Overall Rating: 3.5 stars
Date Finished: August 7, 2016
I admit that upon reading the book summary, I wasn’t overly
excited for this book. And then I read a review that said this was basically a
female Vlad the Impaler! And suddenly I couldn’t wait to pick it up. One of my
biggest complaints with most YA is the weak female leads and this promised a
dark, cruel, and strong female lead.
And that is definitely what it delivered. Lada was strong
and cruel and dark and she came to despise her role of a woman in a man’s
world. She fights tooth and nail for any bit of power and freedom she can get. And
in doing so, she ends up pushing away the people that she cares about most. Some
people may complain about that aspect of her, the cruelty toward others and how
she ends up basically alienating herself. But I felt that that was part of what
made her feel so real as a character. She is trying to understand her place in
the world and fight her way to the top, and of course in doing so she is going
to push people away. It is logical that someone who closes her heart in order
to protect herself will then struggle to have meaningful relationships with
other people.
The one issue that I had with Lada was her relationship with
Mehmed. I understand the draw and the attraction and I understand that
similarities that draw them together but I have trouble have a real romance
with a man who already has a harem of wives. I get that Lada means more to him
than any of the other women but that doesn’t change the fact that he goes to
them, that he has children with them, and that she will never be the only one
for him.
The other women try to teach her how to gain power through a
husband and using her body and Lada comes to the point where she has to make a
decision. She has feelings for Mehmed but can she really be herself while she’s
at his side. She becomes torn because he makes her feel female for the first
time and she enjoys that, and yet she is unwilling to give up her own dreams.
In the end, I don’t feel the like romance could ever work
out in a way that would allow Lada to truly be who she is and I feel like she
set aside her own dreams because she was afraid of being alone. Because she
knew that no one else could ever love her for who she is the way Mehmed does.
And I agree with the decision she makes in the end.
Radu was another conundrum. I liked him as a character but
at the same time I became so frustrated with how needy he was all the time. I
understand that he is just as much a product of how he was raised as Lada is
and that his lack of affection growing up makes him crave it, but in the end
his desperation makes him harder to like. He’s smart and intelligent and he’s
found a place for himself in this new kingdom, so why can’t he ever find peace.
Why must he always pine after what he can’t have when there is so much more
within his reach? I think I just wanted more from his as a character.
Overall, the book was a very good read. There were some
interesting dynamics in the characters and their ever evolving relationships
and more than anything is was dark and gritty and holds nothing back, and in
the end that made it all that more real.
No comments:
Post a Comment