Review: The Mirror King by Jodi Meadows

The Mirror King
(The Orphan Queen #2)
by Jodi Meadows
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Publication Date: April 5th 2016
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 544
ISBN: 9780062317414
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy
Source: Edelweiss / Own

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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. (Goodreads)

My Thoughts...
I started reading The Mirror King just moments after finishing The Orphan Queen. I'm so glad that I had the chance to read these books back to back, as The Orphan Queen had a pretty big cliffhanger ending, and I was DYING to know what would happen next! Thank goodness I didn't have to wait to start reading The Mirror King, because I think the anticipation would have killed me.

All of the characters from The Orphan Queen appear again in The Mirror King. Wilhelmina proves herself over and over again throughout the story to be just an awesome character all around. She goes above and beyond to do what is right for her people and her kingdom, sometimes facing dangers that she should not face, but doing so nonetheless.  I said so in my review of The Orphan Queen, but her actions in The Mirror King just prove it; Wilhelmina will make a wonderful queen.

All of the secondary characters that I loved in The Orphan Queen are back in this book, and some new ones as well, some you will love, and some not so much. I particularly wanted more of the Wraith Boy, as I was so curious about him, and he wasn't in the story nearly as much as I wanted him to be. He was such a mystery!! I loved these characters.

The storyline for the book followed the same as in The Orphan Queen, and I was in stitches waiting to see how this it was all going to come to an end. Even though there was a moment in the ending of the book that made me so sad, the ending wrapped up very nicely, and I was satisfied with the way everything came together. I closed the last page with a pretty huge smile on my face, and I love when an ending makes me that happy.

Overall; The Mirror King was a wonderful conclusion to The Orphan Queen! I really enjoyed this duology, and now that I've finished it, I'm really looking forward to finishing Meadow's Newsoul series soon!

Review: The Oprhan Queen by Jodi Meadows

The Orphan Queen
(The Orphan Queen #1)
by Jodi Meadows
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Publication Date: March 10th 2015
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 391
ISBN: 9780062317384
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy
Source: Own

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Wilhelmina has a hundred identities.

She is a princess. When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom’s capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne.

She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace, and Melanie’s behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable, Wil can’t trust anyone.

She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina’s magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil’s magic, she will vanish like all the others.

Jodi Meadows introduces a vivid new fantasy full of intrigue, romance, dangerous magic, and one girl’s battle to reclaim her place in the world. (Goodreads)

My Thoughts...
After having The Orphan Queen sitting on my shelf for an embarrassingly long amount of time, I finally decided to pick up the book, partially because I was curious, and partially because it was super close to the release date for The Mirror King, and I thought it would be pretty awesome to read the books together.  I'm totally kicking myself for not having read The Orphan Queen sooner. I enjoyed it so much!!

I really loved the main character in the story, Wilhelmina. I love that there were so many different sides of her character. Not only was she a lost princess who desperately wanted to get her kingdom back, she was also a theft who stole to survive, and a spy to get information, as well as a wielder of magic, which was completely illegal to use. She was such a well written person, and I love that she was willing to do whatever she needed to do for her friends and her kingdom. She'd definitely make an excellent queen.

There are SO many secondary characters in the story that I enjoyed as well. Too many, really, to even list, so read the book to discover them for yourself! And, the romance in the book was perfection. Not too much, not too little; it was absolutely perfect.

I really enjoyed the storyline for the book, especially the magical aspects. It really held my interest throughout. I'm also really fascinated lately with historical type settings, and that's exactly what you get in The Orphan Queen. The book ends with a pretty massive cliffhanger, and I'm thrilled that I already have a copy of The Mirror King on hand, just waiting for me to start it. I must know what's going to happen next!

Overall; I really enjoyed reading The Orphan Queen, so much more than I expected to, and I can't wait to start The Mirror King right away! I'm super curious to see what's going to happen next for these awesome characters and great story.