Author: Sara Hashem
Rating: 5/5⭐️
I'm not usually cautious of spoilers in my book reviews but this book was so good that I refuse to spoil anything so this will be shorter. I encourage you guys to read it for yourselves. That should tell you how good this book was.
Did the book live up to the anticipation you had after waiting months for it?
Yes 100%. The book absolutely met my expectations. I enjoyed so many aspects of the story. I loved the writing style and how Sylvia articulated her words when describing her feelings and the things that she went through. Everyone said that this book was so good and I waited quite a minute to get it and so when it was available I quickly snatched it up and I knew I had to read it. The first four chapters are kind of hard to get through at least for me because they're just setting up the plot but by chapter 5 I was completely intrigued and the story had me in its wraps. I can see why people rave about this book the way that they do. It isn't that it's just good, it makes you feel connected to the characters and there are so many things that happen within the story that kind of pull you in.
I was absolutely freaking out at the way the story sped up at chapter 9. Literally screaming. I was not prepared for the way that the plot thickened so quickly and it got so good. The build up from chapter 1 to chapter 9 made me realize for one: how worth it this book was going to be but also it reminded me why I love reading. That moment reminded me of the feeling that books give you, that high that you get when a book is really good. That is not always easy to come by when you are an avid reader because you get used to it after a while but this book reminded me exactly why this is the hobby I choose. This is one of the books that makes you remember why they turn books into movies because there is no way a movie could ever come up with something like this.
I do have to applaud the author because this book is magnificent in a lot of ways. The setting is great, the characters are great, the plot is great and as a person who loves to analyze every aspect of the story ESPECIALLY the characters I genuinely I give it tens across the board.
Some of the chapters in this book were quite long and as a slow reader I try to stay away from books with really long chapters but this book was so good that I literally couldn't help myself and I had no trouble getting through the longer chapters. I sat for hours reading because I could not wait to see what happened next. I was literally dreaming about this book. That's how much it was on my mind and when I woke up the first thing I wanted to do is get back to it and that's after having to force myself to go to sleep in the first place.
What part of Sylvia's character development affected you the most?
The part of Sylvia's character development that affected me the most was her realizing that the people around her weren't who she thought they were and she also was wrong about herself. Sylvia was a girl who got her world turned upside down at such a young age and she missed out on a lot of the typical developmental years that people go through and it caused her to not know herself and she didn't realize it until it was thrown into her face. It was sad to see that she basically distorted her own memory without knowing but that's what trauma can do to a person and I think the book did a really good job of displaying that part of trauma.
Another thing I loved about Sylvia's character development is how she was beginning to accept herself. She was no longer restraining herself from the things that she was afraid of. She was taught that she couldn't have a permanent life anywhere and she had it instilled in her that she couldn't be loved and she couldn't love others. I think what Sylvia went through in this book really taught her that she is 100% capable of love and not only she capable of loving but she is capable of being loved and it was very sweet to see that as much as she tried so hard not to care about the people around her she loved them very much and was willing to sacrifice for them.
Sylvia is a very strong woman and she reminds me a lot of Katniss in certain ways. I also really liked her humor and her personality. She was very fun to read about and her character overall was very beautiful.
What did you think about the way their feelings were communicated through actions rather than constant declarations?
I absolutely love this love story in this book. One of my favorite things is when the Romance of the book is a side plot rather than the main plot and that's partly why books like The Hunger Games are so great to me because I love reading details and having to put things together to make the Love Story rather than it just being handed to me and that's exactly what this book did.
I loved watching them become comfortable with one another. This book was probably one of the first true animated lovers books that I've ever read when I think about it. they truly did hate each other and had a certain disdain for each other that I've never read in a book before and it genuinely had me wondering how in the world were they possibly going to get past that and fall in love and somehow they did.
I loved reading about their actions and I have so many quotes that I highlighted not only in the way that Sylvia was thinking but in the way that they interacted with each other with glances and touches and the way that they spoke to one another even when they were bickering you felt the love between them before they did.
Arin is such an incredibly charismatic character. He is the exact type of man that I love reading about. I love when a man meets a strong woman and instead of wanting to Humble her he meets her where she's at and challenges her. I loved watching them learn that they had things in common despite their differences and the small moments that they had with one another. The small moments were so intimate it was insane.
Let me give a quote really quick:
“Arin looked at me until it started to hurt. A covered thumb slid across my cheekbone. ‘What appeal can reason have in the face of your tears?’” THIS ISN’T EVEN THE BEST ONE!!
Watching those two fall in love was so great and the best part about it is it was literally a side plot and yet I felt fit so fed.
How did the revelations about Jasad's history change your understanding of the conflict?
The revelations about Jasad's history was so interesting and it was a really good plot twist. I did not expect for Sylvia to end up a type of unreliable character especially because she was also very sure of herself. She was lied to. She learned that there were so many details that she didn't know even about herself and I felt so bad for her. I couldn't imagine being in that kind of situation. It was really heartbreaking to see Sylvia be betrayed like that and it made me wonder when that girl's suffering was finally going to stop.
I do appreciate it though when things like that happen in these books because it makes the character more real and more human for me and it makes trauma something that isn't just for the plot but something that really happens to people. I also really enjoyed this shift that happened in Sylvia when she did recognize the things going on around her weren't what she thought they were and to learn the truth alongside her was even better.
Did you enjoy the way she described Sylvia's emotions and attraction, especially her more poetic descriptions of Arin?
I love the way Sylvia articulated her words when she was describing her emotions and attraction because they were so real written and so poetic. It was great reading words like that across a page and I have never heard someone describe their feelings for someone in such an intimate yet simple way. The context around her words makes what she is saying even better.
The way she talked about his smile and his features and the way he made her feel was so beautiful and vice versa. You don't get into Arin's head the way you do with Sylvia in this book but you do get the words that he said to her and about her and they were beautiful as well.
An example: “Birds had practiced their sweet songs for generations, but even their music did not compare to the sound of Arin’s laugh. We stared at each other until the shadows in the room lengthened.” Ugh once again not even the best one.
Please if this sounds like something you would enjoy I encourage you to go read it. It was so good and it completely exceeded my expectations. I'm not even doing it justice in this review. It is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year and I will probably recommend it until the end of time. I cannot wait to read the second book.
Next read will be: Sunrise of the Reaping by Suzanne Collins!!
I also recently got a fable account!: https://fable.co/fabler/maddy-355573411599?tab=stats&period_type=year
Thanks for reading! 🌸
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