Twin Crowns

This one took a little while for me to get into. I’m not sure if it was the writing style or just the stress of life, but it took me way longer than it should have.

Twin Crowns by Katherine Webber and Catherine Doyle was a good read with some minor flaws.

Blurb:

Wren Greenrock has always known that one day she would steal her sister’s place in the palace. Trained from birth to return to the place of her parents’ murder and usurp the only survivor, she will do anything to rise to power and protect the community of witches she loves. Or she would, if only a certain palace guard wasn’t quite so distractingly attractive, and if her reckless magic didn’t have a habit of causing trouble…

Princess Rose Valhart knows that with power comes responsibility. Marriage into a brutal kingdom awaits, and she will not let a small matter like waking up in the middle of the desert in the company of an extremely impertinent (and handsome) kidnapper get in the way of her royal duty. But life outside the palace walls is wilder and more beautiful than she ever imagined, and the witches she has long feared might turn out to be the family she never knew she was missing.

Two sisters separated at birth and raised into entirely different worlds are about to get to know each other’s lives a whole lot better. But as coronation day looms closer and they each strive to claim their birthright, the sinister Kingsbreath, Willem Rathborne, becomes increasingly determined that neither will succeed. Who will ultimately rise to power and wear the crown?

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Right from the start, you get the assumption that Rose is a spoiled, air headed princess and that Wren is the brave, unfaltering heroine. The book is written in a way that makes you want to dislike Rose and love Wren.

Rose’s chapters don’t seem to be as… deep as Wren’s, pointing you in the direct that she isn’t seen as as important or relevant. The hidden details in her story would prove otherwise.

While, yes, at first glance she is an annoying princess who seems to not have much going on, you see all the ways she has been manipulated and controlled her entire life, not to mention the physical abuse she had endured by the hand of someone who claimed to love her. Then to be kidnapped and thrown to the Witches who literally try to kill her at their first meeting… Rose is a survivor.

Rose, in my opinion, in probably the strongest character in the book. Her character development was tremendous. She went from being this weak and meek doormat of a princess, to a queen with a backbone.

Rose’s somewhat forbidden romance with the desert witch bandit, Shen, is great. While it developed out of forced proximity… It’s the my favorite romance in the book. Shen was a great character with too little page time. He brings her out of her shell and offers levity to the darker aspects of the book.

Wren is just as great as Rose. She was hidden away from birth and raised by the witches to take revenge on the man responsible for killing her people and her parents. Always knowing love and warmth.

Wren is an amazingly strong and brave character, if not a bit overconfident. She risks her life, sneaking into enemy territory and taking over the life & duties of the princess.

Her romance plot is a little forced, not sure if it is totally needed, but there were some cute, swoon worthy moments. The ending scene with Tor was very sweet. I’m glad he stood up for Wren, and I do hope to see him more in the next book.

I feel it took Wren way too long to comprehend that her magic was stronger with Rose by her side.

It’s pretty apparent in the writing that it is written by two authors. I didnt mind this so much, as it let me experience two completely different personalities for Rose & Wren. However, the chapters are not on par with one another, which caused me some confusion, as I wasnt sure what exactly the time frame was. Day, week, months? It was pretty wishy-washy.

Twin Crowns is a pretty slow paced book, with little action. When there is action, it’s over pretty quickly with lot of blood.

The main plot and character development often times took a backseat to the romance. I felt like this made the story clunky and hard to follow at times.

Inside of the plot or maybe to assist it, are little bits of witch folklore, written specifically for this book. I found these really magical and entertaining. I would love to read a prequel or even just a book full of these short stories.

The twist with the Twins Curse was pretty good though. I didn’t necessarily see it coming. It will be interesting to see how it plays out in the next book. I am a little upset about Prince Ansel, who was not a bad guy. I felt like his death was unfair, but I do understand why it was needed. It was the pivotal moment for the plot.

I love a good trope or two, but I felt that Twin Crows was a bit excessive. Maybe it had to be that way due to the dual POV. My favorite was probably the Twins Separated At Birth, as you don’t see that one very often.

I rated this book 3.5 stars. It’s a good read. If you’re looking for a decent, slow paced YA romance, this is a book for you.