We love sapphics with swords.

Definitely glad I finally picked it up and I eagerly await reading the next book. Definitely dragged a little in the middle (like most long books do) but I enjoyed it regardless.

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Immersive

Loved the story, was there from start to finish. Due to life situations I had to stop at one point in the last third... As soon as I had time to pick it up again it was like I hadn't stopped. Amazing writing and a pleasure to listen to!

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Splendid Fantasy World

This is a comprehensive and fascinating fantasy world whose 'gods' are very close to nature. It appears to be a struggle between the mystical mother world and the angry and misogynistic human world. The characters are intriguing and much of the tension is created by their attempts to forge alliances with each other. I'll be signing up soon for the sequel.

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Beautiful writing, fascinating world

The world building could use a little more explication but it’s design is unique and interesting. Great character dev and tension btw characters.

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good but not all that was promised

I found this book through tiktok following what felt like hundreds of videos about this novel which praised it well into the heavens. So, take this review with the knowledge that I may have gone into this book expecting too much.

I was expecting something like the Priory of the Orange Tree but set in a South Asian-esque kingdom. this is to say, Sapphic, full of multiple characters with full bodied histories and motivations, plentiful political fiction, rich bases of historirs, religions, cultures... it is not that these things were not there, only that none of them were particularly powerful.

Sapphic: my favourite genre of book involves powerful women falling in love with powerful women. These women show very little tenderness, care, or relationship development (imo) beyond what I might expect of a very hastily written YA novel. That us jot to say it is bad, just that it is less than what I thought I would get. I do not need sex scenes to fall in love with a relationship, but any modicum of affection would have been cool. Ergo: not really a Sapphic love story, more like a story which happens to have two women who like each other.

Respresentation: I am always very glad to see greater representation of gender, sexuality, race, and culture in the books I read. Recently I have even been specifically curating my reading list based on the idea of reading about characters who more accurately portray people like me. However, this book isn't really the miraculous portrayal of diversity, or even South-Asian race/ culture that i think it is being made out to be on tiktok. Several times we get references to the idea that darker skin is less beautiful (including naming the darker skinned women as not being beautiful and the princess, who is often described by the lightness of her skin, as being more beautiful). The characters are all people of colour, and that is definitely ( unfortunately) a feat in today's world, but in terms of sexuality, gender, or even just discussing differences thst could exist within the South-Asian-esque population, there isn't large diversity. There is, to my recollection, a singular mention of the idea of gender existing outside the binary. Women are consistently referred to as being lesser than men but jo one really does much about that, other than possibly leaning into the idea in order to gain power by being underestimated. I coukd go on but I'll just summarize to say that (while completely unnecessary to be a beacon of representation) this book is not the representation of a diverse swathe of people and their problems as it is being advertised. again, that's not to say it's bad, just iver-hyped i think.

political fiction: here us where I have an actual issue... 1. A lot of the story threads in this novel get dropped at random points only to be picked back up later. This ranges from a minor offense that doesn't really matter, to the reason that Priya is in a location straight up being ignored for chapters on end with absolutely no explanation. 2. a lot of the politics are very bland. Either the motivations / reactions don't make any sense (ie, a bunch of super sexist lords suddenly accepting a woman in power because... the plot demands it??) or it is so straight forward that it feels too obvious for the supposedly smart characters to have overlooked. This isn't necessarily bad but I would definitely put the politics in this book on par with the legal system in Harry Potter's world. So... its not really a political fiction book either.

religion: this aspect does give some points back. The usage of different religions in the book is cool and tge lore is rich. I wish it had been more, but I think that is just because the other stuff was lacking.

all in: this book is fine, good for listening to while cleaning the house maybe, but don't go in with super high expectations because I don't think you will end up being impressed. Probably would have been better for kids in grades 6 through 10.

Narrator was great, wish I'd been better able to differentiate between their character voices.

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I am a FAN

THIS is a damn good book. Interesting premise. Excellent characterization. Ends a good spot for a sequel. Eagerly await the next book!

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I'm so sad it's over!

Great characters, great world building, and so exciting to see South Asian representation in this genre.

I was glued to my headphones.

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An fresh, new brand of fantasy

So much of the fantasy genre is based on a euro-centric culture type. I very much enjoyed learning about this new world built on a framework of the ancient subcontinent. The characters are dynamic and compelling, and the story keeps you guessing without getting lost. I’m looking forward to book 2.

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A new favourite

Really enjoyed everything about the story the character the world building and pacing were easy to follow although I did have. Hard time with all the names an people. Looking forward to the next book.

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was NOT disappointed

I discovered this book through TikTok, the author was so excited about their book that I downloaded it immediately and let me tell you, they certainly had every reason to be excited and proud, this book is phenomenal.
As a writer myself I tend to pick apart books in terms of flow and word choice etc but I had no room to do so here. from as early as when Priya is (as far as we know) nothing but a maidservant I was hooked. the characters are compelling and well fleshed out, you really feel like you know them and care about them. the romance is tense and sweet and heart-wrenching... I cannot speak highly enough of the writing and it was made even better by the wonderful performance by Shiromi Arseiro. will definitely be looking out for that name for my next audiobook purchase

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