Reviews with content warning for Suicide attempt - This Woven Kingdom

Altough the first half of this books was rather slow, it picked up nicely in the latter half. The first part was slow because of necessary worldbuilding and character development.
The book is beautifully written, the educated characters in this book actually sound smart through their words.
The book produced some really beautiful quotes.
Also the narrator of the audiobook that I listened along to whilst reading was phenomenal.

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notteson's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

HOLY MOTHER OF GOD I NEED THE REST OF THIS SERIES RIGHT MEOW. This is my first Tahereh Mafi book, and I am both floored by the beauty of her storytelling and writing and by her intricate worldbuilding and character development. Please give us the rest of this series soon. PLEASE. I need more

Alizeh and Kamran, and my heart won't be able to bear it if she really marries Cyrus

. This Persian-mythology-inspired forbidden-romance trilogy is easily going to be one of my favorite book series ever. I just know it.

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maple_dove's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

The ending 😂

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nyoomie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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rocketcityreader's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Please excuse me while I scream into a pillow for the next 3-5 business days.

Forbidden love? Check.
Prince who resents his crown? Check.
Queen in hiding? Check.
BANTER??? Check.
Last minute mysterious love interest? Check.
This book is inspired by Persian mythology and holy hell, it is SO good! There were so many moments when I wanted to just scream with delight. I’ve always loved Mafi’s prose—she has such a beautiful and unique way of writing, and in This Woven Kingdom, she has crafted a captivating world and beautifully compelling characters.
Alizeh is an amazing character, and I loved her ferocity and her wit.
I’d like to see how Kamren grows over the next two books (his dialogue is absolutely top notch). But there were times he was arrogant and a little annoying, and I wanted to wring his neck.
I am interested to see how Cyrus’s introduction (and that little twist at the end) throws a wrench into literally everything.<spoilers>
I like that Mafi always has an underlying theme of fashion in her works—you know from her IG that it’s something she loves, but it’s always so nice to see it in her writing, too.

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vicktorea's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

city of brass meets cinderella(ish) vibes!!!

ok I really enjoyed this!

Here’s what I loved:

- The writing; it was lush, the imagery was vivid and the plot was adventurous! I never could quite put my finger on what would happen next!

- The characters! Alizheh (our FMC) is smart, resourceful and a badass fighter when she needs to be! Moody, broody, melancholy Kamran (our MMC) oozed angst and tension and I’m still wondering what’s up with two other characters (who shall remain nameless as I don’t want to add any spoilers)!

- the Persian Lore/Mythology; I loved this! This was what reminded me of City of Brass and it lent such an interesting spin on the plot and magic system! There also seemed to be some elements of Cinderella in this and I loved that incorporation!

My criticisms:

-the magic system. I actually liked it, but I didn’t quite understand it; however, I think this is because the character (that we know of) with magic, Alizheh, didn’t quite understand how her magic worked and I hope as the story continues and Alizheh discovers more about herself, the reader will too.

-the romance / pacing. I’m grouping these together because, at times, both felt a little disjointed. The beginning of the book did start out slow and it picked up towards the second half of the book, as expected with most books. But the development and pacing of the romance itself coincided with this. Alizheh and Kamran had met once and afterwards the reader gets his reaction to her, but not so much her reaction to him. By the time they meet again, we know he’s into her but we don’t know what she makes of him so her strong reaction to him during that second meeting felt like it came out of nowhere. Then by the their third meeting, it felt like those feelings just…fizzled? We don’t hear her dialogue of how drawn she is to him like we did during their second meeting and that kind of threw me off - I expected a stronger reaction from her.

These criticisms didn’t take away from the story, I just wish they’d been more fleshed out, but this is a trilogy, so I’m hoping (expecting) we’ll get more in the next book…..

especially bc WHAT TF WAS THAT ENDING???!! 😭 and whose team am i on???? I think I might actually like—you know what lemme not say anything except I need book two asap and I’m so glad I took the plunge and ordered that Bookish Box special edition!

Big thank you to HarperCollins for the ARC!

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utopiastateofmind's review against another edition

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Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)

Immediately This Woven Kingdom intrigued me. Not only because Mafi is so hyped, but I love the idea of a Persian mythology inspired fantasy and a long lost heir hidden in plain sight. I immediately felt for Alizeh. Judged for things she cannot control, the world won't give her a break. She's living day to day just trying to stay hidden. Trying to live against the pull of the current and her destiny - but how long can she keep it up? When Alizeh and Kamran's paths cross it is clear that her illusion is shattered.

I only came to love Alizeh more and more as the book continues. Living hidden, she's been able to observe the world that no one sees. The corruption, the ways rules have two punishments, and the treatment on the streets. While This Woven Kingdom moves slower than I was expecting, once I made it to around 50% so many dominoes began falling. Mafi sets the stage for tensions, character reveals, and twists of fate which begin to topple her house of cards.

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