Four dead queens. Three days to catch a killer. Two forbidden romances. One shocking twist you won’t see coming.Seventeen-year-old Keralie Corrington may seem harmless, but she’s, in fact, one of Quadara’s most skilled thieves and a liar. Varin, on the other hand, is an honest, upstanding citizen of Quadara’s most enlightened region, Eonia. He runs afoul of Keralie when she steals a package from … of Keralie when she steals a package from him, putting his life in danger. When Varin attempts to retrieve the package, he and Keralie both find themselves entangled in a conspiracy that leaves all four of Quadara’s queens dead.
With no other choices and on the run from Keralie’s former employer, the two decide to join forces, endeavoring to discover who has killed the queens and save their own lives in the process. When their reluctant partnership blooms into a tenuous romance, they must overcome their own dark secrets in hopes of a future together that seemed impossible just days before. But first they have to stay alive and untangle the secrets behind the nation’s four dead queens.
An enthralling fast-paced mystery where competing agendas collide with deadly consequences, Four Dead Queens heralds the arrival of an exciting new YA talent.
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A book based on a character that has fled home to become a thief but gets betrayed by her best friend. she steals a brief case that changes everything. from a person with a dream to a thief to an investigator. I personally loved this book and hope that Astrid Scholte will write another. If your reading this Astrid i beg you to write another one. Please!
The world building was phenomenal!
Worldbuilding is Divergent, politics are SOME kind of way, plot is actually pretty interesting in terms of execution and timing, characters have two traits each, and writing is all right until the end. It’s good brain candy.
This book was so good. I could not put it down and was turning the page hungrily. I could not get enough of this book. It was so suspenseful, enthralling and kept you guessing of what’s to happen next. It’s full of action, suspense, drama, some romance, and lots of plot twists. 10/10 would recommend to people who like suspense/drama/romance books.
Well, this was all kinds of soap opera fantasy fun! I’ll start out by saying lots of twists and turns. Sometimes, I was lost. Sometimes, I was like, what’s going on here? And sometimes, I was very thrilled where the book was heading!
Of course the title is what automatically drew me in because, come on, not one, but four, dead queens! I really liked the main character, Keralie. She could be ruthless, selfish, but also have a heart, and she had great character growth. Varin was my own pocketful of sunshine! Loved the dialogue between Keralie and Varin!
What you also get in this book is a whole lot of point of views. At times, I’ll admit, I just wanted Keralie’s, but they were all necessary and connected the bigger picture of the plot. And wow, what a unique world with four very interesting quadrants! Overall a good read and I can’t wait to read more by the author!
The novel is a world split into four quadrants, Toria, Archia, Ludia and Eonia. Each quadrant has a queen. This story of Kerlie a Torian thief and Varian an Eonist citizen team up to prevent an assassin from murdering the four Queens of Quadra and romance blooms in the air between the two.
In the fantasy world of Quadara a teenage pickpocket and her mark will find themselves in the middle of a plot to kill the standing queens and shift the political power.
Four Queens is a tale of intrigue and ambition, filled of twists that managed to surprised me more than once. The plot captured my interest since early on and I enjoyed the story, but something prevented me from actually loving it. I felt it was a bit Hunger Games meets Logan’s Run and, though it wasn’t boring, it was too long for my taste.
Still, the story is a very good one for a debut author.
Very intriguing book! It had quite a few good twists. I didn’t guess the killer. The imagery and character development was great.
Where do I start, the author did very well with painting a picture. I was able to vision the fantasy realm and envision the characters.
There is a queen for each of the four realms, this book takes you into their world. I don’t like to give much away in my reviews. This book kept me up late wanting to know what was going to happen next, and I look forward to reading more fantasy/mystery novels by this author.
I received an uncorrected galley of Four Dead Queens (out on February 26, 2019), and I have to be honest, I’ve been waiting to read this for over a year (after I first heard about it when Astrid Scholte got into Pitch Wars). (Potential spoilers below.)
It did not disappoint! I read the whole book in one afternoon, and by the end I was left wanting more. Astrid has built an amazing world with Quadara, and created some distinct, incredibly likable characters.
The protag Keralie is resourceful, clever, and witty, and by the end she grows into a brave, empathetic character who finds some redemption from her past mistakes.
