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adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read the author's note at the end of the book because it will make the entire story make a lot more sense.
I found the story to be intriguing, entertaining, and honestly awe striking at times. But it suffered from too fast a pace and too underdeveloped communication. As the reader, you are jolted constantly, vascilating between Lada and Radu. Radu experiences strong character development over the roughly 20 year span of the novel. Lada, on the other hand, comes across less like a slowly disintegrating psychopath and more as a poorly written "angsty female character" whose whole personality is defiance, contrarianism, and internalized misogyny.
I can somewhat understand the development of her violence and hatred, but it feels less like a development and more like a drawn out acceptance of how awful of a human being she is when she was essentially born with a savor for the suffering of other people and hardly a noble bone in her body. Her entire personality is a violation of the Geneva Convention and weirdly enough, she can't pass the Bechtel test.
All in all, I enjoyed MUCH of this novel and its intense action as well as its slippery political intrigues! I cannot rate it any higher, unfortunately, on account of the massive disappointment that is Lada's character "arc".
Thinly veiled spoiler: Vlad Dracul is a red herring...
I found the story to be intriguing, entertaining, and honestly awe striking at times. But it suffered from too fast a pace and too underdeveloped communication. As the reader, you are jolted constantly, vascilating between Lada and Radu. Radu experiences strong character development over the roughly 20 year span of the novel. Lada, on the other hand, comes across less like a slowly disintegrating psychopath and more as a poorly written "angsty female character" whose whole personality is defiance, contrarianism, and internalized misogyny.
I can somewhat understand the development of her violence and hatred, but it feels less like a development and more like a drawn out acceptance of how awful of a human being she is when she was essentially born with a savor for the suffering of other people and hardly a noble bone in her body. Her entire personality is a violation of the Geneva Convention and weirdly enough, she can't pass the Bechtel test.
All in all, I enjoyed MUCH of this novel and its intense action as well as its slippery political intrigues! I cannot rate it any higher, unfortunately, on account of the massive disappointment that is Lada's character "arc".
Thinly veiled spoiler: Vlad Dracul is a red herring...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, War
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Sexual harassment
Minor: Child death, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery
dark
emotional
That was a lot. The complex sibling dynamics, the parental abandonment, the closeted gay yearning for a straight man, the powerlessness of being a women in a society that limits what you can do… it was a lot. But it was really good. I felt engaged the whole time. I just wish they talked to each other. There was so much sorrow and such little relief because these characters just refused to talk to each other or talk through anything with anyone else. It made sense for their characters why they wouldn’t, but for the love of god, talk.
Mehmed was annoying. By the end of the book I was likecan you please shut up and disappear? The other two would have been so much happier without him there bogging down the story. He was just sooo annoying!
I don’t understand why this is listed as a fantasy? There was no fantastical elements to this story. Like at all. The story didn’t need fantastical elements, it was complete even without them. But then why is this book listed as fantasy? It was purely historical fiction.
Speaking of tags, this book needs to have the lgbtq+ tag on it bc there was a LOT of gay people and gay feelings.No one does unrequited love quite like a gay person in love with a straight person. And by that I mean, over 80% of this boy’s thoughts were about how he wants so badly to be this asshole’s gay lover but he can’t.
Mehmed was annoying. By the end of the book I was like
I don’t understand why this is listed as a fantasy? There was no fantastical elements to this story. Like at all. The story didn’t need fantastical elements, it was complete even without them. But then why is this book listed as fantasy? It was purely historical fiction.
Speaking of tags, this book needs to have the lgbtq+ tag on it bc there was a LOT of gay people and gay feelings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Abandonment
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Violence, Abandonment
Minor: Blood
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, War
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury
dark
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
The story was compelling and interesting. The development of relationships was complex and fitting for each character. The political intrigue was engaging. The reversal of the roles of prince and princess seen wish Lada and Radu was refreshing. But there was something missing in this story that left me unsatisfied in a way I can't identify.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, Classism
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Colonisation
Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Abandonment, War
Minor: Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
For me, the beginning of the book felt a bit meandering and by the time I made it to the end I understood the setup and enjoyed the story overall, but I think if I hadn't been listening to the audiobook I would have stopped reading pretty early on because it didn't grab my attention until about halfway through. However, I'm glad I did finish it. I would read or listen to the next book in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Misogyny, Sexism, Abandonment
Moderate: Death, Homophobia, Slavery, Torture, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Murder, War
Minor: Death of parent
I want to start by prefacing that the author does not come off as homophobic, islamaphobic, or otherwise bigoted. These content warnings are present because of the time period and context of when the book takes place. Spoilers to clarify: In this book the two main characters are basically sold to the primary ruler of the region in exchange for more support fighting his battles. The region where this ruler presides is primarily Islamic and while one of the MCs finds it fascinating and comforting in their time of crisis, the other doesn't want to be forced from the religion they've grown up in and does come across as bigoted. In addition, due to the time period, women are seen as secondary citizens and really lack the respect of the men. This is a consistent recurring theme throughout the entire book where one of the MCs is denied equal treatment and denied the ability to follow her desired path in life. The next issue is that one of the MCs realizes that they're gay however, once again, due to the time period it wasn't safe for them to be open about who they are. While they do find solace in certain people who feel the same way they do, there's still an overwhelming sadness about the closeted nature with which the MC must live. Finally, as it is war time on and off throughout the book there are instances of torture, death, and murder throughout the entire plot, including one of the MCs accidentally killing a child during a conflict.
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I first read this book several years ago. I loved it, even though it was one of the hardest for me to read. It was denser, slower-paced, and had a darker tone than what I was used to. It has this pervasive sense of dread, one disaster happening after another. And there is sparse comfort to be found, even in the characters' dearest relationships. Nothing is ever safe or secure or completely happy. There are scenes of (historically accurate and normalized) abuse and injustice that turns my stomach. At that time I also started reading the second book but didn't get very far in before abandoning it. Since then, I have regularly looked at this series sitting on my bookshelf and wanted to read it but was too intimidated to.
Now I have reread the first book and plan to finally finish reading the series. I'm older now and have more experience reading complex and dark books. It made me aware of my growth as a reader.
I consider this one of my favorite books. It is captivating, even when it is challenging or devastating or frustrating. I have thought about and loved this book even after reading it just once, years ago, and even without reading the rest of the series. I feel so deeply for both Lada and Radu, despite how deeply flawed they are, how different they are, and how often their interests are in opposition to each other. That's what continues to make it a challenging read - I want a happy ending for everyone, but I can't imagine a way that could happen in their circumstances.
Now I have reread the first book and plan to finally finish reading the series. I'm older now and have more experience reading complex and dark books. It made me aware of my growth as a reader.
I consider this one of my favorite books. It is captivating, even when it is challenging or devastating or frustrating. I have thought about and loved this book even after reading it just once, years ago, and even without reading the rest of the series. I feel so deeply for both Lada and Radu, despite how deeply flawed they are, how different they are, and how often their interests are in opposition to each other. That's what continues to make it a challenging read - I want a happy ending for everyone, but I can't imagine a way that could happen in their circumstances.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Islamophobia, Abandonment, War
Minor: Colonisation, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Lots of palace intrigue tropes and internalized homophobia, but the two main characters are vivid and their relationship is well-crafted
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Murder, Abandonment, War
Minor: Child death, Cursing, Death of parent
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Homophobia, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Death of parent