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A review by annettebooksofhopeanddreams
And I Darken by Kiersten White
4.0
I have to admit, I can't fully remember anymore why I put this book on my wishlist once. I do know that I only wanted it even more once I heard and realized that this was going to be a Vlad the Impaler retelling. Because, I'm not just a superficial vampire girl, I'm a vampire girl who's actually interested in the origin story and the historical context of Dracula. So, when I got this book in my bookswap, I was over the moon and moved it straight to the top of my TBR.
Because of the marketing, as it having loads of Game of Thrones elements, I was already prepared for this book to be mostly build up. This book creates the foundation for the rest of the series, by showing us the long and heavy road Lada Dracul has to go before she can become the Vlad the Impaler we've heard so many stories about. We read how she's born, her father disappointed that she's a girl, we read how she grows up to at least amuse and please him and we read how she learns to use being a strong, brave and fighting woman to her advantage in a world that's dominated, ruled and protected by men.
But, it doesn't only show us her story. We also form a bond with her brother and the son of the sultan. And all three storylines and developments are interesting. Of course, Lada's the one I was mostly interested in, but Radu has a very interesting arc too, especially because of how his storyline is dealt with and played out.
And the entire story is written in a very smooth and easy language that makes it flowing and keeps it interesting, even though it's not spectacular and not very action driven. Normally I can get a little bored and annoyed with books like this, especially if I don't feel like it really pays of at the end of the book (I have high hopes it does at the end of the series), but in this case I wasn't bored for even one second.
I'll for sure try to get my hands on the second book as soon as I can!
Because of the marketing, as it having loads of Game of Thrones elements, I was already prepared for this book to be mostly build up. This book creates the foundation for the rest of the series, by showing us the long and heavy road Lada Dracul has to go before she can become the Vlad the Impaler we've heard so many stories about. We read how she's born, her father disappointed that she's a girl, we read how she grows up to at least amuse and please him and we read how she learns to use being a strong, brave and fighting woman to her advantage in a world that's dominated, ruled and protected by men.
But, it doesn't only show us her story. We also form a bond with her brother and the son of the sultan. And all three storylines and developments are interesting. Of course, Lada's the one I was mostly interested in, but Radu has a very interesting arc too, especially because of how his storyline is dealt with and played out.
And the entire story is written in a very smooth and easy language that makes it flowing and keeps it interesting, even though it's not spectacular and not very action driven. Normally I can get a little bored and annoyed with books like this, especially if I don't feel like it really pays of at the end of the book (I have high hopes it does at the end of the series), but in this case I wasn't bored for even one second.
I'll for sure try to get my hands on the second book as soon as I can!