Review by Booklist Review
Johansen has a cake and she wants to eat it, too. The second book of her debut Tearling series continues to slowly weave the high-fantasy epic of the Tear people, now led by Queen Kelsea in their defense against an evil empire, with the dystopian world of New Canaan, seen through the eyes of homemaker Lily as she maneuvers her way within the near future's militaristic patriarchy. But the question of whether these two extremely disparate threads can work together isn't quite answered yet in this entry, as it teases at answers to come in the finale without fully tipping its hand to let us know what is going on. For now, the stories work admirably well on their own as gritty, gruesome, and enthrallingly magical fantasy or as disturbing and condemning speculative science fiction, as the case may be. Johansen knows how to funnel all her character development and world building into long stretches of truly gripping scenes. That in itself inspires confidence that this dual-genre story thread will culminate in a spectacular payoff before this series ends. High-demand Backstory: The stunning response to The Queen of the Tearling (2014) will bring those fans and many new ones into the public library.--Francis, Chris Copyright 2015 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
After the events of 2014's The Queen of the Tearling, Kelsea Glynn is still settling into her role as the ruler of the titular land, which feels more like a fantasy realm than a distant planet populated by the descendants of people who fled Earth in search of a better life. Kelsea must juggle politics, war, and her own growing magical abilities as she faces an unstoppable opponent, the malevolent Red Queen. She is also having visions of the past, in which a young woman named Lily Mayhew gets caught up in William Tear's exodus from 21st-century America to a new world. As Lily struggles to free herself from an abusive relationship, Kelsea finds the key to dealing with the Red Queen. Johansen's vision of a dystopian near-future America is chilling and sadly plausible, but Kelsea's far-future world remains vague and ill-defined, and the magic is always precisely as powerful and versatile as the plot demands. While many questions are answered, many more arise, leading to a cliffhanger ending. Readers enticed by strong female characters who seize control of their own destiny will forgive the story's flaws. Agent: Dorian Karchmar, William Morris Endeavor. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
In this novel that picks up where Johansen's debut, Queen of the Tearling, left off, things are not looking good for Kelsea or her realm, as the armies of the Queen of Mortmense amass on her borders. But then this seemingly standard epic fantasy has an interesting twist. Kelsea, through the power of the sapphires she inherited with the crown, begins to connect to the life of a woman living in a modern, brutal, near-future New England. She sees Lily Mayhew suffer the abuse of her husband and watches as Lily learns of a resistance group that wants to find a better future, one that just might be in Kelsea's own Tearling. -VERDICT A bold storytelling choice makes this so much more fascinating than just a saga of warring kingdoms. Both Kelsea's struggles in the Tear to protect her people and Lily's narrative are completely gripping, and the anticipation of a revelation of how these two women are linked will keep readers turning the pages. It's satisfying while leaving readers desperate for the next volume. [See Prepub Alert, 11/25/14.] © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by School Library Journal Review
This sequel to The Queen of the Tearling (2014) continues Kelsea's story and provides the history that created Tear. At the border, Mort soldiers are restlessly awaiting orders to move forward into Tear territory. The ragtag Tear army is outnumbered and definitely under-armed. The Red Queen and her army want nothing more than to reach Tear, demolish the city, kill the new Tear Queen Kelsea, and plunder all. Kelsea desires to bring freedom to Tear. Her first act as queen was to stop the slave shipments into Mort. While this brought her the loyalty and admiration of her people, it increased the danger from the more powerful Mort, and now Tear is facing the consequences of that action with the coming invasion. The protagonist has much to learn, and in order to defeat the Red Queen, she must understand her own power, which comes from a past that began many centuries before. While the sapphires she wears on a chain around her throat link Kelsea with Lily-an important player in the Crossing, which created the Tear civilization-they are also the keys linking her to a growing awareness of who she is and where her destiny lies. As the Mort army moves forward, Kelsea prepares to parlay what she has learned to save Tear's future. But deals she made with shadow men, actions taken by others, and the Red Queen herself may change the outcome of Kelsea's hopes. VERDICT Teens need to have read the first volume in order to understand and appreciate this sequel; both books should be at hand for fantasy fans.-Connie Williams, Petaluma High School, CA © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
There's a tear in the Tearling, and Tears are falling. Seriously. As Johansen (The Queen of the Tearling, 2014) opens the latest installment in her sword-and-sorcery series, Tear troops stationed on the borders of the kingdom find themselves battling an invasion by the Mortyou know, the bad guys across the line in the Mortmesne. It's a good thing Col. Hall is on the job, a fellow fate has put in just the right place at the right time: "Fortune had taken Hall away from Idyllwild," Johansen intones, "not good fortune, but the backhanded sort that gave with one hand while it stabbed with the other." Many stabbings, catapult launches, and other gruesome maneuvers later, the Mort are repelled. (It helps that, in a Tolkienian move, the hawks, real hawks, are on the side of the doves, metaphorical ones.) But the Mort'll be back, and an ugly picture will get even uglier. Meanwhile, the queen, our ever resourceful Kelsea, is getting prettier. At least after a fashion: "She wasn't beautiful, Kelsea thought, not by any stretch. But she was no longer plain either. She looked like a woman someone might actually remember." Whether Meryl Streep or Merlin, Kelsea rises to the occasion, despite all the obstacles that the Mortsand Johansen, for that matterthrow in her path. But is she the True Queen? Ah, that's for events to decide, nicely unfolded in this longbut not too longyarn. Johansen is a skillful maker of fantasy worlds, weaving medieval and modern themes together with the comprehensiveness of a George R.R. Martin, though without his penchant for overly long episodes of violence that would make Sam Peckinpah blush. She does both battle scenes and quiet conversations equally well, though, with all the requisite plotting, regal self-doubt, and good-vs.-evil grappling required of the genre. A satisfying, well-crafted sequel that will leave readers looking forward to what might happen next to "that fantastic vision inside Tear's jewel" and those who treasure it. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
