The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean – Book Review

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Out on the Yorkshire Moors lives a secret line of people for whom books are food, and who retain all of a book’s content after eating it. To them, spy novels are a peppery snack; romance novels are sweet and delicious. Eating a map can help them remember destinations, and children, when they misbehave, are forced to eat dry, musty pages from dictionaries.

Devon is part of The Family, an old and reclusive clan of book eaters. Her brothers grow up feasting on stories of valor and adventure, and Devon—like all other book eater women—is raised on a carefully curated diet of fairytales and cautionary stories.

But real life doesn’t always come with happy endings, as Devon learns when her son is born with a rare and darker kind of hunger—not for books, but for human minds.

This isn’t the usual type of book I read so I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy this but once I started reading I was hooked and was up late at night listening to the audiobook. 

This is a dark story and does not shy away from describing the gore and murders so do take that into account before reading.

The story revolves around the relationship of a mother and her young son so we get lots of discussions about motherhood and how the patriarchy has failed mothers in so many ways. I really loved seeing this in the book and its something I think we should see more of in books. 

Devon grows up believing in the fairytales she eats and is raised to believe she is a princess in her family and yet as she gets older she gets rebellious and others have to face the consequences of her actions so she learns to hide that part of herself. When she grows up she is married off to “the best match” essentially so she can give that family a child. 

Devon is given no options or choices and her opinions and wants do not matter. She is just there to have the baby for the benefit of the men. She doesn’t even get a choice in who to marry and once she’s had the baby she cannot raise them or have contact with them again. Despite Devin being taught this is the life of women she fights against it and is beaten, lied to and manipulated to get her to stay quiet and in her place. I truly felt for her and was really rooting for her to get the life she deserved with her kids. 

There are so many parallels in Devon’s story with the story of countless women in similar situations. They suffer and their children are used against them to ensure their obedience and even escaping doesn’t always mean they get to be free. Sometimes they have to leave their child behind like Devon did, and we see her guilt and worry about leaving her daughter to suffer the same fate she did. But she had to choose between her and her son and even that had its own issues. 

I loved seeing who Devon was as she grew up and who she became, who she had to become to protect her son. She is ruthless and has to make awful choices but everything she does is for her son. In this book all the characters are morally grey, though some more than others. The men treat women as objects they own and even those who claim to be different aren’t. Though I did like seeing that Devon is able to meet at least one man who truly tries to help her as much as she can and they become friends. 

There is also very little romance in this book which was really refreshing to read and the main focus being the mother son relationship. We need more books that show different types of love because they are just as important as romantic love. 

This was such an interesting read and I really enjoyed it though I do wish we had been given a little more than the ending we got because I want to know more! 

The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi – ARC Review

Thank you to Harper Voyager and Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Red is the blood of the elite, of magic, of control.

Blue is the blood of the poor, of workers, of the resistance.

Clear is the blood of the slaves, of the crushed, of the invisible.

Sylah dreams of days growing up in the resistance, being told she would spark a revolution that would free the empire from the red-blooded ruling classes’ tyranny. That spark was extinguished the day she watched her family murdered before her eyes.

Anoor has been told she’s nothing, no one, a disappointment, by the only person who matters: her mother, the most powerful ruler in the empire. But when Sylah and Anoor meet, a fire burns between them that could consume the kingdom—and their hearts.

Hassa moves through the world unseen by upper classes, so she knows what it means to be invisible. But invisibility has its uses: It can hide the most dangerous of secrets, secrets that can reignite a revolution. And when she joins forces with Sylah and Anoor, together these grains of sand will become a storm.

As the empire begins a set of trials of combat and skill designed to find its new leaders, the stage is set for blood to flow, power to shift, and cities to burn.

I went into this book with high expectations but unfortunately I ended up disappointed. While the premise of the story was interesting the actual story felt really slow and dragged a lot especially the first half where not a lot happened. This meant the ending where everything started to happen felt rushed and I just felt that this is the part of the story that should have been more fleshed out. 

