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A review by willrefuge
The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
‘ A series of disasters. But I am glad to hear a grand tale follows me. ‘
—
A grand tale, indeed! Following the stunning end to the Oleander Sword, the Lotus Empire picks up with Priya and Malini picking up the pieces and preparing for war. With each other. The book does tarry a bit here, with war looming for a good half the book. Enough time to get all the players in place, and to set the needed machinations to work. Honestly, I didn’t really mind it. If you have to do something, make sure it’s done right. And so, Priya and Malini, Rao and Bhumika, Sima, the Yaksa, and others scurry around. Making preparations; chasing down leads, myths, anything that will give them a leg up on the other. When the war kicks off in force, it is truly epic.
The above quote is quite an apt description of the text. A grand tale, but one with a series of disasters—represented, in this case, by the romance. Because what Malini and Priya have/had is not love, not really. Malini loves power. And she wants Priya as a beautiful consort, a doll she can keep in a box, where it will be beautiful and safe (and yes, she literally says this). And hers—forever. Priya loves Malini and wants her safe. So much so that she cuts out the woman’s heart, and delivers it to her gods, all to “protect” her love from them. She hopes that by doing this, she can show Malini how much she cares for her. Over the course of the book, they do meet up even now and then for foreplay, or sex. But lust and love are different.
And so, did this whole thing go as expected? Well, yes and no, as these things usually do. The main plot kept surprising me, in new and interesting ways. I never really pinned down what was going to happen, and so, each new twist and turn was a surprise—most often a good one. The romance, on the other hand, went about the way I expected. Not a healthy one; just two women lusting after each other. Though I’m sure someone will disagree. Argue that this is how true love works, somehow. Yeah… if you say so.
And just how did this work as a series cap? Well, honestly, quite well. Romance aside, it felt like a complete win to me. Overall, I’d definitely recommend the Burning Kingdoms, if you haven’t checked it out before. Just because I don’t feel like the romance ended up in a good place doesn’t mean that I didn’t approve of it in past books, after all. Not all love lasts, that’s all.
TL;DR
All in all, a bit of a mixed bag, but heavily weighted in one direction. The romance, while misguided—often toxic—plays but a bit part to the overarching plot. A plot which was thoroughly interesting, and at times truly epic. I enjoyed most characters utterly—minus Malini, because she lusts after hurting and imprisoning Priya routinely—but especially Priya and Rao. Sima and Ganam were my favorite minor characters, but honestly there were so many that were good! If not for the slow build at the forefront and the toxic romance turned… whatever-it-was by the end, it might’ve been truly perfect. But still an easy recommendation. Heck, maybe you’ll even appreciate Malini and Priya’s “love” more than I did. One can hope.
—
A grand tale, indeed! Following the stunning end to the Oleander Sword, the Lotus Empire picks up with Priya and Malini picking up the pieces and preparing for war. With each other. The book does tarry a bit here, with war looming for a good half the book. Enough time to get all the players in place, and to set the needed machinations to work. Honestly, I didn’t really mind it. If you have to do something, make sure it’s done right. And so, Priya and Malini, Rao and Bhumika, Sima, the Yaksa, and others scurry around. Making preparations; chasing down leads, myths, anything that will give them a leg up on the other. When the war kicks off in force, it is truly epic.
The above quote is quite an apt description of the text. A grand tale, but one with a series of disasters—represented, in this case, by the romance. Because what Malini and Priya have/had is not love, not really. Malini loves power. And she wants Priya as a beautiful consort, a doll she can keep in a box, where it will be beautiful and safe (and yes, she literally says this). And hers—forever. Priya loves Malini and wants her safe. So much so that she cuts out the woman’s heart, and delivers it to her gods, all to “protect” her love from them. She hopes that by doing this, she can show Malini how much she cares for her. Over the course of the book, they do meet up even now and then for foreplay, or sex. But lust and love are different.
And so, did this whole thing go as expected? Well, yes and no, as these things usually do. The main plot kept surprising me, in new and interesting ways. I never really pinned down what was going to happen, and so, each new twist and turn was a surprise—most often a good one. The romance, on the other hand, went about the way I expected. Not a healthy one; just two women lusting after each other. Though I’m sure someone will disagree. Argue that this is how true love works, somehow. Yeah… if you say so.
And just how did this work as a series cap? Well, honestly, quite well. Romance aside, it felt like a complete win to me. Overall, I’d definitely recommend the Burning Kingdoms, if you haven’t checked it out before. Just because I don’t feel like the romance ended up in a good place doesn’t mean that I didn’t approve of it in past books, after all. Not all love lasts, that’s all.
TL;DR
All in all, a bit of a mixed bag, but heavily weighted in one direction. The romance, while misguided—often toxic—plays but a bit part to the overarching plot. A plot which was thoroughly interesting, and at times truly epic. I enjoyed most characters utterly—minus Malini, because she lusts after hurting and imprisoning Priya routinely—but especially Priya and Rao. Sima and Ganam were my favorite minor characters, but honestly there were so many that were good! If not for the slow build at the forefront and the toxic romance turned… whatever-it-was by the end, it might’ve been truly perfect. But still an easy recommendation. Heck, maybe you’ll even appreciate Malini and Priya’s “love” more than I did. One can hope.