Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

Three Dark Crowns
by Kendare Blake
⭐⭐⭐

Three Dark Crowns has an incredibly promising plot. In every generation, a set of triplets are born and it is their destiny to battle it out and end each other’s lives in the hope of claiming the throne. Each of the sisters is born with a power - Queen Katharine is a poisoner, Queen Arsinoe is a naturalist, and Queen Mirabella is an elemental. There’s a lot more to this story but these are the basics. 

Firstly, I’ll begin with what I loved about this story - strong female characters! Every woman in this tale knows who she is and what she wants. They are powerful and brave but still capable of love and compassion. That is a rare combination! 

This is the kind of book where we switch characters with each chapter. I found myself heavily invested in Arsinoe and Katharine’s stories. Their stories contained multitudes - love, friendship, betrayal, and magic - whereas Mirabella’s chapters, though still enjoyable, felt a little lackluster. 

Three Dark Crowns has an extremely large cast. Like… really large. Each Queen has an entire entourage behind them, not to mention suitors, priestesses, family, friends, etc. If you aren’t used to juggling so many characters at once, you may struggle in the beginning. By the middle of the story, however, you’ll probably have a good handle on them. 

I enjoyed this book and will definitely pick up the sequel, however I didn’t rate this story higher for a few reasons. There were twists in this story that I simply just didn’t like! Also, this story is all setup. There are a few moments of tension and suspense but this is entirely a story made of character development. Nothing much happens outside of the Queens’ personal relationships. I wish the last hundred pages were used differently. I would’ve enjoyed more insight into the traditions, such as the Hunt. The ending came very slowly but it also felt rushed. There weren’t many details to really emphasize the meaning of it all. 

Overall, this book was good! I am invested in the characters and the ending was strong enough to hook me in for the sequel! If you like witches and blood traditions, as well as love and friendship, then I would highly suggest picking this book up!