Hey ForeverBookers,
How are you all? Hope you’re good!
I’ve just finished “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” by Juno Dawson and I surprisingly really enjoyed it! I didn’t think I’d hate it but I thought it would be 3 stars, but it turns out it’s a 4 star read for me, maybe even a 4.5! It had a lot of things I like but some parts were forgettable, like the names of the lesser used characters. The plot, though was solid! I’m a character over plot person, as you’d know through reading my other reviews, but the main/most prominent character from this book, Niamh will be my favourite, I’m sure! I think that’s why I’ve rated “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” so highly!
4 Stars!
“Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” tells the story of a coven of witches that need to save or at least help a young male witch who’s more than he seems. Niamh, who I’d say is the main character of the current witches has a twin sister called Ciara who has had her power stripped before the book starts! Why, you can read for yourself!
I read Her Majesty’s Royal Coven for a couple of readathons!
Always Fully Booked Reading Challenge - A Genre Hybrid Book - HMRC is a paranormal/horror/LGBTQ+ book.
Always Fully Booked, Read The Rainbow Challenge - PINK - I ADORE this cover! The colour is certainly my favourite!!!
“Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” is an adult novel due to there being lots of bad language and a sex scene as well as a torture scene!
Spoilers below…
“Other times she’d simply dream she was listening to him breathe. He always fell asleep the second his head touched the pillow, like he had narcolepsy or something, and so Niamh, a fitful sleeper at best, would often fixate on his peaceful tide to quiet her chatty brain.
Awaking now, she reached for him, only to feel the cold side of the bed.”
Niamh dreams of her partner here. He died in the war, set before “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven.”
“Hels . . . what is it? You’re scaring me now.’
‘There’s been a prophecy . . .’
‘Oh here we go . . .’ Niamh groaned. The oracles were always full of doom. That’s why they never got invited to parties.
Helena shook her head. ‘There’s never been one like this, Niamh. You don’t understand. Not even before the war.’
Helena’s steady gaze was loaded with the sort of resolution Niamh hadn’t seen in almost a decade. Like a scorched forest, it had taken time, years even, for silliness and absurdity and glib playfulness to return to the coven, or even to life, full stop. Conrad, Stef, and so many more had died, and neither Helena nor Niamh would truly heal, not ever. Some bore scars on their skin and others – like they had – bore scars within. Niamh didn’t have to look very hard to see Helena’s, however much she tried to cover them.
Niamh had learned, with time, to keep her grief in the shoebox under the bed with all the photos and mixtapes and old love letters. It was present, always, but she could work around it, knowing it was there.
Only now Helena wore her war face once more. Niamh blinked back the sting of tears. She could not, would not, go through those days again. She was still broken from last time, held together with sellotape and staples. ‘Fuck,’ she said, her voice hoarse. ‘Please tell me you’re kidding?’
‘I wish I was.’
‘You’re serious?’
She nodded.
‘Worse than the war?’
Another nod.”
This is the main plot of “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven.” Niamh is questioning the head of the coven, Helena about what is the matter. There was a war, prior to the start of “HMRC” that so say killed Conrad and Stef, both Niamh and Helena’s partners. Is this true or are there other, more sinister forces at work. I didn’t really understand the war element of “HMRC.” I didn’t feel as if this novel focused enough on it. Maybe the sequels will.
The prophecy brings a young boy to Her Majesty’s Royal Coven.
“Leviathan? Come on now . . .’ You don’t throw that name around for shock value. It wasn’t fucking clickbait.
A young plump oracle stood and hurried down from the second tier. ‘It’s true, Dr Kelly. The clearest vision I’ve ever seen. I was the first to see it after he arrived.’
Niamh looked to Helena, confused. ‘Who? Travis Smythe?’
‘The Sullied Child,’ Irina rasped before Helena could answer.
‘That’s a fairy tale to scare little witches!’
The oracle continued unabated. ‘For generations, we’ve beheld a child in our reverie.”
What purpose does this “sullied child” have? They’re called Theo and they have more power than any of the witches expect! They’re in fact a trans character, which I’ve not read about before, especially in a fantasy book. Because Theo is trans, Helena, the head of “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” doesn’t want them sullying the girls there. She wants everything kept tidy. She’s therefore never going to accept them as what they truly are, a girl! Ordinarily, I would have supported Helena but in the context of this story, I can see why Helena is evil! She’s put to death because of her beliefs!
What I’m really interested to read in the next book, “The Shadow Cabinet,” is how Niamh’s evil twin sister, Ciara plays her role as she becomes Niamh! Will the rest of HMRC know it’s not truly Niamh? Will her boyfriend, Luke? Will she ever awaken as herself?
There are a lot more characters in “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven,” but I honestly don’t think there needed to be. By just having Niamh, Helena, Theo and Ciara with Luke on the side, there was enough going on in the plot. There’s this whole other group of witches, as well as lesbian witches that just weren’t needed in “HMRC,” at least. They might be drawn upon more in the latter books.
Overall then, I’m giving “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” 4 stars! I’m excited to get read the next books! This series could be epic!
I’m going to read book 2 in a series that I read book 1 of in August next! Can’t WAIT!
Comments
Post a Comment