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A review by teeggzz
And I Darken by Kiersten White
4.0
*3.75
Anyone with a love for character driven stories and rich history will absolutely devour this book. For me it was a solid read that had me pretty enraptured through out.
As I mentioned before, the history is done really thoroughly. I don't know anything at all about Vlad the Impaler but the time zone and setting was done really well. The world building was rich and vivid and I found the direct ties to Islam religion really fascinating. Although in saying that, the pacing was AWFULLY slow. At the start of the book we don't really have a clear goal. Lada and Radu have been taken from their home and really it's just about them living their lives in an enemy's court. Majority of the book was character driven which wasn't entirely a bad thing. A lot of the time some action scenes were hinted at but then completely brushed over. It made for at times a dwindling plot. Speaking of the plot, I wasn't exactly thrilled with the ending climax? It was extremely short and not as exciting as I'd hoped. I thought there'd be more at stake but everything worked out almost too conveniently. Like I was almost certain from the very start that Radu was going to be Lada's "sacrifice". As much as I love Radu it would've made for a cool plot twist! And I actually thought that at one point Lada may kill Radu because she kept saying "if anyone's going to kill you it'll be me". I guess I was just hoping there would be a higher price for all that build up. Ultimately the rather underwhelming ending reduced the rating.
But seriously I just KNEW that Lazaar was a spy of some sort. As soon as Radu signed those papers unflinchingly that's when I knew. Radu trusted him so much that he didn't even bother to read the page! Dude, you have no idea what he could've wrote! I also thought it was kinda weird that Lazaar started having romantic feelings for Radu....Like you literally watched him grow up as a boy....But not going to lie, I didn't expect Radu to kill him.
Speaking of Radu, he is such an underrated bean! I loved him from the very start of the book when we saw them grow up as kids. He was just so innocent and really all he needed was love. But literally nobody gives him enough credit. Sure, Lada can swing around a sword but can she fool and scheme her way into the enemies good graces? Radu was so cunning, yet such a sweetie. A true Slytherpuff. But I honestly need to see more sibling dynamics in YA. I loved Lada and Radu's development so much! Seeing how far they'd come and how much they actually relied on one another was so sweet. They were a heart-warming pair and I loved how nice their personalities contrasted. I also really enjoyed seeing the trio grow up together. Radu, Lada and Mehmed all worked so well together and I loved all of their bonding scenes. Another great bond was Nicolae and Lada. I really enjoyed their friendship and the playful banter that came with it. This book (although you wouldn't expect it to) actually had some great humour and some really beautiful moments.
The romance part of it wasn't the strongest. When Lada and Mehmed had their first kiss I thought it was cute and the tension was really building. But as soon as Mehmed became Sultan everything just got weird. He was going off and secretly having babies with other women and ultimately wasn't telling Lada all too much. Although I respected seeing a male character openly show his emotions I can't really say I trust Mehmed or was rooting for his and Lada's relationship.
Over all this was a pretty great read, that I loved mainly for the characters. I can say that I will be picking up the second one.
P.S. Can I just say that that last scene was literally so powerful. That last line left me with chills. Chills. <3
Anyone with a love for character driven stories and rich history will absolutely devour this book. For me it was a solid read that had me pretty enraptured through out.
As I mentioned before, the history is done really thoroughly. I don't know anything at all about Vlad the Impaler but the time zone and setting was done really well. The world building was rich and vivid and I found the direct ties to Islam religion really fascinating. Although in saying that, the pacing was AWFULLY slow. At the start of the book we don't really have a clear goal. Lada and Radu have been taken from their home and really it's just about them living their lives in an enemy's court. Majority of the book was character driven which wasn't entirely a bad thing. A lot of the time some action scenes were hinted at but then completely brushed over. It made for at times a dwindling plot. Speaking of the plot, I wasn't exactly thrilled with the ending climax? It was extremely short and not as exciting as I'd hoped. I thought there'd be more at stake but everything worked out almost too conveniently. Like I was almost certain from the very start that Radu was going to be Lada's "sacrifice". As much as I love Radu it would've made for a cool plot twist! And I actually thought that at one point Lada may kill Radu because she kept saying "if anyone's going to kill you it'll be me". I guess I was just hoping there would be a higher price for all that build up. Ultimately the rather underwhelming ending reduced the rating.
But seriously I just KNEW that Lazaar was a spy of some sort. As soon as Radu signed those papers unflinchingly that's when I knew. Radu trusted him so much that he didn't even bother to read the page! Dude, you have no idea what he could've wrote! I also thought it was kinda weird that Lazaar started having romantic feelings for Radu....Like you literally watched him grow up as a boy....But not going to lie, I didn't expect Radu to kill him.
Speaking of Radu, he is such an underrated bean! I loved him from the very start of the book when we saw them grow up as kids. He was just so innocent and really all he needed was love. But literally nobody gives him enough credit. Sure, Lada can swing around a sword but can she fool and scheme her way into the enemies good graces? Radu was so cunning, yet such a sweetie. A true Slytherpuff. But I honestly need to see more sibling dynamics in YA. I loved Lada and Radu's development so much! Seeing how far they'd come and how much they actually relied on one another was so sweet. They were a heart-warming pair and I loved how nice their personalities contrasted. I also really enjoyed seeing the trio grow up together. Radu, Lada and Mehmed all worked so well together and I loved all of their bonding scenes. Another great bond was Nicolae and Lada. I really enjoyed their friendship and the playful banter that came with it. This book (although you wouldn't expect it to) actually had some great humour and some really beautiful moments.
The romance part of it wasn't the strongest. When Lada and Mehmed had their first kiss I thought it was cute and the tension was really building. But as soon as Mehmed became Sultan everything just got weird. He was going off and secretly having babies with other women and ultimately wasn't telling Lada all too much. Although I respected seeing a male character openly show his emotions I can't really say I trust Mehmed or was rooting for his and Lada's relationship.
Over all this was a pretty great read, that I loved mainly for the characters. I can say that I will be picking up the second one.
P.S. Can I just say that that last scene was literally so powerful. That last line left me with chills. Chills. <3