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Review: The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala

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The Tiger at Dawn by Swati Teerdhala

The Tiger at Midnight
Swati Teerdhala
Katherine Tegen Books
Published April 23, 2019

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About The Tiger at Midnight

A broken bond. A dying land. A cat-and-mouse game that can only end in bloodshed.

Esha is a legend, but no one knows. It’s only in the shadows that she moonlights as the Viper, the rebels’ highly skilled assassin. She’s devoted her life to avenging what she lost in the royal coup, and now she’s been tasked with her most important mission to date: taking down the ruthless General Hotha.

Kunal has been a soldier since childhood, training morning and night to uphold the power of King Vardaan. His uncle, the general, has ensured that Kunal never strays from the path—even as a part of Kunal longs to join the outside world, which has been growing only more volatile.

Then Esha’s and Kunal’s paths cross—and an unimaginable chain of events unfolds. Both the Viper and the soldier think they’re calling the shots, but they’re not the only players moving the pieces. As the bonds that hold their land in order break down and the sins of the past meet the promise of a new future, both rebel and soldier must make unforgivable choices.

Drawing inspiration from ancient Indian history and Hindu mythology, the first book in Swati Teerdhala’s debut fantasy trilogy captivates with electric romance, stunning action, and the fierce bonds that hold people together—and drive them apart.

My Review

Forbidden love between a duty-bound soldier and a rebel assassin set in a lush, magical landscape? OH. YES. I knew as soon as I read the description of this book that THE TIGER AT MIDNIGHT was something I needed to read.

What is it about characters who battle with loyalty to a cause once they realize their world isn’t the black and white place they thought it was? I loved that for both Esha and Kunal, decisions that were once easy become complicated. Suddenly their enemies have faces and names and causes, and it’s not so simple to cut them down.

There’s a lot of inner turmoil and wrestling, which I love because I tend to love stories that tackle moral issues. There’s also a beautiful landscape with jungles and palaces and town bazaars and everything described in a way that makes it all come alive.I think fans of Roshani Chokshi (THE STAR-TOUCHED QUEEN) and Sabaa Tahir (AN EMBER IN THE ASHES) will love this fantastic book.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Written with inspiration from Indian history and Hindu mythology.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Profanity used very rarely.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl and pretty fierce romantic tension. Esha meets a girl who is running away to be with her lover, another girl.

Spiritual Content
A Samyad woman and a Himyan man must both make a sacrifice to renew the janma bond with the land, a bond which keeps the land fertile and growing. Since the disruption of the bond, the land is drying out and people are starving.

Some characters have the ability to shift into animal forms.

Violent Content
Esha is an assassin who primarily uses whips as her weapon of choice. She wraps the whip around the neck of victims she wishes to control or threaten. She kills several soldiers.

Some scenes show battle violence and situations of peril. No gore.

Drug Content
Some references to drinking alcohol. Esha pours alcohol on a soldier she has incapacitated, hoping that his superiors will think him drunk. Kunal drinks with other soldiers, but usually only a small amount. In one scene, he pours his wine out when the others aren’t looking.

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Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

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Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Daughter of Smoke and Bone #1)
Laini Taylor
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published September 27, 2011

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About Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious “errands”, she speaks many languages – not all of them human – and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

My Review

I first read DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE years ago, but I somehow skipped over ever posting a review. I remember that even when I first read it, I found the story super addicting and loved the cast of characters. Reading through it again has been like picking up an old friend– a very addicting friend! I still flew through the story on my second read.

One of the things that struck me and stayed with me after reading is what Karou shares about having regrets about having sex with her boyfriend, who turns out to be a a pretty big disappointment. It felt super real and very easy to relate to.

I also realized that I somehow always picture Akiva completely wrong. I’m not sure how I did that since the story described him, particularly his golden eyes, lots of times. But this time through I’ve tried to picture him more closely to what the author describes.

DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE contains some violent scenes and threads. There’s this underlying sense that the world– both worlds, really– are a violent place. I had forgotten about that element to the book.

If you liked SIX OF CROWS by Leigh Bardugo or The Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta, you want to add this series to your reading list.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Most human characters are Czech.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to sex.

Spiritual Content
The monsters Karou sketches are chimaera from another world which also includes angels– which look like humans with fiery wings. Each of those groups has myths about their creation and worships gods and goddesses.

