Queen Move

I absolutely respect Ms. Ryan as a storyteller, but couldn’t finish this book due to the typecasting of the Asian character and culture. I really appreciate the effort to tell multicultural stories, but when it leads to misrepresentation it can do more harm than good.

Some errors I caught: 1) The “Vietnamese” character is named “Aiko,” a combination of letters doesn’t even exist in the Vietnamese language, a name that’s more Japanese than Vietnamese; 2) She who wears a kimono–a garment of Japanese origin; 3) A Vietnamese speaker would never answer the phone saying “xin chao co.” I stopped reading at that point because the stereotypes and errors were incredibly frustrating, but what happens next…does the free-spirited Buddhist morph into a villainous dragon lady?

There is so much potential here to tell an authentic, inclusive story–and maybe that happened elsewhere in this book–but it’s too bad Asians were stereotyped and misrepresented, especially in this day and age where we need thoughtful and well-researched narratives to help bridge divides.

Kennedy Ryan brings us a strong heroine and a love for the ages. A childhood friends to lovers romance with all the drama and a whole heap of soul searing love that will keep you captivated until the very last page.

We met Kimba in All The King’s Men Duet and I could not wait for her story. She is a self-assured, strong independent woman that makes no apologies for her fierce pursuit of her dreams. I absolutely envied her drive and dedication. Her dreams did not come without sacrifice, however she wanted it all and was not going to settle for less.

Ezra was her best friend. They literally knew each other since they were in diapers. Best friends bonded through life experience, mutual respect and a love that would transcend time and distance. He was a good, hard working man. A great father, dedicated to both his work and his son.
They fell in love as kids and at thirteen their friendship became more. However, life took an unexpected turn and Ezra’s family packs up and leaves abruptly and she never sees him again. Heart-wrenching, yet what was torn apart was meant to be together.

Years later they cross paths and now it is their time to grab their future together. Their connection is other-worldly, their love never waned. The pull between them cannot be denied, but just when happily ever after is within their reach, the past and the present tears them apart. Kimba and Ezra have their own challenges to work through, so their love will be tested.

I am a big fan of childhood friends to lovers romance. This one stole my heart, tore it up and ravaged it a bit. I can always count on this author to bring me on an emotional journey with a poignant story, wonderful characters and relevant social issues. This heroine was beautiful, successful, strong and a total bada$$. She went after whatever she wanted, took a step back when she knew it was the right thing to do, sacrificed for the greater good and was an amazing woman. Kennedy never fails to give us heroines that can stand on their own, but also a man that gives her what she needs and will stand by her side and cheer her on. A story so beautifully written, with words that are stamped on my heart. Loved it!

Overall Grade: More than 5 . One of the top reads of 2020.

Remarkably, but not surprisingly, Kennedy Ryan has, once again, woven a romantic tapestry of ideas that challenge our thinking about identity, inclusion and diversity, and womanhood in her newest book, Queen Move. Sometimes, unbeknownst to the reader, opening and reading a Kennedy Ryan book is a step in activism. Her heroines father raises his children with the ideology that big moves make big waves. When you take one step into a Ryan romance, you are choosing to align yourself with the possibility of making big waves. Each Ryan story is intentional and grounded in hours and hours of her research about societal issues, challenging us to expand our knowledge and our thinking. As Kimba, her heroine, suggests simply being myself is an act of resistance. Likewise, simply inhaling the words of a Ryan romance is also a call to change.

To begin, the absolute power of this story is Ryans heroine, Kimba. She is the quintessential Kennedy Ryan heroine. At the very least, you should read Queen Move as it exemplifies the power of her heroines through one of her most impressive ones, Kimba. One of my favorite parts of reading certain authors is their surety in developing their voice and their brand. I dont even know if brand is the right word, but their voice and style have evolved into creating archetypes specific to their brand of romance. And Kennedy Ryans heroines are an archetype. In the world of romance, they are a necessary character type. In brief, a Ryan heroine is always intelligent first, beautiful second. They are not perfect; their power comes in embracing their weakness and finding strength in the hero to support that weakness. Notice I didnt say clarify it or correct it or complete it. Her heroines weaknesses are acknowledged and accepted by her heroes. Even more, Ryan oftentimes monopolizes on it and turns it into power. In Queen Move, this looks like Kimbas stutter. I remember reading Ryans All the Kings Men duet and telling myself that Kimbas words of wisdom for Lennix were always profound, insightful. As you read Queen Move, this is even more clear. Interestingly enough, Ryan gives her the weakness of a stutter. So, in the Ryan universe, the weakness of a character is the power of the greatest moments of her story. The stutterer is the most eloquent when its needed. You see this same thing happen over and over again with any of her heroines. She empowers their weakness. And in my most inarticulate of ways, thats pretty da$n impressive.

