This is a spoiler free review.
A Crown of Wishes
Written by Roshani Chokshi
Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy/Mythology/Romance
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Pages: 369
Source: Library
Places to Get this Book: Amazon Barnes and Noble Book Depository
Recommended Age: 13 and up!
Summary:
An ancient mystery. An unlikely union. For one young princess in a state of peril, a dangerous wish could be the only answer…
She is the princess of Bharata—captured by her kingdom’s enemies, a prisoner of war. Now that she faces a future of exile and scorn, Gauri has nothing left to lose. But should she trust Vikram, the notoriously cunning prince of a neighboring land? He promises her freedom in exchange for her battle prowess. Together they can team up and win the Tournament of Wishes, a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor. It seems like a foolproof plan—until Gauri and Vikram arrive at the tournament and find that danger takes on new shapes: poisonous courtesans, mischievous story birds, a feast of fears, and twisted fairy revels. New trials will test their devotion, strength, and wits. But what Gauri and Vikram will soon discover is that there’s nothing more dangerous than what they most desire.
Review:
If you follow my blog, then you probably remember when I raved about The Star-Touched Queen sometime last summer. I was so excited for this book to come out but then when it did come out it took me until now to find it and read it. I am so glad that I read it when I did though because I got to fully focus on it and enjoy it. This duology has become one of my favorites of all time and I am going to be recommending it to people all the time.
COVER
The cover of this book is so beautiful and simple. I love how Gauri is on a horse which shows her adventurous side. Her dress is also gorgeous and I love how magical the whole cover is.
WORLD-BUILDING
The world-building is as usual beautifully done. All the descriptions are so vivid and lyrical that you feel like you are there.
Then there are the characters.
GAURI
Gauri is a queen who has had her throne taken away from her but she still acts like the queen that she really is. She shows lots of strength and independence throughout the book which shows how bada*s she is. She is also very handy with a weapon and intimidates Vikram a lot [my ship]. She is very serious and knows what she wants and how to get it, without letting She is also a very smart heroine and she shows how beauty doesn't define her.
VIKRAM
Vikram was the best male character for this book. He is hilarious and is called the "fox prince" because he is sly and smart. Unlike Gauri, he is not good with a weapon and has to use his smarts in order to get himself out of unfortunate situations. He is handsome which is mentioned a couple of times. I really enjoyed his character because he was different from a lot of male characters/love interests.
FRIENDSHIP/FAMILY
Gauri has a very interesting relationship with her family. One of her brothers tried to intimidate her, poison her and eliminate her because he saw her as a threat to his throne even though he was not helping the kingdom at all by being in power. He saw her as a threat because she was obviously a better ruler.
PLOT
I really enjoyed the whole plot which reminded me a lot of Caraval by Stephanie Garber with the whole magical game thing. I liked the whole magical game concept and even though that is used a lot lately, it was shown in a new way. I liked how there were a lot of characters that were used in order to make the story a lot more interesting and move forward.
ROMANCE
This was hate-to-love at it's best. Gauri wants to kill/use Vikram for half the time and she is constantly intimidating him. Vikram is also using her in order to get what he wants but somehow they come together. And the tension is very visible.
WRITING
I love her writing because it is so beautiful and lyrical. The quotes are also really pretty and you can easily find quotes that are meaningful and read well.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I love Roshani Chokshi's writing and plots. Her characters are three dimensional and everything neatly ties up. I love this series and A Crown of Wishes is the perfect second installment because it follows different characters but is in the same world.
Quotes from the Book:
"Existence is the gift. Life is a choice."
“In that moment, he looked like mischief and midnight, like a temptation that always slipped away too fast and left you at once relieved and disappointed.”
“Love is like Death without the guarantee of its arrival. Love may not come for you, but when it does it will be just as swift and ruthless as Death and just as blind to your protestations. And just as Death will end one life and leave you with another, so will Love.”
My Rating: 5 out of 5 Crowns
