Review: The Traitor Queen by Danielle L. Jensen

If you read my review of The Bridge Kingdom, the first book in this series, it should come as no surprise that I was a little apprehensive of picking up this second book merely a day after almost ripping my own hair out in pure frustration over the female main characters blind loyalty to her mission. However, the tiny bit of character growth we saw in Lara in the second half of the book (as well as the shocking cliffhanger we left off on) was enough to convince me that this story had potential, so I decided to give The Traitor Queen a go.

I am happy to report that Lara is a lot more tolerable in this book. Determined to make up for the fact that her stupid actions threw Ithicana into a bloody war - causing thousands to die, and her beloved husband Aren to be captured by her villainous father - Lara seeks the help of the very people she betrayed. The Ithicanians want her head, but Aren's twin sister, Ahnna, knows that working with Lara is their best chance of getting their king back alive. With help from Ithicana, Lara sets out to locate the subjects of her very first betrayal: Her ten remaining warrior sisters.

Meanwhile, Aren is being hold captured in the heart of the Maridrinian palace by Lara's father, King Silas. Chained to a table in the harem courtyard, he is forced to witness to the death of Ithicanian after Ithicanian, and has more than enough time to curse himself for ever falling for Lara's lies. But the heart wants what the heart wants, and even if he knows that Lara brought him and his kingdom to ruin, he still can't seem to want her dead. Maridrina and Ithicania may be at war, but to Aren's great surprise there are some very unlikely allies hiding withing the palace walls. And unbeknownst to Aren, Lara and her sister are coming for him.

So let's start with the obvious: Lara and Aren's relationship is really put through the wringer in this installment of the series. Hardly surprising when you think about everything her betrayal has cost him. She knows Ithicana will never forgive her, but yet she wants to do all she can to right her wrongs. And Aren claims not wanting anything to do with her, but we all know that is a big fat lie. And this leads to pining. A lot of pining. So much pining! Speaking of Lara, I am so glad she has gotten her act together in this book. This is the heroine I wanted her to be all along: Strong, independent, fiercly loyal and most of all - intelligent. She takes an active stand against her father, and is majorly involved in a lot of the planning and tactics going on in the book. A large part of the book consists of her saving Aren's ass from various perilous situations, which is quite refreshing (he saves her at one point as well). I do actually like her now.

Another part of the story I found interesting was getting a better look at the dynamic between Lara and her sisters. We were briefly introduced to one sister in the first chapter of the first book (and another one later on), but this is the first time we've been able to see all of them together and observe their relationship. Despite Lara's actions in the first book, they all show up for her when she needs their help. That's what family does, isn't it? Even though some of them were mere background characters, you could really feel the love and support they all had for one another. There were also some new and interesting characters introduced, and as far as I know, a couple of those new characters are the new main characters in the next couple of books in the series. I am definitely interested in knowing more about them.

The story was action-packed and fast-paced, and there was not a single part I found boring. I enjoyed all the plotting and planning going on behind the scenes, and there was several times I questioned how Danielle L. Jensen would manage to give us a satisfying ending to Aren and Lara's story. Did I think the resolution was a bit too simple? Yes, maybe, but it made perfect sense according to the lore and customs of Ithicana. However, I do think it all happened a little too fast. One minute the citizens of Ithicana wanted her dead, and the next thing we knew they had suddenly stopped referring to her as the Traitor Queen. Just like that? I might have accepted it if we'd had a bit more time to digest this sudden change in behavior, but as this all happened in the very last chapter, we were not given anything of the sort. An epilogue would probably have been a good idea.

All in all, this has been a pretty good read. I will probably check out the next books in the series as well, but I do think I need a little break from this world before diving back into it.