Hey, everyone! Welcome to my stop on the blog tour of Queen of Tomorrow by Sherry D. Ficklin hosted by YA Bound Book Tours! Check out below my review of this wonderful YA historical fiction and if you want to follow the tour, you can do so here. Thanks so much for stopping by!
*****
Title: Queen of Tomorrow
Author: Sherry D. Ficklin
Series: Stolen Empire #2
Series: Stolen Empire #2
Genre: YA Historical Fiction
Publisher: Clean Teen Publishing
Published: July 14th, 2015
Page Count: 280 Pages
Page Count: 280 Pages
Format: eARC
Source: From tour host in exchange for my honest opinion
Book Summary:
Sophie—now Catherine, Grand Duchess of Russia—had a tough first year at Imperial Court. Married at sixteen to Grand Duke Peter, heir to the throne, and settled in their own palace, things are finally looking up. As a new day dawns, she thinks only of securing her future, and the future of their country, during one of the greatest political upheavals of her time. Fighting desperately against forces trying to depose the Empress Elizabeth and put the young Prince Ivan on her throne, Sophie soon finds herself in the middle of a war brewing between her beloved Prussia, and her new empire. But even as she navigates the fragile political landscape, she quickly realizes that she has only begun to discover the tangled web of deceit and infidelity woven over the lavish court of Oranienbaum Palace.When a strange and delicate alliance forms between the young couple, she glimpses a future of happiness, only to see it lost in a moment at the hands of those who still seek to end her life—and prevent her reign. Out of favor with the empress and running out of options, Sophie will have to sacrifice her own innocence on the altar of Russia if she is to save the nation, and herself. To survive, she will have to do the unthinkable, betray those closest to her and become something greater and more dangerous than she ever imagined she could be… a queen.
*The Reader’s Review*
My rating: 4/5 stars
I never thought Queen of Tomorrow, and also it’s predecessor Queen of Someday, would be so brutal to my heart. It’s been a couple of days since I read them back-to-back and I still can’t quite recover. I’m stunned, repulsed, heart-broken and in awe at the same time. Both books were incredible reads, but Queen of Tomorrow was what sealed the deal for me to truly fall in love with the series.
Queen of Tomorrow continues the tale of young future queen of Russia, Sophie-now known as Catherine-as she carries on her new married life with Prince Peter. There’s no love or intimacy between them, product of Peter’s wrath against her because of her secret relationship with one of his best friends. But although Sophie is alone at court, constantly suffering at the hands of her husband and harsh rule of the Empress, she strikes back with all she’s got in this war of beauty, power and betrayal.
Sophie (she will always be Sophie to me) is such a strong character. It amazes me how, despite every awful thing or difficult situation that she goes through, she manages to rise out of it stronger and wiser than ever. I’m not saying she’s a perfect person. She has many faults and sins, but in comparison to everyone else at court, I think she has the best heart of all.
But the best thing about this book is, hands down, how complicated life at court is. It’s not that I love it for how awesome it is (because it’s not) but one can certainly appreciate all the trickery, backstabbing and complicated plotting. It constantly made my head swim and cringe non-stop. It also made me realize that, if I had lived in the time of Catherine the Great, I would NEVER have survived this kind of life. It’s just too much and not worth it.
The only thing I’m not sure about this book was the romance in it. I really did not feel anything, I didn’t fall in love or root for someone, but maybe it’s because I’m still mourning for the loss of her first love. Also, Queen of Tomorrow realistically protrays how poorly women were treated back in the days, abuse and raping, so that may have been another reason why it didn’t feel like a romantic read.
Overall, Queen of Tomorrow is a read worthy of your time if you enjoy reading historical fiction. I’m looking forward to read the final book and find out if Sophie will be having a sort of HEA or not. I hope she does, but something tells me I shouldn’t hold my breath.
*****
About the Author
Sherry D. Ficklin is a full time writer from Colorado where she lives with her husband, four kids, two dogs, and a fluctuating number of chickens and house guests. A former military brat, she loves to travel and meet new people. She can often be found browsing her local bookstore with a large white hot chocolate in one hand and a towering stack of books in the other. That is, unless she’s on deadline at which time she, like the Loch Ness monster, is only seen in blurry photographs.
She is the author of several YA novels and in her spare time she co-hosts Curvy Writer Radio.
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I really love this trilogy!! It totally took me by surprise last year when I picked up Queen of Someday but SO good! Sophie is definitely the best part about the story~ What she goes through is so heartbreaking but I seriously can't love her enough for how strong and resilient she is 😀
She's really a great character and the storyline amazing, even better to what I imagined it would be. When I saw you had given the first book such a good rating I just knew I had to give these books a try. 😀
I was just saying the other day how I need to start this one. I actually almost did but wound up choosing something else. One of these days soon. It sounds like just the kind of book I'm looking for!
Oh, I think this will be to your liking! There's nothing predictable about it and characters are complex. 😉
Oh, I think this will be to your liking! There's nothing predictable about it and characters are complex. 😉
Oh, I think this will be to your liking! There's nothing predictable about it and characters are complex. 😉