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Series Review: The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan

Greetings and welcome to Reviews That Burn: Series Reviews, part of Books That Burn. Series Reviews discuss at least three books in a series and cover the overarching themes and development of the story across several books. This review is for The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan. Full Audio Here   The Governess Affair Miss Serena Barton intends to hold the petty, selfish duke who had her sacked responsible for his crimes. But the man who handles all the duke's dirty business has been ordered to get rid of her by fair means or foul. She’ll have to prove more than his match… The Duchess War The last time Minerva Lane was the center of attention, it ended badly—so badly that she changed her name to escape her scandalous past. So when a handsome duke comes to town, the last thing she wants is his attention. But that is precisely what she gets... A Kiss for Midwinter Miss Lydia Charingford does her best to forget the dark secret that nearly ruined her life, hiding it beneath her smi...

The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones

Once upon a time, the kingdoms of Wales were rife with magic and conflict, and eighteen-year-old Mererid “Mer” is well-acquainted with both. She is the last living water diviner and has spent years running from the prince who bound her into his service. Under the prince’s orders, she located the wells of his enemies, and he poisoned them without her knowledge, causing hundreds of deaths. After discovering what he had done, Mer went to great lengths to disappear from his reach. Then Mer’s old handler returns with a proposition: use her powers to bring down the very prince that abused them both.

The best way to do that is to destroy the magical well that keeps the prince’s lands safe. With a motley crew of allies, including a fae-cursed young man, the lady of thieves, and a corgi that may or may not be a spy, Mer may finally be able to steal precious freedom and peace for herself. After all, a person with a knife is one thing…but a person with a cause can topple kingdoms.

The Drowned Woods — set in the same world as The Bone Houses but with a whole new, unforgettable cast of characters — is part heist novel, part dark fairy tale.

TITLE: The Drowned Woods
AUTHOR: Emily Lloyd-Jones with Moira Quirk (narrator)
PUBLISHER: Hachette Audio
YEAR: 2022
LENGTH: 352 pages (10 hours 15 minutes)
AGE: Young Adult
GENRE: Fantasy
RECOMMENDED: N/A

Queer Rep Summary: Lesbian/Sapphic Main Character(s), Bi/Pan Main Character(s).

DNF 6 hours 2 minutes in (59%).

This feels similar to THE BONE HOUSES in many of the ways that made it just okay for me. In particular I find myself disliking the animal companion, this time it’s a Corgi. I want the guy to be broody instead of just quiet, I have very little sense of what anyone thinks, and I’m just not having a good time, so I’m stopping.

No Graphic/Explicit CWs.

Moderate CW for blood, violence, injury detail, torture, murder, death.

Minor CW for fire/fire injury, vomit, animal cruelty, animal death, child death, parental death.

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A golden tree with exposed roots on the edge of a hill at night


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