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chronicallybookish's Reviews (1.53k)
Quick Stats
Age Rating: 14+
Overall: 4 stars
Characters: 4/5
Plot: 4/5
Setting: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
I enjoyed this book, but I was also extremely confused for about 90% of it. Even having finished it, I still don’t fully understand what the hell happened. I think that someone smarter than me would be completely obsessed.
I absolutely adored Cee’s character and story. I was hooked by her and really felt drawn in and connected to her character. With Kasey, I had a bit of a harder time. She’s quite obviously autistic-coded, and at first I was like “heck yeah! ND/disability rep!” and then her story progressed… and it started to seem like maybe her being autistic was not a good thing. I went back and forth about that pretty much every chapter of hers. I’m not fully sure what I decided. Since I’m not autistic, I don’t think it’s my place to decide at all.
I was definitely on the edge of my seat. I was confused, but the kind of confused that kept me reading instead of causing me to DNF. This book was such a mind twist, I just wish I could fully understand it.
Age Rating: 14+
Overall: 4 stars
Characters: 4/5
Plot: 4/5
Setting: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
I enjoyed this book, but I was also extremely confused for about 90% of it. Even having finished it, I still don’t fully understand what the hell happened. I think that someone smarter than me would be completely obsessed.
I absolutely adored Cee’s character and story. I was hooked by her and really felt drawn in and connected to her character. With Kasey, I had a bit of a harder time. She’s quite obviously autistic-coded, and at first I was like “heck yeah! ND/disability rep!” and then her story progressed… and it started to seem like maybe her being autistic was not a good thing. I went back and forth about that pretty much every chapter of hers. I’m not fully sure what I decided. Since I’m not autistic, I don’t think it’s my place to decide at all.
I was definitely on the edge of my seat. I was confused, but the kind of confused that kept me reading instead of causing me to DNF. This book was such a mind twist, I just wish I could fully understand it.
3 stars
~
The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh is an Arabian Nights retelling that follows Shahrzad as she marries the Caliph Khalid, a tyrant that has been taking a new bride each night and killing them come sunrise. But Shazi has a plan: Survive, by telling a story each night, never finishing until the next night, and then kill him, claiming revenge for her best friend Shiva, one of his previous brides.
~
*MILD SPOILERS AHEAD*
~
Overall, I did enjoy this book. There were, however, a few things I had a problem with:
1. How instalove-y the romance felt, especially because of the circumstances. Khalid killed her best friend, as well as near a hundred other girls. Shahrzad goes into the marriage with the intent to kill him, but within like, two weeks she’s kissing him, falling in love with him, and no longer sure she will be able to kill him. TWO WEEKS! In this time, we barely get to see any of his personality. We don’t know him. All we know is that he’s guarded, and he’s hot. Basically, Shazi decides to give up on her mission because of lust? I know that it’s supposed to be “true love” but it still feels… unrealistic.
2. Tariq. Something about his character just rubbed me the wrong way. He seemed, to me, like an arrogant fool, but also a very shallow character. His main character trait seems to be that he’s in love with Shahrzad. Being in love with someone isn’t a character trait. I feel like his entire story line, and that of the rebellion was just a bit flat. Underdeveloped. There were a lot of interesting opportunities that could have been taken but weren’t. I would have liked to know more about the nomadic tribesmen. We really only met one of them. I also found it odd that Omar was willing to help Tariq and his rebellion. They never really discussed why he would risk his life, and, more importantly, the lives of his family and tribe, to help Tariq. Even just giving shelter would be treason. What’s in it for him? Is it just the land? To me, that doesn’t seem like enough incentive. I’m hoping some of this is addressed in the second book.
3. The magic system in this book. What IS it even? We know nothing. We know that there is magic, that it runs in some people’s blood, and that, presumably, it is hereditary as both Shazi and her father have it. Again, I assume this will be covered in the sequel, but I still feel like it was quite insufficiently covered in the first book. I feel like there should have been at least a foundation for the magic system layed out.
4. Overall, the side characters and subplots just felt dry and underdeveloped to me. Very one dimensional. Many of them lacked real motive, and those who had a motive lacked a personality outside of their motive.