Karou receives wishes in payment for running errands. They can only be used for small things, like wishing an itch on someone or something like that. Larger wishes are available.

Violent Content
Some descriptions of battle or fighting and situations of peril. References to war. References to some grisly murders. Karou runs errands which include meeting with some unsavory characters.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Paranormal, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , , ,

Lady Midnight (The Dark Artifices #1)
Cassandra Clare
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published on March 8, 2016

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About Lady Midnight
In a kingdom by the sea…

In a secret world where half-angel warriors are sworn to fight demons, parabatai is a sacred word.

A parabatai is your partner in battle. A parabatai is your best friend. Parabatai can be everything to each other—but they can never fall in love.

Emma Carstairs is a warrior, a Shadowhunter, and the best in her generation. She lives for battle. Shoulder to shoulder with her parabatai, Julian Blackthorn, she patrols the streets of Los Angeles, where vampires party on the Sunset Strip, and faeries—the most powerful of supernatural creatures—teeter on the edge of open war with Shadowhunters. When the bodies of humans and faeries turn up murdered in the same way Emma’s parents were when she was a child, an uneasy alliance is formed. This is Emma’s chance for revenge—and Julian’s chance to get back his brother Mark, who is being held prisoner by the faerie Courts. All Emma, Mark, and Julian have to do is solve the murders within two weeks…and before the murderer targets them.

Their search takes Emma from sea caves full of sorcery to a dark lottery where death is dispensed. And each clue she unravels uncovers more secrets. What has Julian been hiding from her all these years? Why does Shadowhunter Law forbid parabatai to fall in love? Who really killed her parents—and can she bear to know the truth?

My Review
I have so many conflicting feelings about this book. Some things—the relationships between the Blackthorn siblings and descriptions of especially Mark and Julian as well as all the tension between Faeries and Shadowhunters—I loved. Other things—the overall size of the cast (huge), the darkness of the plot, and the spans of info-dump in the narrative—were not my favorite things.

Emma’s character is super different than the heroine of Clare’s earlier Shadowhunter series. I liked The Mortal Instruments (okay, I think I only read the first three, but I liked them) and I liked Clary, the heroine of that series as well. But where Clary’s the emotionally sensitive, thoughtful leader, Emma’s all action and impulse. I liked that contrast and the way Emma’s character paired with her parabatai and bestie, Julian.

The story deals with a lot of demon-y stuff. Dark rituals, battles with demons, etc. I feel like The Mortal Instruments focused a little more on vampires and werewolves, but honestly, it may have been just as dark as this book was. I felt like Lady Midnight had a LOT of spiritually dark content. Enough that I probably won’t finish the series, to be honest.

I did really enjoy the references to the Faerie realm and the group Mark was bound to and all of the politics between the Shadowhunters and Faeries. It wasn’t the main focus of the story, but I found it to be one of the most fascinating parts of the overall tale.

On the whole, this is a tough one for me to review. I really liked some things and really struggled with other things. I think this series is probably not one I’ll continue with.

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Cultural Elements
Cristina and Diego are Mexican. Other characters are white. Mark and his sister Helen face prejudice from both fairies and Shadowhunters because they are half-descendants of each. Mark is also bisexual.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Intense kissing between boy and girl or boy and boy. At one point, a montage sort of sequence fills readers in on the romantic relationship between two boys. There’s very little graphic sexual description, but we’re in no doubt of their level of intimacy.

Another scene describes a couple on the beach. The description leading up to their sexual encounter is intense, but we’re spared a play-by-play of the actual sex.

Spiritual Content
Dark (blood) rituals, demon battles, sorcery… this story has a lot of things some conservative readers might object to. Vampires deliver pizza to Emma and her allies. They stumble onto a cult in which it appears one member is chosen as a sacrifice.

Shadowhunters are said to be descendants of angels and humans. Some seem to worship or pray to certain angels. Some special knives have connections to angels and their powers are “activated” when the user says the angel’s name.

Violent Content
Lots of battle scenes, some pretty gory, some fatal.

Drug Content
Julian’s uncle relies on a drug/potion to restore his mind for short periods of time. The drug leaves him with terrible headaches once it wears off.

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