A review by roseice
The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke
4.0
I can earnestly appreciate a story like this. It's so rich in detail that it makes up for the cliches it's built upon. I love the smallest details, here: the names of the herbs, powders, etc that Ananna collects at the market. The river nettle. The desert shrubs. The crystalline forest. The setting feels real and accurate with extra details that are immersive, and absent from many similar settings in YA. My question is, why? Because it bogs down the narrative? Excessive detail does, yes, but this is by no means excessive. It's imaginative and a treat for the senses. It's not just a tree, not just powder, not just herbs. It's rich where it could've been bland.
The ending is another thing I can appreciate. I almost wish more authors would endeavour to end things this way, instead of neatly tying everything up, because when it's neat, everything important has to happen in the first book. The romance has to all come together, leaving little time for a proper build, so that the book can end with a kiss. But it isn't just the romance that needs time; some things aren't so quick a fix, and I really enjoy the journey in general, thus I appreciate that the curse wasn't tidied up in one book. It's refreshing, especially since nothing here felt like filler. It was all necessary, and entertaining.
That said, if this book didn't have its well-researched charm of detail and immersion, it probably would've received three stars. It's really nothing special character-wise. I found Naji's magic fascinating, but he's a boring character. In Leila we're treated to the former-lover archetype (ugh), and she's a jerk. Fun. Of course, Naji has to moon over her like a love-struck five year old. The wizard at the end? Even less imaginative. When he revealed the "three impossible tasks," I groaned out loud. Seriously? (A sentiment Naji shared in his next line of dialogue, to my amusement.) Marjani was interesting, and I enjoyed the details of navigation and the activities on the ship, but she didn't really stand out. Really the only character who wasn't a cardboard cut-out was Ananna. What I appreciated about her was she was smart, and the attention the narrative took to detail actually proved that.
The ending is another thing I can appreciate. I almost wish more authors would endeavour to end things this way, instead of neatly tying everything up, because when it's neat, everything important has to happen in the first book. The romance has to all come together, leaving little time for a proper build, so that the book can end with a kiss. But it isn't just the romance that needs time; some things aren't so quick a fix, and I really enjoy the journey in general, thus I appreciate that the curse wasn't tidied up in one book. It's refreshing, especially since nothing here felt like filler. It was all necessary, and entertaining.
That said, if this book didn't have its well-researched charm of detail and immersion, it probably would've received three stars. It's really nothing special character-wise. I found Naji's magic fascinating, but he's a boring character. In Leila we're treated to the former-lover archetype (ugh), and she's a jerk. Fun. Of course, Naji has to moon over her like a love-struck five year old. The wizard at the end? Even less imaginative. When he revealed the "three impossible tasks," I groaned out loud. Seriously? (A sentiment Naji shared in his next line of dialogue, to my amusement.) Marjani was interesting, and I enjoyed the details of navigation and the activities on the ship, but she didn't really stand out. Really the only character who wasn't a cardboard cut-out was Ananna. What I appreciated about her was she was smart, and the attention the narrative took to detail actually proved that.