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This is the first instalment in the Twin Crowns series.

Wren resides with the witches, in hiding from the crown and his soldiers, who would kill her people and abolish their practises. Rose lives inside the palace walls, believing herself in training to one day wear this crown but, in reality, as a pawn unwittingly involved in a game she didn't know she was playing.

The two do not cross paths but, instead, exchange them. The decision is made as the alternative, for Wren, is death but, for Rose, this results in her having to face that every facet of the life she has lived is based upon lies. Will she acknowledge the truth and the power within herself? Or will she return to the comfort she has been raised in, cushioned upon the backs of the oppressed?

I loved exploring the magic of this world. It was slow to reveal itself but it aided in my bonding with Rose's character, as both she and the reader often learned the truth in tandem. Wren was an individual immediately loveable for her feisty nature and fierce spirit, whereas Rose felt like a far tamer version and I needed this understanding in order for my love to grow as naturally as it did for the other perspective also presented.

Once this was established I could focus on the mechanics of the world. A political focus was presented with the magical one throughout and I loved garnering an understanding for the kingdom through the eyes of both those in power and those they feared and sought the demise of the most. It became a bleak and bloody read as it progressed due to this.

Romance flourished as blood bloomed. The couples I thought were obviously constructed ones, from the first moment they interacted, and whilst I did root for all I also found that my interests lay more in other areas. This did not impact my overall enjoyment and does have me yearning to return to all characters in the sequel, very soon.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the authors, Katherine Webber and Catherine Doyle, and the publisher, Electric Monkey, for this opportunity.