Series: The Faerie Ring #4
The Winter King has ordered Tiki’s death and hunts her in both the Otherworld and London. War looms ever closer and the mysterious Four Treasures of Faerie seem to offer the Seelie Court their only hope of stopping Donegal from claiming all of Faerie. The ever-enigmatic Larkin issues a threat regarding Clara that forces Tiki to choose between a child and a kingdom….
A ruthless opponent, a powerful treasure, an unforgettable decision…
4 Drink Me Potions
If you have read any of my other comments of the previous books in the Faerie Ring series, I have always mentioned that Kiki Hamilton is a master storyteller. She weaves in so many layers, particularly in the plotline (even the tiniest event of a previous book could have a significant meaning later), but also in her characters!
First, I have to say, Larkin is the most amazing and complex character I have read yet. She always seemed like a villain, or at least an antagonistic force when it comes to Tiki. Yet it’s been so hard to decipher what her ulterior motives are or what other random information she’s been hiding from everyone else. One moment, she seems to be acting like a guiding counsel for Tiki as she learns more about the world of the fey, and the next moment, she’s the most arrogant woman ever and seemingly aiming to claim the throne for herself. Which side should we believe? And that’s the beauty of it. She has that many layers to her.
Then comes the complexity of the plot. Thrown into the end of the The Seven Year King, she goes and says what? Clara’s her child. But wait! Other crazy relations are also revealed at Dain and Rieker’s heritage (yet again). And here I thought that it was crazy enough that Rieker even had family left. There’s more?
With this being the final book in the series, somehow, Hamilton was able to weave everything together and tie all loose ends into one happy conclusion. Yes, a happy ending, folks. Of course, some of the epic things that went down were kind of predictable, but it was still great to see how the new plot twists fit into it all.
Amidst all these crazy revelations, there’s a war to be prepped for and a treasure hunt for the last of the Four Treasures of the faeries. It seems only Tiki can find it and unite the courts of Faerie as that is her destiny. I think the ending fit well with what her character would do. She really has grown over the course of this book and possibly the previous one. Hard to imagine that the series spans only about 1.5 years or so in their lives.
Anyway, cutting this review short ’cause I could gush on and on about it some more. The Faerie Queen is an example of how an epic conclusion to a fantasy story should end. With action, suspense and tying in the crazy plotlines, Hamilton more than delivers all these elements and more. And if you’re a lover of any ancient locations (particularly those that we can actually visit) associated with the fey, London and parts of Scotland are mentioned throughout the novel. It makes me want to go there now…
Overall Recommendation:
The Faerie Queen was the epic conclusion to an ultimately heart-stopping historical fantasy series. Further plot twists (who knew there could possibly be more room for those?) all tie in nicely together for an unpredictable, yet happy, ending for Tiki and her friends. It’s like a fairy tale but with more action and character development! And who wouldn’t like a fairy tale, hmm? I recommend this series, and particularly this book, to anyone who loves adventure, fantasy, factual history and romance. It won’t disappoint, trust me. This book deserves all the praise it can get.
Down the Rabbit Hole 