapters/POVs that I couldn't make sense of that don't integrate in until later in the book, and trying to reconcile Ember's way of speaking with the world she fell into was a bit weird, even if it was explained.

That being said, once we got going into the quest plotline, I ended up having really enjoyed this. The world was interesting with some unique aspects, Ember was spunky and maintained a certain level of disbelief at where she was and what they had to do, and Rhaell was a delight.

Things really picked up at 2/3 in, Ember and Rhaell were both precious and delightful, there was a twist that I genuinely didn't see coming, and I enjoyed how everything resolved and wrapped up. Bonus points for there being a group of people with wings (and tails) and explicitly mentioning clothing that accommodated those features, and a "get away from my husband" moment.

So, I thought this was fresh, and despite the slow/uneven start, I ended up really enjoying it and am glad that I pushed through.

I really wanted to enjoy The Promised Queen, but sadly, I ended up DNF-ing it around the 100-page mark. The book just felt incredibly slow, and I found myself struggling to get into the story at all.

From the start, the pacing dragged. Not much seemed to happen, and I kept waiting for the plot to pick up or for the characters to truly draw me in - but it never really did. I also found the chapters to be very long, which made it feel even harder to stay engaged. I usually don’t mind long chapters, but in this case, it made the reading experience feel more like a chore than an escape.

The dynamic between Ember and Rhaell is meant to be a slow burn, but I wasn’t really feeling the chemistry. Their interactions leaned heavily into physical attraction without much emotional depth early on, which made it hard to connect with their relationship. That said, I did appreciate that Ember isn’t written as the stereotypical tiny FMC we so often see in fantasy - she felt more real in that way.

The world had potential, and I liked the inclusion of magical creatures, but it didn’t come through strongly enough in what I read. Plus, the modern-world references scattered throughout pulled me out of the story more than once. A few can be fun, but it started to feel a bit too on-the-nose.

This one just wasn’t for me - but I can see how others might enjoy it, especially if they’re more patient with slow-building fantasy.