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starrysteph's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The Daughters of Izdihar is filled with elemental magic, female rage, and freedom fighters. However, to me it fell a bit flat and didn’t bring anything new to the genre.
We follow two young women from very different backgrounds in an Egyptian-inspired magical world.
Nehal is the wealthy daughter of an aristocrat, forced into an arranged marriage in order to save her family from financial ruin. But what she truly wants is to nurture her waterweaving skills and someday join the first ever all-female regiment of the army.
Giorgina is a poor bookshop worker, struggling to suppress her uncontrollable earth weaving power. She’s in love with a man who cannot publicly be with her and secretly writes for the Daughters of Izdihar, a women’s rights group.
Both women connect unexpectedly as they yearn for women’s equality and struggle to make their own choices and live (& love) freely.
The writing wavered at times - it feels very clear to me that this is a debut. Sentences were often a bit choppy or repetitive, dialogue was unnatural, and the plot felt familiar to many other fantasy reads (elemental magic has been done so often & it wasn’t really included in a new way here).
It was a bit draining to input all the sexism, and to see the women’s rights group fall into the same cycles. New protest idea, it gets squandered by men and/or corrupt politicians and police, women have to reformulate, and so on. This is most of the book, and it’s copied & pasted straight from history.
I also felt like Nehal was a stronger character - with a bit more character development. I was antsier reading from Giorgina’s POV, and didn’t care much for her conflict with her love interest. It felt like she was just one-dimensionally tossed in to suffer at the hands of various men. Contrastingly, Nehal’s growth (both in uncovering the realities of her world and discovering her sexuality) was more engaging.
But even so - the queer plotlines (Nehal’s and a random side character who shows up at two convenient moments) felt underdeveloped. And Nehal’s impulsivity grew a little tiring, alongside her unbelievably fast rise in skill with waterweaving. She also NEVER faced any consequences for her harmful actions … and it’s not particularly clear why she desires to be part of the women’s rights movement in the first place. She can’t even be bothered to read the magazines.
I felt like there were interesting ideas here - with the setting and with the characters - that simply weren’t explored enough.
CW: sexism, misogyny, murder, death, homophobia, lesbophobia, police brutality, sexual harassment, sexual assault, classism, gun violence, grief, war, abortion
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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Grief, Abortion, Murder, Lesbophobia, Sexual harassment, War, and Classism
teatowel's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
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
3.5
I just couldn't help comparing this book to Avatar the Last Airbender. The setting, so oppressive towards women and LGBTQ+, made it hard for me to get into this book. It just made me sad whenever I read, but towards the last hundred pages the pace picked up.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, and War
powellki's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Police brutality
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Blood, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
dana_naylor's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
First in a duology, so book leaves a number of threads hanging. I might have preferred to wait and read it until the second was available. Writing is excellent. World building is nifty. I picked the book up to read just a bit when I was about halfway done…and stayed up way too late to finish it. Really drew me into the world and I’ll be reading the next one when it’s published.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Police brutality
Minor: Homophobia, Religious bigotry, and Abortion
mezzythedragon's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
I will read the conclusion to this when it comes out. I will say, though, that the systemic misogyny gets to be too much as the book goes on, if only because we know it all too well.
I disagree with a review saying Giorgina’s a boring character. I like the juxtaposition of her personality with Nehal’s; the book can’t have two brash protagonists. Besides, this book exemplifies that class status plays a huge role in how much someone can get away with. So of course Giorgina couldn’t stand up for herself much. Though I will say I like how she turned out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Homophobia and Police brutality
isabeltavares's review against another edition
The Daughters of Izdihar shows us a world (not far from our own) where women have no rights and must do their fathers or brothers' bidding. It is also a world where weaving skills are frowned up and tensions rise as the Daughters try to reclaim their rights in society.
The plot appealed to me right away and I was so excited to read it. I am disappointed to say I have decided to not finish my review copy and these are the following reasons:
*I saw this marketed as an adult book but the writing reads very young and awkward to me.
*I feel no motivation to continue and 30% the characters and the writing haven't hooked me in.
Ultimately, there isn't necessarily anything wrong with this novel. It isn't the right book for me.
However, I hope it finds its readers so if you're reading this and you love fantasy, mythology and stories about rebellious women, then The Daughters of Izdihar is the book for you!
The plot appealed to me right away and I was so excited to read it. I am disappointed to say I have decided to not finish my review copy and these are the following reasons:
*I saw this marketed as an adult book but the writing reads very young and awkward to me.
*I feel no motivation to continue and 30% the characters and the writing haven't hooked me in.
Ultimately, there isn't necessarily anything wrong with this novel. It isn't the right book for me.
However, I hope it finds its readers so if you're reading this and you love fantasy, mythology and stories about rebellious women, then The Daughters of Izdihar is the book for you!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, and Police brutality
Moderate: Sexual harassment
Minor: Abortion
incipientdreamer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
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
4.25
Buckle up everyone, because this is going to be a loong review. This book fueled my feminist rage and I was in a constantly ranty mode while reading this. A phenomenal debut; I cannot wait to read the sequel after that cliffhanger of an ending!
