The Orphan Queen: 1 - Hardcover

Meadows, Jodi

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062317385 ISBN 13: 9780062317384

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2015

Synopsis

An epic fantasy filled with adventure, intrigue, and romance from the New York Times bestselling coauthor of My Plain Jane, perfect for fans of Graceling by Kristin Cashore, The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson, and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.

When Princess Wilhelmina was a child, the Indigo Kingdom invaded her homeland. Ten years later, Wil and the other noble children who escaped are ready to fight back and reclaim Wil’s throne. To do so, Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate the Indigo Kingdom palace with hopes of gathering information that will help them succeed.

But Wil has a secret—one that could change everything. Although magic has been illegal for a century, she knows her ability could help her save her kingdom. But magic creates wraith, and the deadly stuff is moving closer and destroying the land.

And if the vigilante Black Knife catches her using magic, she may disappear like all the others....

About this title

Review:

Hidden identities, allusions to environmental concerns, a clever heroine with a worthy potential love interest, and some monster-mashing fight scenes elevate this romantic series opener. A cliff-hanger ending will have many readers exclaiming aloud their impatience at having to wait for the sequel. (Booklist)

Fans of Katniss and the Sisters of St. Mortain from Robin LaFevers’s “His Fair Assassin” series and other strong, vengeful female heroines will root for Wil. (School Library Journal)

Meadows delivers a powerful coming-of-age story. (Publishers Weekly)

Solid worldbuilding, interesting characters and just enough romance make this an enjoyable read. (Kirkus Reviews)

Meadows deftly juggles a multitude of plot points here, managing to link each element to Wil’s growth as a character. A cliffhanger ending puts a beloved character’s life in peril, ensuring both a sequel and readers’ clamoring for it. (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books)

One of the most compelling fantasies I’ve ever read. Fans of strong heroines, secret identities, and terrifyingly dangerous magic should put Jodi Meadows at the top of their ‘to read’ lists. (C.J. Redwine, author of the Defiance trilogy)

THE ORPHAN QUEEN casts its spell from the first page. Exquisite, captivating and romantic —Jodi Meadows’s world forbids magic, but THE ORPHAN QUEEN is brimming with it. I loved this book! (Danielle Paige, New York Times bestselling author of Dorothy Must Die)

From the Back Cover:

Wilhelmina has a hundred identities.

She is a princess. When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom's capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne.

She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace, and Melanie's behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable, Wil can't trust anyone.

She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina's magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil's magic, she will vanish like all the others.

Jodi Meadows introduces a vivid new fantasy full of intrigue, romance, dangerous magic, and one girl's battle to reclaim her place in the world.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0062317385
• ISBN 13: 9780062317384
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 400