Review

Alizeh is a Jinn — strong, fast and able to make herself invisible. But in the kingdom of Ardunia, she’s a persecuted minority. Born to be a Jinn queen, she scrapes a living as a lowly servant, with occasional side jobs as a dressmaker. She wears a snoda — a light fabric face mask — because she’s a servant, but also to disguise her changing silver eyes, a symptom of the ice runs through her. She is poor, alone and despised.

Kamran, Prince of Ardunia, had just returned to the capital after a military tour, when he sees an unusual woman in the street: she easily fends off an attack and then speaks with empathy to her attacker. She’s dressed as a servant, but couldn’t possibly be with that regal bearing and an educated voice. Could she be a spy? He can’t stop thinking about her. Meanwhile, his grandfather, the king, deciding it’s time that Kamran married, has ordered a royal ball, at which his grandson must choose a bride. War is brewing, and the kingdom must have an heir.

*

Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I’d definitely be interested in reading more of the series. It has an interesting plot with some good twists and call-backs. I enjoyed the romantic tension, and I’m 100% here for the Cinderella echoes and the fantastical Middle Eastern setting. Towards the end, it also has a touch of humour, which always goes a long way with me, and the ending’s a cracker.

It is, however, a little uneven. The beginning is somewhat confusing, which will be fine for keen readers and fantasy fans, because they’re used to that and have the patience to just wait it out, but it will probably put off any less keen mainstream readers. It’s also not as accessible as Mafi’s blockbuster Shatter Me series, with a lot of fairly elevated vocabulary uttered by the two main characters (alternating close third person perspectives), in a way that’s sometimes a bit stiff and reminiscent of a student attempting to write like Jane Austen. But the positives outweigh the small negatives.

A Cinderella romantasy in a politically complex Aladdin-esque fantasy world.

Length: 494 pages

Age rating: 12+

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Violence, including violence against children; fantasy violence; the devil and contracts with the devil; homelessness; exploitation and mistreatment of minorities; a passionate kiss. Main romance is mlw. Main characters are both basically good people struggling to do the right thing.

*

Mafi, T. (2022). This woven kingdom. Electric Monkey.

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