"Lo-Melkhiin is a good man."

This book exceeded my expectations. It read like a fairytale, and I found myself unable to put it down.

Lo-Melkhiin was once a good man, but is now possessed by something, a demon, and alien, a ghost... No one really knows for sure. He takes a wife, keeps her until she mysteriously passes away, and then immediately takes his next one. For the men of his kingdom, giving up a daughter has become a necessary sacrifice, Lo-Melkhiin is a good kind after all, who keeps peace in the kingdom. For the women however, what Lo-Melkhiin asks is a much greater sacrifice, they live in constant fear of losing their daughter, their sister, or even of being chosen as Lo-Melkhiin's wife. They live in fear until one day, a woman decides she would rather sacrifice herself than lose her sister.

Lo-Melkhiins' wife is the best kind of hero. The kind of hero who makes mistakes, who is selfish, but is ultimately still the hero of the story. She is so refreshingly different than the queen from the original 1001 nights. She marries Lo-Melkhiin knowing full well that she won't live long, but still tries to survive, not only for herself, but to spare her sister and any other woman who might fall victim to her husband after she's gone.

This book was intelligent and interesting, it was more than what I've come to expect from YA, and normally I wouldn't have even picked it up. I'm oh so very glad I did.