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josisteacup's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
The best books are those you finish in only one or two days and you stay up until 1pm, not thinking about having to get up early and when you fall asleep you continue the plot in your dreams. This is one of those books. I immediately ordered the sequel. It's supposed to arrive tomorrow and I'll probably finish it very fast.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Slavery, Child abuse, Trafficking, Ableism, Confinement, and Violence
Moderate: Medical content, Child death, Death, Blood, and Grief
Minor: War, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Child death, and Domestic abuse
fromjuliereads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
I don't even have words. I somehow became so incredibly invested in this book and the characters! I loved that we got so much of Kestrin and Alyrra in this one, and I really liked Rae! I was so curious how this would go and while I did predict one thing, the ending has left me REELING and I am off to see if I can get a copy of the next book IMMEDIATELY 😅
Anyways this is a really well done fantasy! I am rounding up for GR, even though I think there are parts that could have been trimmed a bit. But a fantastic read!!
Anyways this is a really well done fantasy! I am rounding up for GR, even though I think there are parts that could have been trimmed a bit. But a fantastic read!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Body shaming, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Minor: Vomit
uraveragelesbianreader's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
How this book is not a staple of teen/YA fantasy I do not understand. The flow of this book was gorgeous and the dialogue flowed beautifully and never felt janky or forced. The world building was deep and immersive but did not overshadow any other elements of the book but instead worked with them to create complete and cohesive scenes. The single perspective of the main character and the way the author uses this to show information to you only as Rae herself acquires it leads to intriguing and action packed scenes. This book genuinely had my heart racing as I read it, the overwhelming almost existential threat of the snatchers that grows the deeper she goes into the mystery is incredible. Watching the subtle character growth of Rae throughout even just the first book was beautiful. Every choice she makes feels like it has real ramifications. The strong morality of Rae stands in stark opposition to the characters around her and she is the perfect choice of main character for a novel like this. The way her morality is pushed to its limits and she is forced to make increasingly tough decisions and the reader is dragged right along with her. Every twist and turn this book takes feels earned and even those that come out of nowhere at first fit the plot and are never just a cheap scare. Tension in this book is built through beautiful passages and every moment no matter how small feels like it could spiral into a significant plot point. This leaves you wanting to read every page thrice over just to ensure you havent missed anything and really helps put you in Raes position. I have already mentioned a few times how much I love Rae as a main character but I truly cannot say it enough. She feels like someone we either are ourselves or know well, she is not perfectly moral, she is not without flaws and she is not above failure. She manages to avoid all the typical sexist tropes female main characters can fall into and as the story grows she grows with it. I cannot wait to see how she will develop across the next book(s?). On the note of harmful stereotypes, I would like to applaud the diversity of this book and the unique way it was done. This book has several female characters specifically characters of colour and yet there is no misogyny or racism in this book. I find it oftentimes upsetting how much unnecessary bigotry often finds its way into books like these with various excuses for it. Although this book does contain ablesim it feels purposeful for the narrative and the main character (who is disabled) is never cured of her disability and it is not treated as a grand hindrance to her, it simply is. This was a wonderfully refreshing take on disability in fantasy novels and I wish more authors would follow the lead set by the author here. There is a small romantic subplot that I found thoroughly enjoyable despite there being no explicit romantic scenes between the two. I also found this wonderfully refreshing as it feels many modern fantasy books have become romance books with a fantasy subplot. I have been reading teen/YA fantasy since I was 11 years old and I can confidently say I have never read a book like this before. If you are bored of the typical fantasy format, a mystery lover looking for a good first YA fantasy book or a seasoned fantasy reader and enjoyer like myself I would recommend this book to you. I cannot wait to see where this series goes and I fully intend to spend the next days bingeing on Kahanis other books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Trafficking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Ableism, and Slavery
Moderate: Grief and War
alice_raven's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Murder, Slavery, and Rape
erinsbookshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Murder, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Blood, Slavery, Child abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, and Death
adancewithbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to Harper Teen and Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion in anway.
