The Hidden Queen

The Rodasia Chronicles, Book 1

By: Janelle Garrett

Narrated by: Jessica Mathison

Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

Secrets and betrayal. Fear and courage. Can one woman keep her nation from destruction? For fans of Francine Rivers, Lynn Austin, and Tamera Alexander.

Gwyneth Blacksman was content to live comfortably on her farm, but a long-held secret changed her life forever. Thrust into a role she didn't want or ask for, Gwen must face the facts. Will she step up and be who her people need her to be? Or will she wilt under the pressure of politics, schemes, and a looming war?

The emperor of Devin offers her a way to avoid the bloodshed that is sure to come, but his offer is disingenuous at best, a lie at worst. With her countrymen's lives on the line, Gwen must make a hard choice. Give in to the emperor's demand or stand against him and take Rodasia into a war they can't win?

As the problems keep mounting, she turns to the only two people who have stayed by her side through it all - Charles, the conflicted soldier who stirs up all sorts of feelings she would rather ignore, and Jakob, the excommunicated priest who challenges her assumptions about God.

Step into the Rodasia Chronicles where plots, betrayal, love, and faith are only the beginning for Gwen as she struggles to become the person she was meant to be.

©2018 Janelle Garrett (P)2019 Janelle Garrett

Excellent story

This story is fantastic!! The characters are alive and perfect in this incredible story world. The narrator took a bit to get used too, and some of her character voices were better than others, but overall, she did well.

Fairly easy listen.

Somewhat difficult to keep up with the time jumps if you aren’t paying close attention. Easy to tell the author is faith-based although she still keeps the story interesting while not overwhelming the listener with “preaching”. All in all a decent book. I will listen to Part 2 to see where the story takes us.

Good Read...

I am fairly new to fantasy fiction and this author. I liked the book and enjoyed the characters. Some more than others. I thought it was great how the author went back and forth between the past and the present to tell Gwen's story. The author incorporated the use of politics, drama, action and a little romance very well. It held my attention and kept me wondering what would happen next. The only thing that I didn't like was the profanity. I l read & listen to Christian fiction to get away from that. I was taken aback at the two swear words that were used. Overall, the author is very talented and I am looking forward to enjoying more of her books. I plan to look into the rest of the series.

An intriguing listen with great characters!

The politics and world-building in this book were rich and detailed, and Gwyneth was a great character to root for as she tried to find her identity as a farm girl turned queen. The dual timeline could get a little confusing at times, but also drew some interesting parallels between different times in Gwyneth's life.

The narrator did well differentiating between characters (though a few of the voices were a little harder to listen to) and brought the story to life in an engaging way.

Overall, a very enjoyable listen!

*I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this audiobook.*

I don’t like leaving stars less than three

I don’t like leaving stars less than three. I got bored the story never picked up and the narrator didn’t help to bring it alive or maybe it was just me. I will try to get back into another but for now I will give this review a 3 star.

Was hoping for better

I was very excited to get to listen to The Hidden Queen because I love Christian fiction, historical fiction, and fantasy. Getting all three in one audiobook was very exciting! As I listened, though, several things disappointed me. The biggest disappointment was that God’s name is taken in vain several times throughout the book. This was definitely not something I was expecting from a Christian book. I also found several characters and situations to be somewhat predictable, even cliché, and lacking in development. The last major disappointment was the narration. While the narrator did use different voices for the characters, and some of them were very good, most of the time I felt that the narration took away from the story rather than enhanced it. Sometimes it seemed as if the narrator was ignoring the punctuation in the story completely, leaving me very confused, or leaving so little pause between chapters or points of view that it was difficult to tell what was happening in the story. Sometimes her expression while reading seemed to contradict the words.
That being said, I did like the book more as I got further along! It was especially intriguing when I realized that the setting was almost a medieval version of the early church. Jacob was one of my favorite characters and I loved his interactions with Gwyn!
Overall, I’m glad I finished the book, but I’m not sure whether I will continue the series.

Wonderful narrator!

Wow this book really hit home for me. It struck a cord in my heart. I needed to hear this tale and I literally could not put my headphones down. I can't wait to dive into the next book.

A beautiful story

I really enjoyed listening to this book, and completely fell in love with the characters, the setting, the plot, and all the small creative details. The writing flowed beautifully and seemed to keep pace throughout the entire story, never feeling old or dull. I thought the narration was spot on, and was impressed with Mathison's ability to give each character a unique personality and enhance the experience.

Strong Women Prevai

I really enjoy historical fiction. This as fun to listen to during my quarantine I will be on the lookout for more from this author.

Intriguing Christian Fantasy

The Hidden Queen by Janelle Garrett is about a woman named Gwyneth Blacksman, Queen of Rodasia. Gwyneth's story is told with and intertwining storyline, showing the present challenges she faces as the queen of a country threatened with war and the queen's past of how she went from a simple farm girl to the queen.

There is mystery and intrigue, as the queen tries to figure out how to stop the neighboring countries from invading. One of her ideas is to marry for an alliance - but is that morally right? And could she marry someone even though her heart leans a different direction?

I really enjoyed how the author intertwined the past and present. Janelle Garrett did a good job of putting the pieces from the past into the "present" timeline in a way that sheds light on what's going on but doesn't reveal too much too soon.

One of the other threads happening in this story had to do with an allegorical Jesus figure and the early church. One of Gwyn's friends is a believer in this faith, and he tells her more and more about God as the story progresses, though she doesn't understand him or his beliefs. Meanwhile, the religious authorities in her high counsel urge her to punish this believer and his followers. What will this queen do when her love for a person and her dawning understanding of his beliefs are pitted against and her unstable hold on her country?

I read this book in audio format, and I really enjoyed the narrator. Jessica Mathison did a good job with the different characters' voices and with the expressions.

I wish I could give you more detail on all that goes on, but I can't spoil it. But one thing's for sure, I definitely want to know what will happen next, and I am excited for the next book.

I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook from the author. I was not obligated or given compensation to review it, and what I have written is the truth.