// book review + discussion: the wrath & the dawn by renee ahdieh

Title: The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
Series: The Wrath & the Dawn # 1
Published by: Putnam Juvenille on 22nd June 2015
Pages: 400 pages
Format: Hadcover
Source: purchased
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Synopsis: 

A sumptuous and epically told love story inspired by A Thousand and One Nights
Every dawn brings horror to a different family in a land ruled by a killer. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, takes a new bride each night only to have her executed at sunrise. So it is a suspicious surprise when sixteen-year-old Shahrzad volunteers to marry Khalid. But she does so with a clever plan to stay alive and exact revenge on the Caliph for the murder of her best friend and countless other girls. Shazi's wit and will, indeed, get her through to the dawn that no others have seen, but with a catch . . . she’s falling in love with the very boy who killed her dearest friend.She discovers that the murderous boy-king is not all that he seems and neither are the deaths of so many girls. Shazi is determined to uncover the reason for the murders and to break the cycle once and for all

Review: 

This book was beautifully written. It's not too complex to the point that it'll give you headaches but it's not too simple either, it was perfect. I admire her writing and her ability to create such an interesting world. Her choice of words successfully paints the world she wants us to see, making it so easy for us to immerse ourselves to the world she created. The novel was fast-paced. I literally could not point out enough how astounding the world building was. It kinda reminds me of Aladdin. Reading this was a roller coaster of emotions. 

I heard nothing but good things about this book, so I finally decided to see what the hype was all about. And of course, the cover was beautiful so obviously I couldn't resist. The names and the terms are a little bit hard to say and could be confusing at first but you will get used to it. Some of you may not get into it straight away, but give it a few pages and I'm sure you'll love it. I loved the Arabic culture in this novel, it's something we would not encounter a lot in YA books. It was definitely fun reading something different. Also, the words she used to describe the food was such a bonus: I could picture it and smell the scrumptious aroma which makes me hungry! She just makes everything sound so appetizing. 

The story has two main characters. I love them both so much. Shahrzard. She reminds me of Celaena Sardothien. She gets things done, she makes things happen. I admire her intelligence, bravery and wit. She's honest and I love that the most about her. She takes no shit from anyone, not even the Caliph. I have so much respect for her. With her relationship with Khalid, she was the stronger one. He was the first between the two of them to fall. She became his weakness. At first, I was stopping myself from falling for Khalid because how could I like someone who has done such monstrous things, a cold selfish killer. He was introduced as a character we should hate. But we only see a facade, what he wants us to see. He's just a boy-king with a lot of secrets. He has come to love Shahrzad and don't show ownership in her. He sees her as his equal. He's a completely different person when he's with her. Their relationship is a powerful one and their story is one of the best. He's such a flawed character and that just makes me love him more. I love how he never played the victim card despite his past. I love his view on love itself and how he calls Shazi "joonam" which means "my everything". So if it's not obvious yet, I really love Khalid.

 I loved the friendship between Shahrzad and Despina and how it devoloped. From barely even trusting each other to i-will-punch-anyone-who-messes-with you. They were comfortable with each other that they don't even mind calling each other names and eventually they started confiding each other. They're also both badass, btw! One thing that bothered me though was the obvious love triangle smh. I just can't seem to like Tariq. When he sees Shahrzad with Khalid, he assumes that she was being brainwashed but he's wrong.

LET'S TALK ABOUT THE ENDING. Why must you do this to me, Renee!? Now I have to wait for like a year and that's just a really long time. But I guess the wait will be worth it. I feel like the second book is going to be in Khalid's pov. If you want to read something different and get a taste of another culture then I highly suggest that you pick this book up yourself. Give it a chance and you'll thank me later.