5. The plot. I couldn’t really follow a plot at all. I thought the plot was going to be about Shahrzad trying to kill Khalid, but that went out the window fairly quickly. Then I thought, oh! They’re going to try to break the curse! Even though I thought it odd that the story goal would be fully introduced so late in the book. They didn’t even try to break the curse. They didn’t brainstorm how to break the curse. Things kept happening, sure, but they didn’t really move the plot forward in a way that I could follow. I guess that means this is a more character-driven novel? But I wasn’t all that connected to the characters, either. Not Shazi, not Khalid. I think I was rooting for Despina the most. That’s not to say that Shazi and Khalid were poorly-written characters. I think they were fine. For a fantasy story, they were pretty average. But most fantasy stories are driven by plot.
Now, at this point, you’re probably wondering, Kaley, what did you like about this book? The writing itself, for one. I really enjoyed how it was written. The flow of it was beautiful, and for me, that is critical to how much I enjoy a book. I also did enjoy the romance aspect later on in the book, once I got over the instalove factor.
And I love Despina’s character. I feel for her so much. To be in the position she’s in? She would have to be so scared, but she stands tall and doesn’t let it bring her down.
That’s it for my thoughts on The Wrath and the Dawn. I’d love to hear your thoughts! Where do you agree? Where do you disagree?
~
The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh is an Arabian Nights retelling that follows Shahrzad as she marries the Caliph Khalid, a tyrant that has been taking a new bride each night and killing them come sunrise. But Shazi has a plan: Survive, by telling a story each night, never finishing until the next night, and then kill him, claiming revenge for her best friend Shiva, one of his previous brides.
~
*MILD SPOILERS AHEAD*
~
Overall, I did enjoy this book. There were, however, a few things I had a problem with:
1. How instalove-y the romance felt, especially because of the circumstances. Khalid killed her best friend, as well as near a hundred other girls. Shahrzad goes into the marriage with the intent to kill him, but within like, two weeks she’s kissing him, falling in love with him, and no longer sure she will be able to kill him. TWO WEEKS! In this time, we barely get to see any of his personality. We don’t know him. All we know is that he’s guarded, and he’s hot. Basically, Shazi decides to give up on her mission because of lust? I know that it’s supposed to be “true love” but it still feels… unrealistic.
2. Tariq. Something about his character just rubbed me the wrong way. He seemed, to me, like an arrogant fool, but also a very shallow character. His main character trait seems to be that he’s in love with Shahrzad. Being in love with someone isn’t a character trait. I feel like his entire story line, and that of the rebellion was just a bit flat. Underdeveloped. There were a lot of interesting opportunities that could have been taken but weren’t. I would have liked to know more about the nomadic tribesmen. We really only met one of them. I also found it odd that Omar was willing to help Tariq and his rebellion. They never really discussed why he would risk his life, and, more importantly, the lives of his family and tribe, to help Tariq. Even just giving shelter would be treason. What’s in it for him? Is it just the land? To me, that doesn’t seem like enough incentive. I’m hoping some of this is addressed in the second book.
3. The magic system in this book. What IS it even? We know nothing. We know that there is magic, that it runs in some people’s blood, and that, presumably, it is hereditary as both Shazi and her father have it. Again, I assume this will be covered in the sequel, but I still feel like it was quite insufficiently covered in the first book. I feel like there should have been at least a foundation for the magic system layed out.
4. Overall, the side characters and subplots just felt dry and underdeveloped to me. Very one dimensional. Many of them lacked real motive, and those who had a motive lacked a personality outside of their motive.
5. The plot. I couldn’t really follow a plot at all. I thought the plot was going to be about Shahrzad trying to kill Khalid, but that went out the window fairly quickly. Then I thought, oh! They’re going to try to break the curse! Even though I thought it odd that the story goal would be fully introduced so late in the book. They didn’t even try to break the curse. They didn’t brainstorm how to break the curse. Things kept happening, sure, but they didn’t really move the plot forward in a way that I could follow. I guess that means this is a more character-driven novel? But I wasn’t all that connected to the characters, either. Not Shazi, not Khalid. I think I was rooting for Despina the most. That’s not to say that Shazi and Khalid were poorly-written characters. I think they were fine. For a fantasy story, they were pretty average. But most fantasy stories are driven by plot.
Now, at this point, you’re probably wondering, Kaley, what did you like about this book? The writing itself, for one. I really enjoyed how it was written. The flow of it was beautiful, and for me, that is critical to how much I enjoy a book. I also did enjoy the romance aspect later on in the book, once I got over the instalove factor.
And I love Despina’s character. I feel for her so much. To be in the position she’s in? She would have to be so scared, but she stands tall and doesn’t let it bring her down.
That’s it for my thoughts on The Wrath and the Dawn. I’d love to hear your thoughts! Where do you agree? Where do you disagree?