The Daughters of Izdihar was everything I wanted by a novel marketed as "two women's quest to fight for women's rights in an Egypt-inspired world with elemental magic". I have read a couple of fantasy books that tackle sexism on a large scale, centring on a group of women fighting for their basic human rights, and while I usually enjoy most of them, The Daughters of Izdihar hits home more than those other books. Part of the reason might be because the world feels so real and close to me. I grew up in a conservative South Asian Muslim country where religious dogma and extremism meant that women were treated as sub-human creatures. A lot of the struggles depicted in Elsbai's book are still rampant/normalized in countries such as my own. Not to mention the feminist revolution taking place in Iran is eerily similar to how the Daughters are treated in this book. Elsbai shows us the ugly truth of the patriarchal society we live in, a place where women are denied the right to vote, go out on their own, sign legal documents, and not be allowed to pursue education. This is the reality faced by women and young girls in Afghanistan and Saudia Arabia. Women who dare to speak out are jailed and beaten and abused.
Both of Elsbai's leading characters are unique perspectives on how sexism affects women differently depending on their social class. Nehal, a wealthy sheltered woman, who doesn't really care about the consequences of her actions because she has her wealth and privilege to fall back on is a study of how most rich women might not care about misogyny in society because they are so sheltered. Meanwhile, Giorgina coming from a poor household, and having no security in life has a more muted or hesitant perspective in fighting for her rights. Not to mention the numerous other members of the Daughters who each have their own circumstances and choose to fight their battles accordingly. I feel like depictions like this, show that there is no such thing as a bad feminist.
I loved the character development of both characters, how Nehal eventually opens her eyes to injustice, and how Giorgina finally gains the courage to live her own life, by stepping out of the shadow cast by her controlling father. Another thing I found interesting was how Nico, Giorgina's love interest was shown to be a very passive person when it came to matters that did not affect him that deeply. It showed the lack of initiative by many men who claim to be "allies".
This book is also unapologetically queer which given the community it's set in, hits painfully home for me. The writing is nothing extraordinary but for a debut book, I would say it's still pretty good given other recent debuts. The worldbuilding is lush and you can see the author's love for her culture in the way she describes the foods and architecture. The magic system is very Avatar-style elemental magic, and I'm excited to learn more about Nehal and Giorgina's growing powers in book two.
The Daughters of Izdihar takes the patriarchy and rips it to shreds. We desperately need more WOC writing books about feminism because they shed light on how underprivileged women in underdeveloped countries are still suffering. Unfortunately, the racist bias in the publishing industry is obvious, given the lack of marketing this book had. Seems like people only care about domestic violence when Collen Hoover rights about it...
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown Book Group for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own
The Daughters of Izdihar was everything I wanted by a novel marketed as "two women's quest to fight for women's rights in an Egypt-inspired world with elemental magic". I have read a couple of fantasy books that tackle sexism on a large scale, centring on a group of women fighting for their basic human rights, and while I usually enjoy most of them, The Daughters of Izdihar hits home more than those other books. Part of the reason might be because the world feels so real and close to me. I grew up in a conservative South Asian Muslim country where religious dogma and extremism meant that women were treated as sub-human creatures. A lot of the struggles depicted in Elsbai's book are still rampant/normalized in countries such as my own. Not to mention the feminist revolution taking place in Iran is eerily similar to how the Daughters are treated in this book. Elsbai shows us the ugly truth of the patriarchal society we live in, a place where women are denied the right to vote, go out on their own, sign legal documents, and not be allowed to pursue education. This is the reality faced by women and young girls in Afghanistan and Saudia Arabia. Women who dare to speak out are jailed and beaten and abused.
Both of Elsbai's leading characters are unique perspectives on how sexism affects women differently depending on their social class. Nehal, a wealthy sheltered woman, who doesn't really care about the consequences of her actions because she has her wealth and privilege to fall back on is a study of how most rich women might not care about misogyny in society because they are so sheltered. Meanwhile, Giorgina coming from a poor household, and having no security in life has a more muted or hesitant perspective in fighting for her rights. Not to mention the numerous other members of the Daughters who each have their own circumstances and choose to fight their battles accordingly. I feel like depictions like this, show that there is no such thing as a bad feminist.
I loved the character development of both characters, how Nehal eventually opens her eyes to injustice, and how Giorgina finally gains the courage to live her own life, by stepping out of the shadow cast by her controlling father. Another thing I found interesting was how Nico, Giorgina's love interest was shown to be a very passive person when it came to matters that did not affect him that deeply. It showed the lack of initiative by many men who claim to be "allies".
This book is also unapologetically queer which given the community it's set in, hits painfully home for me. The writing is nothing extraordinary but for a debut book, I would say it's still pretty good given other recent debuts. The worldbuilding is lush and you can see the author's love for her culture in the way she describes the foods and architecture. The magic system is very Avatar-style elemental magic, and I'm excited to learn more about Nehal and Giorgina's growing powers in book two.
