I have one chance at a new life. A college education. A future outside of Tanglewood’s dark walls. For a breathless moment it seems like I might actually escape.Then I get a phone call from home.Damon Scott is my own personal dragon, the fight I’ve always lost, the secret hope of my heart. And he needs my help right now. Only my mind can solve the puzzle. Only my presence can keep him sane as the … keep him sane as the city fights against him.
Only my heart can unlock a man with such a tragic past.
This is my final gamble, with everything at stake. One last game to win a future for both of us.
And a love strong enough to break the city apart.
THE QUEEN is the final novel in the bestselling Masterpiece duet, about a game of lies and loyalty, of betrayal and power, and ascension to the city’s throne.
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The Queen is the second and final novel in the Masterpiece Duet. It’s a dark and dangerous story filled with suspense that ends in a final sinister showdown.
Penny returns to Tanglewood, leaving college behind, to seek out answers. She’s hoping Damon can help her solve a mystery. What she discovers is a message waiting for her to unravel. A message that takes Damon and Penny back to a dark and sinister place.
Penny and Damon continue their dangerous game of push and pull. “There’s only this, mocking me in public, saving me in private, the hero who won’t let himself be happy.” Damon pushes hard to keep Penny away but at the same time he keeps her close to protect her. Penny wants into Damon’s heart but can he let her in?
This is a quick read that keeps you turning the pages. I enjoyed the story but I felt Penny and Damon’s relationship could have been further developed, I felt it fell flat. I did enjoyed the the way the suspense unraveled. 4 Stars
5 QUEEN stars! It is an EPIC conclusion for the Masterpiece Duet. Skye Warren outdid herself in this book.
Holy sweet darkness! Skye Warren has done it again. Her writing is always preciously addictive. As the title of the conclusion of the Masterpiece Duet, she is a QUEEN. I can’t find the words to express how much I love The Queen. It’s an EPIC conclusion for this duet.
This book made my heart beat like the wings of a wounded hummingbird. There was a permanent knot in my throat. Every page had a bittersweet taste. I loved and hated at the same time.
Damon and Penny’ story was a dark fairy tale which needed a perfect end and Skye Warren outdid herself in this book. She made sure to not disappoint her readers.
The Queen is where all the secrets were revealed, where redemption and love got a new meaning, where some sacrifices and kindness were wasted -in vain- just to keep a monster trapped in a cage that will never contain him because of his evil and twisted mind. Lust and passion; denial and fate, all wrapped in a page-turner book.
Damon and Penny are strong wounded souls and quite complex characters. I am pretty sure it was a bit complicated to give them the end they deserved. I will miss them with all my heart. And for those who read The Endgame Series, you will find more about Gabriel and Avery. They do have an important appearance.
So let me tell you my own impressions about this book. After losing a game with Damon, Penny is sent away to live far from danger, away from Damon. She is a smart girl. She pretended the numbers she loves will be enough to forget the man who save and hurt her. Being apart is not only hurting her but Damon too. The dark king is enthralled with his baby genius. There is something strong pushing him to her, something unknown for him.
“Then how does Penny have such a strong hold over me? Why do I worry about her with every inhale, hope for her happiness with every exhale?”
Damon is poetically dark; a protector, a predator ready to trap his pray. His presence is enough to rule everyone and everything. He is a broken Prince ready to be the King. The only one who knows how to end the monster. He hates and cares. His soul in not as darker as it seems.
“You made me care. You made me want, when I needed to leave. You made me feel, when I would have preferred to die. You brought me back to life.”
Penny is the only one who knows the real Damon. She is his weakness and the monster knows that. She pictures him as her saviour. She stills sees the boy who cares for her when no one did, her damaged angel.
“I have been waiting for this man, the illusion of him. Someone who doesn’t exist.”
They are meant to be apart. Damon’s priority is that Penny stays safe at any cost. But destiny had other plans for them.
“And now here you are with your Bambi eyes, acting like you didn’t just walk into the dark fucking forest. What am I supposed to do with you?”
The man who hurt Penny the most is reborn from ashes and he is ready for revenge. Damon is the one who knows him and he will destroy him. It will not matter if his soul is destroyed in the way. Penny is the most important piece of the game. She is not the child who was abused. She is the equal to Damon. She understands it and she will sacrifice herself to save her dark prince.
“If I’m a broke-down version of Cinderella, Damon is a very dark prince.”
This book is a fresh air, a read that will trap you in a web of delicious darkness. One of the best read of 2017. There are not enough stars to rate this book. A billon million stars is nearly close for The Queen.
I enjoyed them all .. The Pawn, The Knight, The Castle.. I have few others but I haven’t read them yet. Will do soon.
This book is edgy, and sexy and all the things a good dark romance book should be. I really enjoyed it!
I enjoyed reading this novel. It sucked me right in and did not let go until the final page. I loved the ending and how it incorporated not only Damon and Penny, but also Gabriel and Avery. It was a wonderful ending to a fabulous series.
