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shannnne_reads_words's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Sexual assault, Vomit, and Death of parent
beautifulpaxielreads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Maiya Ibrahim's Spice Road - the first in a trilogy - is a novel that for me, worked best in its last 200 pages or so.
I don't mean to say in this that the rest of it was bad, as it wasn't. Spice Road is a book that I am still trying to work out my feelings for. It took a long time for me to read it - over a month - and that may have had something to do with it.
I can appreciate Ibrahim's intent here, and for what I believe is a debut author, I think - objectively - that she has done some very accomplished work here. The worldbuilding and magic system was reasonably crafted and was well-communicated to the reader. The characters were well-drawn and developed, particularly Imani (our MC), Taha and Qayn. I puzzled over the motives of the latter two of these characters constantly, which I suspect was Ibrahim's intention. The action scenes were fast-paced and contrasted well with the quieter moments between.
Maybe the problem was despite the quality of the worldbuilding, fantasy elements, pacing and characters, I couldn't get into it enough, in a way that I'm really having trouble describing here. I did fly through the last 200 pages because it was compellingly written and really well-paced. But even then, I couldn't really warm up to it.
The ending of the book left me with enough potential to make me consider continuing the series when the next book is released, but I haven't decided yet.
Objectively, Spice Road is a good book. Emotionally, I'm not entirely sure.
I don't mean to say in this that the rest of it was bad, as it wasn't. Spice Road is a book that I am still trying to work out my feelings for. It took a long time for me to read it - over a month - and that may have had something to do with it.
I can appreciate Ibrahim's intent here, and for what I believe is a debut author, I think - objectively - that she has done some very accomplished work here. The worldbuilding and magic system was reasonably crafted and was well-communicated to the reader. The characters were well-drawn and developed, particularly Imani (our MC), Taha and Qayn. I puzzled over the motives of the latter two of these characters constantly, which I suspect was Ibrahim's intention. The action scenes were fast-paced and contrasted well with the quieter moments between.
Maybe the problem was despite the quality of the worldbuilding, fantasy elements, pacing and characters, I couldn't get into it enough, in a way that I'm really having trouble describing here. I did fly through the last 200 pages because it was compellingly written and really well-paced. But even then, I couldn't really warm up to it.
The ending of the book left me with enough potential to make me consider continuing the series when the next book is released, but I haven't decided yet.
Objectively, Spice Road is a good book. Emotionally, I'm not entirely sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Racism, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Colonisation
Moderate: Sexual violence, Torture, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Cultural appropriation and War
espressoreader's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
medium-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and Classism
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Murder
anitaforthewin's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
The premise of the book was really interesting, but honestly the book failed in execution. Tea-based magic was the main descriptor of the books, but honesty it was barely used, and definitely not explored. The pacing was a mess, the characters were not well developed, and the writing was so irritating. The author tried to sound smarter than she was, and ended up writing prose that was unnecessarily punctuated by big thesaurus words and strange turns of phrase. There was an attempt to do an enemies to lovers but it felt like I was getting whiplash when the characters would go from caring about each other to hating each other -- in the space of a sentence, sometimes within the same sentence. I had very high hopes for this book, but I just don't think the author had the ability to execute her ideas into a book and it really shows.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, and Colonisation
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
marleywrites's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Ibrahim blew me away with this book. I went in thinking it would be a book I enjoyed, but I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did. The prose was beautiful and unique, and I loooved the pacing of the story. Every fight and chase scene was well choreographed and epic. I felt like I was racing through the streets with Imani. I swear I could feel the wind on my face.
I see reviews saying the love triangle is boring, but I find it interesting. It’s not crucial to the plot at this point, but I can tell it’s getting set up to be important. I like seeing the relationships fall into place.
There were a few heartbreaking moments that really drove home the severity of the situation, and I felt my heart break with Imani’s. And at the same time, her joy was my joy.
If you are squeamish, there are a few gross scenes. There’s an animal death, human deaths, and description of dead bodies. They are impactful scenes, but definitely not for the faint of heart.
I’m excited to get to know Atheer and Qayn more in the sequels. I think Amira will turn out to be incredibly important as well, as she was quite clever and helpful in this book. I’m also curious to learn more about Taha’s relationship with his father. I’m curious about their auntie as well.
I’m wondering what the future of this series will be, but I have a feeling it will be awesome and epic. I look forward to the sequel of this trilogy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Torture, Vomit, Police brutality, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Sexual harassment
Description of decomposing bodiessorayacorcoran's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death
campisforever's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
Ao3 Rating: T
5 word description: Lush. Gorgeous. Moving. Poignant. Inspiring.
