Book Review: A CROWN OF TALONS by Katharine and Elizabeth Corr

Title in white on navy with a feather and a crown of talons on a stone pedestal

Genre: Political Fantasy
Age Range: YA
Star Rating: 5 stars
Series: yes - second book in duology

*SPOILER ALERT: contains SPOILERS for A THRONE OF SWANS*

Synopsis:

Fight or flight . . . or both?

Three months after Aderyn’s coronation the court is celebrating the Solstice, but Aderyn is preoccupied by Lucien’s continuing hostility. The celebrations are interrupted by the arrival of nobles who have escaped from the neighbouring country of Celonia – the flightless have risen up and overthrown their rulers. The world is changing.

As people being to question whether Aderyn and Aron are strong enough to rule, there is an attempted assassination on Aderyn’s life. Siegfried and Tallis have made their move – they have formed an army, declared war and will take the throne, by any means necessary.

Aderyn must fly to unchartered territories and risk the lives of everyone she loves to defeat her enemies, secure her throne and unite her people.

Synopsis taken from Goodreads. Add to your shelves here.

Review:

A CROWN OF TALONS was one of my most anticipated reads this year, and now I have to try and write a coherent review, rather than just screaming about how I loved it (and also, how dare the Corr sisters do that?!) I also have to try and do this without spoilers, which is the other very tricky bit.

The long and short is that I loved this book. This series is easily one of my favourite fantasy duologies. While I am sad that it is now finished and there’s no more time to be spent with Aderyn and Aron and Letya and Lucien and Odette, it is a satisfying end to the series, wrapping up perfectly. The world has changed, and Aderyn with it – but it does feel like she has room to grow, that she is just a teenager and has her life ahead of her. Some worlds end when the book does, but this one feels like it will continue even though no more words capture it.

The stakes in this book just get higher as the book twists between crises after crises. The political intrigue snakes through it all with so many little clues that made me go “oh!” once the betrayal or solution was revealed. It is such a well plotted book, with brilliant pacing to keep you reading well after the lights should be out. Plus, Aderyn’s tangled feelings meant I had to find out what happened to her, and how (if it could at all) resolve happily for her.

UKYA fantasy is clearly out to destroy my heart at the moment. There were quite a few all-caps messages I sent to friends about multiple points in this book, because Katharine and Elizabeth are not happy with just putting the characters through mortal peril, but also shredding their (and the reader’s) hearts. Page 152 in particular has been garnering some outrage (deservedly) on twitter. I suppose it does make the book more addictive, but excuse me while I lie here and wait for my heart to mend. And then go and re-read the duology in an attempt to fix this book hangover.

I am very excited (and scared) to see what Katharine and Elizabeth write next.

Read my reviews of other books by Katharine and Elizabeth Corr:

A Throne of Swans (this series):