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The Queen of the Tearling
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
An untested young princess must claim her throne, learn to become a queen, and combat a malevolent sorceress in an epic battle between light and darkness in this spectacular debutthe first novel in a trilogy.Young Kelsea Raleigh was raised in hiding after the death of her mother, Queen Elyssa, far from the intrigues of the royal Keep and in the care of two devoted servants who pledged their lives to protect her. Growing up in a cottage deep in the woods, Kelsea knows little of her kingdom's haunted past . . . or that its fate will soon rest in her hands.Long ago, Kelsea's forefathers sailed away from a decaying world to establish a new land free of modern technology. Three hundred years later, this feudal society has divided into three fearful nations who pay duties to a fourth: the powerful Mortmesne, ruled by the cunning Red Queen. Now, on Kelsea's nineteenth birthday, the tattered remnants of the Queen's Guardloyal soldiers who protect the thronehave appeared to escort the princess on a perilous journey to the capital to ascend to her rightful place as the new Queen of the Tearling.Though born of royal blood and in possession of the Tear sapphire, a jewel of immense power and magic, Kelsea has never felt more uncertain of her ability to rule. But the shocking evil she discovers in the heart of her realm will precipitate an act of immense daring, throwing the entire kingdom into turmoiland unleashing the Red Queen's vengeance. A cabal of enemies with an array of deadly weapons, from crimson-caped assassins to the darkest blood magic, plots to destroy her. But Kelsea is growing in strength and stealth, her steely resolve earning her loyal allies, including the Queen's Guard, led by the enigmatic Lazarus, and the intriguing outlaw known simply as "the Fetch."Kelsea's quest to save her kingdom and meet her destiny has only just begun. Riddled with mysteries, betrayals, and treacherous battles, Kelsea's journey is a trial by fire that will either forge a legend . . . or destroy her.
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review
Nessavamusic
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

A well constructed epic fantasy with a strong protagonist. The magic system is not quite fully developed and there are a few dated comments, but I did really enjoy the story and look forward to continuing the series. 4⭐️

Scochrane26 FYI—this one goes unexpected places in the 2nd & 3rd book. Not your typical fantasy. 10mo
Nessavamusic @Scochrane26 cool, thanks for the heads up! 10mo
48 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Areader2
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

This a was a good fantasy that kept me engaged from the beginning, I always struggle with first in series but this one got from the beginning I will definitely continue the series

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jen_the_scribe
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

It was touch and go for a while, I kept going from a so-so to a soft pick, but it won me over completely in the end. For a while I didn‘t care about what might happen in book 2, but now I definitely want to find out. The MC drove me nuts at times, as did all the characters around her, but they, too, won me over. They all had great character arcs. There are some heart wrenching scenes and a bit of magic. There‘s betrayal but also fierce loyalty.

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jen_the_scribe
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen

“‘Do you believe it‘s true?‘

‘No.‘

‘Then why did I have to read it?… what was the point?‘

‘To know your enemy, Kelsea. Even a book can be dangerous in the wrong hands, and when that happens, you blame the hands, but you also read the book.‘”

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jen_the_scribe
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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For the most part, I‘m enjoying the story so far. But it‘s annoying me that everyone keeps referring to the MC as “plain,” including the MC herself. Only 128 pages in, and it‘s mentioned a lot 🫠

gossamerchild It's funny, I'm not even sure what people MEAN by that anymore. I agree, it's annoying. And only ever directed at women. 2y
jen_the_scribe @gossamerchild Yeah I‘ve never heard a male character referred to as “plain” 🙄 2y
20 likes2 comments
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jen_the_scribe
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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A little me time in the car line for school pickup (parked, not moving). Iced coffee cause it‘s blazing outside… Florida doesn‘t believe in Spring lol.

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jen_the_scribe
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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I really didn‘t know what I wanted to read next, so I picked one that‘s been sitting in my TBR pile for a good while.

19 likes1 stack add
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Amabear
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen

I enjoyed this novel so much. The magic and inner strength. The becoming. The power behind a girl who is not held back by youth, by innocence/naivity , or by love. But honored for it in a kingdom where all three are lacking until her arrival. Also, the daughter/mother rift was comforting to me for selfish reasons. It‘s difficult for me to connect with books with solid m/d relationships.
Amazing read. On to book two now!

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Dandrie
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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" Shit," she muttered. She'd heard the word from her guard many times, but only now did she understand the real use of profanity. That one word said exactly what she was feeling, said it better than a hundred other words could have done."

This world and all its obstacles really. Utopia is but a fool's dream but still a dream indeed.

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TheSpineView
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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#ConflictedWorlds @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
#Insecurities

First book that came to mind because I found the character of Kelsea to be very insecure.

