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I think my favourite thing about this book is how grim and dark it wasn't. Like, there's a massive, generational communication breakdown, which is frustrating, but generally speaking the characters are all doing their best with the information they have. I really, really desperately hope that in the rest of the trilogy, they talk to each other. But if they don't, I'll be happy with this book as a standalone.
Basic plot: a magical kingdom, isolated from the rest of the world, is ruled by a Queen. When the gods choose, the Queen bears triplets, and then leaves the island for the (mostly unknown) mainland. The triplets are raised in isolation from each other, to train their magical gifts, and then when they turn 16 they try to kill each other, and the last remaining one takes a consort and becomes the new Queen.
(inspired by bees. i kind of love it.)
Blake has some really intriguing world-building, and I loved the magic system and the politics. Also, there are a PROFOUND number of girls in this book, and the Really Stupid Acts are left exclusively to the boys. It is a little...reserved with regard to sex (again, mostly the boy and not the girl, which I appreciate), but the romance is super not important to the main plot, so I don't mind.
The one thing I DID mind is that this book is almost aggressively heteronormative. There was one character who easily reads as bi and at least two that could read as lesbians. The sheer number of girls in the story speaks to statistical probability, and yet Everyone Is Straight Because Of Reasons.
(I mean, I did this in SPINDLE and I feel bad about it. I know from experience that I get wrapped up in writing a friendship, and fail to have necessary conversations. On the bright side, I've identified that as a shortcoming, and will work to fix if moving forward. In a trilogy, where the characters are mostly set, I'm a little more...concerned.)
Anyway, I still think TDC is worth a read, if you're into dark(ish) fantasy. With all of the pre-pub buzz, I was expecting something like The Black Jewels Trilogy, when really what I got was the TV version of Legend to the Seeker (though much less funny). I read it on a two hour plane ride, and enjoyed it.
Basic plot: a magical kingdom, isolated from the rest of the world, is ruled by a Queen. When the gods choose, the Queen bears triplets, and then leaves the island for the (mostly unknown) mainland. The triplets are raised in isolation from each other, to train their magical gifts, and then when they turn 16 they try to kill each other, and the last remaining one takes a consort and becomes the new Queen.
(inspired by bees. i kind of love it.)
Blake has some really intriguing world-building, and I loved the magic system and the politics. Also, there are a PROFOUND number of girls in this book, and the Really Stupid Acts are left exclusively to the boys. It is a little...reserved with regard to sex (again, mostly the boy and not the girl, which I appreciate), but the romance is super not important to the main plot, so I don't mind.
The one thing I DID mind is that this book is almost aggressively heteronormative. There was one character who easily reads as bi and at least two that could read as lesbians. The sheer number of girls in the story speaks to statistical probability, and yet Everyone Is Straight Because Of Reasons.
(I mean, I did this in SPINDLE and I feel bad about it. I know from experience that I get wrapped up in writing a friendship, and fail to have necessary conversations. On the bright side, I've identified that as a shortcoming, and will work to fix if moving forward. In a trilogy, where the characters are mostly set, I'm a little more...concerned.)
Anyway, I still think TDC is worth a read, if you're into dark(ish) fantasy. With all of the pre-pub buzz, I was expecting something like The Black Jewels Trilogy, when really what I got was the TV version of Legend to the Seeker (though much less funny). I read it on a two hour plane ride, and enjoyed it.
