The Queen's Rising - Rebecca Ross

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"When her seventeenth summer solstice arrives, Brienna desires only two things: to master her passion and to be chosen by a patron.

Growing up in the southern Kingdom of Valenia at the renowned Magnalia House should have prepared her for such a life. While some are born with an innate talent for one of the five passions—art, music, dramatics, wit, and knowledge—Brienna struggled to find hers until she belatedly chose to study knowledge. However, despite all her preparations, Brienna’s greatest fear comes true—the solstice does not go according to plan and she is left without a patron.

Months later, her life takes an unexpected turn when a disgraced lord offers her patronage. Suspicious of his intent, and with no other choices, she accepts. But there is much more to his story, and Brienna soon discovers that he has sought her out for his own vengeful gain. For there is a dangerous plot being planned to overthrow the king of Maevana—the archrival kingdom of Valenia—and restore the rightful queen, and her magic, to the northern throne. And others are involved—some closer to Brienna than she realizes.

With war brewing between the two lands, Brienna must choose whose side she will remain loyal to—passion or blood. Because a queen is destined to rise and lead the battle to reclaim the crown. The ultimate decision Brienna must determine is: Who will be that queen?"

My favorite thing about this book is that it is full of surprises. There were a few moments where I actually gasped out loud, causing my husband to look over at me and ask if I was ok. Second favorite thing? The world-building. Everything about this book was full of rich, incredible detail, which is pretty remarkable for a standalone fantasy that isn't a billion pages long. I can't even tell you how badly I want to be a passion after reading this book. Give me my cloak! Finally, I love the banter between Brienna and Luc, as well as her relationship with Merei. Three of my favorite characters. My one complaint is that I wish we had seen more of the final battle, especially since so much was made of Maevana women being warriors. There was so much buildup leading to the moment where the two sides meet, and then...it was over. Give me more, dammit!

Taking all the great things about this story into account, I'll happily forgive the lack of battle scenes. And if I wasn't already willing to, the cover art would have convinced me. I mean...look at it.

I can't look at this cover and not want to read the book.

If you're into fantasy and books with strong female leads, this book is for you. Read it!