Kendare Blake’s Three Dark Crowns is a dark and unique fantasy series. It follows three sisters who must fight to the death to become the Queen. Arsinoe is a naturalist, Mirabella is an elemental and Katharine is a poisoner.
The three queens are triplets who got divided as children. They were raised by different people based on their abilities. When they reach the age of sixteen, they have to come battle against each other, in an attempt to win the crown and thus become the Queen. This cycle will repeat itself when the empress has a set of triplets. Katharine and Arsinoe aren’t very good at wielding their powers. This makes the people believe Mirabella will become the Queen. The problem is that Mirabella doesn’t want to harm her sisters. Joseph is supposed to marry Jules but instead sleeps with Mirabella. Jules loses control of the bear that is supposed to be Arsinoe’s familiar. This happens during the ceremony where the girls display their abilities, and the animal attacks Mirabella. Plot twists get revealed, and not everything is as it seems.
This mesmerizing and dreadful feminist fairy tale series consists of four books. They follow the sisters through their fights, exiles, and rebellions. It was released in 2016 and has been a big success with young adult fans. It is the best fit for fantasy fans aged 13 and up.
Three Dark Crowns Books in order
Three Dark Crowns
Similar authors
- The Ash Princess Trilogy by Laura Sebastian follows Theo. She has been imprisoned in her own palace for ten years where she endured the Kaiser’s and his court’s abuse. She is powerless in her new world, surviving only by concealing the girl she once was.
- Caraval by Stephanie Garber follows the story of two sisters. When they flee their relentless father, they enter the risky intrigue of a legendary game.
See also: Dragonlance Chronicles Books in Order.
Most recommended books
- One Dark Throne (Three Dark Crowns, #2) (4.06 Goodreads score)
- Queens of Fennbirn (Three Dark Crowns, #0.1-0.2) (4.05 Goodreads score)
- Two Dark Reigns (Three Dark Crowns, #3) (3.99 Goodreads score)
- The Oracle Queen (Three Dark Crowns #0.1) (3.95 Goodreads score)
- Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns, #4) (3.93 Goodreads score)
Movies based on the series
Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps is producing a feature movie based on Kendare Blake’s bestselling novel “Three Dark Crowns.” Fox purchased the four-volume series’ feature rights.
Latest releases
The last book in the series, published in 2019, was Five Dark Fates.
Book summaries
Three Dark Crowns (2016)
Fans of acclaimed author Kendare Blake’s Anna Dressed in Blood will devour Three Dark Crowns, the first book in a dark and inventive fantasy series about three sisters who must fight to the death to become queen. In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born: three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions. But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or loses… it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins. The last queen standing gets the crown.
One Dark Throne (2017)
The battle for the Crown has begun, but which of the three sisters will prevail? With the unforgettable events of the Quickening behind them and the Ascension Year underway, all bets are off. Katharine, once the weak and feeble sister, is stronger than ever before. Arsinoe, after discovering the truth about her powers, must figure out how to make her secret talent work in her favor without anyone finding out. And Mirabella once thought to be the strongest sister of all and the certain Queen Crowned, faces attacks like never before—ones that put those around her in danger she can’t seem to prevent.
Two Dark Reigns (2018)
Queen Katharine has waited her entire life to wear the crown. But now that she finally has it, the murmurs of dissent grow louder by the day. There’s also the alarming issue of whether or not her sisters are actually dead—or if they’re waiting in the wings to usurp the throne. Mirabella and Arsinoe are alive, but in hiding on the mainland and dealing with a nightmare of their own: being visited repeatedly by a specter they think might be the fabled Blue Queen. Though she says nothing, her rotting, bony finger pointing out to sea is clear enough: return to Fennbirn. Jules, too, is in a strange place—in disguise. And her only confidants, a war-gifted girl named Emilia and her oracle friend Mathilde, are urging her to take on a role she can’t imagine filling: a legion-cursed queen who will lead a rebel army to Katharine’s doorstep. This is an uprising that the mysterious Blue Queen may have more to do with than anyone could have guessed—or expected.
Five Dark Fates (2019)
After the grim confrontation with Queen Katharine, the rebellion lies in tatters. Jules’s legion curse has been unbound, and it is up to Arsinoe to find a cure, even as the responsibility of stopping the ravaging mist lies heavy on her shoulders, and her shoulders alone. Mirabella has disappeared. Katharine’s reign remains intact—for now. When Mirabella arrives, seemingly under a banner of truce, Katharine begins to yearn for the closeness that Mirabella and Arsinoe share. But as the two circles each other, the dead queens hiss caution—Mirabella is not to be trusted. In this conclusion to the Three Dark Crowns series, three sisters will rise to fight as the secrets of Fennbirn’s history are laid bare. Allegiances will shift. Bonds will be tested. But the fate of the island lies in the hands of its queens. It always has.
