Thorn Queen (Dark Swan #2) by Richelle Mead

Goodreads Summary:

Eugenie Markham is a shaman for hire, paid to bind and banish creatures from the Otherworld. But after her last battle, she's also become queen of the Thorn Land. It's hardly an envious life, not with her kingdom in tatters, her love life in chaos, and Eugenie eager to avoid the prophecy about her firstborn destroying mankind. And now young girls are disappearing from the Otherworld, and no one--except Eugenie--seems willing to find out why.

Eugenie has spilled plenty of fey blood in her time, but this enemy is shrewd, subtle, and nursing a very personal grudge. And the men in her life aren't making things any easier. Her boyfriend Kiyo is preoccupied with his pregnant ex, and sexy fey king Dorian always poses a dangerous distraction. With or without their help, Eugenie must venture deep into the Otherworld and trust in an unpredictable power she can barely control. Reluctant queen or not, Eugenie has sworn to do her duty--even if it means facing the darkest--and deadliest--side of her nature..

My Review:

The Thorn Queen is the 2nd novel in the Dark Swan series. At the end of Storm Born, Eugenie killed the Alder king and claimed his land. During this the land was transformed into a desert called the Thorn Land.

I really enjoyed this book. I like Eugenie a lot. She's torn between her human heritage and her gentry one. She keeps going back and forth between Dorian and Kiyo. I wish she would make up her mind.

I really dislike Kiyo. He wants her to be human. He wants to change her. I think she'd be better off without him. He also has all ulterior motives we're not quite sure what they are. I really want to know more about his relationship with the Willow queen. His actions at the end of the book showed me where his true loyalties are.

I like Dorian. Yes he always has ulterior motives but if she would just accept that I think she would find that he is much better for her. He doesn't demand that she be only gentry or only human but is willing to accept her. However he endeared himself to me forever with his actions at the end of the book.

Eugenie didn't want to end up being a queen in the other world but during the book she comes to realize that she needs to get involved with the Thorn land and not just leave it to somebody else to run. When she realizes that people are going hungry and thirsty because of the transformation of the land to desert she tries to help them. When she discovers that girls have gone missing she works hard to figure out why. I like that she does will learn and grow during this book. Some of the things she went through were absolutely horrible.

A couple things that I do want to mention:

1. Why anybody in their right mind would want to transform a beautiful green land into the Sonoran Desert in the middle of summer is beyond me. The Sonoran Desert in the middle of January is beautiful. However 110+ degree temperatures gets old quick. Also traveling on horses in the desert when it's very hot like that can be very dangerous and potentially deadly.

2. In Arizona people do not call soda pop unless they were originally from the Midwest. We call it soda.