I initially rated this 3 stars, but I’m coming back and lowering it to 2 stars for the OTT insanity involving a couple of side characters. If the focus remained on Damon and Penny it could have been so good.
Some parts of this book were incredible, absolutely 5 stars. There were a few moments that were less than 5 stars. Overall I enjoyed this series, even more than the Endgame trilogy. I think much of that is due to the strong prequel that goes back to Penny’s childhood and her first time meeting Damon, when he was 16. There was a lovely build-up and progression to their relationship throughout this series.
I’m still recommending this book, because I still enjoyed this series a lot. The OTT insanity involving Avery was a huge problem for me though.
4.5 stars for me
This book was a great ending to Damon and Penny’s story. Damon is the very best kind of alpha a$$ehole in this one and Penny is definitely no longer a child.
I absolutely loved the building tension between the two of them and my heart hurt at different points in their push and pull relationship. I went from swooning for Damon to wanting to punch him in the junk. Penny really grows up in this book and I loved seeing her stand up for herself and what she wants.
Plenty of action, plot twists and past lies are uncovered in this one and I loved every minute of it. Definitely recommend to fans of Skye’s dark and non-traditional love stories.
I feel lost, like a wandering soul. It’s over. It has truly ended.
The king wasn’t looking for a queen. He doesn’t need or want one. But one had been calling to him for sometime. One woman stands out.
The gang is all here in The Queen. Everyone you love and even ones you don’t. It is quite the send off.
Ms. Warren brings this story to a justifiable close. In a fitting move, she changed the game…The King now faces The Queen.
This was a decent end to the duo of Penny and Damon. It might have been better, hence the 4 stars…still…it was worth the read.
This come to a grand finale in this series with the “Queen”. I love all the characters but literally fell in love with Penny and Damon. This final book in the series will take you through twists and turns, heart palpating love scenes and bring you to tears. Sky Warren has not only created a great series but she’s brought it to a conclusion that will keep you on the edge of your seat until you finish every last word before putting it down.
I have loved every book in this series; each book has kept me up at night as I have been unable to put it down. It has been an intense roller coaster of a ride. Skye Warren has written the perfect ending. The power, the passion, it’s all wrapped up in this final installment.
Damon Scott the anti hero; meets his Queen, Penny. The girl he saved when she was just six years old. The girl from the wrong side of the tracks, his baby genius. Together they make a formidable couple. The connection between these two is evident. You can just feel the power of Damon Scott, “he has the best security… his reputation”.
Skye’s writing draws you in and keeps you there long after the last word has been read. It had an amazing dark and depraved twist. I cannot praise this series highly enough. It will be one that certainly stays with me for a long time. A MUST READ!
The Queen and The Masterpiece Duet have quickly skyrocketed up to the top of my favorites list of books for 2017. I knew that I wanted more of Damon Scott. I just didn’t know he was going to completely steal my heart away from Gabriel Miller.
As with The King, I must keep this review pretty vague because I don’t want to give anything away. I will tell you that there are more twists and Damon and Penny are continued to be challenged. You’ll go through a whirlwind of emotions, that’s for sure.
In my review for The King, I mentioned how much I really enjoyed Penny and how strong I thought she really was. Well, she completely blew me away in The Queen. She is absolutely fierce and quite possibly one the strongest women I’ve read in a while. She is absolutely perfect for Damon and it is clear that she is the only one who can handle him. She somehow knows what he needs before he even knows it. She has really grown into a very strong and capable woman who can and will handle anything that anyone could throw at her.
Now back to the one who completely stole my heart. There’s a quote from the book that I want to share but while I don’t think it is really a spoiler, I just think it might take away from you experiencing it on your own. So I will say this. From the beginning, we knew how calculating Damon is. Both in his businesses and with his own life. But I had no idea the depths of his heart and what he will do the protect those that he loves. Every single new thing we discover about him breaks my heart and heals it at the same time.
The Queen is exactly what I needed to complete Damon and Penny’s story. Yet again, Warren delivers us an emotionally raw and gritty story that will capture your heart and soul. It won’t be pretty but it will be perfectly beautiful in a way only Damon and Penny could deliver.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review for Stephanie’s Book Reports.
The Queen is the second book in Skye Warren’s Masterpiece Duet. You must read The King before They Queen or your going to be terribly lost. You might also want to start from the very beginning and read The Pawn, The Knight and The Castle. While those books are about a different couple they appear in the Masterpiece Duet and it is also where we first met Damon Scott. Plus there amazing reads too that you do not want to miss.
Penny has one chance to start a new life, obtain a college education, and a future outside of Tanglewood’s dark walls. For a fleeting moment it actually seems like Penny has escape. Then a phone call from home changes everything and she is about to come face to face with Damon Scott once again. He is her personal dragon,, a fight she has always lost, and the secret hope of her heart. He needs her help right now solving a puzzle of great importance. While her mind can solve the puzzle her presence keeps Damon sane as the city fights against him. Only her heart can unlock a man with such a tragic past. Everything is at stake in this one last game to win a future for both of them. A love strong enough to break the city apart.