*spoilers*
I am... so conflicted. I liked the book. And I didn’t like it. I liked the way it ended, honestly. I’m a sucker for the mushy everything is perfect happily ever afters, but for this book, I think the ending was perfect. Things don’t really go the way you wanted them to, but there was still an air of hope and satisfaction.
I am... so conflicted. I liked the book. And I didn’t like it. I liked the way it ended, honestly. I’m a sucker for the mushy everything is perfect happily ever afters, but for this book, I think the ending was perfect. Things don’t really go the way you wanted them to, but there was still an air of hope and satisfaction.
Thank you so much to PenguinTeen and NetGalley for an ARC! All opinions are my own
Quick Stats
Overall: 3.5 stars
Characters: 3.5/5
Plot: 3/5
Writing: 5/5
~
I kept going back and forth on this one. Joy McCullough is a beautiful writer. The subject matter was so important. The addition of historical fiction and how Marguerite’s story is woven in was phenomenal. But I could not get myself to like Em.
I loved pretty much every other character—Sometimes Jess felt a bit immature to me. I felt like they were melodramatic at times. But Marianne drove me crazy. She was so selfish and self-righteous. Her character had a lot of potential for growth, but I feel as if she just regressed. Every thing that happened to her resulted in her lashing out overdramatically and immaturely. I understand she was struggling with trauma, but it was hard to read without getting annoyed. Also, I think she snapped out of it way too easily and suddenly. Within like one chapter towards the end she did a 180, and honestly? I feel like in reality, she probably would have needed a lot of therapy to get to that point at all, let alone in a 24 hour span.
The plot started out really strong. I was swept away and read the first 60% in one sitting. Seeing the way everyone was handling what happened to Nor differently, getting to know Jess, and getting led into Marguerite’s story was really well done and absorbing. I loved how Jess took Em to medieval sword fighting lessons. And I honestly couldn’t get enough of the writing itself. Plus, as someone who lives in Western Washington, all of the references to Seattle were fun. I now really want to visit that Illuminated Texts exhibit after COVID is over.
However, at about that 60% mark, Em started shutting everyone out and only writing Marguerite’s story. Don’t get me wrong, Marguerite’s story was one of my favorite parts of the novel, but it very suddenly took over and the actual plot of the book just completely dropped off the radar for several chapters. It was a very sudden change from mostly Em to mostly Marguerite and kind of made it hard to stay interested in the book for a while.
It did end strongly, if a little unrealistically.
I would still recommend giving this book a shot if it sounds up your alley, it just wasn’t for me.
Quick Stats
Overall: 3.5 stars
Characters: 3.5/5
Plot: 3/5
Writing: 5/5
~
I kept going back and forth on this one. Joy McCullough is a beautiful writer. The subject matter was so important. The addition of historical fiction and how Marguerite’s story is woven in was phenomenal. But I could not get myself to like Em.
I loved pretty much every other character—Sometimes Jess felt a bit immature to me. I felt like they were melodramatic at times. But Marianne drove me crazy. She was so selfish and self-righteous. Her character had a lot of potential for growth, but I feel as if she just regressed. Every thing that happened to her resulted in her lashing out overdramatically and immaturely. I understand she was struggling with trauma, but it was hard to read without getting annoyed. Also, I think she snapped out of it way too easily and suddenly. Within like one chapter towards the end she did a 180, and honestly? I feel like in reality, she probably would have needed a lot of therapy to get to that point at all, let alone in a 24 hour span.
The plot started out really strong. I was swept away and read the first 60% in one sitting. Seeing the way everyone was handling what happened to Nor differently, getting to know Jess, and getting led into Marguerite’s story was really well done and absorbing. I loved how Jess took Em to medieval sword fighting lessons. And I honestly couldn’t get enough of the writing itself. Plus, as someone who lives in Western Washington, all of the references to Seattle were fun. I now really want to visit that Illuminated Texts exhibit after COVID is over.
However, at about that 60% mark, Em started shutting everyone out and only writing Marguerite’s story. Don’t get me wrong, Marguerite’s story was one of my favorite parts of the novel, but it very suddenly took over and the actual plot of the book just completely dropped off the radar for several chapters. It was a very sudden change from mostly Em to mostly Marguerite and kind of made it hard to stay interested in the book for a while.
It did end strongly, if a little unrealistically.
I would still recommend giving this book a shot if it sounds up your alley, it just wasn’t for me.
