Reviews

Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove by Rati Mehrotra

foenx's review

adventurous emotional medium-paced

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

3.75

gayathiri_rajendran's review

4.0

Night of the Raven,Dawn of the Dove follows two kingdoms, political scheming along with elements of fantasy. I thoroughly enjoyed this desi fantasy. Katyani and her cousins travel to the ashram of a famous guru to get the best education available. She is a bodyguard to the boys who would be future kings.

After their studies are over, they return to the kingdom to find themselves surrounded by betrayal and
tragedy. Many unexpected events take place and Katyani learns several unknown facts about herself and the events surrounding her life. She tries to set things right in her life and deal with people responsible for the tragedies.

The world building was great and the writing flowed easily. The plot was pretty fast paced and the characters were enjoyable and Katyani was someone you'd want to root for in full swing. The romance was a well written sub plot and it did not hinder the original story by any means.

This was such a good desi fantasy standalone I read after a long time.

readingbyte's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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? No

4.5

What a great book - political intrigue, slow burn romance, monsters, sword fights, betrayal and murder. Exciting plot and world building based on historical India and Persian geographies and custom. I loved the FMC and her journey to understand who she really is, and there is genuine excitement and adventure. I really felt the pain she goes through and got a little misty eyed at the end with a real ending. Such a wonderful book - knocked half a star off as a tiny bit more romance would not have gone amiss but overall fantastic. How have so few seen and read this book??? Go read it!

nklosty's review

4.0

Fantasy mixed with drama. The intrigue balanced well with the magic and myth.

ameserole's review

4.0

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove was so much fun to jump into. The world and the characters were magical from start to finish. It was quite easy to fall in love with Katyani's character. Or maybe that's just how I felt? Throw in Daksh, and I was completely hooked with these two. Their bantering gave me joy and the tension gave me life.

The only thing I would really want more of is the actual romance. Yeah, we get hints here and there, but I was rooting for more. Well, maybe hoping is a better word. Still, I kept turning the pages waiting for it to smother me. Unfortunately, the slow burn just about killed me.

Other than that, the twists, betrayal, and so many secrets kept me engaged. Seriously, I don't think I ever found myself being bored with anything. The pacing was a bit slow in the beginning but that's mostly due to the story and adventure being set before my eyes.

In the end, I'm so mad that I waited to jump into this book. Secretly hoping it turns into another book but will learn to accept a standalone as well. I'm so happy that I got the chance to jump into this and can't wait for Rati's next book!

millercr427's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad 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

5.0

madieanne's review

adventurous emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

night of the raven, dawn of the dove started strong, but unfortunately, the last 40% felt lackluster and left me wanting more. there was a ton of conflict and action, yet nothing felt resolved by the end.

i'm honestly so disappointed because the first couple hundred pages were INCREDIBLE. the writing was beautiful and easy to devour. i loved the betrayal plotline, and my heart ached for katya. 

the slow-burn romance was fantastic, but the couple's happy ending felt rushed. as i mentioned, there wasn't a solid resolution to the story. i wish there were an epilogue to clear up some unanswered questions the abrupt ending left me with. 

all in all, i would say night of the raven, dawn of the dove is a pretty solid read.

hannahspracklin's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful fast-paced

3.0

This book was fun. Unfortunately, I do think the author and editor did the story a disservice by cramming everything into one book—this easily could have been a trilogy. This would have allowed for more character and relationship development, mythology and magic system development, and it would have allowed for the political system to be fleshed out—all elements that would have helped in creating a strong foundation for this story. 
I enjoyed Katya a lot. I understood and empathized with her anger and desire to be better. I also liked Daksh as a love interest, although, again, I feel like a lot more could have been done if this was not a stand-alone. 

somebooksomewhere's review

adventurous lighthearted tense fast-paced

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

2.75

I liked this. I did. It was a good time. But. It struggles with tone, which...I guess mirrors the immaturity of the MC? It's a YA novel with a YA MC, so some immaturity is to be expected. It was just the whiplash tone switching, from perilous rescue to wild flirting to angry pining in the space of a single page that got me. So yeah. It was entertaining, and if you're ok with an MC flip flopping in her moods at a pace to put even the mercurial Olympians to shame, dive on in.

momruns's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative 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? Yes

4.75