Queen of Myth and Monsters

Queen of Myth and Monsters transports its readers back to Revekka, to the political intrigue of the Red Palace and the constant to and fro of Isolde and Adrian's relationship. Despite an unsatisfying end to the previous book, I picked this one up in the hopes that it would build on the more interesting parts of its predecessor. Unfortunately, the result, although not completely disappointing, is only slightly better.

Plot

Now the queen of Revekka, Isolde finds herself navigating the murky waters of vampire politics after the death of her father and the noblesse of the court. Now that the truth about Ravena is out, she puts all her efforts into finding answers about her past life as Yesenia and figuring out her enemy's next move. The witch coven takes greater precedence in this installment, as do Isolde's flashes of her past. I, for one, was pretty excited about the new direction this book was taking - paranormal stuff is my jam, and we do get to go deeper into Yesenia's life and everything that happened during Drago's reign, including how the Book of Dis actually came to be written.

I was angry because I had once been able to see the future, and now I could barely navigate the present without coming away bloody and broken and bruised.

On the other hand, the Blood Mist from the first book is still hanging around. Although I wasn't completely sold on how dangerous it was before, St. Clair does build on that plot thread this time, introducing a mysterious new character that causes a rift between Adrian and Isolde. What started out as an arranged marriage and a relationship purely built on lust fractures even further in this book - the two of them have such a fundamental difference in priorities that they just can't seem to get along.

While there are a couple new characters introduced, a majority of the story still follows Isolde and Adrian and their extremely toxic relationship - they fight, makeup, then have sex in what seems to be an unending cycle. This was something I hoped we would see less of this time around, but nope, not happening.

Some of the parts I quite enjoyed were Isolde's inner turmoil as she uncovers troubling secrets about Adrian's past, forcing her to confront the complexities of their relationship. Unraveling more mysteries about both their pasts leads to a series of some good twists, but a lot of it still feels rushed for one (pretty short) book with so many different plot threads.

Characters

Isolde

On a physical level, Isolde faces quite a few changes throughout the book - leveling up very quickly in terms of power. What bothers me more is that these changes didn't feel well utilized at all. She still keeps regarding herself as a great, ruthless ruler who is extremely protective of her people. But the truth is, almost all her actions still across as downright naive and selfish.

"I swore to protect my people," I said.

"Can you even call them yours?" he said.

Adrian

Adrian is a completely different person in this book. There are parts where he acts as if he does not have a wife at all, in shocking contrast to his normal behavior. I get that a couple of mistakes are easily forgivable, but every action he takes leads to a shouting match between him and Isolde, who (unfortunately) forgives him every time. Although some parts of it do make sense with the later events in the book, Adrian became an extremely unlikeable character in this installment - something I hope changes with the next one.

Worldbuilding

The world of Cordova has some interesting new additions this time around. However, it didn't feel like enough new material. Apart from a few new creatures, there wasn't much exposition on vampire customs and cultures in a book set entirely in a kingdom of vampires. It sucks, because I was really looking forward to those bits.

Writing Style

The writing remains accessible and clear, making this a short read that you can get through in the span of a few hours. Once again, a few odd and repetitive word choices make some parts a bit dull. I wish the prose was a little more creative, there's a lot you can do with vampires and magic and made-up creatures.

I still wish we had more chapters with Adrian's POV as compared to Isolde, who still remains insufferable as a character. Since a lot of the plot centers around the betrayal of someone close to Adrian (who he knew for much longer than Isolde), I wonder why Isolde still narrated those parts. It just didn't hit hard since she's barely known these characters for some months.

In Conclusion

Queen of Myth and Monsters builds on its predecessor but falls short of delivering a satisfying experience. While it definitely improves on the storytelling aspect, a lot of fundamental flaws still remain. The protagonists seem to get more and more unlikeable, and it is pretty hard to get invested in them. Although public opinion suggests otherwise, I must admit that I enjoyed this part slightly more than the previous one. It does make for an intriguing successor, but its lack of world-building and character development still remains its greatest downfall.