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maireadsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
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? No
3.0
This was fine
mjk1221's review
3.0
The description of the book is a great spot to start because it is exactly what this book is. I've never read a book description that was so spot-on for a book. Usually there's something really vague about it or only about half the book or whatever the case may be.
The siblings were all unique and different. I didn't exactly appreciate all the POVs because they are ALL different with different secrets and reasons to return to help find the Ivory Key. This made, for me, a less cohesive story. It made it more interesting sometimes because everyone had something different going for them, but I wasn't able to truly connect with anyone because of it.
There are a lot of things not explained, which some (like the mother's death) hopefully gets explained in the next book. We also are told there are some political issues and such, but we don't get much information truly. The concept of the magic being a finite resource (nonrenewable??) is interesting, but also wasn't entirely explained a whole lot. It's used all over the world for all different manner of things, though.
The first 2/3 of the book is background for the siblings and then puzzle solving. I liked the puzzle solving, but the siblings all machinating against each other wasn't my favorite. The end is the actual finding of the key.
I will say that I'm glad this is a duology. It means we should get a lot happening in the next and last book, so I will read it to see how things get solved.
The siblings were all unique and different. I didn't exactly appreciate all the POVs because they are ALL different with different secrets and reasons to return to help find the Ivory Key. This made, for me, a less cohesive story. It made it more interesting sometimes because everyone had something different going for them, but I wasn't able to truly connect with anyone because of it.
There are a lot of things not explained, which some (like the mother's death) hopefully gets explained in the next book. We also are told there are some political issues and such, but we don't get much information truly. The concept of the magic being a finite resource (nonrenewable??) is interesting, but also wasn't entirely explained a whole lot. It's used all over the world for all different manner of things, though.
The first 2/3 of the book is background for the siblings and then puzzle solving. I liked the puzzle solving, but the siblings all machinating against each other wasn't my favorite. The end is the actual finding of the key.
I will say that I'm glad this is a duology. It means we should get a lot happening in the next and last book, so I will read it to see how things get solved.
beckys_books's review against another edition
4.0
Susan and I are back with our buddy reads & we’ve started 2022 off with a book that we loved… kinda. Vira is keeping a secret, Ashoka is running out of magic, something that has kept the Kingdom safe for centuries. Her only hope is to find the Ivory Key, rumoured to unlock a new source of magic. The only issue, her siblings are looking for it too, but they all have different goals in mind. They know they must work together to survive the dangerous journey to get the Key, but the question is will they come back re-united as a family, or will their own goals get in the way.
There was a lot about this book that I loved, one of the main things being the characters. The Ivory Key is told from the four siblings POVS. Vira is the Maharani, the person now in charge of a Kingdom that has nearly lost all its magic and this, it’s only hope of protection for invaders. She comes across as harsh and unfeeling, when in reality she is desperate for the support of her family. She wants to live up to her mothers rule, but before long she will realise that there is a strength in being different, in being her, and she will need to rely on that to make it through the journey alive.
Riya ran away from home years ago after an argument with her mother and found herself living amongst the Ravens, a gang of outlaws who steal from the rich to give to the poor Robin Hood style. After an unlikely event finds her and Vira re-united, she decides that her best chance to help the Ravens is to return to the Palace and try and steal the magic from within. But the more time she spends there, amongst her friends and family, the more she realises that not all is as it seems, and before long her loyalty to both the Ravens and her family will be put to the test.
Ronak just wants to escape. To free his brother, leave the Palace and never look back. Only, that isn’t as easy as it seems and, before long he finds himself entangled with an extremely dangerous person, someone who wants the Key, no matter the cost. He knows that he will have to work with his siblings to find the key, but he is determined to go through with his plan, no matter the cost nor whether his brother actually wants saving.
Kaleb is stuck in prison, after being wrongly accused for the death of his mother thanks to his ancestry, he longs for freedom, to have his name cleared and finally return to his family. So when Vira asks him for his help finding the Key he uses his only bargaining chip to request his freedom, but the family he returns to isn’t the one he left. The siblings are filled with tension, none willing to trust each other, but if they are to find the key, he knows they are going to have to start working together. There are plenty of side characters, some who play a larger part in the story than others, but they are all pivotal to the story in some way.
The world-building in the book was just phenomenal. I couldn’t get enough of learning about the history of Ashoka, and it’s surrounding kingdoms. But if I had one little sticking point, it would be the magic system. It just wasn’t developed enough for me, just when I thought I had my head round the rules, something else popped up that seemed to defy them, so I just constantly struggled to determine what exactly it did, how it was used, where it came from etc. I also felt that the Ravens, the group that Riya joined after leaving the Palace just kind of dropped off the map for no reason. They play a pretty large role in the first half of the book but, as soon as the siblings set off on their journey, are never heard from again.
Now that I’ve talked about the bit’s I didn’t love, lets get onto the bits I did. I really enjoyed the pacing of this book. It had a slow start, but that gave us time to acquaint ourselves with the characters as separate entities, learning their plans, hopes and wishes so, when they started on their journey in the second half, we had a good idea of who everyone was. The second half of the book was significantly faster paced, filled with danger, a little romance and plenty of Indiana Jones style traps and clues the siblings had to work their way through. I loved how well the action scenes were written, they really dragged you into the story and made sure the stakes stayed high for our characters. It’s an incredibly easy read, I read it in two sittings but could have easily done one if I wasn’t buddy reading it.
