So, let’s talk about Tasha Suri’s truly excellent, The Jasmine Throne. I had put a hold in for this book at my local library. It then ended up coming in at the same time as another hold, so I had a dilemma—which book to read first? I turned to my Twitter comrades to make the choice, and they overwhelmingly pointed me toward The Jasmine Throne. I picked it up, and was not disappointed.
Suri is telling an engrossing story of loyalty and love, loss and persistence, biological family and found family, and perhaps most importantly of all, the nature of monstrous identity. To say all this might make it seem like this novel is of a more literary nature, but that’s not the case. Genre fiction can tell these sorts of stories, and Suri shows just how well the fantasy genre can do so. The two main characters, Priya and Malini both shine. Malini is the sister of the emperor, imprisoned for having the audacity not to willingly burn herself on a pyre at her brother’s whim. She’s a born leader, calculating and charismatic, but she finds herself separated from every ally and at the mercy of a maddened jail keeper. Into this helpless situation steps Priya, a lowly maid who is obviously something much, much more. But Priya isn’t sure about what she wants, about her own identity and motivations, much less the motivations of a captivating and imprisoned imperial daughter. While both characters and their development really shine in this novel, the setting is equally enthralling. The world is inspired by India, and I can’t get enough of it. I love fantasy worlds inspired by settings other than Europe, and India has such a rich history that I’m routinely disappointed that more publishers aren’t publishing stories that find inspiration there. But regardless of the specific inspiration, Suri has built a world that is at turns beautiful and terrifying. The magic that we see is truly unique, and I want to know so much more about it! For me, learning about the world was half the fun of this tale, and Suri does an incredible job of unveiling the world in natural and convincing ways, avoiding even the hint of infodumps or chapters devoted to exposition. There’s also a colorful and interesting cast of side characters that we get to know more and more as the novel goes on. I found each of them to have convincing motivations and there wasn’t a single viewpoint that I found myself wanting to skip. That’s excellent writing right there. Another aspect of Suri’s story that I adored was the way she subverted some all-too-common fantasy tropes. The dashing prince who rescues the damsel in distress? Not so fast! The prince is there, and certainly wants to rescue the girl, but that isn’t what happens in this story, and I love it all the more because of it.
So there’s plenty to love here and I think you should grab this book as soon as possible if you love fantasy stories, and especially ones that feel fresh, unique, and subvert genre conventions. The world, characters, or magic alone would inspire me to read this—but to have all three of them together and done so well? It’s a rarity. If I have any quibbles, they’re exactly that: small issues that didn’t overly affect my enjoyment of the story. The pacing was such that a lot happened just past the middle of the novel, and the final bit felt a little like setup for the next book. That longer than usual denouement worked out here because there was so much character development left for our main characters. But there were moments when I was thinking “Huh, this doesn’t feel like how stories are normally written.” Is that a bad thing? No! But it also took me out of the story a hair. How can I really criticize an author doing something unique, even in terms of pacing? Frankly, the largest actual criticism I have is that the old trope of the antagonist holding a knife to the throat of someone the protagonist cares about came up and I hate that trope. But even that wasn’t enough to truly dampen my enjoyment.
The Jasmine Throne, first novel in the Burning Kingdoms series, is one to read and savor as quickly as you possibly can. I can’t wait for the sequel!
8.8/10
4.4/5 stars.
5 – I loved this, couldn’t put it down, move it to the top of your TBR pile
4 – I really enjoyed this, add it to the TBR pile
3 – It was ok, depending on your preferences it may be worth your time
2 – I didn’t like this book, it has significant flaws and I can’t recommend it
1 – I loathe this book with a most loathsome loathing
