What if the Tudor queens all ruled simultaneously? What if King Henry had dragons? Six Wild Crowns is such a fun fantasy take on the famous Tudor queens. Intrigue, betrayal, forbidden feelings this story did not disappoint. As a historical fiction lover, its was very refreshing to read this unique fantasy take on such prominent historical figures. The imagination and storyline tweaks give the characters such vibrant personalities. I really didn't want the story to end! Truly a story of female empowerment!!

I was able to listen to the audiobook of this through netgalley. Narration was absolutely beautiful. Thank you again for helping me find amazing stories!

3.5 stars rounded up. First, a huge thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to review this book in exchange for an honest review. I started out absolutely obsessed with this book but the rest of the reviews are absolutely correct when they say how this book starts off strong and is beautiful, but it drags terribly in the middle. As a huge fan of anything Tudor, I do very much love the premise and the clever connections. My favorite small detail by far is the use of old English lore and kings to ground the magic even more within the British throne, and the use of Hever Castle as a backdrop of Boleyn’s childhood as was correct historically. I will definitely read more of this series but I am hoping the author will learn to scale back all of the exposition and show instead of tell.

This was an enjoyable take on King Henry and his wives as you haven't seen them before there was politics and dragons magic women power and it was sapphic

Rating: Loved It, 4.5 stars

This was such a delightful surprise! I feel like I tend to go in to historical fantasy a little bit hesitant, expecting it to be slow to hit, but I was very immersed in this one pretty quickly! I feel like it has the potential to be a full 5 stars either on reread, or as I sit with it more. I feel like this one might stick with me for a little longer than usual!

This is a reimagining of King Henry VIII in a fantasy world in which he must marry 6 queens to keep alive the magical shields that are protecting the island nation of Elben. We follow Boleyn, an intelligent and fiercely independent woman, who makes a love match with the king. We also follow Seymour, a quiet unassuming girl whom many assume is rather silly. She enters into Boleyn's service as a would-be assassin, but leaves as a new queen of Elben who is in love with Boleyn. We follow these queens as they navigate a deeply misogynistic world and push back on the boundaries that have been imposed on them. Together, they uncover a dark secret at the heart of the empire that may cause either their undoing, or the empire's.

I honestly loved our two main characters a lot. It was a situation where I didn't realize quite how invested I had become over time until I was driving around, listening to the audiobook, and crying for them. They were both so well-crafted and really felt like individuals. Honestly, all the characters did. I would very much love to get to know the other 4 queens a little bit better in the next installment, but all of the women felt very much distinct. I loved Boleyn's tenacity and spirit. Watching her grown and mature as the book progressed was a lot of fun. And I also loved Seymour's disaster pansexual energy that she brought to the table. She is definitely a quiet character with a lot of trauma, and I loved getting to know her over the course of the story.

There is definitely a plot to this, but it is a very character driven story. There is a lot of courtly political maneuvering over a period of several years. There is certainly magic, but it's a bit more subtle. It's also somewhat unknown because in Elben, it is the king who wields magic. That sort of leads to the misogynistic world. There are a number of dark, upsetting things that take place over the course of the book, so definitely check content warnings if you need them. However, despite living in such a dark world for them as women, I loved seeing how the women each pushed back in their own way. It felt very authentic and believable.

Once the plot of this got going, it moved very quickly and I had a hard time putting it down. The narrator is Olivia Dawd, and she was excellent. She did a fantastic job with the different voices and accents, and she was able to infuse a lot of emotion into her delivery. It definitely elevated the reading experience, and I highly recommend the audiobook.

Overall, I highly recommend this book, and I am looking forward to seeing how things progress in the next book after that ending!

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit/Hachette Audio for an eARC and ALC. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Six Wild Crowns releases on June 10, 2025.

4.5 Stars

I really enjoyed Six Wild Crowns. Like most books, I went into it blind, solely based on some of my favorite authors' recommendations. This was a slower paced, darker, atmospheric fantasy with some romance, but definitely a back burner to the main story line.