Eggs Pretty cover ❤️📚❤️ 3y
62 likes2 comments
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ElspethY
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
Pickpick

Very intriguing world building, excellent character development. Great strong female lead character. Excited to read the sequel!

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bookiemonster_ph
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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ᴛɪᴛʟᴇ: ᴛʜᴇ Qᴜᴇᴇɴ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴇᴀʀʟɪɴɢ
ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ: ᴇʀɪᴋᴀ ᴊᴏʜᴀɴꜱᴇɴ
ꜱᴇʀɪᴇꜱ: ᴛʜᴇ Qᴜᴇᴇɴ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴇᴀʀʟɪɴɢ

17 likes1 stack add
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FantasyChick
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

I haven't been very active this past week. Vacation time means family time 😊

I liked this one but I think a reread will be in order with the physical book. So much going on and I think large worlds get lost in the audio.

14hrs #LittenListen
#BookspinBingo #Audiobingo

@aperfectmjk @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 3y
30 likes1 stack add1 comment
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paulareadsallthetime
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Mehso-so

⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Owlizabeth
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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I started rereading this trilogy because I saw she wrote a new book in the world (while I was WANDERING THE RECENTLY REOPENED LIBRARY 💃🏻) and omg I forgot how interesting the premise was. I‘m super enjoying my visit to the Tearling.

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Enchanted_Bibliophile
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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📙 Queen of the Tearling, The [by Erika Johansen]
👩‍💻 Quackenbush Robert
📽️ Quantum of Solace [2008]
🎼 Queen
🎶 Queer [by Garbage]

#ManicMonday #LetterQ @JoScho

JoScho Thanks for playing 💕 4y
18 likes1 comment
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TheSpineView
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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#manicmonday @JoScho #LetterQ

📚 Tagged
👩 Amanda Quick
🎞 The Queen of the Nile
🎤 Queen
🎵 Queen of the Hearts

JoScho Thanks for playing 💕 4y
47 likes1 comment
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ckarosi326
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

I loved this book and can‘t wait to read the next one!

SW-T This was my favorite of the trilogy. 4y
ckarosi326 I enjoyed the first two but then the third one seemed to fall apart. I dislike the ending completely. 4y
6 likes2 comments
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SammyKat
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

Kelsea is fierce, with very real internal issues and strengths. Johansen references fantasy tropes (a sheltered heir, magical gems, evil queen, etc.) then flips most of them. Engaging writing, tho some of the Mort Queen's POV just underlines that the Evil Empire of Evilness is Evil. TW: Violence & sexual violence typical of gritty medieval fiction (rarely explicit, blessedly not framed to thrill). The creepy albino trope appears for no reason.

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Lizzie2219
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

3⭐️- my complaint i had through the book about the vanity and body image is why this is a 3 star book I probably would have made it 5 because the story and characters are good and there is growth and its a good setting of the stage for the series but the vanity of it all along with the confusion of the time period and the weird graphic parts really lowered my enjoyment. But i do recommend it just dont have super high hopes

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Lizzie2219
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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I thought Kelsea was growing from her vanity but this quote is the most damaging body shaming quote i have ever read. It‘s just heartbreaking that this is everywhere in this novel. Because the story and world is interesting i just can‘t get over this.

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Lizzie2219
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Alright that trope i brought up before about kelsea being “plain” is constant every new character we meet makes a comment about how “plain” she is. I dont know what that means when she was first described she sounded pretty but apparently thats plain. Again i hate this trope it describes her as slim but also big and she has dark skin-tan- which is apparently bad. As i said i think this is a damaging to describe a character in a young adult novel

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Lizzie2219
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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My next read is the queen of the Tearling ummm... I‘m ten pages in and the author has already used the trope the main character isnt tall skinny and blonde so they cant be pretty for me this is a very damaging trope especially for the intended audience(teenagers) im hoping to move past that and the storyline will be good but that definitely will drop my rating and enjoyment of the book

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Liatrek
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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HELP LITSY🙏🏽 This series is on sale for 5.99 each on Chirp. Would you recommend the series? I see there‘s is a different narrator for each audio book just curious if anyone has listened to all three.

