Reviews

The Widow Queen by Elżbieta Cherezińska

spitfyre's review

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DNF 56%

aphrael's review

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slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Loveable characters? Yes
It's quite historical, but the main characters are very strong so it's still easy enough to follow what's going on. I don't know any of the history in the period this book is about so I don't know how accurate it is, but I loved Sigrid, who's actual name I don't know how to spell. She's quite strong and smart and daring but not inhumanly so, she doesn't officially have much power but plays the game really well to collect informal power for herself and her children, which was interesting to see. However, the book ends kind of abruptly. It's rather large already so I can see why the rest of the story didn't fit in this volume, but it's one of those books that is lovely while you're in it but quite daunting to pick up. For people who are much more into history than I am it's a definite recommendation though! 

jwkingsley's review

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2.0

I really struggled with this one. It’s choppy and confusing with all the characters and very few of them really stand out. You can absolutely tell it’s been well researched but I found myself bored and just slogging through.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

lottie1803's review

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adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

kaora4's review

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4.0

Really well written story about the Polish Queen. It reminded me slightly of a Viking version of Game of Thrones..

I enjoyed the strength of the main character and following the story of her families rise to power. Translations are often difficult as you can often still tell it is a translation afterwards, but this one didn't really suffer from any of that. It took me a bit for me to find its footing, but once it did I really enjoyed it.

I'd totally keep reading this series and hope they translate the rest.

nn93's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring tense medium-paced

5.0

tjmeabon's review

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5.0

Excellent historical fiction that takes place in tenth century Poland and Scandinavia. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

gossamer_lens's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

vrop's review against another edition

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adventurous informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

chelsl's review

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0