ARC Review: Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas

Long May She Reign
Author: Rhiannon Thomas
Publication: HarperTeen (February 21, 2017)

Description: The Girl of Fire and Thorns meets The Queen of the Tearling in this thrilling fantasy standalone about one girl’s unexpected rise to power.

Freya was never meant to be queen. Twenty-third in line to the throne, she never dreamed of a life in the palace, and would much rather research in her laboratory than participate in the intrigues of the court. However, when an extravagant banquet turns deadly and the king and those closest to him are poisoned, Freya suddenly finds herself on the throne.

She may have escaped the massacre, but she is far from safe. The nobles don’t respect her, her councillors want to control her, and with the mystery of who killed the king still unsolved, she knows that a single mistake could cost her the kingdom—and her life.

Freya is determined to survive, and that means uncovering the murderers herself. Until then, she can’t trust anyone. Not her advisers. Not the king’s dashing and enigmatic illegitimate son. Not even her own father, who always wanted the best for her but also wanted more power for himself.

As Freya’s enemies close in and her loyalties are tested, she must decide if she is ready to rule and, if so, how far she is willing to go to keep the crown.

My Thoughts: This was an entertaining fantasy novel. Freya is 23rd in line to the throne and has no interest in being part of the Court. She is an excellent scientist and prefers spending time doing experiments in her lab. She's socially awkward. She was compelled by her father to attend one of King Jorgen's extravagant banquets but left in the middle when she got an idea for a new experiment.

Hours later, her father discovers her in her lab and tells her that the King and most of the court are dead from arsenic poisoning. She is now the Queen! Freya finds herself in charge of the country with only a few surviving advisers and a few surviving courtiers. Also, someone orchestrated the massacre and she not only wants to bring him to justice but keep herself safe from future murder attempts.

She has a restless country with a political group that wants to get rid of all the nobility and various suspects inside the court. There is William Fitzroy who is the former king's bastard son. Madeleine Wolff was away during the banquet is is next in line for the throne now. She is everything Freya isn't - lovely, socially adept, and loved by the people. Another suspect is Torsten Wolff who was the former king's best friend and chief adviser. The murderer could be any of the king's surviving advisers too.

Freya is a scientist, so she turns to scientific experiments to track down the murderer. Along the way she finds a way to test for arsenic poisons that will eliminate the need for food tasters. She manages to find out how the poison was introduced into the food at the banquet and where the poison came from. But, while she was experimenting, Torsten Wolff decides that she was the poisoner and tries to overthrow her. The country which hadn't fought a war for centuries was now on the verge of one if Freya couldn't find a way to convince Torsten that she wasn't the killer.

This story had it all - intrigue, a mystery, an awkward heroine who learns to accept herself for her own strengths, friendships lost and found, various betrayals, and a nice romance too. I really enjoyed this story and think it will appeal to any fantasy lover.

Favorite Quote:

People had been calling me "strange" since I learned how to talk, although usually they only said it when they thought I couldn't hear. When I was younger, I chattered constantly, stumbling over the words in my eagerness to express them, asking question after question until I was at least five explanations deep. People commented on my strangeness to my mother, as though she had somehow missed it and would surely take action now that it was revealed to her, but she would just laugh and say, "Isn't it wonderful?" like my strangeness was my greatest strength.

I received this one for review from Edelweiss. You can buy your copy here.