If you’ve made it through The Widow Queen, you know Swietoslawa’s story is far from over—and The Last Crown proves just how deep the fog of fate, faith, and family loyalty can run. This sequel doesn’t just pick up where we left off; it expands the battlefield—politically, emotionally, and spiritually. With a moody cover that echoes the first book and a cast of characters growing by the chapter, The Last Crown is as intricate as it is evocative.

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The Dustjacket

Another beautiful, moody image of a ship with ores in the water sailing into a rust-colored fog. The typography is consistent with the previous novel in this lovely duology. The Last Crown featured a praise quote at the top rather than a tagline. I prefer the tagline from an aesthetic perspective, but this doesn’t detract from the visual appeal of the book cover.

Interior

The book’s interior is also consistent with the first book in the series, The Widow Queen. This makes the experience of finishing one book and jumping right into the next seamless. Ample maps, notes, and diagrams of dynasties help keep readers from getting too lost in this sea of names.

Did the design affect whether I bought the book?

Not this time. While it is a great cover that would have caught my eye, I intended to by this book from the moment I finished The Widow Queen and realized there would be a second book.

While Swietoslawa remains our main character, we also get to see a lot more of the story focusing on her brother, Boleslaw, and sister, Astrid. We are introduced to a lot more people. Seriously, it’s not easy to keep them all straight. There were areas within the text that I just skimmed right over blocks of names, thinking that if a person were really that important to the storyline, I would certainly hear about them again. Many of the character names are the same (named after an ancestor) or look/sound very similar. This makes the side characters blur together a bit. However, the central characters have excellent development. We see them face hardship after hardship and combat their sense of self, wants, and desires, weighing them against duty, honor, and expectation. They also battle greatly with faith. This is a time when the spread of Christianity was butting up against pagan beliefs, and the characters in The Last Crown are deeply embroiled in the conversion.

The writing style balanced historical context and human emotion well. Nothing felt overly dramatized; instead, there was this tug at the heartstrings when you saw the difficult situations that the characters found themselves in. Feelings were clear and resonated without seeming forced. The pace lagged in some areas, but picked up in others. Cherezinska does a phenomenal job of weaving in foreshadowing and symbolism organically.

While The Widow Queen screamed “power,” The Last Crown revolved around choices. What does a person give up to choose this other thing? How much of what we do is by choice? Do the actions and influences of others carry more weight than our desires? Do I choose myself, my family, my love, my faith, or my country? Why are none of these choices ever the same thing?

There were a couple of major plot twists. One I didn’t see coming, the other I picked up on some foreshadowing that let me guess (and hope) for the outcome. However, neither twist lead to where I imagined they would, so the joke’s on me!

I found some sections of the text to be slow and difficult to read. This is likely because I was much more interested in the people and their relationships than in the political meanderings and strategies of this place and time. The shortcoming is mostly my own. For a person who is interested in both relationships and politics, this is a very well-balanced novel.

Even though I found parts of The Last Crown to drag a bit, I think it was well worth the read. Having just finished the book, my heart feels heavy. These were not easy lives. I was surprised by the way that The Last Crown ended. I don’t know what I expected, but this wasn’t it. It was totally appropriate and well handled, but I wasn’t ready for it.

I would recommend The Last Crown to historical fiction readers who are interested in the spread of Christianity in Northern Europe in the 10th – 11th centuries, the late-stage Ottoman Empire, Vikings, Polish/Danish history, and powerful yet mostly forgotten women in history. This is not a light read. While sex is talked about and even described in some instances, it is not “spicy.”

Historical fiction readers, what do you love about the genre?
Do you have a favorite time period to read about?
What draws you to it?

May your life be as full as your bookshelf and as long as your TBR list.

Happy Reading!