Rating: 3.5 Stars
Publication: May 14th, 2019
Genre: Fantasy
Format: ARC
Diversity: POC MC
Quick Summary:
Zafira is the Hunter, disguising herself as a man when she braves the cursed forest of the Arz to feed her people. Nasir is the Prince of Death, assassinating those foolish enough to defy his autocratic father, the king. If Zafira was exposed as a girl, all of her achievements would be rejected, and if Nasir displayed his compassion his father would punish him in the most brutal of ways. Both are legends in the kingdom of Arawiya, but neither wants to be. War is brewing, and the Arz sweeps closer with each passing day, engulfing the land in shadow. When Zafira embarks on a quest to uncover a lost artifact that can restore magic to her suffering world and stop the Arz while Nasir is sent by the king on a similar mission to retrieve the artifact, and kill the Hunter. But an ancient evil stirs as their journey unfolds and the prize they seek may pose a threat greater than either can imagine.
My Thoughts:
Zafira was both resourceful and caring. I thought it was nice of her to hunt for the western villages without wanting anything in return. I absolutely adored Deen and his pure heart. He's just so sweet to Zafira I cant help but want them together. I liked Zafiras sister Lana and her best friend Yasmine. I wish we spent more time with them. I also really enjoyed the heartwarming moment Zafira has with her mother. As for our second main character, crown prince Nasir, I loved how layered he was. I really felt for him and understood where he was coming from with a cruel father like the sultan. The romantic attraction happened a little too quickly in my opinion, but I didnt dislike it. I did enjoy Nasirs complex relationship with the general Altair. It was funny how they pretended not to care and kept picking on each other. We also get to meet some awesome new side characters on their journey.
I found the pace very slow with only a few exciting scenes sprinkled throughout. The story really needed more tension and high stakes action to balance out all the self reflection and inner monologue. I noticed a few inconsistencies while reading, one of them being how Zafira mentions Nasir and Altair being similar, but then says they're complete opposites a few chapters later. Another inconsistency was Zafira going from clearly not having a bedroll to suddenly having one without any explanation. Besides the inconsistencies, I had some issues with how often mind reading happened without anyone having telepathy. It possible to read someones facial expressions and body language, but it seemed a little extreme at times. I also wasnt sure about Zafira showing herself as a woman to the caliph when leaving since it could make things worse for women if she doesnt make it back. These small issues could have been fixed in the final copy though.
The quest to return magic wasnt anything new, but the rich Ancient Arabian inspired world added a compelling layer to the story. We get a detailed history full of magic and fascinating beings like ifrits, kaftar, and safins. The Silver Witch was also very interesting and I enjoyed learning more about her. I wish the different types of magic were explored in more depth but I think we will get more of that in the sequel. The plot is pretty straight forward so there werent many big reveals. The ones we did get I mostly saw coming, but there were a couple at the end that really took me by surprise. The book is filled with themes about conquering fear, discovering yourself, and taking identity into your own hands. As for the writing, I thought it did a fantastic job of bringing the setting to life and had plenty of quotable lines. I was really hoping this would be a new favorite, but if you enjoy stories with a heavy focus on internal conflict you might like it even more than I did.
*This book was received for an honest review
*My summaries are often a shortened version of the goodreads summary
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