Book Info:
Contest of Queens by Jordan H. Bartlett
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Publishing Date: January 18, 2022
Synopsis:
In a Queendom divided, can one girl unite the realms?
Jacs, an inventor’s apprentice from the Lower Realm, has only ever dreamed of the land among the clouds. That is until she finds a letter from Connor, an Upperite boy who sends a wooden boat into the abyss, hoping to learn more about the land below. Little does Jacs know, Connor is actually Prince Cornelius of the Queendom of Frea. With wooden boats and hot air balloons, the two begin a secret correspondence. But their friendship is impeded by a heavily-guarded bridge and an inescapable prejudice.
Their bond transcends distance and time, but when the royal family visits Jacs’ town of Bridgeport, the illusion of peace between the Realms dissolves, and the old feud is reignited.
Now, to save her people, Jacs must infiltrate the Upper Realm and earn her place to compete in the Contest of Queens. She must learn how to survive against the contests’ grueling tasks and within a political web she could not have imagined. In a story about friendship, love, bravery, and defying gravity, Jacs will strive to prove that a Queendom is strongest when united.
Book Links:
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/contest-of-queens-jordan-h-bartlett/1139896807?ean=9780744304985
Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Contest-Queens-Jordan-H-Bartlett/9780744304985?ref=grid-view&qid=1636650235719&sr=1-2
IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780744304985
About the Author:
Jordan H. Bartlett is a New Zealand-born, Canadian Citizen with a love for children’s literature and female empowerment. She grew up reading books about boys for boys and found it hard to find a strong female heroine she could relate to. Bartlett wrote Contest of Queens to give young readers that character she so longed for in a world where gender norms are reversed. Bartlett currently resides in Banff, Alberta where she works as a Speech Language Pathologist and is a certified yoga instructor.
Author Links:
Website: https://jordanhbartlett.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jordanhbartlett/
Tour Schedule:
First off I would like to say a big thank you to TBR Tours & Beyond and the publisher for allowing me to read this amazing book which reminded me of eating the best chocolate cake in the world ever and that feeling you get after eating it. Well I got the same feelings while reading this wonderful YA.
Jordan did an amazing job building a world where women ruled and could be whatever they wanted to be. Here we have a Queendom which is split into upper and lower realms. As you continue on through the story you see very strong prejudice against the lower realm and wonder why this is so. I normally am not a lover of politics but in the contest of queens I literally gobbled it up and had no idea how this storyline would pan out. Now we need to talk about the actual contest to find the next queen. I found this highly entertaining and the descriptions of each task were so good I thought I was taking part.
For me the star of the show was Jacs. Here we have a very clever main character in not only in brain power but also to be socially aware of what her people need to survive but also knew what the whole Queendom needed. The ending well I was not expecting that especially the reveal. I can't wait to read the sequel to this and for all these reasons I am giving a 5 star rating. Now all I have to do get the wanting of cake out of my head.