The Queen’s Dog (Empire At Twilight Book 3) by N. L. Holmes – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.

The Queen’s Dog by N.L. Holmes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It is the year 1203BCE on the northern coast of Syria, in the vassal state of Ugarit where the life of a royal is one of luxury, but also statecraft, they have to show their loyalty to their Great King and his family, where arranged marriages are expected and wives must be faithful to their husbands, no matter how they are treated, or pushed to the side, all that matters is that they can produce an heir who can live long enough to learn and take over the throne, but the wives also have to be clever, cunning and wise so that they can be the regent in their husbands place when they are on diplomatic trips. Another common occurrence is that slavery was widespread and the more servants you had, the more highly ranked you would be, but there was also a lower class of slave, the eunuch, they were considered lesser and not to be trusted, however, one eunuch slave made his way up the ranks with hard work and diligence to become the Chamberlain of the Queen, he isn’t the most popular slave, but he is soft hearted and lonely, so when the Queen shows him some affection, he is ecstatic, believing that she loves him as he does her, but that is not to be, despite his most intense wishes for it.

This infraction of the kingdoms laws could cost him more than just his job and he is terrified that someone will find out what he has done, so when he is summoned, he is terrified that he has been found out, however, this is not the case, he is charged to spy on the Queen and note her comings and goings to see whether she is being the faithful wife she should be, he reluctantly agrees, but remains anxious as to whether someone saw the affection he was shown. Meanwhile, there are suspicions everywhere he goes and he has no idea what to do until he realises his mistake and decides to betray his love and report on her illicit and disloyal activities, however, his conscience will not let him rest, especially when the Queen is forced to divorce the King, but that is not the end of the scandal, she is then sentenced to death.

What will her slave do now that she is gone and will he ever be able to forgive himself for his part in it all and decides to come clean, but what will the repercussions of his actions and decisions be? This is another historical fantasy where intrigue lies around every corner and lies and deceit colour the air, creating a dangerous web which will catch you up in its snare until the end appears.

Reviewed by @roxsannel

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