Sparkling and sensual, this second-chance romance reunites star-crossed lovers after a torturous century apart—but at what cost?
The Drowned Queen crosses realms and spans centuries, delivering starlit magic that reimagines the power of love. Lyra and Torian defy the odds to reunite after being separated and banished to near-death conditions as punishment for falling in forbidden love the first time. When they find each other again, the world seems to be falling apart at the seams. Did their impossible return somehow trigger this chaos?
We meet Lyra in the middle of a mysterious sea, her ancient body newly freed from enslavement.Sold into the shadowlands a century ago, as punishment for something she no longer remembers, Lyra tells her horrifying truth while trying to drown herself. A century of abuse and exploitation ended when her frail body could no longer be considered a “useful tool,” her “master” discarding her like a worn-out household object. It’s brutal, shocking, and yet beautifully written.
“The drowning wasn’t peaceful,” she confesses, in a scene so vivid I could hear the sea lapping against Lyra’s body. I felt myself take in purposeful breaths of air to counter her deprivation. We become witnesses to a suicide attempt that just won’t take: “I expected surrender,” she tells us. “I expected release. I never expected my body to fight so viciously against its own extinction.” Instead of disappearing into the dark, swirling depths, Lyra suddenly finds herself being unmade.
The sea unravels her ancient body, remaking it into something new, remaking her into someone young—and gives her mystical powers! When the sea spits Lyra out, she reaches up toward the heavens and “[plucks] a star from the fabric itself. I held it between my fingers like a grain of rice… With a gentle pinch, I snuffed it out like the head of a match, and it reappeared above me, glittering and waving.”
While unsure of their origins or purpose, Lyra embraces this as a “parting gift” from the sea that gave her a second-chance at life, proclaiming her new ability to manipulate both starlight and shadows “a prize for my survival.” She declares her intention to “honor it, befriend it. Maybe even wield it.”
Lyra has lost all memory of her past and identity, beyond that she was punished for loving someone, but with her hopeful instincts and natural curiosity as a guiding force, she begins to form a plan: “Maybe whoever loved me then might love me still. If I survived that unforgiving century… perhaps they had too.” When she feels drawn toward the Amber Vale court and learns of their auditions for in-house royal entertainment, Lyra prepares a spellbinding performance that shows off her newfound celestial skills. She’s hired as the palace illusionist, and then she meets their prince…
“He knew her. She obviously knew him. In another life, in another world, in another timeline, with a version of himself he no longer recognized.”
Prince Torian,“a golden-eyed Fae with flames dancing at his fingertips” and heir to the throne, has just returned from a secret, century-long diplomatic mission. Meanwhile, the people of Amber Vale are lowkey panicked about the boundary between realms being dangerously thin, which historically signals a major imbalance and potential arrival of evil.
“Was my own crossing of a boundary the result of its weakening,” Lyra wonders, “or was I the root cause of everything?” With no idea why (or how) the sea gave her this second chance, or what laws she may have broken by accepting it, Lyra can’t risk finding the answer. She wouldn’t know where to begin if she could.
Flashes of Lyra’s memories are returned to her in vivid, vicious dreams, and she begins to remember the love she shared with Prince Torian. When they compare notes, Lyra learns that while she was being sold into slavery as punishment, Torian spent his century haunted by the gruesome sights and sounds of Lyra’s execution, which he was forced to witness before he was banished. Their realization that someone else was killed for the sole purpose of torturing Torian solidifies their agony into blistering guilt over the innocent life taken in Lyra’s name. “Who have I been mourning?” Torian wonders. Who died for Lyra’s sins, beheaded while denied the basic dignity of their own identity? They add this to the list of truths to uncover together.
Torian and Lyra defy all odds to reignite their romance, but even a century later, their love is still an impossible situation: The King welcomed his son home with news that he’s promised Torian’s hand in marriage as part of a diplomatic agreement. And love between Fae and humans is still forbidden! The idea that they both survived a century of torment, found their way back to each other, and still may not get their happy ending is unfathomable, for the couple and for the reader. Lyra insists that she “can’t allow [her century of] suffering to be in vain.” Her fierce, unwavering hope and determination is catching.
The Drowned Queen also raises issues of imperial violence, class constructs, and labor exploitation. Torian’s father is willing to enact genocide in the name of economic expansion, while Lyra risks her life to warn her hometown about the human cost of settler colonization. The king gleefully wields xenophobic rhetoric in the name of strengthening borders and keeping bloodlines pure. In the search for the woman who died on her behalf, Lyra’s friendship with the court historian grants her access to historical records of multiple tragedies—fatal conflicts at the border, women assaulted by palace soldiers, family members reported missing who were ultimately disappeared by the state. It’s all brilliantly political.
And don’t blush, but these are some truly hot sex scenes that enrich the dynamic between characters and make their mark on the central storyline. Every sex scene in this novel (including the detail of when it happens and which inciting incidents both inspire and interrupt!) is unforgettable and integral to the plot. Jaw-dropping twists and intense character development seamlessly align with the heart-racing seduction. In the middle of a royal banquet, for example, with his hand hidden under the table, between Lyra’s legs, “every exquisite stroke” of the prince’s fingers brings her closer to climax—while they talk in clever innuendo and chat with his betrothed, who sits on Torian’s other side. When they sneak away from a royal festival to have sex in a saffron field, the energy between them is so emotionally charged that Lyra unconsciously manifests stars that “[pulse] brighter with each thrust” and “spun in dizzying spirals” where their hips meet in desperation.
The women in this novel are consistently the smartest, strongest characters, wielding powerful secrets with impeccable strategy and grace. I was most fascinated by Lady Valeraine, Prince Torian’s betrothed, and Lysara, the court historian who takes an interest in Lyra and plays an integral role in her survival. They confide in and empower each other, sometimes reluctantly, quietly conveying a mutual respect even when dishing out jealous, competitive remarks.
“Males often mistake privilege for wisdom, even the best of them.” The Drowned Queen’s remarkable representation of male mediocrity (and blissful obliviousness to their failures!) is a joy. These women notice everything, and they never hesitate to demand better from the men in their lives. I appreciated that Lyra sees Torian’s flaws and inadequacies, calling him out to account for his behavior. I enjoyed the portrayal of Torian as both the passionate love interest and a prince haunted by his past—while Lyra remains the protagonist and her own hero. I loved the refreshing, relatable wink-nudge stare-directly-at-the-camera undertone when women were forced to pivot on their man’s behalf, compensating for his mistakes without batting an eyelash. In many cases, the men don’t even know they made a mess where the women cleaned up behind them.
Sharp and shimmering consequences of both good and evil will replay in readers’ minds long after reading this. I can’t wait to see what the next adventure and new realms bring.After a series of twists that reshape the entire landscape for love, this high-stakes, starlit fantasy ends on a cliffhanger. I’m still reeling from this book’s earlier events, but as the story wrapped up, I suddenly found myself reconsidering rooting for someone else in the next one.
The will-they won’t-they of impossible love is a satisfying blend of romantic tension, royal court drama, and the rush to reveal the truth behind scorching-hot secrets. Sparkling with starlight and satisfied longing, Lyra and Torian’s story is as swoony and suspenseful as Taylor Swift’s “Enchanted”—with every beat of the song’s evocative, lyrical magic served up for a high-stakes royal banquet.
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