The Daughters of Izdihar takes the patriarchy and rips it to shreds. We desperately need more WOC writing books about feminism because they shed light on how underprivileged women in underdeveloped countries are still suffering. Unfortunately, the racist bias in the publishing industry is obvious, given the lack of marketing this book had. Seems like people only care about domestic violence when Collen Hoover rights about it...
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown Book Group for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Police brutality, and Classism
Minor: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Abortion, and Sexual harassment
lettuce_read's review against another edition
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Police brutality
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Abortion
mxkanteven's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
BLOOD. BENDING. BISEXUALS!
That is all.
This book is perfection, I have no notes and I want the sequel yesterday.
It’s exploration of social misogyny and the relationship between oppressive policies and religious prejudice is nothing short of skillful.
Beyond just that, Hadeer’s commentary on privilege and privileged people’s apathy and cowardice regarding challenging social inequity is brilliant.
That is all.
This book is perfection, I have no notes and I want the sequel yesterday.
It’s exploration of social misogyny and the relationship between oppressive policies and religious prejudice is nothing short of skillful.
Beyond just that, Hadeer’s commentary on privilege and privileged people’s apathy and cowardice regarding challenging social inequity is brilliant.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Violence
Moderate: Gun violence, Police brutality, Lesbophobia, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Homophobia
azrah786's review against another edition
4.5
[This review can also be found on my BLOG]
**I received a proof copy from Orbit Books UK in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, gun violence, blood, injury, murder, death, police brutality, sexual harassment, medical trauma, sexism, misogyny, classism, homophobia, lesbophobia, fire/fire injury, grief, abortion
--
An unputdownable debut, The Daughters of Izdihar is a story with captivating magic and a stirring fight for independence.
Set in a lush, historic Egypt inspired fantasy world where a profoundly patriarchal society is as prejudiced to those with rare elemental ‘weaving’ powers as it is to its women, two women’s lives intertwine through the activist group The Daughters of Izdihar and their fight for their rights as both women and weavers.
Our protagonists are Nehal, a noble woman with a fiery disposition coerced into an arranged manage to get her family out of debt, who craves the opportunity to better learn to control her water weaving powers and join the Alamaxa Weaving Academy. And Giorgina, a more reserved and subtly defiant working class woman with earth weaving powers of her own, who’s solace in life comes from contributing to the Daughters of Izdihar and working at a local bookshop.
**I received a proof copy from Orbit Books UK in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, gun violence, blood, injury, murder, death, police brutality, sexual harassment, medical trauma, sexism, misogyny, classism, homophobia, lesbophobia, fire/fire injury, grief, abortion
--
An unputdownable debut, The Daughters of Izdihar is a story with captivating magic and a stirring fight for independence.
Set in a lush, historic Egypt inspired fantasy world where a profoundly patriarchal society is as prejudiced to those with rare elemental ‘weaving’ powers as it is to its women, two women’s lives intertwine through the activist group The Daughters of Izdihar and their fight for their rights as both women and weavers.
Our protagonists are Nehal, a noble woman with a fiery disposition coerced into an arranged manage to get her family out of debt, who craves the opportunity to better learn to control her water weaving powers and join the Alamaxa Weaving Academy. And Giorgina, a more reserved and subtly defiant working class woman with earth weaving powers of her own, who’s solace in life comes from contributing to the Daughters of Izdihar and working at a local bookshop.
“There are times when you must speak. Even if you can’t change the other person. If you don’t speak, then they have succeeded in changing you.“
Hadeer Elsbai has done a fantastic job at narrating an engaging storyline that cuts deep at your emotions and the parallels to real world prejudices made it hit all the more harder. I think the mastery particularly comes from how the two perspectives we follow were not only distinct in their personalities, but having two protagonists of different social backgrounds gave the story that much more significance.
They may be different in status and demeanour but Nehal and Giorgina have much in common when it comes to the challenges they face with their families, their relationships/love, their powers and wider society. I found myself equally infuriated and inspired by their individual journeys and the situations they faced and the very real endurance of women that this story lays bare.
“Didn’t the reality of the oppression matter more than the language they used to fight it?”
My main criticism is that while the descriptions and sense of atmosphere of the settings are captured pretty well, I thought the worldbuilding was a little loose especially when it came to the magic system. Though the handful of abilities used throughout the book made for some exciting moments of action, they weren’t really explained or developed on much. We get a few details on the pantheon of Gods that the powers are said to come from and a few training scenes at the academy but the magic definitely had less of a focus than the overarching political plot.
The intrigue here was twofold, that of the more personal human rights level and then the machinations relating to international relations occurring in the background that slowly gained more prominence. The tensions, fast moving narrative and compelling determination of these characters will keep you hooked to the very end. And with how everything closes off in this first instalment I am now going to be counting the days until I can get my hands on book 2!
Final Rating – 4.5/5 Stars
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Abortion and Sexual harassment