Book Review :: The Traitor Queen by Danielle L. Jensen

The Traitor Queen by Danielle L. Jensen
ISBN: 0593975219
Series: The Bridge Kingdom, #2
on 1 September 2020
Genres: Fantasy
Goodreads

A queen now in exile as a traitor, Lara has watched Ithicana be conquered by her own father, helpless to do anything to stop the destruction. But when she learns her husband, Aren, has been captured in battle, Lara knows there is only one reason her father is keeping him alive: as bait for his traitorous daughter.

And it is bait she fully intends to take.

Risking her life to the Tempest Seas, Lara returns to Ithicana with a plan not only to free its king, but for liberating the Bridge Kingdom from her father's clutches using his own weapons: the sisters whose lives she spared. But not only is the palace inescapable, there are more players in the game than Lara ever realized, enemies and allies switching sides in the fight for crowns, kingdoms, and bridges. But her greatest adversary of all might be the very man she's trying to free—the husband she betrayed.

With everything she loves in jeopardy, Lara must decide who—and what—she is fighting for: her kingdom, her husband, or herself.

Last updated on 23 April 2025

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What is The Traitor Queen by Danielle L. Jensen about?

In The Traitor Queen by Danielle L. Jensen, the second book of the Bridge Kingdom series, Lara is in exile, seen as a traitor, and powerless as her father takes control of Ithicana. But when she learns that her husband, Aren, her husband, whom she betrayed in book one – has been captured, she knows her father is using him to draw her out.

But Lara has a plan to free Aren and take back the Bridge Kingdom. But she needs help. So she finds some of her sisters (of which there are many) and convinces them to fight back against their father. But the palace is locked down, and the game has more players than she ever expected.

When Lara and Aren eventually reunite, Aren is still furious and unforgiving, and the two have to work together to save Ithicana, take down Lara’s cruel father, and also sort out their crumbling relationship.

My thoughts on The Traitor Queen

I thoroughly enjoyed the first in this series, The Bridge Kingdom, so I was looking forward to picking The Traitor Queen and finding out what happens to Lara and Aren. And for the most part, this was another great story, or continuation of the story.

But there were definitely things in this book that were missing.

“Kings and queens make decisions, but it is the common folk who pay the price.”

The first one is a great combination of world-building, of characters, of plot and action, and romance … and this one, like many have said on Goodreads, too, was very plot and action heavy. Which is sometimes what you want, yes, but I did find myself thinking ‘oh great, another fight’ multiple times. And for someone who will skim read long battle scenes and just pick out the dialogue and if anyone dies along the way … this is a bummer.

Lara and Aren spend a lot of time apart in this slow-moving book, and when they do get together eventually, there isn’t as much fun banter as in the first one, and I feel like they lost a little of them in the story.

The end also seemed rushed to me? Maybe because it wasn’t as gripping as the first one, but the main points that were hit at the end of the book were sort of … ‘okay that happen?’ and didn’t really hit the way they possibly should have.

Having said that! I did still enjoy reading this one, and I might get to the next ones. There are more in this series, and the next two follow different characters whom we’ve already met, and I did like them in their short appearances in this book, so I’ll probably give them a go.

If you’ve read the first one in this series, then do pick up this one. Just know it’s a bit different in feel from The Bridge Kingdom.

Have you read The Traitor Queen? What did you think?