Review: The Rose & The Dagger

Title:  The Rose & The Dagger
Author:  Renee Ahdieh
Series:  The Wrath & The Dawn (#2)
Rating:  5/5

Summary:

The darker the sky, the brighter the stars.

In a land on the brink of war, Shahrzad is forced from the arms of her beloved husband, the Caliph of Khorasan. She once thought Khalid a monster—a merciless killer of wives, responsible for immeasurable heartache and pain—but as she unraveled his secrets, she found instead an extraordinary man and a love she could not deny. Still, a curse threatens to keep Shazi and Khalid apart forever.

Now she’s reunited with her family, who have found refuge in the desert, where a deadly force is gathering against Khalid—a force set on destroying his empire and commanded by Shazi’s spurned childhood sweetheart. Trapped between loyalties to those she loves, the only thing Shazi can do is act. Using the burgeoning magic within her as a guide, she strikes out on her own to end both this terrible curse and the brewing war once and for all. But to do it, she must evade enemies of her own to stay alive.

The saga that began with The Wrath and the Dawn takes its final turn as Shahrzad risks everything to find her way back to her one true love again.

Review:

Oh my god, this series!!

I don't go for retellings very often, unless it's Alice in Wonderland related, but this is definitely my exception.  I can't decide who I love more in this story: Shahrzad, Irsa, or Khalid.  One of my favorite aspects of this story though is the introduction of the close family bond between Shazi and Irsa.  I would say I envy their bond as sisters, but I'm probably just as close if not closer with my own sister.

And the curse!  And all the magic!

I don't know how to review this book without giving away important plot aspects.  Shazi's relationship with Khalid is something I dream of, they fit together so perfectly and balance each other.  The country is in turmoil and the evil uncle is almost as bad as the mislead father.

I also approve of the ending.  It will rip your heart out first though, just warning you.  For once I approve of an epilogue thought!

Go Read This Series!!

Review: Written in the Stars

Title:  Written in the Stars
Author:  Aisha Saeed
Rating:  4/5

Summary:

This heart-wrenching novel explores what it is like to be thrust into an unwanted marriage. Has Naila’s fate been written in the stars? Or can she still make her own destiny?

Naila’s conservative immigrant parents have always said the same thing: She may choose what to study, how to wear her hair, and what to be when she grows up—but they will choose her husband. Following their cultural tradition, they will plan an arranged marriage for her. And until then, dating—even friendship with a boy—is forbidden. 

When Naila breaks their rule by falling in love with Saif, her parents are livid. Convinced she has forgotten who she truly is, they travel to Pakistan to visit relatives and explore their roots. But Naila’s vacation turns into a nightmare when she learns that plans have changed—her parents have found her a husband and they want her to marry him, now! Despite her greatest efforts, Naila is aghast to find herself cut off from everything and everyone she once knew. Her only hope of escape is Saif . . . if he can find her before it’s too late.

Review:

I think it's obvious by now that I love cultural based books, especially when they revolve around family.  This one, while not one of my favorites, was rather well written and the family dynamic was fantastic, as well as the center of the plot.

Naila (and I cannot seem to settle on a pronunciation of her name in my head), is a bright young Pakistani-American teenager who has her whole life in front of her, until her parents take it away in the worst way you can imagine.

In the summary it says that Naila's parents found her a husband in Pakistan, that is an incredibly watered-down version of the events of the second half of the book.  Naila is thrown away like a dog who couldn't behave.  

Arranged marriages are not uncommon in this world, but this one is described in a detail that shocks people like me, someone who has never seen it first hand.  Many times they work out, but just as many times they do not, and this is a devastating example of when family pushes too far.

Diverse Young Adult Books & Fiction

I have a craving for diverse books.  By this I mean that I love books set in different countries with characters who come from different cultures than my own.  They are indeed hard to find though.

The following are some of my favorites in these genres:

Veil of Roses - Laura Fitzgerald

An Iranian-American in the United States of the first time

Dreaming in English - Laura Fitzgerald

An Iranian-American trying to stay in the United States with the man she loves

One True Theory of Love - Laura Fitzgerald

An American woman and her child are courted by an Iranian-American man

  

Written in the Stars - Aisha Saeed

American born and raised girl of Pakastani descent is forced back into a culture she has never known, having grown up in Florida

The Wrath & the Dawn - Renee Ahdieh

Twist on Arabian Nights

When the Emperor Was Divine - Julie Otsuka

A Japanese-American family put in an internment camp in the United States during World War II

Any suggestions for more fiction taking place in other cultures?  Or other cultures existing in the United States?  I have such a hard time finding decent ones.