Knight Assassin

by Rima Jean

• ISBN10: 1622666003
• ISBN13: 9781622666003
• Publish Date: 1 July 2014 (first published 4 March 2014)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Entangled
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 300
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

I received an ARC through NetGalley.

As far as assassin novels go, Knight Assassin is a tame one. Zayn is out for revenge on the man who murdered her mother and raped her, but there's not much to it other than that. She's trained to become an assassin because of her special gift, given a mission at court that will put her in the evil knight's path, and then that's that. I did like Knight Assassin, but I wanted more out of it, since it had a lot of great elements.

In the beginning, I was nervous and ready to be annoyed when real life religions (Islam and Christianity) were brought up. I was expecting High Fantasy, and I hate when real world stuff is used in the world building. However, upon further investigation, I learned that this is actually set in Syria and Jerusalem during the Crusades! That's pretty awesome! It's not a time period that I know a lot about, so it was interesting to read about it. It also helped me relax into the rape focused plot, since it was clearly not just a plot device, but a reality of the time.

While the historical setting is great, where Knight Assassin fell short was with the magical aspect. In the first chapter we learn that Zayn has super strength and speed because she's something more than human. She has trouble controlling her power, which earns her and her mother unwanted attention. Unfortunately, her powers are almost never used for anything or even talked about. She gets a burst of strength when it comes to execute her revenge kill, but that's it. It isn't until the last two chapters that we find out why she has these abilities, but by then it didn't matter, since the story was over. I think it would have been better to leave the magic out, since it was so underdeveloped and came across as just a way to make Zayn special.

I did like Knight Assassin, but I wish there had been more (or less) magic and more action. There are a few time jumps, so we don't get to see Zayn's assassin training or her settling into court life. This made it hard to ever completely engage in the story, since it would all of a sudden be months later with no recap of what happened in between. The random flashbacks also contributed to this, and those only seemed to serve as a way to develop the minor romance happening. So Knight Assassin is good, but not great. It's certainly unique and worth a read though.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[bookishzelda]

Historical fiction, Assassin's, some paranormal elements and a dash of romance. That’s how I would describe Knight Assassin by Rima Jean. Despite some pacing issues I really enjoyed the book.

Zayn is an amazing character to me. She goes through so much in the beginning of the book from being hated by the townsfolk, to what happens to her mother and to her. I have to say at one point my mouth fell open. After that she becomes awakened and fueled by the need for vengeance which is what leads her into the den of assassins and training to become one. I liked that she does a little self-discovery and her task and motivations change as the story progresses. We definitely see growth in Zayn as the book continues. As a woman she is oppressed in so many ways and yet she manages to rise above it.

I really enjoyed some the side characters. Especially Junaid, Earic and Marguerite. I think they definitely added to the story. I like a book that has good support like this. You are not solely invested in the MC and you want the other characters to end up fortunate in the end as well.

I admit I don’t know much about this part of the hemisphere during this era or the culture. Taking place in Syria under French rule. Zayn describes it as they are all serfs to the Franks. So it was very interesting to me in that respect. I don’t know what proper Islamic rituals are and things because religion does come to play a lot in this book. Especially concerning Zayn’s talents plus I think a lot of cultures are rooted in religion. So I enjoyed experiencing something that I don’t know well. I was trying to keep the terms straight in my head sometimes though. Okay so he is Saxon and she is Muslim/Saracen and that guy is...wait what was he. I liked when I’m in uncharted territory in a book. Where it peaks my interest enough that I start to look things up. Which is what this book did. There is also a handy map at the end. I’m like oh the Crusades makes sense even though I still didn’t know much.

The pacing of the story was not quite right for me. I enjoyed the plot and what it entailed but I felt that once Zayn was at the palace everything felt rushed. We spent so much time with her training but then the actual mission just seemed to happen too fast. It was like getting to a museum and finally making it the exhibit you really want to see and then you find out the museum is closing in ten minutes. I didn’t want less of this part of the book I wanted more or maybe have the passage of time in Marguerites court be longer. Towards the end of the book the pacing evened out again.

The story also mixes some of the present day with flashbacks of the past. In order for you to build a clearer picture of Zayn’s relationships with both her mother and Earic. As well as where she comes from. I really liked the reveals of the origin of Zayn’s power. I don’t want to give it away but I was happy with how it played out.

If you are fan of Grave Mercy (which I was) this a good book for you as well. It has somewhat similar theme of a woman assassin in an era where women are looked down. Although at times the pacing didn’t feel right for me. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters.