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A review by tencutepuppies
And I Darken by Kiersten White
4.0
(4.5) This book is so fantastic, I can’t believe I waited until now to read it. It’s been on my TBR for probably years now, yikes. But I’m really glad I finally got to it.
The Writing!!!
While I seem to write more straightforward myself, I love love love books where there are powerful quotes like every single line. It seems like every sentence is this beautifully crafted, poetic masterpiece that I can only hope to mimic in my own future work. It makes me supremely jealous.
Lada:
First off, let me say that the character work done here is phenomenal. While I know the main problem people had with this story was its slow pacing, I think the complexities and ever-changing natures of the main characters more than makes up for it.
I was drawn to Lada at first because of how unique she is. Not in like a “I’m not like other girls” kind of way (although she does kind of think of herself that way because of the whole patriarchal system in place) but because she’s ugly inside and out, she’s cruel and greedy and terrible. But she’s extremely real, not to mention her hunger for power in a world where women basically are nothing but children-bearers. Her constant struggle to prove herself a man capable of her father’s love while still identifying as a woman was so heartbreaking to read. She seems to be the only one who takes herself seriously, especially as she faces sexual harassment by the other Janissaries later on. No matter how cruel or ugly or cutting she is, all they see is a woman’s body and nothing more.
But I really appreciated the way her character grew from a spiteful girl who resented the other women in the palace for sitting back and kind of “letting” themselves be oppressed for their gender to realizing those women hold their own power—one that sheer manpower will never unlock. It was so important to see that from her after the negative way she regarded their submissiveness in the beginning, although it’s understandable why she thought that way.
Actually, I saw quite a few negative comments about how people couldn’t continue the book because she’s just so terrible and unlikable and it’s like.....that’s kind of the point. And just because a character does bad things does not mean they can’t have redeeming qualities (like her ambition or her protection for Radu) or be an interesting character. Terrible as she was, her character development was so interesting to read.
It’s not like she’s this completely horrible monster that never does anything unlikable. Her strategizing was really cool to see, and I loved her relationship with the Janissaries, especially Nikolae. He’s clearly really good for her in a place where not many other things are.
Radu:
Poor, poor Radu, I love him so much. He’s grown up under constant little cruelties by Lada and his father, who both regard him as the weaker, embarrassing sibling. It’s so clear all he wants is just to be loved, first by his father and Lada, then by Mehmed, and he never quite gets it.
But I’m glad that he found some kind of release in converting to Islam, and it was very brave of him to go through with it against Lada’s very fervent rejections of it. He also got a lot of friends within the palace and kind of made it his own home, so it’s not like complete suffering for him all the time, thankfully.
But god, his struggling with his unrequited feelings for Mehmed were painful to read. He lives, breathes and survives just for that boy, and Mehmed ends up being in love with his sister. It’s so, so sad that he’s willing to stay in what is basically their enemy’s home just to be with Mehmed in case he’s needed there. And still, he’s the afterthought. Lada is so terrible and Mehmed still picked her over sweet Radu. He’d better get the love he deserves.
(I refuse to talk about Lazar. That shit was so sad.)
His character arc was also so satisfying to see. He still has deep self-worth issues from when he was a child, but as he grows older he realizes that he doesn’t need Lada anymore and their dynamic kind of switches into something more volatile and unfriendly. I liked seeing that his kindness and his easy nature helped him manipulate information out of the court, which is something Lada could never do. It proves that Radu’s kind of intelligence is just as valuable, and that they’ll only be able to succeed when their minds are put together.
Mehmed:
I want to see more of him, even a POV in the next books. I think he has the capability of being really interesting, what with being a child sultan and all. But I feel like I didn’t get the best grasp of who he really was because this book was through the eyes of the siblings only.
The Romance:
I don’t know how to feel about this one. Lada and Mehmed’s moments were great, it just was kind of hindered by the toxicity between them and Radu, who’s actually in love with Mehmed, and Lada who doesn’t really say either way. Mehmed clearly loves her and is the only man who will accept her as his equal (which is the bare fucking minimum, but these were different times), but because she doesn’t often tell us or him how she feels, it’s hard to know. Plus, I know that their ship is only heading into pain in the future so that’s something to look forward to.
