Merciful Crow by Margaret Owen Review

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Publication: July 30th, 2019

Genre: Fantasy

Format: ARC/Egalley

Diversity: LGBT+ SC

Goodreads

Summary:

Future chieftain Fie abides by one rule: look after your own. Her Crow caste of undertakers and mercy-killers takes more abuse than coin, but when they’re called to collect royal dead, she’s hoping they’ll find the payout of a lifetime. When Crown Prince Jasimir turns out to have faked his death, Fie’s ready to cut her losses, and perhaps his throat. But he offers a deal that she can’t refuse: protect him from a ruthless queen, and he’ll protect the Crows when he reigns. Hawk warrior Tavin has always put Jas’s life before his, magically assuming the prince’s appearance and shadowing his every step. But what happens when Tavin begins to want something to call his own?

My Thoughts:

I was expecting and would have loved to follow all three characters from the summary, but we only get the future crow chiefs point of view. Dont get me wrong I loved Fie and seeing the world through her eyes. Shes resourceful, intelligent, and isnt afraid to check the prince and his guards privilege. The prince Jasimir has some of the most realistic characterization Ive read in a while. His privileged way of thinking and prejudice didnt fade away after being questionned a couple times. It took weeks for small changes to start developping in him. His guard Tavin on the other hand was more receptive to the crows struggles. I think living in the shadows, prepared to die for his prince gave him a more open mind to how unjust the world can be. I really enjoyed seeing him start to believe he could have a life of his own.

I loved all the different types of relationships, like Fies bond with her father and her clan. Theres a power imbalance in Jasmir amd Tarvins friendship, but there were some emotional moments where I could really tell they cared for each other. We also get a cute romance that develops between Fie and Tarvin. The steamy scene was amazing, but the jump from not talking about how they felt to kissing was just the tiniest bit abrupt. Despite the progression of their relationship not being completely seamless, I still loved it with all my heart. I also really enjoyed seeing Fie and Jasmir get closer as he teaches her how to read and she answers his questions about some of the problems the crows face on a day to day basis.

I loved the worlds history and the casts with different magical abilities. Just to name a few, Sparrows can avoid detections, Vultures can track anyone, and Swans can manipulate desire. The way Crows can use teeth to borrow the other casts abilities was fascinating, but I still dont understand why Fie got all worked up about the pig bones. It also doesnt make sense that the queen would give them so many powerful teeth. We need more worlds where different queer identities are normalize like this one. I was so happy with the way Tarvins bisexuality was represented. I also appreciated the different types of identities represented like the gay prince, and Madcap, a non binary member of Fies clan. The characters were definitely one of my favorite parts of this book.

The entire book is spent traveling from one destination to another and it just got very repetitive after a while. Theres a sense of danger with them being chased by the queens nasty trackers and creepy ghouls, but the exciting moments werent compelling enough to keep me engaged until about the last third. I feel like their journey was longer than it needed to be and this could have been close to a 5 star read had it been edited down a little bit more. I really enjoyed the themes of prejudice and oppression. I personally think they were handle well. Ive seen the plot and the twists done before so I was able to predict them, but what really made this book stand out was the themes, the incredible characters and the memorable world. Im completely hooked and need the sequel immediately.

*This book was received for an honest review