PENGUIN The Queen's Assassin

I was quite disappointed by this book. I gotta say I had very high expectations but now I regret it because this book is one of my least rated books, ever, and I don't enjoy rating books badly.The story is not at all bad in any way, everyone has their own opinion and I support them. It's just the way the book was written was fine, and the story plot is normal, and feels recycled to me. It is a very basic story. I usually finish books this length in 2-3 days, but this book took me time because I became less intrigued and un-interested as you move to the middle. The ending to me was a surprise I did not expect, so it kind of fixed the story for me.The characters:The characters are quite fine. You don't feel a great love connection which I gotta say, made me mad. I really love a book were you feel swooned, and I heard that this book is a romance, but the romance was quite dull and boring therefore, if you love romance and YA fantasy.... this book is not for you at all. I am sorry but this book is written in a way that I would think is for middle grade and not YA.

my copy came with bent pages and a bent cover

I really enjoyed reading The Queen's Assassin and I find myself reading it multiple times, but I will say it did take me longer than most books to finish, but that was mostly because I was always busy. I found Shadow smart and enjoyable to read about, and I admired Caledon's bravery to speak about what his father promised the queen, while they were in that cave. Their bond is unique, but I loved that part of it. I would recommend reading it, and I can't wait to read the second one. 5/5

That ending was so much more than I expected!After the king dies in battle, his best friend makes a bonding vow with the queen to protect her and the royal heir, as well as search for the magical documents and sacred scrolls that have been missing. He has pledged his life and his heir’s life to the queen until the scrolls are found and returned. Eighteen years later, we meet Shadow and Caledon Holt (he’s the best friend’s son, the kingdom’s deadliest weapon and the Queen’s assassin). Shadow is exploring around the Abbey when Caledon saves her life by killing her would-be assassin. The bad thing is that the man Caledon kills is the queen’s brother-in-law, Prince Alast. Alast proves himself a traitor, which is shocking to Caledon. The Queen sends Caledon to Deersia Prison to appease the public and keep the traitorous evidence secret. She wants Caledon to spy and find out where the traitors stem from. Shadow catches a ride to Deersia prison as a stowaway and finds Cal and helps him escape. They move onto Montrice to discover if there’s a spy conspiring against their kingdom and Queen. Shadow and Cal are fun, dynamic characters that work together well but drive each other crazy too. I enjoyed the humor in this book as well as the intrigue and magic. The ending left me ready to read the sequel! 5 stars!

I loved this book. Some scenes felt slow paced and the romance felt too quick to me. But I still enjoyed it and will be picking up the sequel

I thought that this book started off well and built up the story. Enjoyed the chemistry between the main characters.

A story of magic, assassins, royalty, and love. An adventurous story perfect for the YA audience.The romance is definitely in the forefront of this story. A girl who wants to make her own path, goes to save an assassin that is meant to find the conspirator against the crown and find the hidden magic scrolls that will return magic to all the common people. The journey is dangerous but it brings the two young people closer together.The characters were pretty good. I did like Cal better than Shadow. He seems more focused on his task and his own beliefs. While Shadow who seemed so determined in the beginning half way through the book lost her own beliefs and became a bit childish with her behavior.Now the story itself is intriguing, the re surging magic, the history of the powerful first mage, and what has become of him as well as the evil force that wants to control it all. And I want to see what happens to the main characters in the future. It seemed like the story was to be wrapped nicely, but it did end with an open end and kind of a cliffhanger.