Through Kimba, Ryan introduces us to the bits of her messages in Queen Move: the struggle of being a woman and the expectations for us to oftentimes sacrifice parts of ourselves to follow a dream. In Queen Move, infertility becomes a front and center message, along with the juggling of identities that women so often engage in. As Kimba moves from political strategist to daughter to sister to lover to woman, Ryan calls for us to recognize that feat. It becomes a reminder that the expectations for women feel sometimes more profound, and we sometimes sacrifice aspects of those identities as we inhabit the others. And that sacrifice oftentimes feels like a lack. Kimba encounters this feeling over and over again in this story that when one of the biggest moments comes in the book, Ryan has constructed this profound moment of emotion. It rolls over you tying your heart to her story. I would like to say that this is accidental or momentary or specific to this book, but its part and parcel for Ryans heroines. Her ability to craft of heroines is one of the many impressive tools in her writing toolbox.

Along with the Ryan heroine comes the Ryan hero. Now, there is a bit more diversity of this archetype. Quite often, they are incredibly alpha, always $exually adept meeting the deepest needs of their heroine, and intelligent (oh and dont forget, handsome and virile). This intelligence isnt only in terms of thinking; so often, they have an emotional intelligence that girds their maturity. They might make a rash decision (we see you Maxim), but they learn quickly from their mistakes and work diligently to rectify the situation. Like her heroine, these seem to be the innate qualities to her heroes. However, there are some differences in terms of traditional expressions of masculinity. With Ezra Stern, Ryan is playing with this idea. Ezra is a special brand of hero. Yes, he is traditionally masculine. Yet, Ryan molds him with soft edges. Fatherhood is a primary identity for him, and he wears it well. He offers us a complex mix of fathering with tenderness, insight, and awareness. He makes comments about guiding Noah to speak out his emotions. Ezra is the 21st-century father. He wants his children to express themselves and bring more into the world than take from it. As such, his children are aware and mature. Its all of these traits that make it easy for you to fall in love with Ezra Stern. Add to that a willingness to be careful with his words, using them sparingly so that they are weighted. Kimbas trust is easy with Ezra because his words are the commerce of his integrity and love.

Additionally, through Ryans creation of Ezra, one of her other messages finds its home: the idea of identity and diversity. This is one of the biggest messages of the story, and (not to undermine Kimbas travails) its most profound. We live in a culturally, racially, $exually diverse society oftentimes at odds with each other. There are more and more instances of insensitivities to peoples differences, and an almost disinterest by certain segments of our society to be open and inclusive. Ryans solution, as outlined in Queen Move, is embracing it. Fall into each other; try new foods, new cultures. Be open; communicate. Recognize it. Know it. Read about it. Talk about it. Quite literally in this book, marry it and bring it all together. Ryan gives us her truth in the end when she says [a] cacophony that from the outside looking in probably seems discordant and sounds like a mass of noise. But to us it makes sense, all the notes fitting together. Harmony where there would be chaos. The tastes, the sounds, the stories, gathered from distant lands, borne by our blood, blended in our bonds. Through Ryans hero, Ezra, we are treated to the gravity of this message beyond her typical heroic archetype, and it should challenge us all to be better, to think better, and to do better.

Queen Move is a story of soul mates, a standard of Kennedy Ryan romance. Ezra and Kimba are Lennix and Maxim or Grip and Bristol or any of the couples of the Hoops series. They are fated. As such their journey is never easy, and thats the masochistic fun in reading Ryans romance. One minute, you find yourself falling over yourself at Ryans powerful exemplifications of Ezra and Kimbas love for each other, and the next minute, you find yourself crying at lifes disruptions to their journey. Its this evil rollercoaster ride that a Ryan Reader embraces. You throw your hands up and live for the valleys and the highs because the story feels lived in for you. Their chemistry, their $exual attraction, their almost feral, base pairing adds more height and depth to their journey. Queen Move is just as fiery as her other books. Thats the magic of her pairings, and one of the many reasons we buy books like Queen Move.

