Publication: May 12th 2015 by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Source: Library Book
Goodreads Summary: One Life to One Dawn.
In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad's dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph's reign of terror once and for all.
Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she'd imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It's an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid's life as retribution for the many lives he's stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?
Inspired by A Thousand and One Nights, The Wrath and the Dawn is a sumptuous and enthralling read from beginning to end.
Goodreads Page
My Thoughts:
I absolutely loved this book. It's definitely going to be in my top 3 favorites for this year, if not my number 1 favorite. The first time I picked this up, I got through the prologue and couldn't manage to get past the first chapter. The strange names and salutations were difficult for me to keep track of and I just wasn't in the mood for a heavier book at the time. I am so glad that I decided to pick this back up and to finish it.
As with most everyone, I haven't read the book this is inspired by "A Thousand and One Nights/The Arabian Nights," and I probably won't read it simply because I don't want to take away any of the feelings I have for this story or to feel the need to compare it with its inspiration.
I loved the characters. Sharhzad is exactly my favorite female character. If you've read some of my past reviews, you would know that I love strong female leads. I connect with them; I cheer them on; I lend my heart to their plots. They're so much better than weaker main characters who typically victimize themselves (*cough* like Laia in "An Ember in the Ashes" *cough*). Sharhzad was headstrong, but loving, cunning and intelligent, fearless as she is so often noted to be by her fellow characters. I loved her.
Khalid intrigued me from the start. He has a bit of a Byronic-hero-type feel to him, which I am admittedly partial to. He was complex the entire time and it was amazing to see parts of him revealed as I read. Even though we already knew a bit of his secret, I still felt like Sharhzad when he would seem to open up, then quickly pull away, leaving me frustrated. His characterization was kept complex throughout the book, and he always surprised me how he chose to handle events and his reactions. Probably the most interesting character for me.
The side characters were also pretty interesting but I did find myself a bit frustrated when the focus would shift from Sharhzad and Khalid to another character in the book. Although that's probably mostly because I am a romance fiend and love reading about it. Anyway, I loved Jalal as well and would've loved to see even more of him in the book. Despina, Sharhzad's maid, was annoying though in my opinion and I could've done without her and all of her circumspect answers.
The plot was paced pretty well. A little slow in the beginning for me and I did find it difficult to keep everybody's name and titles straight. It's something I always struggle with when characters don't have typical names though and eventually I figured everybody out; but it did take me about a third of the book in to realize General and Captain Al-Khoury were two different people and father and son. I also was confused a couple times with some of the action elements such as an incident that happens near the beginning with Sharhzad and the General. Khalid's reaction left me confused and the scene is a little muddy as to who did what at the time. There's also some magic elements added in that weren't really explored that I would've liked to have seen more about, but I'm sure they'll be explored more in the sequel which I cannot wait for.
I loved the romance. I loved watching it develop and twist and turn. I loved watching the characters struggle with their feelings and finding their loyalties turned. I always appreciate romance such as that because I think it's one of the most realistic, and I definitely became attached to the characters and invested in their stories. The terms of endearment, their interactions, I loved it all.
There are so many things that I could talk about with this, from the romance to parts of the plot, but they would all give away spoilers. Suffice it to say, this is one of the best books I've ever read in the young adult genre, and I cannot wait for the sequel!
Likes: The characters! Sharhzad, Khalid, Jalal. Plot kept me interested the entire time. The development of the romance. *swoon* Sharhzad's stories.
Dislikes: The names and titles were difficult to keep straight. Despina was annoying for me, as well as Jahandar.
Overall:
Recommend? YES! It's not for everyone but if you don't mind a bit of heavier reading (i.e. the different names/titles), then I would definitely recommend it.
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