Four Dead Queens felt so unique to me! I have been reading fantasy for a while now, and I find that coming across books that really surprise me, and that really really stand out, is very rare. Well, Four Dead Queens was that for me. When I first heard about it, I thought that this would be a typical high fantasy book about four queens who were dead. I was intrigued, but I wasn’t ready to fight an army or orcs in order to get his book in my hands and start reading it.

Luckily for me, Four Dead Queens is the Indigo Staff Pick for this month (in the teen category), and I received a finished copy. The cover of the book is what finally pulled me in, and I’m so glad that I decided to sit down and read the very first page so that I would see whether this book was for me or not.

I think that it’s very difficult to blend genres, and it’s even more difficult to do it right. Like I said, before reading this book, I thought that it would just be high fantasy. However, it turns out that Four Dead Queens is actually a seamless blend of a murder mystery, high fantasy, and science fiction! I liked the world right away, and how unique it felt for me. I also liked that we get to see things from the perspective of the main character, Keralie, and from the perspective of the queens.

The mystery was great in this book! And there were so many twists and turns that I was kept guessing until the end (which was awesome)! I loved Four Dead Queens and am kind of sad now that it’s a standalone. I’m greatly looking forward to what Astrid Scholte will publish next (whether it’s set in the nation of Quadara or not … even though I’m hoping for more Quadara)!