With each passing day, Kelsea Glynn is growing into her new responsibilities as Queen of the Tearling. By stopping the shipments of slaves to the neighboring kingdom of Mortmesne, she crossed the Red Queen, a brutal ruler whose power derives from dark magic, who is sending her fearsome army into the Tearling to take what is hers. And nothing can stop the invasion.
But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing, and she finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. The fate of the Tearling —and that of Kelsea’s own soul—may rest with Lily and her story, but Kelsea may not have enough time to find out.
But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing, and she finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. The fate of the Tearling —and that of Kelsea’s own soul—may rest with Lily and her story, but Kelsea may not have enough time to find out.
“Even small gestures of kindness have the potential to reap enormous rewards. Only the shortsighted man believes otherwise.”The Invasion of the Tearling was an incredible follow up with the first book. What I really liked is that it provided more details on the world building since the first book wasn't as detailed. The writing and the pace of the book was incredible as always and everything about it was more realistic.
The POV in the story goes back and forth between Queen Kelsea preparing for the invasion of her country, and Lily, a woman living in Pre-Crossing Connecticut. It's interesting to see the timeline between those and actually read about the Crossing. I appreciated the author incorporated this into the book and making me feel a lot more connected to the story.
I did feel like the story itself came out a lot more dark than it was before. The vivid images of rape, sexual assault/harassment, and self-harm did come up but they weren't presented in romantic stage and were more dark than anything. No matter how much I do like the clean stories, these made my pulse race and turn the pages even more. Although I did really like the book, it bothered me that every single issue that was brought up could be solved by the necklace. I don't mind Kelsea's character but at times think it could have used more depth. Otherwise, highly recommended!
About Erika Johansen
Erika Johansen grew up and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She went to Swarthmore College, earned an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and eventually became an attorney, but she never stopped writing.
