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siobhanthebookworm_ 's review for:
The Prince Without Sorrow
by Maithree Wijesekara
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is a hard book to review, because I have so many feelings, and all of them are conflicting. On one hand, I really enjoyed this book and there were elements that I absolutely loved (and no matter my criticisms here, I will absolutely be continuing this series!), but I cannot deny that this book is so incredibly messy. This book's primary issue stems from the fact that, to me at least, it needed so much more editing. I don't mean this at a grammar/sentence level (because those issues are to be expected in a proof copy like the one I read), I mean this at a structural, plot, and character level because, whilst I appreciate and can see what Wijesekara is trying to do with this book, the execution, for the most part, is really poor.
The strongest aspect of this book, I feel, is Ashoka's character and plotline. A big part of his conflict in this book centres around his rigid morals, and what he is willing to sacrifice to enact the change he wants to see in this world dominated by persecution and cruelty. He starts as quite an innocent character, and slowly over the course of this book starts to grow into himself, and questions whether the fight for power and the enacting of violence is always a negative thing when it is committed in the pursuit of justice and good. I thought this was such an interesting concept to explore, and, after how this book ended and the path Ashoka has started on, I'm really intrigued to see where this plotline and character development will go. I also adored his relationship with Rahil and am very excited to see how this will continue to develop.
Shakti, our other protagonist, I found much more difficult to follow. Her big plot moment - cursing the current emperor (which is not a spoiler as it is in the blurb) - happens really early on in the book, and then for the rest of the book she doesn't seem to have any significant plot. Whilst Ashoka's plotline promises deeper plot progression and character development, Shakti's 'plot' feels very meandering and meaningless, often helped along by convenience or coincidence, and I don't believe she developed at all as a character. She is very rash, impulsive, annoyingly oblivious, and easily prone to violence (which is a good contrast to Ashoka's character), however I don't think this made for a very compelling character and I found myself enjoying Ashoka's POV chapters much more. Shakti's character and plot is where I feel better editing could have been a benefit, as there was so much potential that seemed wasted.
I do think some really interesting worldbuilding was set up in this book, and I particularly enjoyed the little nature spirits (who reminded me a lot of Koroks, if anyone is familiar with the Zelda franchise), and I think this worldbuilding and magic system added a lot of intrigue to Ashoka's plotline. But, again, I just don't think this was done as well as it could be, especially with the mayakari (witches). Shakti sets up the rules of their magic really early on, but, again, things just seem a bit too convenient and underdeveloped, especially Shakti's experience with The Collective (which I won't say much more on because MASSIVE spoilers there), which I didn't feel was set up at all and its only purpose was to be convenient to Shakti's meandering plot. The political structure seemed a bit confusing too at times (as much as I love Ashoka and thought his plot is the strongest part of this book, why on earth is he being allowed to govern when he has never sat on a council or had any training?) and I hope this can be improved upon in the next few books.
Despite my issues, I do think I will be continuing this series. I think what Wijesekara was trying to do with the messaging and themes of this book is really intriguing, even if the execution wasn't great, and I do think this book has set up this series nicely. Hopefully, given that this was a debut book, the next books in this series will address and improve upon some of the issues that were present in this book. I do recommend checking this book out as I think this series has some great potential!
The strongest aspect of this book, I feel, is Ashoka's character and plotline. A big part of his conflict in this book centres around his rigid morals, and what he is willing to sacrifice to enact the change he wants to see in this world dominated by persecution and cruelty. He starts as quite an innocent character, and slowly over the course of this book starts to grow into himself, and questions whether the fight for power and the enacting of violence is always a negative thing when it is committed in the pursuit of justice and good. I thought this was such an interesting concept to explore, and, after how this book ended and the path Ashoka has started on, I'm really intrigued to see where this plotline and character development will go. I also adored his relationship with Rahil and am very excited to see how this will continue to develop.
Shakti, our other protagonist, I found much more difficult to follow. Her big plot moment - cursing the current emperor (which is not a spoiler as it is in the blurb) - happens really early on in the book, and then for the rest of the book she doesn't seem to have any significant plot. Whilst Ashoka's plotline promises deeper plot progression and character development, Shakti's 'plot' feels very meandering and meaningless, often helped along by convenience or coincidence, and I don't believe she developed at all as a character. She is very rash, impulsive, annoyingly oblivious, and easily prone to violence (which is a good contrast to Ashoka's character), however I don't think this made for a very compelling character and I found myself enjoying Ashoka's POV chapters much more. Shakti's character and plot is where I feel better editing could have been a benefit, as there was so much potential that seemed wasted.
I do think some really interesting worldbuilding was set up in this book, and I particularly enjoyed the little nature spirits (who reminded me a lot of Koroks, if anyone is familiar with the Zelda franchise), and I think this worldbuilding and magic system added a lot of intrigue to Ashoka's plotline. But, again, I just don't think this was done as well as it could be, especially with the mayakari (witches). Shakti sets up the rules of their magic really early on, but, again, things just seem a bit too convenient and underdeveloped, especially Shakti's experience with The Collective (which I won't say much more on because MASSIVE spoilers there), which I didn't feel was set up at all and its only purpose was to be convenient to Shakti's meandering plot. The political structure seemed a bit confusing too at times (as much as I love Ashoka and thought his plot is the strongest part of this book, why on earth is he being allowed to govern when he has never sat on a council or had any training?) and I hope this can be improved upon in the next few books.
Despite my issues, I do think I will be continuing this series. I think what Wijesekara was trying to do with the messaging and themes of this book is really intriguing, even if the execution wasn't great, and I do think this book has set up this series nicely. Hopefully, given that this was a debut book, the next books in this series will address and improve upon some of the issues that were present in this book. I do recommend checking this book out as I think this series has some great potential!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Self harm