Twin Crowns

#1 Twin Crowns - ★★★★★

Twin Crowns was such a magical read. From the moment I read the synopsis, I wanted to know more about these two sister twins. The action starts from the very first page, and it never stops. Even when it ended, I was immediately craving to read the second book in the Twin Crowns series. Needless to say, I will be pestering and stalking both authors for book spoilers and updates.

Synopsis:

Two sisters. One throne. Who will ultimately rise to power and wear the crown?

Wren Greenrock has always known that one day she would steal her sister’s place in the palace. Trained from birth to avenge her parents’ murder and usurp the princess, she will do anything to rise to power and protect the community of witches show more she loves.

Princess Rose Valhart knows that with power comes responsibility including marriage into a brutal kingdom. Life outside the palace walls is a place to be feared and she is soon to discover that it’s wilder than she ever imagined.

Twin sisters separated at birth and raised into entirely different worlds are about to get to know each other’s lives a whole lot better…

My Thoughts:

The royal theme entwined with magic really hooked me. The stories about the witches were some of my favourite scenes whilst reading this book. All the awful things that happened to them, things that were done to them. How they were forced to go into hiding and give up so many things, the throne being one of them. However, what really made me love them was the willpower for them to keep fighting. They never give up and finally come back to fight for what truly belongs to them.

“When you break open the stone heart of Anadawn Palace and seize your rightful place on its throne, all the winds of Eana will sing your name. May the courage of the witches go with you, my little bird.”

I also loved that this book features twin sisters. I was very glad that we didn’t have any of those stereotypical moments that authors like to do with twins. It was such a relief! Wren and Rose are two completely different people with different personalities, and this book really explores that. They are both so very lovable in their own unique way. I connected with Wren slightly more than I did with Rose. Perhaps due to the fact that Wren is more adventurous, outspoken and sarcastic. However, Rose is also amazing – and her story is very emotional. The development she is going through is inspiring. It’s not easy to suddenly realise that your whole life has been based on lies, and now you are away from home and have to relearn everything from the beginning.

“I imagine the battles a princess must fight don’t often call for knives and swords.”

Everything about this book captivated me. The world, the twin sisters, the witches… Then Tor and Shen, the Cliffs, the desert and the unknown places we are still yet to explore. I can vividly imagine every detail in this world, because it was so perfectly described. The story itself carried excitement and suspense at the end of each chapter. It made me desperate to keep reading. And the chapters swapping between Wren and Rose’s points of view only add up to the fast pace the book has.

The romance in this book is adorable. We have a few slow burn romances entwined with humour. I am so invested in these people’s relationships and I can’t wait to read about their happy ever afters. The bonds that they make are very wholesome and adorable, and I am here for it.

Rose glared at him. “Do you always talk to women the way you talk to your horse?”
“You should be flattered. There’s no one in this world I respect more than Storm.”

I also had the privilege to attend two online meetings and meet both authors. They shared so many incredible details about the book, the places and the motivation behind it. Reading this book with some amazing bookstagrammers as part of a readalong and also whilst chatting with the authors made this book very special to me. I will forever cherish that experience!

To sum up, although I could go on forever, please pick this book up! It’s the magic YA fantasy you’ve been yearning for. As soon as you finish the first chapter and the magic starts working, you won’t be able to put Twin Crowns down. I am sure Wren’s enchantment spells have something to do with this!

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Wren Greenrock has always known that one day she would steal her sister's place in the palace. Trained from birth to return to the place of her parents' murder and usurp the only survivor, she will do anything to rise to power and protect the community of witches she loves. Or she would, if only a certain palace guard wasn't quite so distractingly attractive, and if her reckless magic didn't have a habit of causing trouble...

Princess Rose Valhart knows that with power comes responsibility. Marriage into a brutal kingdom awaits, and she will not let a small matter like waking up in the middle of the desert in the company of an extremely impertinent (and handsome) kidnapper get in the way of her royal duty. But life outside the palace show more walls is wilder and more beautiful than she ever imagined, and the witches she has long feared might turn out to be the family she never knew she was missing.

Two sisters separated at birth and raised into entirely different worlds are about to get to know each other's lives a whole lot better. But as coronation day looms closer and they each strive to claim their birthright, the sinister Kingsbreath, Willem Rathborne, becomes increasingly determined that neither will succeed. Who will ultimately rise to power and wear the crown? show less

I think this is my favorite YA book after Caraval. The wit, storyline, characters, relationships, were all engaging. This included some tired tropes from all modern YA novels, but not in a tiresome, cringey way as most do. : -) I enjoyed having the twin perspectives, and could easily follow the switches since it was predictable every single chapter. There were a few cliffhangers that made me want to skip the switched perspective to continue the scene with the cliff-hanging twin, but I managed to control the urge to do so and went from chapter to chapter.
The romances that brew here are delicious and tantalizing, despite their predictability. There are also strong friendships and family relationships that were a pleasure to read.
I had show more both the audiobook and an ebook, and found that listening was my preferred method of enjoying this story, because the narration really brought the characters to life. They actually felt kind of flat and uninteresting when I would try reading the pages after listening to the book for some time, and I kept going back to the audio. I fell in love with the love interests through the narration of their characters, and grew to adore Prince Ansel in part thanks to the excellent narration of him.
This is a book that I will read again, at least once if not more, and I very much look forward to its sequel. show less

Take sisters separated at birth under traumatic circumstances, only one knows of the other, The unaware one is ostensibly the princess, soon to be crowned queen on her eighteenth birthday, but there are events in the offing that will turn both sisters' lives upside down as they learn about each other, what their powers are, and how they've been betrayed. All of this is rolled into a fast-paced and perfectly written story that begs for a sequel. It's a dandy tale.

Thank you to the Authors for this e-copy of Twin Crowns

Twin Crowns follows the story of Rose and Wren. Princess Rose a Royal born living at the Palace destined to become Queen and Wren a witch living with her Grandmother destined to change things.

This story is great it has at all! Secret identities, kidnappings, witches and betrayals.
The other characters in Twin Crowns were great and I especially thought Shen was good - he brought a lot to the table! Tor was the most surprising character for me and I loved him. I would love to see more of him in book 2.
I loved his relationship with Wren.

The narrative is switched between both Wren and Rose, though this gave great insight and adventure on both sides, I did feel a narrative from other show more characters would have built the story more. I would have loved to read from Shen's point of view - even Tor with his wolf would have been a great addition. The writing and the world building was spot on! It was a great, enjoyable read. I'm looking forward to Twin Crowns 2 show less

Wow! As a huge fan of The Princess Bride, I was skeptical of a book toting similar vibes, but Twin Crowns delivers. From the sass and wit to the magic, I was hooked from the first chapter to the last. I highly recommend this book to fans of fantasy, romance, humor, or anyone looking for a fun read.

i hope it doesnt turn out like The Never Tilting World