Title: Tiger Queen
Author: Annie Sullivan
Pub. Date: September 10, 2019
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
From Annie Sullivan, author of A Touch of Gold, comes Tiger Queen, a sweeping YA fantasy adventure that tells the story of a fierce desert princess battling to save her kingdom. Fans of Rebel of the Sands and Meagan Spooner will devour this retelling of Frank Stockton’s famous short story, “The Lady, or the Tiger?”
In the mythical desert kingdom of Achra, an ancient law forces sixteen-year-old Princess Kateri to fight in the arena to prove her right to rule. For Kateri, winning also means fulfilling a promise to her late mother that she would protect her people, who are struggling through windstorms and drought. The situation is worsened by the gang of Desert Boys that frequently raids the city wells, forcing the king to ration what little water is left. The punishment for stealing water is a choice between two doors: behind one lies freedom, and behind the other is a tiger.
But when Kateri’s final opponent is announced, she knows she cannot win. In desperation, she turns to the desert and the one person she never thought she’d side with. What Kateri discovers twists her world—and her heart—upside down. Her future is now behind two doors—only she’s not sure which holds the key to keeping her kingdom and which releases the tiger.
This will be a spoiler free review!
Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was your typical YA Take Back the Throne fantasy romance. It was a bit predictable, but overall a quick, good read.
At the beginning of the book I couldn’t stand Kateri, but as the book goes on, and she learns some truths about her father and the reality he’s constructed around her, she becomes more and more bearable until I was rooting for her.
Kateri is very much a product of her upbringing. Princess of Achra, her father’s sole heir, adamantly against the Desert Boys who are stealing the Kingdom’s water. She’s all fire, vengeance and anger all the time. She wants to prove herself, claim justice/vengeance for her mother and brother’s murder and wants to rid the world of the Desert Boys and bring Achra back to life.
Cion on the other hand isn’t blinded by the comfy lifestyle that Kateri leads. He’s struggled and done whatever he’s had to, to survive. So when they cross paths, arguably only chaos will ignite.
I definitely enjoyed this book, and the romance was cute. The pacing was good as well, making it a quick read, but not so fast that I felt like I was missing important information. I really like the writing style, flower-y enough to paint a vivid picture, but not so heavy to slow down the story. I enjoyed the characters, even though some of them made me very angry. And most of all, I really like Kateri’s journey in this book. She massively changes, for the better, over the course of this book and it’s wonderful.
You definitely don’t want to miss this release, out September 10, 2019! Make sure you pick it up and read it!
Writing The Universe 
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