There are three points of view in the story where we see the world through the eyes of three people from different social standings because of the colour of their blood. I liked that we got to see the way people are treated and the realities of their lives from different aspects but at times I felt that the povs weren’t very distinct so I would be confused when there was a sudden change though later in the story it became easier to differentiate. 

Sylah the main point of view we saw with Hassa and Anoor not getting as much though I liked her point of view least and wished we had gotten to see Hassa a lot more as she was the most interesting character for me. Her bravery and resilience despite how she has been treated to help and protect the most vulnerable people. I hope we get to see more of her in the sequel.

I enjoyed the second half of the book a lot more especially when the pieces started falling in place and the three storylines started to merge and we get to see how things aren’t as they seem. There was some revelations that I did not see coming and had me shook. I am looking forward to seeing what the outcome of the events at the end of the book will have in the next book.

Overall I did enjoy the story but I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would but I am still looking forward to reading the sequel.

The River of Silver by S.A. Chakraborty – Audiobook Review

I have been dying for more Daevabad content ever since I finished The Empire of Gold and Shannon certainly delivered! This book was everything I wanted and more!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

A prospective new queen joins a court whose lethal history may overwhelm her own political savvy…

An imprisoned royal from a fallen dynasty and a young woman wrenched from her home cross paths in an enchanted garden…

A pair of scouts stumble upon a secret in a cursed winter wood that will turn over their world…

Now together in one place, these stories of Daevabad enrich a world already teeming with magic and wonder. From Manizheh’s first steps towards rebellion to adventures that take place after The Empire of Gold, this is a must-have collection for those who can’t get enough of Nahri, Ali, and Dara and all that unfolded around them.

TW: suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide, self harm, torture, attempted rape

I am completely enthralled by the Daevabad trilogy and so it was bittersweet when I finished The Empire of Gold but then Shannon blessed us with these stories. Stories of love and hope and even the darker parts were balanced with lighter elements. A perfect collection to see so much more of the world and characters in these stories.

So first about the audiobook itself, I love listening to the trilogy and was so glad that the same narrator was narrating this too. I love listening to her and how she brings the story to life. I think that even if you aren’t a huge fan of audiobooks this will be okay to listen to especially as we are already familiar with the story and characters.

Some stories Shannon had shared before on her website so I was familiar with some but some were brand new and I especially loved Duriya and Hatset’s stories. How these women carved a place for themselves in a world that barely made space for them. That they showed strength and bravery and fighting for something better. It was amazing to see these glimpses into the past, the younger versions of the characters we all know and see how they may have been different and what may have caused them to become the characters we see in the books.

My favourite stories were of course the ones of Alizayd, the scene we see set just before The Kingdom of Copper was so funny and we get more of a glimpse of him using his abilities and just more of him trying not to implode when girls throw themselves at him which is always hilarious to read.

But my favourite scene was of course that last story that Shannon had vaguely hinted at before and it was everything I wanted and more. It was such a beautiful story about love and taking that step to be vulnerable with someone you love even if it terrifies you. It’s about trust and respecting each others decisions and boundaries and it is about building something on a strong foundation of friendship and care.

It was the perfect story to end on especially as this is the last story we will be getting of these characters and we end on a note of hope and joy and love.

I have already listened to it multiple times especially that last story and I know that I will be coming back to these stories time and time again.

My reviews for the trilogy can be found here: The City of Brass, The Kingdom of Copper, The Empire of Gold

The Burning God by R.F. Kuang – ARC Review

Thank you to Harper Voyager for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a wild ride and I’m still recovering from this book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

After saving her nation of Nikan from foreign invaders and battling the evil Empress Su Daji in a brutal civil war, Fang Runin was betrayed by allies and left for dead. 

Despite her losses, Rin hasn’t given up on those for whom she has sacrificed so much—the people of the southern provinces and especially Tikany, the village that is her home. Returning to her roots, Rin meets difficult challenges—and unexpected opportunities. While her new allies in the Southern Coalition leadership are sly and untrustworthy, Rin quickly realizes that the real power in Nikan lies with the millions of common people who thirst for vengeance and revere her as a goddess of salvation. 

Backed by the masses and her Southern Army, Rin will use every weapon to defeat the Dragon Republic, the colonizing Hesperians, and all who threaten the shamanic arts and their practitioners. As her power and influence grows, though, will she be strong enough to resist the Phoenix’s intoxicating voice urging her to burn the world and everything in it? 

This book had me terrified the whole time I was reading. I read it in two evenings and I could not put this book down. I wasn’t sure what to expect, all I knew was that I should be afraid for the lives of my favourite characters.

This book starts just after the ending of The Dragon Republic and we see Rin and Kitay having to regroup and figure out what they are going to do after the betrayal they suffered which also resulted in the death of the cike. (I am still not over what happened to my baby Ramsa.) As they are no longer on the side of the powerful they have to learn new ways in which they can defeat their enemies and it was really interesting to see how they had to adapt and how they struggled through that.

Rin goes through a lot in this book and we see her gain more control over the phoenix and channel that into the battles, she also begins to understand that not everything can be done through destruction and Kitay is always there to help and support her. Their friendship and bond is one of my favourite parts of this trilogy. Seeing them both grow together and then becoming linked even more deeply when Kitay becomes her anchor. I just loved them so much, though Kitay is my absolute favourite.

There are some incredibly difficult topics discussed in this book including different forms of trauma and we see Rin struggle with that throughout the book. From having to deal with being treated as lesser because she was a war orphan and has dark skin to dealing with being betrayed and having to watch those she was supposed to lead and protect be killed. She is able to channel all her anger to fighting to save her home but it also comes at a cost.

Another theme that is prevalent in this book is how the Hesperians colonise their land to “improve” it because Rin and her people are clearly inferior. I felt this deep in my soul because we see this so much in our lives and being Pakistani and knowing how the British colonised and destroyed the land made me so angry when reading about it in the book. Especially how when Rin goes to the New City and sees just how much it has been changed by the Hesperians. How they teach the people that they know better and that they are inherently superior, so they have the right to do this. It is scarily accurate to real life. Honestly for me they were the worst villains.

We also finally see the trifecta together and what happened to them and what truly happened to the Speerlys and it is even worse than what we already know. I was shook by everything that went down and then what Rin decided to do once the trifecta were destroyed.

This book has some epic battle scenes especially with Rin and Nezha. There is one scene especially which was written so cinematically with Nezha making it rain and Rin breathing fire and I just love seeing them interact. The dynamics they have where they both love and hate each other. Their banter and the way they fight each other. I just loved it.

And then we have THAT ending. I didn’t know what to expect for a trilogy like this and it utterly broke me. I don’t think I will ever be over that ending.

This trilogy is dark and brutal but I love it so much. With characters that you want to root for despite the awful things they have done and everyone is morally grey. Characters driven by power and revenge and willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. I haven’t read a trilogy quite like this and I highly recommend it.

Books with Healers

This weeks prompt for The Empire of Gold readalong and photo challenge is to share books with healers! So here are some of my favourite books with healers/doctors.

The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty – Of course we have to talk about Nahri and the family of healers she comes from. Magical abilities to not only heal themselves but also others serves Nahri really well on several occasions throughout the trilogy. My review is here

The Trials of Apollo by Rick Riordan – How could I not mention the Greek God Apollo, or as he is better known as, Lester. While his healing abilities are somewhat restricted in this series his kids are of course the Camps best healers, including Will.

Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes – Pink who is one of Eva’s closest friends and the doctor on the ship. She ensures that everyone survives the dangerous missions they have to go on throughout the book.

Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavours by Sonali Dev – Trisha who is our Elizabeth in the story, is a genius neurosurgeon in this story. She takes great pride in her ability to help people.

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – Laia is taught by her pops to heal wounds and be a midwife for women in labour. She is able to use these skills many times in the story.

What books have you read with healers?