Long ago, Queen Mirantha vanished. King Karolje claimed it was an assassination by a neighboring king, but everyone knew it was a lie. He had Disappeared her himself.

But after finding the missing queen’s diary, Anza—impassioned by her father’s unjust execution and inspired by Mirantha’s words—joins the resistance group to overthrow the king. When an encounter with Prince Esvar thrusts her into a dangerous game of court politics, one misstep could lead to a fate worse than death.

Esvar is the second son to an evil king. Trapped under his thumb and desperate for a way out, a chance meeting with Anza gives him the opportunity to join the resistance. Together, they might have the leverage to move against the king—but if they fail, their deaths could mean a total loss of freedom for generations to follow.

Calling THE VANISHED QUEEN by Lisbeth Campbell a timely novel seems…woefully inadequate. Oof…this is a brilliant & beautifully written story of rebellion that, at times, felt so uncomfortably close to our current reality that I was SEETHING. A tyrannical ruler, layering lies upon lies, until you have an entire nation of people being gaslit by the one person who is supposed to have their best interest at heart.

Yeah, fuck.

Of the three main POVs in the book, I would definitely pick Anza as my favorite. After finding a journal belonging to the titular Vanished queen, Queen Mirantha, Anza is inspired to join a rebellion forming in her city. Anza’s father was a soldier in King Karolje’s army, unceremoniously executed for treason. Anza seeks not only justice for her father, but for the people in her city living under the thumb of a monstrously cruel king. She’s clever, brave, compassionate, and also lethal with a bow & arrow, should the need arise.

She finds an unlikely ally in Prince Esvar, the king’s youngest son. Neither Esvar nor his brother Tevin (next in line to the throne) hold any particular love or loyalty for their father, but overthrowing him is no simple matter.

The third POV belongs to Mirantha herself, as we get to read her journal entries as her life begins to spiral out of control prior to her disappearance.

This book is an absolutely perfect blend of anger and hope. Of feelings of helplessness leading to action. Of isolation leading to community. Oof…I just fucking loved this. There are certainly plenty of thrilling action scenes to be had here, and Campbell pulls those off quite effectively. But THE VANISHED QUEEN is a story that relies heavily on great character moments, poignant dialogue, and a metric shit-ton of tension and intrigue.

I’m not sure I am the best person to describe a particular style of prose, but there was something so striking to me about Lisbeth Campbell’s writing. She seems to find this really elegant balance between a straight forward style of prose, and some really gorgeous passages. This is really such a beautifully written fantasy novel.

I saw the author mention on Twitter the other day that this is a standalone novel, which had me feeling feelings. And not because it doesn’t succeed as a standalone (it absolutely does!), but more just because…shit, I was selfishly hoping for more?

There are some incredibly dark themes & moments in THE VANISHED QUEEN, ranging anywhere from gaslighting and emotional abuse, to mentions of rape, and suicidal ideation. None of these elements is gratuitous, but I feel it’s worth mentioning that there’s some thematically heavy stuff going on in this one.

But in the words of another badass rebel, Jyn Erso, rebellions are built on hope. And that’s what I found so much of in THE VANISHED QUEEN. Hope for a better future, and for a more honest, transparent government. A government that serves its people with humility, as opposed to ruling over them with fear.

THE VANISHED QUEEN is a stunning novel, one that I quickly fell for. The characters are all compelling & believable in their motivations. There’s romance, there’s spying & political fuckery, there’s a complex bisexual protagonist (Anza) in a queernorm fantasy world…this book is just plain incredible, and I’m really excited to see what’s next from Lisbeth Campbell!

Huge thanks to Saga Press for sending a copy my way!