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loveat1stwrite's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
This Woven Kingdom contains beautiful prose and descriptions, but unfortunately very little plot. It comes with the territory of an almost 500-page book that spans about 3 days of in-book time. 60% of This Woven Kingdom is the main characters’ inner monologue, 20% is setting/food/clothing description, 10% is verbal dialogue, and the last 10% is where the actual occurring events happen. I prefer to be shown actions to back up character motivations and thoughts, but this book heavily relies upon the reader being told what to think. The whole experience made it hard to connect with, or even like, either of the two main protagonists.
I was hoping for a lush Persian mythology read, but This Woven Kingdom is essentially a Cinderella retelling with cosmetic Middle Eastern inspirations regarding food and clothing. A dual-POV read, we alternate between Alizeh a long-lost princess of the Jinn who is currently hiding as a lowly servant, and Kamran the heir to the human empire of Ardunia. Their lots in life place them at odds, for Alizeh was prophesized to end the reign of the current king of Ardunia, Kamran’s grandfather. Of course, Alizeh and Kamran happen to cross paths on the street and become an insta-love forbidden romance. As I mentioned, this book is about 10% plot. Over the course of about 3 days, Kamran and Alizeh think about the other non-stop and their inner thoughts take up the majority of the writing of this book. All of this builds up to a ball, (Yay, an event is finally occurring!) so you have that to look forward to in the last 100 pages or so.
If you come into this with the right mindset, I think it can certainly be an enjoyable read, but it was very different than how it was marketed and you have to be ready for it to be a slow-paced read, very trope-heavy and descriptor-heavy.
Moderate: Physical abuse, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
thatmillennialreader's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Gore, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
joni_smits's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Cannibalism and War
robyn_vennard's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Violence, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Physical abuse, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Minor: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, and Fatphobia
readingelli's review against another edition
4.5
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Servitudechaptersofamylea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
3.5/4 ⭐️
I did think this book had a bit of a slow start, felt jumbled with the info dump that comes with a new fantasy book so I was a little worried I wasn’t going to like it after really looking forward to reading it for so long. THAT being said, after the first 100 pages I really got into it. I loved the world building and the drip feeding reveals of the characters and plot twists. And I did have an AHHHHHHH moment when finishing the book as early events made sense when you get the information. I do hope to see more of Alizeh’s personality in the next book… Plus dragons. It has dragons.
TWs: death of parents, suicide attempt on the page, assault, graphic depiction of injury
Graphic: Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent
mynotsolittlelibrary's review
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Xenophobia, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
kommatator's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
knunderb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Physical abuse and Classism
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Xenophobia, Death of parent, Murder, and War
beautifulpaxielreads's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexism, and Blood
Minor: Genocide, Cultural appropriation, and War