In the Kingdom of Achra, a princess has to fight for the right to rule and Princess Kateri has more riding on the line than just the throne. She must fulfill a promise to protect her people from the drought and windstorms that ravage them. The situation is worsened by the gang of Desert Boys that frequently raid the city wells, forcing the king to ration what little water is left. The punishment for stealing water is a choice between two doors: behind one lies freedom, and behind the other is a tiger.
When Kateri’s final opponent is announced she knows she is doomed and in desperation she seeks out the one person she never thought to side with. What Kateri discovers twists her world—and her heart—upside down. Her future is now behind two doors—only she’s not sure which holds the key to keeping her kingdom and which releases the tiger. I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and all opinions are my own. Tiger Queen is set to release on September 10, 2019.
I don’t know what to say after reading this story besides wow. This tale was based upon the short story of A Lady, or the Tiger and I feel that Annie Sullivan has done the story justice by creating a world in which a princess learns that life is meant to be filled with family, love, and the strength that comes from the spirit as well as the body.
First, I have to exclaim about how stunning the world building was. Sullivan brought to life a kingdom in the desert barely surviving a drought. She builds upon the strength of nature and emphasizes the fact that humans cannot bend the forces of nature to their will. The creatures and twisting sand dunes seemed to howl and spin before my eyes and the writing created vivid imagery that pulled me into the story.
And if I thought the creation of the world was phenomenal the characters were even more so. Princess Kateri is a girl who is focused upon making her father proud and becoming the queen he wants her to be. But when she is forced to seek the help of her enemy she comes to realize that her world is not what she thought it was. Kateri grows into someone who realizes the power of family and who recognizes her people and sees them as more than mere pawns. Through mental and physical challenges she grows and prevails beginning as an arrogant royal who knows little of the sufferings of the daily people into someone who fights for her people and understands their daily struggles. As a reader, it was wonderful to watch the main character become better and wiser.
The side characters added to the tale especially Cion who assisted in the growth of Kateri. He made her see the shades of gray in between the black and white way she viewed the world. He challenged and supported her but was a strong character without Kateri. The other side characters added dimensions to the tale creating strong villains and heroes alike. As the story continued Sullivan expanded the growth of the supporting characters for in the beginning it was minimal and I was slightly upset by the lack of growth. However, it was made up for later in the tale when the author truly began expanding her characters. In the end, I loved all the wonderful people that inhabited the world created in Tiger Queen.
This tale is phenomenal and I would definitely recommend it. The author lives up to her first book by continuing the creation of wonderful stories based upon previous works.
Write your Destiny 