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lyonsdenprojects's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was unlike anything I had ever read before. It is dark, and beautiful, and power, and sad all at the same time. The world building of this Persian inspired fantasy is spectacular and the slow progression of the plot never left me bored only ever yearning for more. I can't WAIT for the sequel and look forward to more amazing things yet to come from this author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Trafficking, and Transphobia
Minor: Death of parent, Pedophilia, and Self harm
gigireadseverything's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
*I received this ARC from NetGalley*
Trigger warnings include, but certainly aren’t limited to, rape, child abuse, sexual slavery, trafficking, violence, murder, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, and drug use.
Trigger warnings include, but certainly aren’t limited to, rape, child abuse, sexual slavery, trafficking, violence, murder, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, and drug use.
The world created in this book is incredibly complex and richly drawn. Full points to the author for creating such a real world in a debut. However, it’s a world that is so unrelentingly dark and violent that it quickly becomes an overwhelming and depressing read.
I had to double check that this was actually classified as YA because the staggeringly dark themes and the slow development made me think this must be adult fantasy but it’s not. Personally, I would reclassify this as New Adult or Adult rather than YA.
The pain and violence that are ever present in this book are intentional on the author’s part. The book is dedicated to Rohingya Muslims and the author says in her acknowledgment that she wanted to draw attention to war crimes, trafficking, ethnic cleansing, etc. She succeeded in that regard.
When I finished this book, I was convinced I wasn’t going to read the sequel, despite finding it well written and giving it a 3.5 star rating, because of how emotionally draining it was to read. However, now that two weeks have passed (and I’ve recovered by reading a fluffy contemporary romance), I find myself deeply curious about where Roma’s journey will take her in the next book. Levi is significantly less interesting to me (the side characters connected to him even less so) but Roma’s story could continue in a myriad of ways and I find myself wanting to see what happens to her. I just hope we’re past the point where trauma after trauma after trauma is inflicted on her.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking, and Violence
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