Reviewed by Suz @ Bookish Revelations on
Oh my, MALEK!
I love this character so hardcore, it's hard to even put into words how much love I have for him. I know that he's written to be an evil no-good-villain, but there are things about him that I personally don't feel make him one through and through especially when you find out the big revelation about him that he's parjinn, which is half jinni and half human. It helps to explain a lot about his character, how hard he has to work in order to tamper down the evil side of himself that he's dealing with, and all of the reasons why he's treated Nalia the way that he has. It doesn't give him an out for being an abusive asshole, but it does explain a great deal why he's such a dark, complicated, and twisted character with many facets and flaws that make him one of my favorite characters in the book. I genuinely do believe that Malek does love Nalia and he does have a soft spot for her, a weakness, if you will and it's not just about ownership and trade.
If it weren't for his dark background and the heavy baggage that he carries around with him, I really do think that he would be a pretty decent guy. He has pretty much all of the qualities that I like in a man, he's tall, dark, handsome, sexy in a dangerously alluring way, and a little bit deceptive with a dash of vulnerability. Let's just say that he's the reason that I enjoyed this book so much and I found myself missing him in scenes where he wasn't involved. I wanted more of him, more of his story, more about his father and his mother and more about how he came to be who he is. Plus, I wanted more of him and Nalia, I wish she would have truly given him a fighting chance although I can see why she wouldn't want to. He did purchase her off of the Dark Caravan, who sells jinni's on the black market and kept her as a slave for years.
Nalia is a feisty little vixen, who is an incredibly strong heroine that will stop at nothing to free herself, in order to get back to Arjinna to save her little brother from the prisoner camp that he's being held captive in. She has so much heart and determination, that it's hard not to fall in love with her. She's quite likable and very easy to connect with on an emotional basis, it's not hard to feel for a jinni who is one of the last of her kind that's been sold into slavery against her will and hunted down by the Ifrit, the dark jinn that defeated her kind and slaughtered her family in front of her. Filled with anger fueled by a desire to be free of her bonds to Malek, she will absolutely stop at nothing to protect the people that she cares about with a fierceness that commands respect. I'm just gonna say it, she's exquisitely kickass and a pretty phenomenally well developed character with shades of flaws and love coursing through her veins. It's heartbreaking, watching her take on the burden of the slaughter that took place in Arjinna. I wanted to take her in my arms and hug her tightly, because this is a war that was long brewing before she ever had any part in it.
Exquisite Captive, is brimming with politics and an intriguing caste-system, that you can't help but marvel at how well Demetrios developed it. Nalia is the princess, the heir to the throne, that was overturned by the dark jinn (the Ifrit), and Raif is Djan, another caste that is beneath her kind. Nalia's kind have withheld valuable elemental training that would benefit other caste's below her own and Raif vehemently hates her kind for that very thing. He's the leader of the Arginnian revolution that's been fighting against this kind of corruption for ages. He has the burden of an entire nation on his shoulders and it's hard not to feel for him, as he's introduced further into the story. On first impressions alone, he absolutely hates Nalia for everything she represents in Arjinna, and the feeling is quite mutual between the two. Raif knows that he needs Nalia, if he's going to accomplish what he's been fighting for all his life and Nalia can't deny that she needs his help in freeing her from the bonds of control that Malek holds over her, so the two of them make a deal even though neither really trusts the other.
Once I realized that Raif's purpose in the book didn't just solely revolve around a love triangle, I was able to really enjoy his character quite a bit. He's a wonderful hero and a great addition to the story, once he and Nalia were able to look past their differences and start understanding where one another came from, I started finding the time these two spent together endearing and a lot of fun to read. There's more to his character than what's on the outside and I found it quite interesting to see Demetrios delve into that and explore who he is a little more and the fact that he has the hopes and dreams of a new future for an entire nation weighing him down made it incredibly hard not to like him. He's strong, passionate about what he knows he has to do in order to protect the world he comes from and the people he loves, and determined to stop at nothing to carry out his role as leader of the Arjinnian revolution.
The world building is richly captivating and vibrantly imaginative, as the characters themselves. Heather Demetrois, really out did herself when creating a world set within another world and centering around jinni's. There were moments, where I found myself reading exqusitely beautiful passages that reminded me of Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy. So for anyone who enjoys fantasy and mythology of this proportion, you are sure to enjoy this book. I highly recommend it, as it was such a fantastically captivating read.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 19 July, 2014: Finished reading
- 19 July, 2014: Reviewed