She also has a really complicated relationship with her mentor Mackiel. He is both the one who leads her away from her safe, honest life and the one who saves her from her greatest shame (or at least lets her stave off dealing with the repercussions of her actions and her emotions for a little while).Their exchanges throughout the book and the way their relationship evolves is so interesting, and a great example of how the world is rarely black and white.
The same goes for her love interest Varin. They come from two totally different worlds (Toria and Eonia) yet they learn to appreciate each other’s differences, and in the end it makes them stronger.
Then of course there are the four queens, who each have their own secrets that are slowly and deliciously revealed. My favorite was Queen Corra of Eonia. Her past is not typical for her people, and allows her to see the world in a different way. It also opens her up to new experiences and shows her that just because something has been a certain way for years, doesn’t mean it’s the only way, or even necessarily the right way.
There are also so many wonderful fantastical details about the different quarters of Quadara and how their cultures work. I especially enjoyed learning about the technology from the Eonia quarter, and how their values led to a stoic, and in some ways cruel society.
(Can you tell I have a favorite quarter? Though Toria is a close second for me.)
Whenever I thought I’d figured out where the story was going, there was a new twist. Each one builds upon the last, and then even in the end things are not neatly wrapped up. But it’s all done in a way that makes sense, in a much more realistic, satisfying way than if everything were perfect. The world of Quadara is so rich, and undergoes so many changes in Four Dead Queens, it would be amazing to one day read more stories about these characters.
In the meantime, I’m looking forward to Astrid’s second book. It’s an untitled YA sci fi / fantasy book, and it doesn’t come out until 2020, but Astrid’s writing is so addictive I already know I’ll love it.
I have to say I’m a little disappointed with this book. It wasn’t horrible, but I didn’t really care for the story all that much either. I wasn’t all that much into the murder mystery and I never connected with any of the characters either. I honestly didn’t like Keralie and the way she acted. The romance was forced between Keralie and Varin and I found no real connection between them. The world and advanced science tech seemed to clash to me.
Four Dead Queens was nice in theory, but I think it tried to tackle too many things at once, especially for this to be a standalone. I will say the ending was good, when everything concerning the murder mystery unfolds.
A fantasy murder mystery that will keep you guessing! This book has witty characters that you will love, and is told in multiple points of view. The plot twist at the end is sure to leave you stunned!
(Side Note: This book is written in both third person and first person)
What To Know:
– YA
– Debut book/author
– Fantasy
– Standalone ?
Over the years I’ve read a number of books by debut authors and often it can be a hit or a miss.
There are some authors, (I won’t name them), whose debut work were positively dreadful, however, over time as the authors grew in knowledge and skill, I came to love their work.
There are some authors whose debut work I’ve read that have completely knocked it out of the park and left me wanting more.
In all honesty, Astrid Scholte’s Four Dead Queens lies somewhere in the middle.
The book is very well written with excellent pace, stunning, vivid scenery and peopled with charismatic characters.
It’s a fantasy, who done it – murder mystery with sci-fi aspects and the blurb alone, had me enthralled and eager to read it.
Yet, having finished the book, I felt as though there was something missing for me.
The dissatisfied feelings I have for the book may be due in part because of the female lead character, Keraline, who comes across as a very unsympathetic character, a young woman that, for the most part, doesn’t take responsibility or own up to her own actions, instead blaming others for her choices.
Yet, in the end, I did end up sympathizing with her, even though I still don’t like her character.
I did come to like many of the other characters in the book and enjoyed the twists and turns in the story, however, this probably isn’t a book that I would re-read.
Definitely Recommended, if only to form your own opinion.
A Review by Rhianna of Bingeworthy Book Blog
What can I say about Four Dead Queens. This book was a highly anticipated book on my “to read” list! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.
For being a fantasy, it brought a lot of emotions! It was dark and intense. It was fast paced, and full of extreme adventure. I was captivated from the first page.
I loved the characters. They were highly developed. The plot line was amazing and unique.
I immediately fell in love with Keralie, she is one strong heroine, whose journey was emotional and harrowing. I was rooting for her through the whole book.
I was not a big fan of Varin when he was first introduced in the book. But when he joined Keralie on her journey, he really started to grow on me.
This was my first read from this author, and it definitely won’t be my last.