Six Wild Crowns follows Boleyn and Seymour, both first daughters, and given their father's surname as their first name. The story starts out as Boleyn is marrying, King Henry becoming his new sixth queen, and Seymour is sent as a gift from a fellow Queen as a handmaiden and spy.

I think readers going into this expecting a full on romantasy might be disappointed, but if you enjoyed books like The Gilded Crown and The Jasmine Throne, this should be right up your alley!

I listened to the audiobook, and Olivia Dowd has a beautiful, rich voice that fit the darker vibes of the book. She alternated her style between the two characters' POVs perfectly.

Thank you, NetGalley and Hachette Audio, for an early audiobook copy in exchange for this honest review.

I loved this book so much more than I thought I was going to for the first 80% of it. It's definitely a very, very slow build to what I predict will be an epic story of 'girl power'. The majority of the book, I was considering DNFing because of how slow it was, but constantly found myself thinking about these characters and wanting to get back to them. Clever writing! I can't wait for the next book to see what these queens do. The ending was so emotional and I need the next book ASAP!

DNF at 25%. I was very intrigued by the premise, but I think that my expectations were mislaid unfortunately. What I read was interesting, but I didn’t feel that there was enough world building to support the story nor were the characters delved into enough for me to care about them in lieu of the world. I would be willing to pick the book up again another time, but at this point I just think it’s not for me.

I did love the audiobook narration and felt that the narrator was the thing that made me want to keep reading.

The concept of Six Wild Crowns was so cool and I was immediately intrigued. Henry VIII but make it magical where he's married to six wives at the same time? And that through these wives he channels the magic necessary to keep the kingdom thriving? AND IT WAS SAPPHIC?? The premise of this book was check mark after check mark. I was so ready to be completely swept away into my new favorite book.
And it's not a bad book. There is court intrigue and political rivalries as promised, there's sapphic yearning as promised, there are six queens as promised. There was a plot for a coup, there were dragons! At times it felt like there was too much packed into the story and not enough time to let the characters shine. Because Seymour and Boleyn fell flat to me as characters. I was rooting for them because their opponent wasn't just a man, it was Henry VIII and I've been primed my whole life to hate him (mild exaggeration). But I wasn't rooting for any of them because I cared about them, which was rough because so much of the book relied on caring about the characters.
I think this book fell victim to my high expectations. That if I hadn't gone into it certain it would be a five star read, I wouldn't have felt as disappointed that it fell so short of those expectations.
I feel like had I not been listening to the audiobook as I read I would have found it harder to get through, so shoutout to the narrators!
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy.

3.5 Stars

Firstly, the audio of this was fantastic. Well produced and the narrator was great, clear, concise and I liked the accents.

Where I certainly enjoyed this book I think the link to Henry VIII was maybe more confusing than necessary to the story. The story was enjoyable and would have been great as a separate thing to the Tudors. I think at times I was confused about names and places trying to connect it to that time where I wouldn't have been had it been set in its own time and place entirely.

I could have definitely taken more dragons and magic and courtly intrigue. I'm not sure the blurb is an accurate representation of the book.

I really enjoyed the world building, it was easy to imagine the outfits and settings once I let go of trying to match it up with the time of Henry VIII. A glossary wouldn't go amiss. And a map.

I really enjoyed the LGBTQ inclusion. It wasn't forced and fit with the story nicely.

I did enjoy the story, I found it easy to fall into and enjoy. I look forward to seeing what the next book brings!

I wanted to try something new with this book that seemed promising.
However, I did not appreciate the prose and feel like the marketing was a bit off.

Given that it's a high fantasy with dragons, I expected magic and majestic beasts.
10% in, the magic is not really visible and the dragons are like guard dogs tucked in corners.

I unfortunately did not care for the historical part of it all. I guess historical inspired fantasy isn't for me after all.

Narrator was pleasant. Prose wasn't bad but I must admit it was not my cup of tea. Maybe I would appreciate it at another time given I'm a mood reader.


Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing the audiobook ARC.

⭐ 2.5 – 3 / 5

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was intrigued by the premise of Six Wild Crowns — a fantasy court full of rival queens, dark political machinations, and dragons? Sign me up. But in reality, the story didn’t quite match the atmosphere or tension the synopsis promised.

I was expecting a cunning, high-stakes game of power, led by women with sharp minds and morally grey agendas. Instead, most characters felt a bit too subdued or one-dimensional for the roles they were meant to play. Boleyn was the only one who stood out, but even she was too caught up in a romantic thread to fully embody the strategic force she was supposed to be. Seymour’s “assassin” arc was hard to believe—her actions felt inconsistent and lacked the clarity or motivation I needed to stay engaged.

The romantic subplot between a queen and her servant also didn’t work for me. It felt rushed and wasn’t framed with enough nuance, especially given the inherent imbalance in that kind of dynamic.

I’ll admit: this isn’t my usual genre, so that could be part of the disconnect. But even so, I think the story left a lot of its potential unexplored—especially when it came to the dragons and magic, which were barely integrated into the plot.

That said, the writing was accessible, and I can see it appealing to readers who enjoy light fantasy with a court setting and relationship-driven narrative. I just went in expecting something a little darker, a little sharper, and a lot more politically charged.

Thank you orbit books for the gifted ALC and gifted ARC!

Soft dnf for now!

I’m listening to the audio version of this book and I’m just SO confused 😭 I just cannot follow whats happening and want to give this a better chance! I’m hoping that if I pick up my physical copy instead that I’ll enjoy it more. We will see!!

Thank you to Orbit and NetGalley for an ARC of this book, I listen to it on audio. Narration was fantastic. 

This had so much potential but ultimately fell flat for me. The reimagined characters were interesting but the overall plot was lacking and could not hold my interest. The overall concept is interesting but lacking in execution. It’s not terrible, just a little boring.

Anyone else here because of the musical SIX?

I was fairly excited to pick this one up and grateful to Holly Race and Hatchette Audio for providing me with an ARC. To start, the narrator was great! While I remain intrigued with the storyline and happy to dip my toes into historical fantasy, there was something missing from this. I think, for me, there was a bit too much dialogue and too little world building in the beginning. I sort of feel like I missed a lot of key details about the world and magic system that would have made me more interested in everything else that was going on. With that said, if you prefer books without depth in that area, this might be for you!

thank you to hachette audio and netgalley for the audiobook! the narrator did such a wonderful job at bringing this story and its characters to life!! it helped me immerse fully into the world and i loved every second of it!

six wild crowns is a historical fantasy filled with intriguing court politics and magic where the king has been appointed by god to marry six queens. the queens are supposed to stand between the kingdom of Elben and ruin.
we follow Boleyn and Seymour in a dual pov.
Boleyn wants to be his favourite, even if it means that she has to incite a war.
while Seymour acts as spy and assassin against Boleyn, but she soon finds herself allying with Boleyn and it causes a shift in the balance of power. together, Boleyn and Seymour will discover an ancient, rotting magic at Elben's heart, which the king will stop at nothing to protect it.

this was absolutely amazing!! from beginning to end, i was intrigued. the world building was SO good!! i loved how we got droplets of it here and there, slowly getting to understand the world as we went along without feeling overwhelmed. the court politics played a huge part in this and they were done so well!! i’m a sucker for political intrigue and it was one of my favourite aspects, especially as we got to see them from Boleyn and Seymour’s perspectives and how they can be interpreted differently.
i also loved LOVED the idea of the wives being alive at the same time and watching (some of) them interact!!
my favourite part was Boleyn and Seymour’s relationship and how it developed. the pining was just EVERYTHING!!! i love them so much🥹

this was such a good read and so compelling. i literally could not put this book down and every time i did, i was just thinking about it!!

So much potential! The politics and never ending banter unfortunately didn’t work for me here. I was incredibly bored. Ugh so disappointing. I’m sorry!

