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A review by alexiacambaling
A House of Rage and Sorrow by Sangu Mandanna
4.0
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I loved A Spark of White Fire and considered it one of the best underrated YA books I’ve read and so I was really looking forward to this one. I have to say, it doesn’t disappoint and there’s no trace of second book syndrome to be found as A House of Rage and Sorrow ups the stakes for the brewing war between brother and sister.
Here, Esmae is reeling from the death of her best friend at the hands of her brother Alexi and vows to destroy him. While she still longs for love and acceptance, she no longer has any illusions about her family and now knows that they will have to fight. I love her character and how angry she was. Her thirst for justice and vengeance can be felt through every page and just when you’d think she can’t get hurt anymore, there’s still more twists to come. There’s still more coming and truths which can destroy everything she thought was true.
A House of Rage and Sorrow doesn’t let up. It’s pace is breakneck and there’s so much stuff happening that sometimes, it can get a little difficult to keep up. Still, every second just kept me glued to my seat as the plot unfolded. As I mentioned, there’s quite a few twists in this book and some of them are pretty surprising. In this world of meddling gods, there’s a lot that can happen and a lot which can change the course of the story. As the stakes get higher, I’m really intrigued as to how the story ends because it’s now difficult to imagine a truly happy ending for the parties involved.
I also adored the side characters in this book and how they have their own struggles and life outside the main character and plot- especially Radha and Sybilla. Titania’s perspective is a wonderful addition and I enjoyed reading it. Also, the scene where the three girls have to undergo the trials in the Empty Moon was amazing and I liked how not all of them were able to complete it, in part because it added a lot of realism and depth to the scene. Max also has a lot of things going on and he gains a lot of character in this book. I was a bit more neutral as to his character in the previous one, but I grew to appreciate his character more here.
Overall, I really liked this book. More secrets come to light, betrayal, power struggles, etc. It has everything you could possibly want in a political family drama and I’m very excited to see how the story ends. Highly recommended.
I loved A Spark of White Fire and considered it one of the best underrated YA books I’ve read and so I was really looking forward to this one. I have to say, it doesn’t disappoint and there’s no trace of second book syndrome to be found as A House of Rage and Sorrow ups the stakes for the brewing war between brother and sister.
Here, Esmae is reeling from the death of her best friend at the hands of her brother Alexi and vows to destroy him. While she still longs for love and acceptance, she no longer has any illusions about her family and now knows that they will have to fight. I love her character and how angry she was. Her thirst for justice and vengeance can be felt through every page and just when you’d think she can’t get hurt anymore, there’s still more twists to come. There’s still more coming and truths which can destroy everything she thought was true.
A House of Rage and Sorrow doesn’t let up. It’s pace is breakneck and there’s so much stuff happening that sometimes, it can get a little difficult to keep up. Still, every second just kept me glued to my seat as the plot unfolded. As I mentioned, there’s quite a few twists in this book and some of them are pretty surprising. In this world of meddling gods, there’s a lot that can happen and a lot which can change the course of the story. As the stakes get higher, I’m really intrigued as to how the story ends because it’s now difficult to imagine a truly happy ending for the parties involved.
I also adored the side characters in this book and how they have their own struggles and life outside the main character and plot- especially Radha and Sybilla. Titania’s perspective is a wonderful addition and I enjoyed reading it. Also, the scene where the three girls have to undergo the trials in the Empty Moon was amazing and I liked how not all of them were able to complete it, in part because it added a lot of realism and depth to the scene. Max also has a lot of things going on and he gains a lot of character in this book. I was a bit more neutral as to his character in the previous one, but I grew to appreciate his character more here.
Overall, I really liked this book. More secrets come to light, betrayal, power struggles, etc. It has everything you could possibly want in a political family drama and I’m very excited to see how the story ends. Highly recommended.