The Mirror King by Jodi Meadows

mirror kingSynopsis: 

Wilhelmina has a hundred enemies.

HER FRIENDS HAVE TURNED. After her identity is revealed during the Inundation, Princess Wilhelmina is kept prisoner by the Indigo Kingdom, with the Ospreys lost somewhere in the devastated city. When the Ospreys’ leader emerges at the worst possible moment, leaving Wil’s biggest ally on his deathbed, she must become Black Knife to set things right.

HER MAGIC IS UNCONTROLLABLE. Wil’s power is to animate, not to give true life, but in the wraithland she commanded a cloud of wraith mist to save herself, and later ordered it solid. Now there is a living boy made of wraith—destructive and deadly, and willing to do anything for her.

HER HEART IS TORN. Though she’s ready for her crown, declaring herself queen means war. Caught between what she wants and what is right, Wilhelmina realizes the throne might not even matter. Everyone thought the wraith was years off, but already it’s destroying Indigo Kingdom villages. If she can’t protect both kingdoms, soon there won’t be a land to rule.

In this stunning conclusion to THE ORPHAN QUEEN, Jodi Meadows follows Wilhelmina’s breathtaking and brave journey from orphaned criminal on the streets to magic-wielding queen.

How I spent the first 48 chapters of this book:

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How I spent the final chapter of this book:

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This book is a WHIRLWIND. I couldn’t stop reading it – in fact, I stayed up all night reading it, and I have absolutely no regrets. If you liked The Orphan Queen (which I’m assuming you did if you’re now looking into reading The Mirror King) then I have NO DOUBT that you will ADORE The Mirror King. This book is like The Orphan Queen on steroids or some other highly addictive (and probably illegal) substance. Everything I liked in book one got amplified by a hundred in book two, and I feel like I’m still taking deep breaths to try to steady myself (I lost a lot of oxygen holding my breath during the majority of the reading experience).

I’m going to try very hard not to get spoilerly, but dangit, do I want to get all spoilery up in here! There are just too many things I want to say, and not nearly enough vague ways in which to say them.

OH MY GOSH. The things that I can’t talk about!!! Arrrrgghhhh!!! Okay, okay. I’m cool. I’m calm. I’m going to try.

Watch out for Wraith Boy! 

I have to admit, I actually have a soft spot for Chrysalis (the wraith boy). I know he does a lot of bad things – like seriously bad things – but I don’t know… I just feel so bad for him, because it’s not like he really understands what he’s doing. He’s like this feral animal child, and I can’t help but want him to get better treatment, especially from Wil, since she is basically his mother and all. I thought that he had great character development in The Mirror King, and he really ended up being one of my favorite additions to the story.

The Supporting Cast gets an Upgrade.

Only a few key members of the Ospreys get any real page time in The Orphan Queen, but they’re everywhere in this book, and I think that’s definitely a good thing. Meadows does a beautiful job of wrapping up all of their individual plot lines, and I particularly loved getting more of Conor and Theresa, in particular.

James also gets more attention in this book, and his storyline is absolutely wonderful and perfect and I just had so many feels about him. If you’re a fan of James, you’re going to be blown away by his role in retaking Aecor and pushing back the oncoming wraith.

Who’s the Real Monster?

In The Mirror King, Patrick gets more than enough page-time, and he makes one heck of a villain. On top of that, we’ve got Tobiah’s uncle, the Overlord of Aecor, being downright disturbing at every turn. They make quite the pair, those two. I liked the tension having two enemies – one who would do anything to stop Wil from taking her kingdom back and one who would do anything to win it for her (so long as she does everything he says) – brought to the storyline.

And on to the Good Stuff… Let’s talk romance.

I love that the romance doesn’t take center stage in this duology, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I also love every steamy moment we get between Tobiah and Wil. Man, are they something else, those two! I spent every second of this book trying to get them to be together simply by sheer force of my will, which is exactly the kind of romantic tension you want in a series (or, in this case, a duology).

In Summary.

This is a gorgeous book, and a stunning conclusion to this epic fantasy duology. The characters go through traumatic changes, and are forced to make series decisions with unknown, and possibly deadly, consequences. The plot is engaging, and watching the characters as they come into themselves is rather remarkable. I was completely captivated from beginning to end, and even now, the bittersweet ending is still stuck in my head and my heart. This is definitely a series’ finale that will stay with you long after the final pages are turned.

Rating: 5++++/5 stars 

 

Have you read The Mirror King yet?? Leave a comment with your thoughts! If you haven’t, tell me why you’re excited to read it!

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