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio | Orbit for this ARC Audio Copy!

What an interesting and beautiful take on the wives of Henry the VII. This is truly an alternate historical fiction with fantastical elements more than a fantasy story, but it was still so enjoyable, and the fantastical elements seemed so seamless and brought such a wonderful aspect to the story. Instead of replacing his wives, Henry had to be married to 6 at a time, and they are supposed to hate each other, but of course that's what he wants.
Each wife has their own castle and their own relationship with Henry, but something is happening that brings them together in a beautiful way. I cannot wait to see where this story goes in the next installment.

This felt like two different books to me and they didn't go together. A historical fiction about H and his wives and a complete fantasy land with a king name Henry. It just wan't for me.

I listened to the ALC for Six Wild Crowns by Holly Race and, the audio book was fantastic. It is narrated by Olivia Dowd and she is phenomenal. We get two POVs from Boleyn and Seymour and their voices are very distinct and there is a whole assortment of side characters – and they are all just really well done. The books pacing is not perfect, there are slower bits, and the audio narration just propelled me through it.

The story overall is unique and interesting. Henry VIII and his six wives reimagined in a fantasy setting. Henry is married to all six of his wives at the same time – they all know each other – that does not mean they like each other – and they each occupy a castle. The queens are referred to by their last names, and frankly that makes it easier to know which Katherine is being discussed. According to legend, the king must have a queen over each castle to keep the magic and protect his island from invaders. But, what if the history and the origin of the magic is not what Henry says it is? I loved this part of the story discovering the origination story for the magic and who is supposed to wield it.

Now, the blurb for the story makes it feel like there are these enormous fierce dragons featured here, and there are dragons, but they are pets, and small like lap dogs. So temper your expectations accordingly. There is court gossip and intrigue, of course. Also, it frames Seymour as an assassin and spy, and not that she isn’t, but it makes her sound like she has been trained to be both of those things and she is really neither. The romance in here is also different than what I expected. There is sapphic yearning, but it is definitely one-sided, and I find that when yearning really works it is because both are yearning but don’t know that it is reciprocated.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It is the first in a series and I plan to read book 2. I gave this book 3.75 stars and I need to thank Net Galley and Hachette Audio for my ALC and thank you to Orbit for sending the physical book for my shelf. The cover is gorgeous! And I love the pin! This book releases Tuesday, June 10, 2025.

This was a highly anticipated release for me this year, and I was absolutely honoured to receive an ARC copy of the audio from Hachette Audio and Netgalley.

Firstly, I do believe the description of the book is slightly misleading as upon first reading it, the synopsis seems heavily Tudor influenced, whereas the only connection heavily attributed to the tudors is the naming Henry and his wives. The rest of the tale follows no historic accuracy or any likelihood to the Tudor history and is completely fantastical and a story that could have stood on its own.

Boleyn and Seymour are our leading ladies in this tale and at the beginning of the book, Seymour was very dry and uninteresting in my opinion. Boleyn shone through her POV, the bold and clever queen, always a step ahead. However, as the story went on, I did grow to like Seymour more as her character developed and her inner strength prevailed. The sapphic ‘yearning’ was unimpressive and a disappointment in my opinion. We go from an attraction on Seymour’s behalf to full blown ‘love’ almost instantly and the feelings are never reciprocated by Boleyn which I feel is a missed opportunity. A secret romance between the two would have increased the quality in this book significantly.

The one Queen I wish we would have seen more of was Cleves. I like how her character was written and her strong personality and mind would have been a great asset to the storyline if utilised more.

The plot was lacking and could have been fleshed out a little more. I expected more lore and exciting action to do with the plot and was disappointed when it fell a little flat.

That all said, I enjoyed the ending very much. It has peaked my interest for the next book to see where we leave off and Seymour’s development at the end really improved the rating for me.

Thank you to Hachette Audio, Orbit and Netgalley for providing me an audio ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

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