Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions of my review in any way.

Synopsis (From Goodreads):
When sixteen-year-old Sylvie’s brother takes over management of their family’s vast estates, Sylvie feels powerless to stop his abuse of the local commoners. Her dearest friend asks her to run away to the woods with him, and soon a host of other villagers join them. Together, they form their own community and fight to right the wrongs perpetrated by the king and his noblemen.

Review:
When I first picked up The Forest Queen, by Betsy Cornwall, I didn't know what to expect.  Would this be a story of female empowerment?  An adventure story?  Would there be intrigue and romance?  The answer is YES to all of it.  I found this book to be fun, and moving.  Once I started it, I could not put it down.

                            
via GIPHY
Setting:
As with most stories with "Queen" in the title, this book takes place in an unnamed medieval country with plenty of lords and ladies, castles, and forests.  What made this setting unique was that there were also people of color mixed in.  There has been a controversy in the book world about diversity in books such as these.  Some people say, "Well, there weren't people of color in Europe in the Middle Ages".  Others correctly point out that in a fictional novel you can make your characters any color you want!  I am happy to report that the author chose the latter view.  In this story, it's the people with darker skin who are the "noble" families.  But there has been so much inter-mingling between groups that most people have traits of many cultures.  I loved that.

Characters:
I really enjoyed how all the characters changed over the course of this book.  Sylvie starts the story as a somewhat naive, privileged young woman.  She does know that others have a much harder time in life, but she hasn't seen it firsthand.  The nobles take almost everything through taxes, leaving peasants to nearly starve.  When she is confronted with this reality, Sylvie begins to see everything differently.

There are many other memorable characters such as Little Jane, Bird, Mae Tuck, and the troubadour Alana Dean.  All have experience with the unjust treatment of the nobles towards peasants.  Little Jane, in particular, haunts me.  She is pregnant (from rape), and goes from a frightened, hopeless girl, to a warm, confident mother.  Her healing was heartening to see.

Story:
It doesn't mention it in the synopsis, but this story is loosely based on Robin Hood.  This may seem silly, at first.  But the author uses this story to show a world where people who are oppressed finally fight back to gain freedom.

There was plenty of suspense as Sylvie runs away from her comfortable life as a noble and into the forest.  Will she be caught by her lecherous brother, Sheriff John?  As more and more people join them, I was worried for everyone's safety!

Later, as Sylvie starts to "take from the rich and give to the poor', there's also the constant threat of discovery and imprisonment.   I like that while Sylvie is doing this for honorable reasons, she also acknowledges the lines she is crossing (and that she gets a thrill from stealing).

Romance:
I enjoyed the tension and possible romance between Sylvie and Bird.  Childhood friends, these two must set aside questions of attraction in order to survive out in the woods.  They are too busy finding enough to eat to worry about romance.  I like that later, as they settle in, they are reluctant to be a couple as they don't want to ruin their friendship.

There is also some fun, same-sex romance for other characters!  I love that in this universe women and men find their own way to happiness without judgement.

Rape is a theme in this book.  While there are no actual descriptions of the act itself, this may be upsetting to some readers.

Rating: 




Release Date:   August 7th, 2018

Author:  Betsy Cornwall

Publisher:  Clarion Books

Genre:  YA Historical fiction

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  An adventurous, retelling of Robin Hood with very strong females characters.  Highly entertaining.