A review by caitlin_bookchats
The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala

adventurous fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.0

This book is recommended to fans of Sabaa Tahir and I completely understand. It has a lot of similar feelings and vibes as An Ember in the Ashes, and although I do think AEitA is better constructed, I still really enjoyed this book. (AEitA is a clear 5 stars to me personally while this is 4 stars for me but could easily be a solid 3 stars for some.)

Key ways this book differs that might make you really want to read it:

• Esha is a more skilled and dominant rebel in this book than Laia in AEitA (cannot speak to Laia's development in later books which I am sure is substantial)
• Esha and her rebels have a stronger foothold and stance in this book, from a neighboring land, so they are making progress faster.
• the mythology that inspired this is clearly different. It's not the background mythology that makes them feel similar it's the political structure and male character background.
• we only get Esha and Kumal's POVs, no Helene to deal with.
• the romance is more prominent/progresses more quickly in this book than in AEitA.

Personally I picked this book up off my TBR because of a readathon prompt to read a book with a time of day in the title, but had no real expectations going in (I couldn't remember why it was ON my TBR) and was surprised and delighted to find myself drawn in and speeding through. It was engaging and interesting and I am a sucker for some elements of the plot here that could technically be considered spoiler-y although they're very heavily lampshaded. Specifically

I'm a real sucker for childhood bffs to enemies (in this case because they a. didn't remember each other and b. ended up on opposite sides of the coup. REAL CATNIP FOR ME.) to cat and mouse because we are hot for each other but are also enemies!!!. ANYWAY, it's missing the angst of I-loved-this-person-but-we-are-now-enemies that say, Onyx and Ivory has, but it's still delightful and when they do remember each other it is well timed in the narrative.

Anyway, I think it's worth taking a look here if you liked AEiTA but cannot guarantee it will scratch that same itch.

If you haven't read/aren't interested in AEitA and are somehow still reading this review, you might love this book if you love very competent soldier/assassin trying to defeat each other but also hot for each other narratives or if you want to read some stories about good people being deprogrammed and fighting for good!

Sexual content:

There is one instance of fake making-out to hide from searchers, one kiss, and allusions to sexual attraction/a previous intimate relationship/the existence of sex, but nothing else, FTB or otherwise, in this book.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, War, and Death

Minor: Death of parent

Hard to know exactly how to identify the potential triggers here:

it's a story about a soldier and a rebel on opposite sides of a coup and opens with the murder of one character's uncle who is revealed to also be a war criminal/massacre architect. The atrocities are not described in detail but the coup from 10 years ago that killed both protagonist's parents is mentioned multiple times. One of the characters also kills several people during fights in the book and both characters think about having killed people in the past in very broad terms.