The Queen picks up with Penny in college and naturally excelling in mathematics. She is living in Avery’s hotel that Gabriel gave her but refuses to live above her mean so she is working in the kitchen and living in a room off the kitchen that use to be for servants. A tiny room that she has made a home. Her dad calls to check on her once a week and is still having to work for Damon. When he doesn’t call Penny is alarmed and planning to go home to Tanglewood and find out exactly what Damon Scott has him doing and if he is really ok. However tragedy once again strikes the night before Penny leave and this really leaves her reeling. (You have to read the book to find out what this is. It is to good a plot twist that I never saw coming to spoil in a review) Determined to go back to Tanglewood and to also solve this mystery a cryptic letter has arrived with Damon on the same date that this event happens. Now Penny is staying in the Den once again in a tiny room right off Damon’s master bedroom. That is about all of the plot your getting from me. I don’t want to ruin anything.
I will say that I have love Damon since he first met Penny out by the lake behind her trailer and he protected her. They may have only been kids and he quite a bit older but I loved how he was with Penny and he pretty much sacrificed himself for her safety from psycho daddy Jonathan Scott. I have rooted so hard for these too and was terrified this book was going to rip my heart out and stomp on it before all was said and done. Penny of course isn’t sure how to love really. She never had anyone to love her as a child or to teach her what love was. Damon is beyond damaged and honestly doesn’t feel like he is good enough for Penny in my opinion. My poor emotions were all over the place at times. Lets too not forget we are reading a Skye Warren book so you know that something dark and creepy and holding your breath for a while is going to happen and it’s EPIC!!! I might have shouted yes yes yes in just the right place too.
If you are looking for a love story that is not so simple as girl meets boy and they fall in love. A love story with real flawed people who really don’t know what love is with a side of of holy crap then you do not want to miss The Queen. Just remember you have to read The King first. I have loved this series from the beginning of the Pawn and I’m so glad she spun off They Masterpiece Duet. I knew Damon Scott had quite the story to tell ….and he really really does. Bravo Skye Warren Bravo.
Enjoyed this dark story and characters. Although I found several inconsistencies between this story and the sister story. Would a demented brutal monster that tortured his son from birth and everyone else around him really not physically assault and torture his own daughter.
I’m actually sorry to see this series come to end but oh man did they go out so wonderfully. I loved Penny and read this book in one day, I just couldn’t put it down I loved going on this journey with Penny and Damon. Seeing them face their demons was just wonderful.
****I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review****
Wonderful Series, sad to read the end.
Love this author,
Jody
Side note- It has a little bit of action, but I wouldn’t consider it enough to call it action-packed.
Ms. Warren has such a way with words it so amazing. Such a dark romance I loved it. Going deep into the psyche via another character is amazing to me and I think it is really hard for authors to do that as I have read many that try and fail. Warren, she did phenomenal, absolutely had me staying up late into the night and engulfing myself in the book at every free moment of my day! Damon was a great character and I felt that I could understand him and still feel a mystery all at the same time, for like I said Ms. Warren has such a way with words.
It is with both sadness and delight I write my review today. Sadness, because this was one amazing journey we’ve taken with Skye Warren and these wonderfully complex characters. Delight, because Damon and Penny’s story delivered the most poignant and entitled to, HEA that any two characters have ever, so rightly, deserved.
I confess that I felt like their HEA was a little rushed…after everything the two of them endured, in my opinion I just wanted more, but at the end of the day, I got the closure I was expecting. That makes my heart very happy.
Thank you Skye, for another fantastic journey.
As part of the Launch Team for The Queen, I voluntarily read and reviewed this book.
I’ve been waiting for this finale to the Masterpiece duet and it absolutely blew me away. The book is beautifully written and deliciously dark. Penny and Damon dance around what they both know they want while Penny tries to solve a puzzle that could very well save a life. The heat level is off the charts and the twists just keep coming in this compelling tale of love, loss, disappointment, betrayal, and even some hope. With this series, Warren has proven her talent for playing with a reader’s emotions as masterfully as her characters play their dangerous game. The Queen contributed to one more sleepless night for this reader because I absolutely couldn’t put it down. And, I have to add that the last line of this tale was truly perfect!
This duet reminds me why I am addicted to the dark and heavy. The Queen was amazing! Skye Warren slays it with the duet and I have fallen more for Penny and Damon with each page I had turned. I did not know which way was up or down. I was captured with these two. Their story was sad but hopeful.
Damon tried so hard to keep with his rules. He finds himself going against them when it comes down to Penny. Now that Damon has the responsibility of The King in the dark world, he needs his Queen’s help. Penny is smart and witty. She knows that in order for Damon to come out stronger, she needs to be by his side. The Queen was hands down a great emotional and dark read. The romance was still in the story and was off the charts hot and heavy. The history that these two characters have makes them who they are present and is the reason they are stronger together.