When it comes to Kennedy Ryans style, there are few who touch her, in my opinion. There is a consciousness in detail after detail of her storytelling. The eloquence, the lilt, the rhythm of her words push you further and deeper into her story. Its the cadence of her romance. The words equal the kisses and the emotions and the passion of her story. She knows how to build chemistry through pacing and her ability to create pictures, and it grounds you to her romance. Every word is intentional, and if youre like me, you end her book with too many highlights in a variety of colors. For me, Kennedy Ryans voice slays me every single time, and Queen Move manifests this as all of her other books do. As I was reading this book, I wanted to shout to the heavens my adoration for Ryan because her prose flows through me like some type of life force. When I read and review books, there are very few times when the words for my review begin to come to me as Im reading the story. My next comment is not hyperbole: Ryans style inspires the words of my reviews that they spring from my mind onto any scrap of paper or Google Doc that I can find while Im reading her book. Her words quite simply inspire me and make me cry at their beauty.

When you choose to read Queen Move or any of Kennedy Ryans books, you are taking action: an act of resistance. What is involved in that act? Acknowledging that romance can be more than $ex or love or happy endings. Instead, romance books such as Queen Move can challenge our thinking and push us to be more, think better, and embrace change. Without any doubt, Queen Move is a big move sure to make big waves in a world of happily-ever-afters.

Queen Move is a gorgeous second chance love story with heart, soul, and power all encased in a gentle flowing, hypnotic romance that totally captured my heart. The story unfolds layers of carefully crafted lyrical words with substance and a swoon worthy story narrative that breathes life into characters to admire and love.

Kennedy Ryan is adept at producing strong, empowered heroines with grit, fight, strength, power, and determination and Kimba, the heroine at the heart of this love story, ticks all of the aforementioned character traits in a big way and more. Principled, loyal, driven, ambitious, and loving. She is beautiful both inside and out and is matched perfectly by Ezra. Gorgeous EZRA….. #sigh: the strong, silent type. The type of man who will come and put his arms around you and tell you everything is going to be okay. The type of man who will give you room to breathe and celebrate your achievements. I absolutely fell in love with him and was totally rooting for Kimba and Ezra as a couple. Their story is not straightforward; their road has twists and turns and is messy but the author effortlessly unpicks all the real-life issues with ease creating a rich and passionate world inhabited by extremely well-developed protagonists whom I wholeheartedly believed in. In addition, the wider cast of credible and engaging characters add breadth and depth to the narrative enhancing the story arc and the depiction of the main characters.

As soon as I read the prologue, I knew that, Queen Move, would be special simply because of the second chance love aspect and the visceral connection I felt between the main protagonists. Honestly, it offers the reader beauty in abundance. It is the epitome of a second chance love story. I was hooked on their story and loved every single moment. Inspirational in so many ways; I always learn something from a Kennedy Ryan novel and I always feel better for having read her words. I always feel like I am reading about real people. They become three dimensional, alive on the page and that is an incredible talent to have. Kimba and Ezra are amazing and their story is one you will want to experience.

Always working hard in the name of her business ,Kimba has to return to her home town because of her beloved fathers death . While at the funeral she comes face to face with her first and only love Ezra Stern . The both families became firm friends from when Ezra and his family moved in to the house opposite one another . The friendship ended though several years later because of an incident that no one would talk about . The next time Kimba and Ezra saw one another was at Kimbas fathers funeral and its obvious the spark between them is still there . This is a beautiful love story and like the last two preceding books it doesnt shy away from difficult subject matters , it takes your emotions on one fantastic roller coaster ride . With a lot of secrets unearthed and twists in the story you begin to wonder weather this pair will get their HEA they so deserve . All in all its a fantastic story that will grip you until the fitting ending, it gives you a little extra by giving you an extended epilogue to down load which is always good

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