This is such a lovely book with complex, dynamic characters. Ibrahim's skill with feelings, inspiring us to feel differently about different characters over the course of the story, is simply breathtaking! The story hits the major question at the heart of something like Black Panther--about isolation and solidarity. It marks the difference between an anti/decolonial narrative mediated by a white gaze versus one that isn't.
5 word description: Lush. Gorgeous. Moving. Poignant. Inspiring.
This is such a lovely book with complex, dynamic characters. Ibrahim's skill with feelings, inspiring us to feel differently about different characters over the course of the story, is simply breathtaking! The story hits the major question at the heart of something like Black Panther--about isolation and solidarity. It marks the difference between an anti/decolonial narrative mediated by a white gaze versus one that isn't.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Grief, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Racism, Sexual assault, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse, Torture, and War
All content warnings are in the context of an anticolonial narrative about resistance. It is worth noting that the classism is itself not contained to a colonizer/colonized divide, but a complex discussion of class oppression *within* a colonized society.betweentheshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was good for a fantasy debut, with an interesting concept, based on Eastern mythologies. Reminded me a little bit of [book:We Hunt the Flame|36492488]. However, I wanted a little more character development and world building. There were pieces of the world that I felt like I was missing, key pieces that would have helped with moving the main plot forward.
The ending of the book does a good job of setting up a sequel (and maybe potentially more, we shall see!). There's not a whole lot that makes it unique in the area of YA fantasy, outside of the main magic system. I did think that was interesting. It's an enjoyable book, but not one that seems to be super memorable for me.
The ending of the book does a good job of setting up a sequel (and maybe potentially more, we shall see!). There's not a whole lot that makes it unique in the area of YA fantasy, outside of the main magic system. I did think that was interesting. It's an enjoyable book, but not one that seems to be super memorable for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Torture, Grief, and War
Minor: Addiction, Death, and Sexual assault
azrah786's review
4.25
[This review can also be found on my BLOG]
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, blood, injury, death, animal death, colonisation, war, xenophobia, confinement, torture, slavery, police brutality, physical abuse, emotional abuse, domestic abuse, sexual assault, grief, toxic relationship, vomit
--
An exciting debut, Spice Road is a story exploring themes of family, privilege and colonialism that centres on characters from a hidden magical city venturing outside on a mission to the real world to save one of their own. Don’t you just love it when common tropes are switched up a little?
The leading protagonist Imani is a member of the Shields, a group of warriors who defend Qalia from the monsters and creatures that lurk in the city’s borders with the help of Misra – a magical spice that when infused in tea gives the drinker an affinity over a certain element. Imani’s has an affinity for steel which allows her to have an extraordinary mastery with weapons.
Imani’s elder brother was also an acclaimed Shield but upon being accused of stealing Misra - an act that has brought much shame to their family name - he disappeared and was presumed dead. However, when Imani stumbles upon evidence that her brother could still be alive she is determined to be part of the team sent outside the city walls to retrieve him, both out of love for him and in order to ensure the safety and security of her home from outsiders.
Through Imani’s quest Maiya Ibrahim gives us the lay of the vast Arabian inspired world that she has created, from the magic that these character’s lives are already accustomed to to the unknowns of everything outside of the Swallowing Sands that they come to face.
Magic based around tea will always instantly fascinate this tea lover and pair it with an elemental based power system and I am sold! However, as an already established part of the story I did feel like we didn’t get the full scope of it in this one book. With Imani being the solo POV that we follow throughout this story we mainly get an account of her power over steel – which was so cool, don’t get me wrong – but I’m definitely hoping that we get more extensive details and development of the world’s magic in the books to come.
The plot was without a doubt the strongest part of the story, Ibrahim is a really skilled storyteller. The journey from Qalia into the outside world was brilliantly paced and really well put together and I was immediately hooked in by all the action and the tensions of the mission. Despite the dialogue and inner monologue of the MC making the story feel a little clunky at times, I really enjoyed following Imani’s journey.
She is the impulsive sort, always charging in to do what she wants without much forethought of the consequences and a lot of her development comes down to unlearning her privilege. Of becoming more aware of the world around her and seeing the disparity in both the outside world as well as within her own community.
