The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

I hummed and ha'ed over buying this one for a while. I have not been in the mood for YA in years, and I can't say the mood has struck recently either. But... it was on special (my kryptonite!) and it looked pretty and I was in the mood for fantasy.

Kelsea has come of age and as a result, has to take over her kingdom. But people are out to kill her and she has just barely left her sanctuary. What on earth will it be like when she gets there! And does she have the wisdom to take a country that is being bled to something better?

This was a lot of fun!

I enjoyed Kelsea as a character. I liked the way she thought, I enjoyed watching her grow, and it was a pleasant change to have a more relatable heroine, one that was not super skinny and drop dead gorgeous. Mace, her body guard, was also a fun character - although, to be honest, I found his authority to be a bit excessive to be considered realistic.

The plot kept me going. In fact, I am really looking forward to picking up the next two so that I can see how this all wraps up. It was a fairly involved plot. Early on in the book, I was wondering how on earth Kelsea was going to sort everything out. It seemed an impossible task. Did I use the past tense there? Sorry. It still definitely seems an impossible task.

There were some parts, though, where I felt that what was going on was unrealistic and put there because the author enjoyed writing that scene. These bits disappointed because it gave the book a juvenile aftertaste, and they clashed with some of the adult discussions - sex slavery etc. The language is easy to follow though, so this would be a good book for less experienced readers who enjoy more of a mental challenge.

I will be picking up the next one soon. (Right after the exams 'soon' - if not before!)

Oh! I gave this 3 stars on Goodreads and 3.5 on my own records. Unfortunately, the few scenes I mentioned above did lower the overall affect of the book.