One Life to One Dawn.

In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph’s reign of terror once and for all.

Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she’d imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It’s an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid’s life as retribution for the many lives he’s stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?

Inspired by A Thousand and One Nights, The Wrath and the Dawn is a sumptuous and enthralling read from beginning to end.

 

Oh. Em. Gee. 

 

This book. I just.. it’s everything.

I got The Wrath & the Dawn as a Christmas gift but I started the Throne of Glass series right around then which absorbed the first month and a half of my 2016. Then I was in severe need of a break from fantasy so I read a few contemporaries. I finally picked up The Wrath & the Dawn yesterday and I devoured every last page in a day and a half.

This book is a retelling of 1001 Nights (which I’ve never actually read, but I think we all know the gist). It is at its core a love story, but has plenty of magic and wit and juuust enough action thrown in to keep it balanced.

There were a few things about this book that were telling me to dislike it: I felt there was a bit of instalove going on, an inevitable love triangle,  and there were a few striking similarities to The Hunger Games. But even though my head was saying, “Hey don’t you usually dislike this sort of thing?” I just couldn’t help it. I loved every single bit of this book.

The main character, Shahrzad is sassy and witty and stands up for herself and those she loves. Khalid is my new favorite book boyfriend and everything about him makes me swoon. Like Won Won.

There are so many swoon-worthy quotes that I want to share with you but if you haven’t read the book yet then I do not want to take any of the magic away from you.

The side characters have their own depth and I was never upset when the POV changed (unlike *coughHeirOfFirecough*)

Goodreads says that this is a duology, though I can’t find anything on Renee Ahdieh’s website to confirm. This is one of the rare cases where I find myself hoping for more books. Usually I can easily get bored of a series but all I want is more of this one. It looks like there are a few short stories coming out on ebook soon as well and I want them noooawww.

Excuse my tantrum. There hasn’t been a book I’ve liked this much in a long time. The Rose & the Dagger has just become my most anticipated read of 2016.

Now I’m going to go lose myself in other reviews and interviews for hours because there’s no way I can pick up another book yet. This is a heavy book hangover, you guys.