Butterfinger Wish I could help. 5y
Scochrane26 I‘ve read them but not listened. It‘s an interesting series. In the first, I thought it was going to be a typical fantasy series, but in the 2nd book, it goes a different way. The ending of the series is polarizing-seems people loved it or hated it. (edited) 5y
SW-T I read it, didn‘t listen to it. @Scochrane26 gave a good description of the trilogy. 5y
See All 6 Comments
mariaku21 I'm agreeing with @Scochrane26 's description since I read all of these too. 5y
Kimberlone I really liked the first one, but lost interest as the series continued and the story moved away from the main character from the first book 5y
71 likes6 comments
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RiverKScottWrites
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

Enjoyed! It was a little long and meandering and the ending was annoying but overall enjoyed and will probably eventually read #2.
#fantasy #sff #highfantasy

Eggs Hi River! My granddaughter is named River too💗💗 5y
RiverKScottWrites @Eggs Aww! Hello! What a great name 😍💞 5y
24 likes2 comments
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inthegreensandblues
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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#7covers7days #covercrush Day 1

Thanks for the tag @Laughterhp! I've been off Litsy a while so I hope a challenge will help me get back in the swing. 🎈

Hazel0303 Such a great book! 5y
29 likes1 comment
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thelizflynn
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

This was soooo gooooood!! 😍 A bit heavy on centering White Christian culture, and it got annoying to constantly read about how “plain” the main character was, but besides those two things I absolutely loved this book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

15 likes1 stack add
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stephothebesto
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
Pickpick

I enjoyed this a lot - introspective heroine, more politics than than battles, making tough calls. I'm still confused by the setting though... It's very medieval, but it's supposed to be set in the future??? Transportation is all horses and carts, but there's a JK Rowling shout out? I don't understand that choice..it doesn't seem to add anything. Maybe it will come later? Does anyone have any insights?

Hazel0303 This is such a great series. I definitely need to read it again. And yes, you are right, but it will make sense as you keep reading. 5y
stephothebesto @Hazel0303 thanks for responding! 5y
Hazel0303 @stephothebesto You're so welcome! I hope you decide to keep reading it. 5y
11 likes3 comments
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brilliantglow
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

Finished this last night on audio. Really enjoyed the writing and characters. Great plot lines. Looking forward to starting the next one today.
🌟🌟🌟🌟

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brilliantglow
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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All of us Littens are guilty😂😂😂

KathyWheeler Yes, we are!😄 5y
Ruthiella So true!😂 5y
75 likes1 stack add2 comments
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brilliantglow
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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This handsome guy is my reading buddy today😁 He missed me while I was camping.

Balibee146 He's adorable! 😍😍 5y
Maria514626 That face! ❤️❤️❤️ 5y
See All 7 Comments
wanderinglynn What a cutie! ❤️🐶 5y
Jaimelire He‘s so cute 5y
mreads 🐕❤ 5y
TheSpineView 💜🐾 5y
66 likes7 comments
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Sweetdgabe87
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Mehso-so

3.8/5 because it wasn‘t as action packed as I thought it was going to be. The story began pretty slow but then became more interesting. That being said I will be reading the rest of the series because I found the story enjoyable.

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Emily2002
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Mehso-so

I really enjoyed this book the concept was just awesome and all,but it totally lacked in something.So first of all I just adore Kelsea as a main character she loves to read and hates the idea of burning books,which I also hate as well.But everyone ships Pen with Kelsea but I hardly know nothing about him at all,I need to learn more about his personality in the second book,Overall really enjoyed! My Rating-⭐️⭐️⭐️

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RvnclawWhovian
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

I tried to read this a few years ago and couldn‘t get into it. This time, however, I enjoyed it much more! The story follows Kelsea on her journey to take her rightful place as the Queen of the Tearling. But people, including her own uncle, have a vested interest in not letting her rule and will stop at nothing to make sure she never makes it to the throne. I definitely enjoyed it enough to want to read the sequel

Scochrane26 I like this series, but it‘s very different than I thought it would be after the 1st book. 5y
86 likes1 stack add1 comment
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TheSpineView
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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#Day 8 in the #BookFitnessChallenge @wanderinglynn

I made my target steps by a hair. The distance walked was 3.99 miles. I would like to do at least 4 miles everyday despite my goal being 8K steps. I think I'll start working on picking up the pace some.

For my audiobook part of the challenge I am continuing with The Queen of the Tearling (tagged).

wanderinglynn Way to go! 🙌🏻 5y
Meaw_catlady Keep it up !! 💪 5y
See All 9 Comments
BookwormAHN Great job 👏🏻 5y
alisiakae Way to go! 5y
guinsgirlreads Still good!! 5y
VanChocStrawberry You went OVER your goal, which is awesome! 👏 5y
Ash.on.the.line Awesome job!! 5y
Clwojick Awesome! 5y
53 likes9 comments
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Emily2002
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Drinking some ice coffee while reading The Queen of the Tearling it‘s so amazing so far! Can‘t wait to read even more!
Happy Reading!!📚📚

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TheSpineView
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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#BookFitnessChallenge @wanderinglynn #Day6

Today's total walking time and I finished book 4 in the MurderBot Diaries Exit Strategy. I was able to just start the Tagged book before I had to quit and fix dinner.

