Reviewed by Silvara on
This is and is not, a love triangle. In one sense it is, because two men are after the same woman (Nalia). But it also isn't, because Nalia only loves one of them. And it isn't her abusive master. She's a little confused at first, because she was taken into slavery as a 15 year old who had never loved or had a relationship before. But mostly she hates Malek. And with good reason.
I liked how strong Nalia was. She lived years in captivity with an abusive owner, forced to grant wishes for his business contacts. Otherwise she was banished to her bottle which was lined in iron. And iron is poison to Jinni. But it didn't break her. She feels guilt for her part in what happened to her people (and yes, you do find out what she did, eventually...) but she's focused on getting back to her world to save her little brother. She's brave, and grows a lot as a character over the course of the book.
I liked Raif, he changes a lot through the book, just like Nalia does. There's a huge weight on his shoulders as the leader of the revolution. And he's young. His only living family being his sister and mother. He starts out hating Nalia for what she is, but that eventually changes once he see's what she's really like, not what he believes her to be.
Malek is the perfect villain. The kind you love to hate. He's abusive, and seems to have multiple personality disorder, as one moment he's evil and cruel. And the next moment he's almost sweet and loving. The reason is explained later in the book, and makes perfect sense. But even once you know why he's bad, you don't hate him any less.
There's a lot of world-building in this book. Lots of customs and lore, but not to the point where it ever seems too much. I really loved this book, and can hardly wait for the next one to be out!
This review was originally posted on Fantasy of the Silver Dragon
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 10 October, 2014: Finished reading
- 10 October, 2014: Reviewed