After the epic cliffhanger in A Torch Against The Night, my expectations for A Reaper At The Gates by Sabaa Tahir were pretty high. Fast-paced, and with a much better world-building and character development, this third book was definitely unforgettable. Here’s my quick review below.
Continue reading “Review: A Reaper At The Gates by Sabaa Tahir (Ember Quartet #3)”Tag: persons of color
The Gilded Wolves: A Nuanced Heist Fantasy That Explores Colorism, Colonialism And Power Struggles
Ratings: 5/5
Short review: Excellent novel is excellent. Highly recommend.
The tea (because there always seems to be a controversy or another whenever a marginalized author puts out a best-seller diverse novel): skip to the bottom.
TRIGGER WARNINGS: child abuse, mild torture and violence
Detailed review: Now this here is a stunning, exciting thought-provoking novel that I can’t wait to get more of. Roshani Chokshi (who made me remember why I love fantasy with her debut novel The Star-Touched Queen and its sequel A Crown of Wishes) once again brings a brilliantly written fantasy/heist story with a cast of incredibly fascinating, lovable characters, an intense and captivating plot line, slow burn romance, and breath-taking world building.
Set in the era of Moulin Rouge in a fictional, glittering and magical Paris, the book, on the surface, is about a team of 5 talented thieves working on their most dangerous and rewarding acquisition. However, as you dive deeper into the story and learn about each characters’ motivations and aspirations, the story begins to explore racism, colonialism, identity and disparity through well developed, diverse characters of all backgrounds. What I loved the most is that the author touches on these topics just long enough to make you pause, and ponder on important questions without taking the focus away from the actual heist.
Continue reading “The Gilded Wolves: A Nuanced Heist Fantasy That Explores Colorism, Colonialism And Power Struggles”Review: City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments#2) by Cassandra Clare
Ratings: ☕☕ (2/5)
This review contains spoilers from the first book. Please do not read any further unless you have read City of Bones. You can find my review of City of Bones here.
The second book of The Mortal Instruments series was a conflicting book for me–on one hand, I enjoyed it immensely, and thought it was much more well written than the first book. On the other hand, there was a certain problematic element in the book that I believed was never acknowledged: the incestuous relationship between Clary and Jace.
Continue reading “Review: City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments#2) by Cassandra Clare”