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Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

Young adult

Four Dead Queens

Debut

We love supporting debut authors. Congrats, Astrid Scholte, on your first book!

by Astrid Scholte

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Quick take

Following the brutal murder of four queens, an accomplished pickpocket attempts to track down the culprit.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, 400

    400+ pages

  • Illustrated icon, Buzzy

    Buzzy

  • Illustrated icon, Magical

    Magical

  • Illustrated icon, Murder

    Murder

Synopsis

Get in quick, get out quicker.

These are the words Keralie Corrington lives by as the preeminent dipper in the Concord, the central area uniting the four quadrants of Quadara. She steals under the guidance of her mentor Mackiel, who runs a black market selling their bounty to buyers desperate for what they can’t get in their own quarter. For in the nation of Quadara, each quarter is strictly divided from the other. Four queens rule together, one from each region:

Toria: the intellectual quarter that values education and ambition Ludia: the pleasure quarter that values celebration, passion, and entertainment Archia: the agricultural quarter that values simplicity and nature Eonia: the futurist quarter that values technology, stoicism and harmonious community

When Keralie intercepts a comm disk coming from the House of Concord, what seems like a standard job goes horribly wrong. Upon watching the comm disks, Keralie sees all four queens murdered in four brutal ways. Hoping that discovering the intended recipient will reveal the culprit – information that is bound to be valuable bartering material with the palace – Keralie teams up with Varin Bollt, the Eonist messenger she stole from, to complete Varin’s original job and see where it takes them.

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Check out a preview of Four Dead Queens.

Four Dead Queens

Chapter One

Keralie

The morning sun caught the palace’s golden dome, flooding the Concord with light. While everyone halted their business and glanced up—as though it were a sign from the four queen themselves—we perched overhead like sea vultures, ready to swoop in and pick them apart.

“Who shall we choose today?” Mackiel asked. He was leaning against a large screen atop a building that displayed the latest Queenly Reports. He looked like a charming, well-dressed young man from Toria. At least, that was what he looked like.

“Choices, choices,” I said with a grin.

He moved to drape his arm heavily around my shoulder. “Who do you feel like being today? A sweet young girl? A damsel in distress? A reluctant seductress?” He puckered his lips at me.

I laughed and pushed him away. “I’ll be whatever makes us the most money.” I usually picked my targets, but Mackiel had been in a good mood this morning, and I didn’t want to tip the boat. He submerged easily into darkness these days, and I’d have done anything to keep him in the light.

I shrugged. “You choose.”

He raised his dark eyebrows before tilting his bowler hat to further survey the crowd. The line of kohl around his lids made his deep-set blue eyes stand out all the more. Nothing escaped his scrutiny. A familiar smirk played at his lips.

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Why I love it

When it comes to books, there is nothing better than unexpected plot twists, good intentions gone wrong, and characters who are both flawed and charismatic. Throw in a petty thief, a nation divided by values, and queens who are hiding gossip-worthy secrets, and I’m hooked.

After a reckless mistake leaves her father fighting for his life, heartbroken Keralie turns to crime, serving as a master thief for a childhood friend. But when she’s ordered to steal a comm chip that happens to contain a plot to kill the nation’s four queens, Keralie finds herself at odds with her employer—and running for her life. Now Keralie, who’s always relied on her ability to lie to survive, must place her trust in the messenger she stole from in order to catch the culprit.

This book is an epic fantasy with elements of science fiction, but at its core it’s about seeking truth and questioning long-held rules and traditions. Even in a world like Quadara, divided by its differences and core beliefs, Keralie discovers that it is love and sacrifice that truly matter. I love getting lost in worlds that are nothing like real life—and if you do too, you’ll love this book about a magical nation and the four endangered rulers fighting to uphold the values of their people.

Member ratings (683)

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Young adult
View all
The Wild Huntress
Ruthless Vows
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow
Dragonfruit
The Thirteenth Child
The Reappearance of Rachel Price
Gwen & Art Are Not in Love
Check & Mate
Divine Rivals
Foul Lady Fortune
Anna K Away
I Must Betray You
A Wilderness of Stars
Warrior Girl Unearthed
Bloodmarked
Instructions for Dancing
The Boy in the Red Dress
Color Me In
Not So Pure and Simple
Throw Like a Girl
Frankly in Love
Wayward Son
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
Anna K
Patron Saints of Nothing
The Kingdom of Back
Yes No Maybe So
Permanent Record
Full Disclosure
Oasis
Where the World Ends
I Have No Secrets
Song of the Crimson Flower
When the Stars Lead to You
All the Bright Places
Saving Zoë
Symptoms of a Heartbreak
All of Us with Wings
The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World
Past Perfect Life
There's Something About Sweetie
Again, But Better
Sky Without Stars
How (Not) to Ask a Boy to Prom
Night Music
Shout
The Deceivers
Top Ten
A Million Junes
And We're Off
Salt to the Sea