Trial of the Sun Queen: Artefacts of Ouranos Book 1 Author Nisha J. Tuli
Book Review
5 out of 5 stars!
"Nothing actually belongs to anyone here." - Lor
Lor's spent the majority of her life trapped behind cold stone walls. The prison that people are cast into and forgotten about. . . But when she's rescued from the prison, she hopes it's because she's gaining freedom. Not all prisons have bars and sleazy guards, some have golden inlays on every surface and nicely dressed Fae.
Lor finds herself in the middle of a competition designed to find out who will be crowned the new Sun Queen. Only Lor must keep her true origin story a secret and pray she can live until the end. The trials are deadly, the other nine competitors deadlier, and what of the king who sits and watches? Will Lor ever be granted true freedom? And can a mortal really compete fairly against Fae?
"I am a rat compared to the nine other butterflies I'll be competing with." - Lor
I got "The Bachelor" vibes from this book and looked up that the author mentioned that it was part of the inspiration for the book. "The Bachelor" meets "The Hunger Games"! Competing for a man is bad enough but when you throw in a crown and the benefits that go with that. . ? Things get deadly on multiple fronts.
Lor's trying to navigate through her new "prison" as she understands how to survive. She has some things in her life that are pushing her to hold on and make it to the end. The trials are to see who's worthy of becoming a queen which is a very big and high position to fill. So, the tests are going to hold weight to them and not be easy.
I loved Lor and her determination. She refuses to back down from anything and has several instances of her anger slipping free. But where she started from it's no wonder, she has anger issues. Anger is sometimes good and helps one to survive but after a certain point and environmental changes you have to grow. Adapting and understanding the new ways and how to survive.
The trials were interesting ones and very unique. Twists within them and you're also left wondering how all the trials corollate to being worthy of a crown. The king was an interesting character, and I had a lot of different mixed feelings about him. With all books that involve a competition for a man or even a woman, I am always wondering how the "prize" can just sit back and willingly watch.
The other tributes have uniqueness to them, and I liked how a couple of people within the trials mirrored some characters from Lor's previous situation. There's also an enemies to lovers trope, because I honestly don't know who our leading lady is going to end up with. And there are potential hints of the trope for book two. Yes, this story ends on a cliffhanger, and I need more! Or maybe we are just going to get an enemies to friends trope?
I enjoyed the descriptions of the sceneries and just how different the prison was to the castle. Along with Lor experiencing finer things verses what she had to endure in the prison. Lor's past experiences in the prison were not good ones. Some of the punishments they dished out I would not consider humane in the least! The prison is where people are sent and never thought of again, therefore no one's exactly stepping in to see how things are being run.
This is a bit of a darker read. Dark histories, punishments, some mention of past SA experiences (nothing is detailed out, but you understand what took place), violence, and blood. There's bullying in this book and language, first sentence in the book had me stating damn! It was a funny opening line and I also loved Nisha's dedication for the book. I thought the pacing was perfect with this read and it kept me engaged until the very end!
We have a slow burn that will make you frustrated. There's MF action but not the "big final" scene you're left wanting. We get LGBTQ+ representation in this book but none of those scenes are drawn out and detailed. I loved the duo POVs, and I did piece together a lot of things but am still excited to read how it all comes to light! Nisha also spoils us with a map at the beginning of the book!
I very much enjoyed this read and cannot wait for more! I want more of Lor and I have also discovered a new favorite character within this book. I have so many questions and realizations with this read and I want to see how they all turn out. Also want to see if my theories about things are correct!
Enjoy the read with the fantasy and high stakes trials! Don't forget to give the author some stars!
Trial of the Sun Queen by Nisha J. Tuli, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)
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