There’s a little bit of romance in this book, less than I expected from the first few chapters tbh, but I enjoyed that the author focused more on the sibling relationships than the romantic ones. We know, before they start on their journey, that they each have their own plans for the Key, but the longer the spend together, the more they come to realise that their want’s don’t really matter. What matters is keeping the Kingdom safe. Some of them are a little brattish, but Raman portrays sibling relationships so well. They have no love for each other, no understanding of each other, but when it comes down to it, they would risk their lives for each other, no questions asked.
The Ivory Key ends on one hell of a cliffhanger, in fact it’s more a multitude of lots of little twists that just make for one epic ending. I saw one of two coming, but there were a few that completely took me off guard, and I can’t wait to see them getting developed more in book two. Overall, this was an incredibly easy read, filled with well written characters and some impressive world-building. I just hope we get a better understanding of the magic system in the second book.
There was a lot about this book that I loved, one of the main things being the characters. The Ivory Key is told from the four siblings POVS. Vira is the Maharani, the person now in charge of a Kingdom that has nearly lost all its magic and this, it’s only hope of protection for invaders. She comes across as harsh and unfeeling, when in reality she is desperate for the support of her family. She wants to live up to her mothers rule, but before long she will realise that there is a strength in being different, in being her, and she will need to rely on that to make it through the journey alive.
Riya ran away from home years ago after an argument with her mother and found herself living amongst the Ravens, a gang of outlaws who steal from the rich to give to the poor Robin Hood style. After an unlikely event finds her and Vira re-united, she decides that her best chance to help the Ravens is to return to the Palace and try and steal the magic from within. But the more time she spends there, amongst her friends and family, the more she realises that not all is as it seems, and before long her loyalty to both the Ravens and her family will be put to the test.
Ronak just wants to escape. To free his brother, leave the Palace and never look back. Only, that isn’t as easy as it seems and, before long he finds himself entangled with an extremely dangerous person, someone who wants the Key, no matter the cost. He knows that he will have to work with his siblings to find the key, but he is determined to go through with his plan, no matter the cost nor whether his brother actually wants saving.
Kaleb is stuck in prison, after being wrongly accused for the death of his mother thanks to his ancestry, he longs for freedom, to have his name cleared and finally return to his family. So when Vira asks him for his help finding the Key he uses his only bargaining chip to request his freedom, but the family he returns to isn’t the one he left. The siblings are filled with tension, none willing to trust each other, but if they are to find the key, he knows they are going to have to start working together. There are plenty of side characters, some who play a larger part in the story than others, but they are all pivotal to the story in some way.
The world-building in the book was just phenomenal. I couldn’t get enough of learning about the history of Ashoka, and it’s surrounding kingdoms. But if I had one little sticking point, it would be the magic system. It just wasn’t developed enough for me, just when I thought I had my head round the rules, something else popped up that seemed to defy them, so I just constantly struggled to determine what exactly it did, how it was used, where it came from etc. I also felt that the Ravens, the group that Riya joined after leaving the Palace just kind of dropped off the map for no reason. They play a pretty large role in the first half of the book but, as soon as the siblings set off on their journey, are never heard from again.
Now that I’ve talked about the bit’s I didn’t love, lets get onto the bits I did. I really enjoyed the pacing of this book. It had a slow start, but that gave us time to acquaint ourselves with the characters as separate entities, learning their plans, hopes and wishes so, when they started on their journey in the second half, we had a good idea of who everyone was. The second half of the book was significantly faster paced, filled with danger, a little romance and plenty of Indiana Jones style traps and clues the siblings had to work their way through. I loved how well the action scenes were written, they really dragged you into the story and made sure the stakes stayed high for our characters. It’s an incredibly easy read, I read it in two sittings but could have easily done one if I wasn’t buddy reading it.
There’s a little bit of romance in this book, less than I expected from the first few chapters tbh, but I enjoyed that the author focused more on the sibling relationships than the romantic ones. We know, before they start on their journey, that they each have their own plans for the Key, but the longer the spend together, the more they come to realise that their want’s don’t really matter. What matters is keeping the Kingdom safe. Some of them are a little brattish, but Raman portrays sibling relationships so well. They have no love for each other, no understanding of each other, but when it comes down to it, they would risk their lives for each other, no questions asked.
The Ivory Key ends on one hell of a cliffhanger, in fact it’s more a multitude of lots of little twists that just make for one epic ending. I saw one of two coming, but there were a few that completely took me off guard, and I can’t wait to see them getting developed more in book two. Overall, this was an incredibly easy read, filled with well written characters and some impressive world-building. I just hope we get a better understanding of the magic system in the second book.
nkp94's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-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
3.75
mcaliz's review
I'm DNFing this for the time being: page 50
I did like where the story is going, but I put it down after I started reading it & I literally haven't thought about it since & have no inkling to pick it back up right now.
I did like where the story is going, but I put it down after I started reading it & I literally haven't thought about it since & have no inkling to pick it back up right now.
lucymt92's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
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
3.0
finalgirlkenobi's review
4.0
4 & a half stars!
this book was truly magnificent. set in a queer-normative, indian inspired world full of magic and laced with family dramas and adventure. it’s everything i never knew i needed and everything i’ve always wanted as a queer desi with a love for fantasy. a little slow paced at times but i felt it helped keep your interest and my heart was definitely racing at points. can’t believe it ended like that though!
this book was truly magnificent. set in a queer-normative, indian inspired world full of magic and laced with family dramas and adventure. it’s everything i never knew i needed and everything i’ve always wanted as a queer desi with a love for fantasy. a little slow paced at times but i felt it helped keep your interest and my heart was definitely racing at points. can’t believe it ended like that though!
shaila_m's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.0
emilywilliams97's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5