A review by burnsys_books_811
The Oleander Sword by Tasha Suri

4.0

I enjoyed this book more than book one and had fewer criticisms. I still feel there is an issue of telling rather than showing, especially with Malini, we are told she is smart and politically savvy but most of her succesful moves occur off page. We are mostly shown her failures, or when others bail her out. I believe she IS smart, show me. I also still feel that as readers, we are expected to know things about this made up world, especially around the religions. While it has definitely improved, I still don't feel I understand much about what the people BELIEVE. The truth, and how they practice, gives me some insight, but I still have little understanding of what the people actually believe, which I feel should be more in focus considering the heavy place of religion in these books.

Also contains a trope I despise: women giving up their power, and it is quite possible we see more of that before the series is through. Aditya's sacrifice, however, was a bit of a pleasant surprise