wanderinglynn Way to go! 🙌🏻 5y
BookwormAHN Nice job 👏🏻 5y
56 likes4 comments
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EmilieGR
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
Mehso-so

Pretty good

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RvnclawWhovian
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Happy Sunday Littens! Over the weekend I finished Good Omens (loved it) then started and finished The Rules of Magic in one day (really loved it). Reviews forthcoming for those! Now I‘m diving into The Queen of the Tearling. I tried reading this a few years ago and got about 100 pages in, but it just didn‘t grab me. This was my pick for Transfiguration in the #OwlsReadathon2019 so here‘s to hoping I like it this time around 😂

Slajaunie I didn‘t care for it. 6y
84 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Karen3
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

I FINALLY FINISHED A BOOK!!!! This one took me forever to finish but not because it was bad. I just couldn‘t get myself to read for some reason. I enjoyed the beginning of this world and the action of the story. I have already downloaded the next book but have another to read first. 4🌟

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SassenachTheBookWizard
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Pickpick

So I actually liked Kelsea way more than I did in my past reads of this. It just dawned on me that this book is actually quite big and yet I still feel like it's quite a fast read. My favourite part is her relationship with the guards and her absolute stubbornness. She knows what's wrong and right and that she's gotta be ready to anger the status quo. Also, her having struggles with her weight is so damn relatable to me rn

110 likes4 stack adds
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SassenachTheBookWizard
The Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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It's been years since I read this and I really want to finish the series so time for a reread so I can refresh my memory of Queen Kelsea

110 likes6 stack adds
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razmanda
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

Love a good fantasy novel! The first of three and a solid entry into Tearling and the one true queen. For the rest of the month, I‘m focusing on reading Black authors so will take a break from this world until March, but definitely looking forward to it!

24 likes1 stack add
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Jen_Reads
Queen of the Tearling | Erika Johansen
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Thank you so much @sammisho !!! This was a nice surprise after a not so fun day. I‘ve heard such good things about this one. I‘m looking forward to reading it! ❤️😽
#kindlitsy

sammisho Yay! Enjoy! 😻 6y
28 likes1 comment
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Slajaunie
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Mehso-so

⭐️⭐️. The story was good but there were several things that bothered me.
1. Do we really need to be that vulgar? You can get your point across without vulgarity. This ruined the whole book for me.
2. This author has an agenda. It was very blatant what they thought of church and state. This was a fantasy but I could pinpoint all of this author‘s political views.
3. Is in the comments.

Slajaunie 3. Where the heck are they? Maybe this is a revelation for later but I was so confused! 4. Why have women become property again? This is supposed to be the future. I‘m not a feminist but I do believe in our rights. What the hell happened? (edited) 6y
Ruthiella The revelation comes in the later books. Like you I didn‘t love this and I just went on the internet to get a summary of the second and third book.🤓 6y
BennettBookworm I totally agree with all of those assessments of the first book. It made me not want to continue the series 🤷🏻‍♀️ 6y
CouronneDhiver I hate it when the agenda is that obvious 🙄 6y
72 likes2 stack adds4 comments
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Slajaunie
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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This is my next audiobook. It sounds interesting. We shall see!

ReadingVampire Loved this book! 📖 📚 6y
lalatiburona That trilogy is great! 6y
Slajaunie I hope I enjoy it as well! @Puredragonstar @lalatiburona 6y
85 likes1 stack add3 comments
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inthegreensandblues
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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🍁 Book: The Queen of the Tearling
🍁 Movie: Quigley Down Under (not actually a particular fave but gave me the name of my dear departed dog, Quigley ♥️)
🍁 Food: Queso dip

#manicmonday #LetterQ @JoScho

JoScho Yay queso! 6y
16 likes1 comment
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Martta
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Pickpick

I loved this! I thought the first part of the book was a bit long but it didn't matter because the rest of the story was so strong. Many of the characters had to make tough choises between the right and wrong. This story has many interesting characters. These kind of stories always make me think if worse comes to worst could real people make the right choises? Could they really be as courageous as charcters in books or movies? 🤔

BookaholicNatty I adored this book! I read it super fast and then couldn‘t stop and read the entire series really quickly!! 6y
LeeRHarry I enjoyed the whole series. 6y
Martta @BookaholicNatty @LeeRHarry I might have to order the rest of the series for Christmas. Feels like a perfect holiday read! 😁🤔 6y
16 likes3 comments
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Martta
The Queen of the Tearling | Johansen, Erika
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Carlin and Barty's story breaks my heart. 💔 Just when I thought this story couldn't possibly get any deeper in human emotions and the sence of justice in human beings.