ARC Review: Queen of Zazzau – J.S. Emuakpor

Amina is heir apparent to the throne of Zazzau and must prove herself worthy of the crown. As foreign invaders close in on them, she is the only thing standing between her people and their destruction. Caught in a web of prophecies and intrigue, she must defend Zazzau, but cannot do so if she wants to prevent the future that was foretold. She did not seek war; it found her. Unwilling to be the plaything of gods or men and determined to take control of her own destiny, she tracks down the god of war himself. But has her destiny already been written? Can she choose her own fate? And can she protect her kingdom, no matter what price she must ultimately pay? Because, gods always want something in return.

I requested Queen of Zazzau from Netgalley because the cover was so striking and I was fascinated by the premise.

It’s #ownvoices.

Let me start with something positive. I didn’t know that the story was based on a historical queen and this story led me to reading up as much as I could about her. It was a fascinating task!

However, the book itself. I’m so disappointed in it. I’m really very disappointed. Especially with the portrayal of sex. Giving a blowjob and having sex in a non-conventional position are considered awful. The main character actually says giving a blowjob is a job for prostitutes.

Also, the main character states that she thinks that she has less freedom than her slaves. If this was true, why doesn’t she give up her crown and become a slave?

I know some readers may say that this is historically accurate, however, I’d expect it to be called out in the story or that she learns that these opinions are not factual. I basically continued reading because of this. But alas, no, there wasn’t anything mentioning that these opinions were wrong.

This book was awful. I did not like it at all. It actually led to a really awful book slump.

Trigger warnings: attempted rape, sexual assault, classism.