Book Review: The Queen's of all the Earth

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 310 KB
• Publisher: Bancroft Press; 1 edition (30 Sep 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
• Language English
• ASIN: B005RFEDSS

As her freshman classmates move into dorms at Cornell University, Olivia Somerset suffers a nervous breakdown. When months of coaxing and analyzing fail to rouse Olivia from her stupor, big sister Miranda decides the sisters should fly off to Barcelona for some “vacation therapy.”

After a mistake at their Barcelona hostel puts the Somersets in a large co-ed dorm room, Olivia and Miranda are saved by kindly Mr. Brown and his son Greg, who happily volunteer to surrender their private room. But while Olivia feels an instant connection with brooding Greg Brown, Miranda sides with fellow guest and cocky American travel writer Lenny, who believes 

the Browns are just plain weird, and must be avoided at all costs.

In the midst of an urbane priest-in-training from Peru and hordes of Scottish soccer fans, from the shops of La Rambla to the waters of the Mediterranean to the soaring heights of Montjuic, Miranda works to protect her still-fragile sister while Olivia struggles to understand her burgeoning adulthood, her feelings for Greg, and the fear that makes the next step in her life so impossible to take. 

The Queen’s of all the Earth is very much a coming-of-age story, but instead of being in early teens, it is in the form of a college freshman, Olivia Somerset.

Olivia suffers a breakdown and defers her freshman year of college. Her sister, Miranda decides the best therapy for Olivia is a vacation to Barcelona. With the sultry summer heat and gothic architecture as a backdrop, Olivia struggles to figure out who she really is, how she really feels, and how to go about taking that next step to move her life forward.

At the hostel the Somerset sisters are mistakenly placed in a co-ed dorm, rather than the private room they requested. Enter the Brown’s. Mr Brown gallantly gives up the private room he shares with his son, Greg, to the sisters. Miranda is wary of the Browns, but Olivia has an all-together different reaction to Greg. There is an instant spark which only further confuses her.

The Queen’s of all the Earth was an easy read to glide through and the reader will feel the warm Spanish sun kiss their skin as they soak in the words. Olivia’s story is very interesting, and I’m sure would be valuable to anyone struggling with a major change in their life.

A perfect read to warm you up in these chilly winter nights.