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I received a copy of Mirage through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I'm giving it a solid 4 out of five. Honestly, there's a couple of things I could nitpick and say that were 'wrong' with it, but as a whole, I really enjoyed the book and can't wait for the sequel.
Amani is a pretty average village girl, who dreams of the way the world used to be before the Vathek rule. Dreaming of adventures that will take her out of the small village she calls 'home', owning more of the poetry she so desperately loves and even writing her own. Yet when her dreams finally start to come true, it's nothing like she'd hoped.
What should have been a joyous day for Amani, spent celebrating with the entire village, instead becomes a scene of devastation when the celebrations are crashed by the regime and Amani ends up kidnapped. The innocent village girl finds herself forced to emerge herself into a whole new class, surrounded by luxuries that she's never imagined. All the beautiful balls, pretty people and perfect palaces can't truly cover up the wealth of violence and fear beneath the shiny surface.
What I Loved:
- The villain of the story. They're complex, with layers and it makes the entire story so much more enjoyable to interact with.
- The romance. It's fair to say I'm a sucker for a smidge of romance in my YA, and this book nails it. It's barely there, but still so important and perfect.
- How emotions are portrayed. It could be pretty easy to skim over this one, but I think it's so important how the characters (Amani in particular) handle their emotions and the way in which they slowly develop rather than having one small moment completely change their opinion on something.
What I Didn't Like:
- The push of information to help the reader 'understand' the sci-fi world where the story is set. I just struggle to believe that there isn't a more natural way for both the history and social context to be integrated.
- This is probably me being a suck. Or maybe this will be rectified in the sequel even. But right now, I wish there had been more on Amani's family after her kidnapping.
- The 'sci-finess' of the whole story was a little light and hardly explained or incorporated. There is a brief visit to a moon and a handful of droids. To my knowledge that is all the sci-fi there is.
“You do not kneel or bend, I told myself. To anyone.”
― Somaiya Daud, Mirage.
Amani is a pretty average village girl, who dreams of the way the world used to be before the Vathek rule. Dreaming of adventures that will take her out of the small village she calls 'home', owning more of the poetry she so desperately loves and even writing her own. Yet when her dreams finally start to come true, it's nothing like she'd hoped.
What should have been a joyous day for Amani, spent celebrating with the entire village, instead becomes a scene of devastation when the celebrations are crashed by the regime and Amani ends up kidnapped. The innocent village girl finds herself forced to emerge herself into a whole new class, surrounded by luxuries that she's never imagined. All the beautiful balls, pretty people and perfect palaces can't truly cover up the wealth of violence and fear beneath the shiny surface.
What I Loved:
- The villain of the story. They're complex, with layers and it makes the entire story so much more enjoyable to interact with.
- The romance. It's fair to say I'm a sucker for a smidge of romance in my YA, and this book nails it. It's barely there, but still so important and perfect.
- How emotions are portrayed. It could be pretty easy to skim over this one, but I think it's so important how the characters (Amani in particular) handle their emotions and the way in which they slowly develop rather than having one small moment completely change their opinion on something.
What I Didn't Like:
- The push of information to help the reader 'understand' the sci-fi world where the story is set. I just struggle to believe that there isn't a more natural way for both the history and social context to be integrated.
- This is probably me being a suck. Or maybe this will be rectified in the sequel even. But right now, I wish there had been more on Amani's family after her kidnapping.
- The 'sci-finess' of the whole story was a little light and hardly explained or incorporated. There is a brief visit to a moon and a handful of droids. To my knowledge that is all the sci-fi there is.
“You do not kneel or bend, I told myself. To anyone.”
― Somaiya Daud, Mirage.