The Shadowed Throne

A Midlife Fairy Tale

De: Kristen Painter

Narrado por: B.J. Harrison

With the Cloud Kingdom’s allegiance secured, Queen Sparrow “Ro” turns her sights toward the neph—an elusive, shadow-dwelling people whose ancient power could shift the balance of the war. Mysterious, secretive, and feared even among the Grym, the neph are not easily won over. But Ro is willing to risk everything for peace—even if it means stepping into the darkness alone.

Across the Whistling Sea, Queen Anyka is preparing for something far more brutal. Determined to seize the Radiant kingdom, she’s begun strengthening a monstrous alliance of her own—this time with the mountain trolls, whose brute strength and thirst for destruction make them terrifying allies. With every new army under her command, Anyka’s desire for domination grows stronger.

As tensions rise and kingdoms teeter on the edge of war, Ro must navigate treacherous politics, unravel the neph’s motives, and confront her own inner doubts. The dangerous magic of Lady Cynzia’s grimoire still whispers to Ro in secret, tempting her to fight fire with fire.

Peace may still be possible—but only if Ro can survive long enough to claim it.

©2025 Kristen Painter (P)2025 Kristen Painter

Bridge Well Done!

Thank you for continuing the story. Well done and awaiting the next book. You are appreciated!

Surprises ahead!

This installment did not disappoint in the midlife fairy tale series. A few surprises in this one!! We are heading towards final conflict you feel it in your bones and the characters are like family at this point. I can't wait for more!!!!

A little help from friends...

Welcome to the newest chapter in the life of Queen Sparrow "Ro" Meadowcroft of Summerton and the other inhabitants of the land of Fae. Here we are reminded that life is always better when we have friends in our corner. Kristen Painter with the assistance of BJ Harrison narrating, brings this world into focus with rich detail and wonderful characters for us to enjoy. Love this series

Queen Ro’s Fight for Peace in the Shadows

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ 4.5 Stars
Kristen Painter delivers another intense and immersive ride with The Shadowed Throne. The story picks up with Queen Ro forging uneasy alliances while Anyka builds terrifying new ones of her own, and the tension between peace and total war has never felt sharper.
The worldbuilding here is rich—shadow-dwelling neph, monstrous trolls, dangerous grimoires—but it never feels overwhelming. Ro’s inner battles are just as gripping as the larger political struggles, and the stakes only keep climbing.
As an audiobook, this is a fantastic listen. The narration captures the danger, the emotion, and the intrigue beautifully, pulling you straight into Painter’s world. The pacing keeps you hooked, with quieter reflective moments balanced against the looming threat of war.
Why not a full 5 stars? A few secondary characters could’ve had more development, and there were spots where transitions between perspectives felt a little abrupt. Still, that’s nitpicking—overall, this was a thrilling, atmospheric listen that left me ready for the next book.
Verdict: If you love epic fantasy with strong heroines, high stakes, and a touch of shadowy magic, The Shadowed Throne is absolutely worth your Audible credit.

Fantastic!!!

Holy moly, the ending has left me reeling!!!
The stakes and the danger are becoming higher and higher for Queen Sparrow. With the Grimm about to start war, she is looking for all the allies that she can!
The audio narration is fantastic and a perfect fit for this story! And I still can't wrap my head around that ending! I CANNOT wait for the next book!!!

The Shadowed Throne

The Shadowed Throne by Kristen Painter
Midland Fairytale series #4. Romantasy, paranormal romance. Best read in series order.
Queen Sparrow successfully brought the sun to the Malveaux Kingdom, but Queen Anyka still believes the Radiant Kingdom is rightfully hers to rule. Ro has a dream that tells her she needs an alliance with the neph, a shadow-dwelling people. Anyka forms a tighter alliance with the trolls. She’s going to end that woman and both kingdoms will be hers. The Darkness lives on.

Ankya is not happy with the sunshine in her kingdom. She’s driven by a darkness that she can’t control.
Ro wants peace but she’s not willing to passively sit back.
Dark vs. light. Does anyone win?

🎧 I alternated between an ebook and audiobook. The narration is performed by B.J. Harrison who performs the full series and the majority of this authors stories. He does a fantastic job with different voices for major and some secondary characters. Emotions come through clearly and deliberately. The performance is riveting.
I do listen at 1.5 and slightly higher so I can read along with a text version at the same time.

I liked how Ro continues to want the best for everyone but at the same time realizing she can’t just sit and wait. I also feel bad for Anyka. Yes, she’s power hungry but how much is the darkness?
The continued stories of the fairytale Midvale. Part fantasy, part romance, part family drama and politics.

I received a copy of this from the author. Opinions are my own. I also purchased a copy to keep.

So many possibilities

This was wonderful. wasn't my favorite of the series but still great. I wasn't crazy about the ending, in a way. I do like how the author left so many possibilities for the next book but, as far as Beatrice, she seemed out of character in the book. of course, we haven't seen a lot of her so it's probably me. Well, I can't say more without giving too much away. Anika ,(spelling?) was something else and true go nature. I love a good bad guy in books. I liked how a lot of previous characters came to play.

The narration was superb. Always the best narration for these books.

Absolutely love this series!

This series just gets better and better. I absolutely love it. This one was especially good, in fact it was so good that I listened to it twice before I ever decided to leave a review and I may listen to it again.
I highly recommend this series! I absolutely love the author, and I love the narrator.