There was an interesting range of character dynamics and each supporting character informed Imani’s development in a different way. Her relationship with Taha is one of those that people are either going to be on board with or not. I have to say I wasn’t fully on board with the romance side of things but for the most part I enjoyed their back and forth and how it played a part in Imani’s character arc.
Sometimes things happened in the story a little too conveniently for how high the stakes were but all in all I had fun reading this book and I’m excited for more!
Final Rating – 4.25/5 Stars
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, blood, injury, death, animal death, colonisation, war, xenophobia, confinement, torture, slavery, police brutality, physical abuse, emotional abuse, domestic abuse, sexual assault, grief, toxic relationship, vomit
--
An exciting debut, Spice Road is a story exploring themes of family, privilege and colonialism that centres on characters from a hidden magical city venturing outside on a mission to the real world to save one of their own. Don’t you just love it when common tropes are switched up a little?
The leading protagonist Imani is a member of the Shields, a group of warriors who defend Qalia from the monsters and creatures that lurk in the city’s borders with the help of Misra – a magical spice that when infused in tea gives the drinker an affinity over a certain element. Imani’s has an affinity for steel which allows her to have an extraordinary mastery with weapons.
Imani’s elder brother was also an acclaimed Shield but upon being accused of stealing Misra - an act that has brought much shame to their family name - he disappeared and was presumed dead. However, when Imani stumbles upon evidence that her brother could still be alive she is determined to be part of the team sent outside the city walls to retrieve him, both out of love for him and in order to ensure the safety and security of her home from outsiders.
Through Imani’s quest Maiya Ibrahim gives us the lay of the vast Arabian inspired world that she has created, from the magic that these character’s lives are already accustomed to to the unknowns of everything outside of the Swallowing Sands that they come to face.
Magic based around tea will always instantly fascinate this tea lover and pair it with an elemental based power system and I am sold! However, as an already established part of the story I did feel like we didn’t get the full scope of it in this one book. With Imani being the solo POV that we follow throughout this story we mainly get an account of her power over steel – which was so cool, don’t get me wrong – but I’m definitely hoping that we get more extensive details and development of the world’s magic in the books to come.
The plot was without a doubt the strongest part of the story, Ibrahim is a really skilled storyteller. The journey from Qalia into the outside world was brilliantly paced and really well put together and I was immediately hooked in by all the action and the tensions of the mission. Despite the dialogue and inner monologue of the MC making the story feel a little clunky at times, I really enjoyed following Imani’s journey.
She is the impulsive sort, always charging in to do what she wants without much forethought of the consequences and a lot of her development comes down to unlearning her privilege. Of becoming more aware of the world around her and seeing the disparity in both the outside world as well as within her own community.
There was an interesting range of character dynamics and each supporting character informed Imani’s development in a different way. Her relationship with Taha is one of those that people are either going to be on board with or not. I have to say I wasn’t fully on board with the romance side of things but for the most part I enjoyed their back and forth and how it played a part in Imani’s character arc.
Sometimes things happened in the story a little too conveniently for how high the stakes were but all in all I had fun reading this book and I’m excited for more!
Final Rating – 4.25/5 Stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault and Vomit
nitrojenn's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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
"We will fight, but first we will have tea."
This one hooked me with the first sentence. This book is so amazing! It's got everything - adventure, betrayal, mystery, monsters, politics, a little dash of family drama.
Imani is stubborn and young but carries the weight of the world on her shoulders. For me, she started out a bit unlikeable - a kid who thought they knew the way of the world. But she grows so much, I ended up really loving her and rooting for her.
I also really enjoyed the rest of the characters, especially Qayn. I am so intrigued by him and am hoping we will learn much more about his past in the next book.
Pacing was perfect. Medium paced and never dragging. And, as the first book in a trilogy, I think the story in this one was wrapped up really nicely. I'm dying for the next book but there was the perfect amount for me.
This one hooked me with the first sentence. This book is so amazing! It's got everything - adventure, betrayal, mystery, monsters, politics, a little dash of family drama.
Imani is stubborn and young but carries the weight of the world on her shoulders. For me, she started out a bit unlikeable - a kid who thought they knew the way of the world. But she grows so much, I ended up really loving her and rooting for her.
I also really enjoyed the rest of the characters, especially Qayn. I am so intrigued by him and am hoping we will learn much more about his past in the next book.
Pacing was perfect. Medium paced and never dragging. And, as the first book in a trilogy, I think the story in this one was wrapped up really nicely. I'm dying for the next book but there was the perfect amount for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death