My List

"This fantasy novel is unlike anything I've read before. The premise alone is fascinating: a magic system built around poetry, with "literomancers" who write poems that become spells. It is such an original idea and gives the magic a completely different feel from the usual fantasy systems. And there is a dragon—but not your usual heroic sort of dragon with a rider. No, this is a dragon that the heir to the throne must defeat in battle before they can be coronated. I loved that this took another familiar fantasy element and turned it into something completely different. The story centres on Wei, a poor young woman who offers herself to be chosen as a concubine to the prince and heir. As she becomes drawn into the world of power and politics, the central question is whether Wei can remain true to herself and her inherently good nature, or whether she will ultimately be seduced and corrupted by power. And this is definitely not romantasy. While there are relationships and elements of romance, they are very much secondary to the larger story. There are some extremely dark scenes involving abuse, cruelty and gruesome punishments, so this is not an easy or fluffy fantasy read. The characters are one of the book's greatest strengths. They are fully fleshed out, complicated and believable, and the writing is beautiful. The world appears to be loosely inspired by ancient Chinese autocracy, but it is very much its own creation rather than simply a retelling of Chinese history. If I had one criticism, it would be the geography. I sometimes struggled to keep track of the different lands and borders, and exactly how they related to each other in terms of wars, alliances and conquests. It occasionally made the political aspects of the story difficult to follow, but it certainly didn't take away from my overall enjoyment. And then there is the ending. OMG! Just when I thought the story was heading in one particular direction, it turned—and then turned again. I genuinely didn't see all of it coming. And, most importantly, it has an ending! Hallelujah! A beautifully written, dark and completely original fantasy that took me somewhere I haven't been before. Absolutely loved it."