The Theft of Sunlight is the first book in a companion duology to Thorn, which was released last year. Some of the subjects that were in the background in Thorn are now getting a more center focus. One of them being the dissapearence of so many children out of the kingdom.
Rae is a no nonsense kind of girl which happens often when you grow up in a small town. Even more so when people see your disability as a weakness. She has a club foot. She wants to be seen for herself and not for the foot that she has. But she sees it tainting people's view of her very often. Her disability is a theme thorughout the book as it is so much a part of her life.
We follow her from her small town to the main city and the royal court when she goes to visit her cousin. There she gets tangled up in the web of the politics of courts when she becomes the attendant of the foreign princess Alyra. And while she doesn't really want that, she can't help herself trying to get to the bottom of who is taking children from the kingdom.
Rae is just great to follow as she mostly has a good head on her shoulders. However she really doesn't know when to let go of things. She is strong but gentle to those around her. She will not let you hurt those she loves. That in combination with her kindness is what seems to draw others towards her even though I don't think that is something she really realizes herself. She doesn't always see her own worth, always down playing it.
I got so swept up in the story of finding the lost children with Rae, that even though I had a pretty good idea of who the traitor was for instance, it never took the tension out of the story for me. Intisar always manages to keep a momentum going in a story. Taking the time to let things fall into place but still going forward.
Which is why it was horribly annoying to realize that this book ended up on a type of cliffhanger without even any kind of smooching for Rae. I say boo! I need to know what happens next!
While it is a companion duology, it is also a continuation of Thorn in its own way. So I would suggest you read Thorn before picking up The Theft of Sunlight. You get a better feeling for some of the background themes of the book like the abuse of Alyra. It is also very interesting to see how Alyra is faring after the events of Thorn, and seeing her from someone else's perspective after having that adventure with her.
So Theft of Sunlight is just another great book by Intisar Khanani. Very worth it to invest in.
The Theft of Sunlight is the first book in a companion duology to Thorn, which was released last year. Some of the subjects that were in the background in Thorn are now getting a more center focus. One of them being the dissapearence of so many children out of the kingdom.
Rae is a no nonsense kind of girl which happens often when you grow up in a small town. Even more so when people see your disability as a weakness. She has a club foot. She wants to be seen for herself and not for the foot that she has. But she sees it tainting people's view of her very often. Her disability is a theme thorughout the book as it is so much a part of her life.
We follow her from her small town to the main city and the royal court when she goes to visit her cousin. There she gets tangled up in the web of the politics of courts when she becomes the attendant of the foreign princess Alyra. And while she doesn't really want that, she can't help herself trying to get to the bottom of who is taking children from the kingdom.
Rae is just great to follow as she mostly has a good head on her shoulders. However she really doesn't know when to let go of things. She is strong but gentle to those around her. She will not let you hurt those she loves. That in combination with her kindness is what seems to draw others towards her even though I don't think that is something she really realizes herself. She doesn't always see her own worth, always down playing it.
I got so swept up in the story of finding the lost children with Rae, that even though I had a pretty good idea of who the traitor was for instance, it never took the tension out of the story for me. Intisar always manages to keep a momentum going in a story. Taking the time to let things fall into place but still going forward.
Which is why it was horribly annoying to realize that this book ended up on a type of cliffhanger without even any kind of smooching for Rae. I say boo! I need to know what happens next!
While it is a companion duology, it is also a continuation of Thorn in its own way. So I would suggest you read Thorn before picking up The Theft of Sunlight. You get a better feeling for some of the background themes of the book like the abuse of Alyra. It is also very interesting to see how Alyra is faring after the events of Thorn, and seeing her from someone else's perspective after having that adventure with her.
So Theft of Sunlight is just another great book by Intisar Khanani. Very worth it to invest in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse and Murder
Moderate: Ableism and Emotional abuse
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