I received a copy from Feiwel & Friends through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
When Iseul’s older sister goes missing, she’s determined to save her. The sisters have their differences, but when push comes to shove, they always have each other’s back. It’s why Iseul is ready to risk her life when she learns that Suyeon has been taken by King Yeonsan. Things aren’t looking good, but when she finds an unlikely ally in Prince Daehyun, all bets are off.
We follow Iseul and Prince Daehyun through their rotating perspectives. For some reason, Iseul’s chapters are written in the first person while Prince Daehyun’s chapters are written in the third person. It’s such a strange decision to make, but I guess it does stick out as different. Unfortunately, it’s a decision that kept taking me straight out of the story for about half the book. Otherwise, it’s pretty well written and I think I would’ve been sucked into the story a lot sooner if they were both written either from the first or third perspective rather than one of each.
That said, it was a pretty good read. We follow 17-year-old Iseul shortly after her sister is taken by King Yeonsan. We also follow Prince Daehyun as he gets closer to dethroning his brother. It’s part political coup and part sisterly bond. Iseul is a bit hard to follow at first because she’s a spoiled brat who is quick to act before thinking about the consequences. However, the longer we follow her, the more she grows as a person and eventually changes for the better in how she thinks and acts. Meanwhile, Prince Daehyun is busy planning to dethrone his brother, but he has to be very careful about it.
It is a bit odd that Isuel is brought in on the political coup, especially because she’s a potential huge liability to the cause. Everyone hardly knows her and she didn’t do anything to indicate that she’d be trustworthy. It does work out, but it was really strange that she was brought in at the point she was. It would’ve made sense later on when she shows that she’s trustworthy, but that’s not the case at the time it actually happens.
I really enjoyed following Isuel and the prince through their rotating chapters, though. They’re interesting characters who eventually fall in love with one another. Other than the two protagonists, the story has some excellent characters that I really enjoyed getting to know. I liked seeing how some of the characters bonded with one another, like how Wonsik formed a fatherly bond with Isuel. Some of the other characters didn’t make a whole lot of sense with the plot they were given, like the murder mystery that eats up some time in the book. I’m still confused about how the killer did both things and I’m not sure that the murder mystery actually adds anything to the story.
All in all, this was a pretty good read. I’m still baffled by the decision to have rotating narrators told from the first and third person perspective, but it still turned out well in the end. The setting and various characters are based on real people and events, and the author includes a very clear list of trigger warnings so that readers can decide on whether or not this will be a pass for them. If you’re looking for a slower paced story with mostly good writing, this may be a good book for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment