Reviews with content warning for Xenophobia - The Jasmine Throne

priya & malini <3

I love vicious sapphics.

Tasha Suri is already one of my favorite authors after reading Empire of Sand. Now I am convinced she can do no wrong. I would read her grocery list if I could.

You have never read characters like these before. Priya and Malini are just. I can't describe them in one word because they are so complex. I could write a character study essay, but I will spare you.

Priya. I can't believe I read 530 pages of Priya and still don't feel like I know her whole story. (I feel the same about Malini, actually). The temple daughter magic is unlike anything I've seen. Priya's development in the 2nd book is going to be insane, I can feel it.

Malini was my favorite POV to read from. The way she operates so subtlety, and lets everyone underestimate her. She's the smartest one in the room, and she KNOWS it. Her strength is mesmerizing. She is mesmerizing.

I'll be honest. At first, I wasn't a big fan of the other POVs like Rao and Ashok, but in the end, I LOVED them. Watching event unfold through their eyes and being inside their head was delightful. Especially Rao. I adored his chapters. He's such a compelling character, I can't help it.

And obviously we can't forget about the sapphic romance. A lovely little enemies to friends to enemies to lover to ???? Their chemistry steams off the page, and the slow burn was immaculate. I love love love how Priya's strength is physical, and Malini's is her mind. Put those two together, and it's magic. Literally.

brb reading oleander sword rn

Content Warnings

rexpostfacto's review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Content Warnings

seabanshee's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

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

2.5

I had a lot of expectations going into this book, and a good chunk of them weren’t met, and that’s fine. This book wasn’t for me, though I had really wished it was. Every stellar review I read had me determined that this would be one of my top reads for the year only for it to get shelved for a few months at the 50% mark. And that is perfectly okay.

This isn’t a bad book by any means. Many people adore the pacing and characterizations whereas I felt that nothing was happening for 70% of the book. I rated it higher than what I intended because there were some parts that I really enjoyed, and I thought the creative execution was stunning. And subjectively, I don’t think this book deserves a 1 or 2 star rating because it’s a great book for what it is.

Characters
Priya’s a great protagonist. She’s clever, kind-hearted, determined to do what she feels is right despite others telling her she’s wrong, and just fierce. She’s a survivor with a rich yet traumatic pass, and her conflict between past, present, and future is an interesting take. She and Rao were my favorites; I felt they had the best characterizations in the book.

Malini was my least favorite. I found her incredibly unlikable despite her circumstances and unfair position (maybe that’s the point, but it’s still unclear). Every time I read her POV, I was filled with frustration and anger. She was always lying and trying to use people, and I understand that was the only tactic she had. It’s understandable. However, having her POV and witness her true intentions toward Priya, the incredibly likable main protagonist—it’s a tall order to ask me to like her. Not to mention the number of times Malini made mental notes of how Priya wasn’t lovely or pretty appearance wise. Such a turn off. Every time she said “I’ve always been my true self to you” or “I’ve never lied to you,” I rolled my eyes because she, of course, was lying. The only time I really felt any sympathy for her was when she reunited with her brother, and he was a cowardly dick to her due to his chosen ignorance of her pain.

Rao was very likable, like Priya, and I felt his setup was incredibly interesting albeit predictable. I knew from the moment I met Malini that she wouldn’t sit on the sideline; she’d rule. I feel the course of events made that very obvious, so it makes me wish Rao’s prophecy was a bit more…unpredictable or grand? But it served its purpose.

Romance
As I mentioned, I didn’t like Malini or how she constantly wanted to use Priya, so I genuinely could not care about their romance. Their interactions felt incredibly dull after knowing Malini’s perspective. Then when they finally kissed, it felt so rushed and out of place because I felt zero chemistry from them considering their situations and mindsets. It really felt like insta-love despite it happening around the 70-80% mark. I feel like Priya had more of an interesting relationship with the Yaksa.

Lore
Hands down the best part of the book for me. The lore was crafted so well, and my reaction was a mix of awe and horror. From the rot-ridden corpses to their shapeshifting abilities to the sacred wood daggers for hollowing, it was beautifully executed and was singlehandedly the only thing that kept me reading. I don’t know if I’ll continue this series, but I would love to read more on this cosmic creatures shrouded in mystery.

Content Warnings

shector1's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective relaxing 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

4.75

Content Warnings

poetry_shaman's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional 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

3.75

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