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saidtheraina 's review for:
Mirage
by Somaiya Daud
Prince & the Pauper, but in this amazing setting.
This is one of those books that has a map in the front. A few, in fact. Two that narrow down the star system, and one of the planet where most of the action happens. The setting of this book is rich, with vivid descriptions of each of the places our protagonist visits. The characters travel between a few different planets, and the cities have names like Sidi Walid, Al-Thaghr Al Sharq, and Qurtan. This is a wonderful example of a book that would be totally different if it was written by someone who was from the dominant demographic of white English-language amerikan authors.
In this case, our protagonist is forced to become a body double for a princess who is almost universally reviled. The princess is the result of a diplomatic marriage between the conquering Vathek ruler and a member of the conquered people who originally inhabited the planet. She is a living embodiment of cultural trauma. As such, she's developed a hard shell, isolating herself from everyone else. The princess is also engaged to be married to a member of the conquered people. Daud weaves in issues of oppression, racism, class, and some machinations which will appeal to fans of the work of [a: George R. R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1563055799p2/346732.jpg].
There is a hetero romance plotline, which many will enjoy, but for me these are generally the least interesting things about books.
I'm a setting person, tho, and this serves plenty of that. Yumm.
Took this out as part of my high school tour of 2019.
This is one of those books that has a map in the front. A few, in fact. Two that narrow down the star system, and one of the planet where most of the action happens. The setting of this book is rich, with vivid descriptions of each of the places our protagonist visits. The characters travel between a few different planets, and the cities have names like Sidi Walid, Al-Thaghr Al Sharq, and Qurtan. This is a wonderful example of a book that would be totally different if it was written by someone who was from the dominant demographic of white English-language amerikan authors.
In this case, our protagonist is forced to become a body double for a princess who is almost universally reviled. The princess is the result of a diplomatic marriage between the conquering Vathek ruler and a member of the conquered people who originally inhabited the planet. She is a living embodiment of cultural trauma. As such, she's developed a hard shell, isolating herself from everyone else. The princess is also engaged to be married to a member of the conquered people. Daud weaves in issues of oppression, racism, class, and some machinations which will appeal to fans of the work of [a: George R. R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1563055799p2/346732.jpg].
There is a hetero romance plotline, which many will enjoy, but for me these are generally the least interesting things about books.
I'm a setting person, tho, and this serves plenty of that. Yumm.
Took this out as part of my high school tour of 2019.