The Queen’s Secret

Though married and queen of both Montrice and Renovia, Lilac wants to keep Cal, the queen’s assassin, as her little secret. Unfortunately, issues in Renovia take Cal away, even though there’s concern about a sinister force at work in the palace. A scribe has warned of a gray monk in the tower, known to belong to a group with ominous plans. When her mother is forced out of the Renovian palace due to a suspicious fire and ends up with Lilac in Montrice, Cal worries about a plot to get the royals together. As the deaths pile up, the people start turning against Lilac, calling her a witch, but there is something much darker overtaking the kingdom and time is running out.

Misunderstandings lead to questions for both Lilac and Cal about their relationship, and rather than approach each other and end the confusion, anger increases the gap between them, although they refuse to give up. Lilac has changed a lot from The Queen’s Assassin, but her take-charge attitude and refusal to fall to the patriarchy of the king’s council is part of what readers love about her strong character and grit. The ending to this duology comes too quickly but is satisfying nonetheless.