Scan barcode
mj1588's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Misogyny, Violence, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Torture, Physical abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent and Death
chrisb913's review against another edition
- 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
I absolutely loved the storytelling for this book. Hafsah does not shy away from keeping you intrigued and guessing as she crafts this narrative. Instead of info dumping, she provides clues and hints and allows the story to provide the details naturally as to the past, present, and possible future. I am very excited to read book two and all future works from this author.
Graphic: Murder, Death, and Sexism
Moderate: Child abuse and Misogyny
onthesamepage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The Arabia-inspired setting was another highlight. The descriptions of the beautiful cities, the desert, but also the characters wearing keffiyahs gave me a lot of joy. Unfortunately, the (mis)use of the Arabic language didn't.
I'm a native Arab speaker, so of course I zoomed in on the Arabic. The way it's used comes across as someone who isn't a native speaker inserting Arabic words to add to the mood. It's not that the words were wrong, exactly, but they're not used quite right. Umm means mother, yes, but I would never refer to my mother as "umm" while addressing her. She would be "ummi"—my mother. The same applies to Okht, which should have been okhti, and also, why does this start with an O instead of a U like umm when the sound is the same? This annoyed me just as much as Leigh Bardugo's misuse of Dutch in Six of Crows. The Arabic felt clunky in some of the sentences, and the opposite of subtle. I didn't even need to know more about the island Sharr because its name told me exactly what its deal was.
Something I noticed in A Tempest of Tea was the excessive use of pet names. That happens here as well, although to a lesser degree, but I can't say I was all that happy to see "azizi" being used this often.
The last thing I'll mention is that there are parts where the author would chop up a sentence:
She fell
to her
knees.
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Child abuse, Murder, and Torture
luarna's review against another edition
Moderate: Misogyny
nozycozy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Misogyny
jrae_miller's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Torture and Death of parent
Moderate: Misogyny
rafacolog's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Torture, Blood, Death, Violence, Child abuse, and Misogyny
maevedora's review
Minor: Violence and Misogyny
melani_e4's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Death, Violence, Emotional abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Child death and Cursing
elislittlelibrary's review against another edition
- 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
Now, this is YA and while there is romance, there is no smut. I’m personally not a huge fan of smut, so i didn’t miss anything (more on the contrary, actually), but just fyi!
One of the best parts, besides the story and the world, were the characters, mainly the female characters. I enjoyed having strong female characters that navigated a world that is (partially) misogynistic. Also- there was no “not like other girls” or battles between women, just empowerment without rivalry.
And, another thing- the descriptions of characters appearance felt really sophisticated. Not unrealistic, but also not downputting or anything. And there was a certain fluidity, the FMC having some more “masculine” features like broad shoulders, etc. Refreshing to read and encouraging to read in a YA book!
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Torture
Minor: Child death and Misogyny