The Foxglove King

by Hannah Whitten

3 out of 5

Synopsis

When Lore was thirteen, she escaped a cult in the catacombs beneath the city of Dellaire. And in the ten years since, she’s lived by one rule: don’t let them find you. Easier said than done, when her death magic ties her to the city.

Mortem, the magic born from death, is a high-priced and illicit commodity in Dellaire, and Lore’s job running poisons keeps her in food, shelter, and relative security. But when a run goes wrong and Lore’s power is revealed, she’s taken by the Presque Mort, a group of warrior-monks sanctioned to use Mortem working for the Sainted King. Lore fully expects a pyre, but King August has a different plan. Entire villages on the outskirts of the country have been dying overnight, seemingly at random. Lore can either use her magic to find out what’s happening and who in the King’s court is responsible, or die.

Lore is thrust into the Sainted King’s glittering court, where no one can be believed and even fewer can be trusted. Guarded by Gabriel, a duke-turned-monk, and continually running up against Bastian, August’s ne'er-do-well heir, Lore tangles in politics, religion, and forbidden romance as she attempts to navigate a debauched and opulent society.

But the life she left behind in the catacombs is catching up with her. And even as Lore makes her way through the Sainted court above, they might be drawing closer than she thinks.

Review

Lore is whatever she has to be, in order to survive. As the mortem-welding adoptive daughter of Dellaire's biggest poison-runners, she has to adapt. Infiltrating the royal court, and befriending/spying on the prince, is her most deadly role yet.

 I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This story follows Lore - a young woman who doesn't truly fit in anywhere, but manages to ingratiate herself with her marks, spying and reporting back to her adoptive parents.

Lore is different from those around her - she's the only woman who can sense and manipulate mortem. The only other people with that ability is the male Presque Mort, and only after they have a brush with death. Whereas for Lore, it has always been a part of her, and it's getting stronger.

I really liked the world-building in this book. I thought the fact that death magic is leaking from the body of the dead goddess was highly original, and fascinating. It had me hooked, trying to work out what was true, and what was myth.

I liked how Lore and the Sun Prince Bastian have that instant connection, and teasing out the truth.

I really liked Gabriel, the innocent monk who is her ally/jailer/love interest. It was interesting to see his beliefs challenged, and kept you guessing to the end where his loyalties lay.

The not so good...

There were a few little niggles that I had as the book went on that were just enough to stop me being fully immersed throughout.

The king hired Lore to help raise the dead, to uncover how whole villages were dying; but mainly to spy on his son and give him the ammunition to disown/kill him. It sometimes felt like a heavy-handed way of getting Lore where she needed to be, and allow her to ally with Bastian instead.

Yes, having read the whole plot, it makes more sense, but it's still not very elegant.

I found the second half of the book quite slow.

Some of it might have been a lack of agency from the main character. Lore never feels like she's leading anything, and is always following orders from others. Although, that could genuinely be part of her character. She's spent her whole life following her mothers' orders, never questioning, she never fights for what she wants.

I thought the ending was somewhat anti-climatic. 

It had the potential to be shocking, but it lost momentum, became very talky, and then it was over.

Overall, I enjoyed the world and the characters, and I'm keen to read the next book.

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