Final Thoughts:
I just can’t get over how well the characters were done. Radu and Lada may be some of the best, most complex and fleshed-out work I’ve seen in a long time. I love them very much and I’m excited for the next books, even though I know they’ll hurt me.
The Writing!!!
While I seem to write more straightforward myself, I love love love books where there are powerful quotes like every single line. It seems like every sentence is this beautifully crafted, poetic masterpiece that I can only hope to mimic in my own future work. It makes me supremely jealous.
Lada:
First off, let me say that the character work done here is phenomenal. While I know the main problem people had with this story was its slow pacing, I think the complexities and ever-changing natures of the main characters more than makes up for it.
I was drawn to Lada at first because of how unique she is. Not in like a “I’m not like other girls” kind of way (although she does kind of think of herself that way because of the whole patriarchal system in place) but because she’s ugly inside and out, she’s cruel and greedy and terrible. But she’s extremely real, not to mention her hunger for power in a world where women basically are nothing but children-bearers. Her constant struggle to prove herself a man capable of her father’s love while still identifying as a woman was so heartbreaking to read. She seems to be the only one who takes herself seriously, especially as she faces sexual harassment by the other Janissaries later on. No matter how cruel or ugly or cutting she is, all they see is a woman’s body and nothing more.
But I really appreciated the way her character grew from a spiteful girl who resented the other women in the palace for sitting back and kind of “letting” themselves be oppressed for their gender to realizing those women hold their own power—one that sheer manpower will never unlock. It was so important to see that from her after the negative way she regarded their submissiveness in the beginning, although it’s understandable why she thought that way.
Actually, I saw quite a few negative comments about how people couldn’t continue the book because she’s just so terrible and unlikable and it’s like.....that’s kind of the point. And just because a character does bad things does not mean they can’t have redeeming qualities (like her ambition or her protection for Radu) or be an interesting character. Terrible as she was, her character development was so interesting to read.
It’s not like she’s this completely horrible monster that never does anything unlikable. Her strategizing was really cool to see, and I loved her relationship with the Janissaries, especially Nikolae. He’s clearly really good for her in a place where not many other things are.
Radu:
Poor, poor Radu, I love him so much. He’s grown up under constant little cruelties by Lada and his father, who both regard him as the weaker, embarrassing sibling. It’s so clear all he wants is just to be loved, first by his father and Lada, then by Mehmed, and he never quite gets it.
But I’m glad that he found some kind of release in converting to Islam, and it was very brave of him to go through with it against Lada’s very fervent rejections of it. He also got a lot of friends within the palace and kind of made it his own home, so it’s not like complete suffering for him all the time, thankfully.
But god, his struggling with his unrequited feelings for Mehmed were painful to read. He lives, breathes and survives just for that boy, and Mehmed ends up being in love with his sister. It’s so, so sad that he’s willing to stay in what is basically their enemy’s home just to be with Mehmed in case he’s needed there. And still, he’s the afterthought. Lada is so terrible and Mehmed still picked her over sweet Radu. He’d better get the love he deserves.
(I refuse to talk about Lazar. That shit was so sad.)
His character arc was also so satisfying to see. He still has deep self-worth issues from when he was a child, but as he grows older he realizes that he doesn’t need Lada anymore and their dynamic kind of switches into something more volatile and unfriendly. I liked seeing that his kindness and his easy nature helped him manipulate information out of the court, which is something Lada could never do. It proves that Radu’s kind of intelligence is just as valuable, and that they’ll only be able to succeed when their minds are put together.
Mehmed:
I want to see more of him, even a POV in the next books. I think he has the capability of being really interesting, what with being a child sultan and all. But I feel like I didn’t get the best grasp of who he really was because this book was through the eyes of the siblings only.
The Romance:
I don’t know how to feel about this one. Lada and Mehmed’s moments were great, it just was kind of hindered by the toxicity between them and Radu, who’s actually in love with Mehmed, and Lada who doesn’t really say either way. Mehmed clearly loves her and is the only man who will accept her as his equal (which is the bare fucking minimum, but these were different times), but because she doesn’t often tell us or him how she feels, it’s hard to know. Plus, I know that their ship is only heading into pain in the future so that’s something to look forward to.
Final Thoughts:
I just can’t get over how well the characters were done. Radu and Lada may be some of the best, most complex and fleshed-out work I’ve seen in a long time. I love them very much and I’m excited for the next books, even though I know they’ll hurt me.