My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was good, it was really good. I'm surprised, but I don't remember why I thought it would be disappointing.
When this book first came out I remember deciding it had an amazing cover, but was going to be terrible. Maybe someone told me they didn't like it. Maybe I had just read that awful Aladdin retelling and couldn't handle picking up anything even remotely similar. Maybe I got it confused with something else.
Honestly, I'm not even sure now why I decided to give it a shot, I don't think I'd ever even read the jacket flap.
Anyway, I love the hinted Arabian Nights theme throughout the story that was lovely without being overt. Why do authors feel like they have to re-write great works? Alluding to them is much more magical.
In the story we have Shahrzad, a girl whose best friend has been killed by the villainous king after he married her, as he has done with dozens of other girls. He marries them, and the next morning he kills them. She is determined to stop it from happening, but killing him.
Khalid's life is filled with secrets, which he plans to let no one in on, and his first faltering step is with Shahrzad. It is sweet. Actually, I loved the romance in this whole story. Just when it got too adorable, reality would strike and they would WORK THROUGH IT ... I mean, color me shocked. This is a YA book, I didn't think that happened.
The world building was beautiful, the descriptions tangible, and the character development for the two main characters was detailed. The secondary characters were a little transparent and sometimes the plot rushed or gapped, but these were all things I was willing to overlook.
Moral of the story is, I loved the book and am looking forward to reading the sequel (which, knowing me, is actually impressive, as I rarely get to book 2 in any series).
Keep reading my friends - Lizz
This review is also published at www.lizzinbookland.com
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