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ARC Book Review: The Wrath and the Dawn – Renee Ahdieh


thewrathandthedawnThe Wrath and the Dawn
Author: Renee Ahdieh
Series: The Wrath and the Dawn #1
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Fantasy, Retelling
Release Date: May 12, 2015
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile

Goodreads | Amazon | TBD

Summary:

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, has begun taking a new bride each night, only to have her killed the next mourning with a silk cord wrapped tightly around her neck. When her dearest friend falls prey to the Caliph’s cruelty, Shahrzad offers herself as his next wife, vowing to avenge her friend’s murder and end his reign of terror permanently. Shahrzad uses her wit and charm to stay alive. Night after night, she beguiles Khalid with mesmerizing stories, growing ever closer to him, until she realizes she may be just as beguiled.
It’s an unforgivable betrayal. She came to the palace to put an end to his life. Instead, she finds herself falling deeply in love with Khalid, the monster of her dreams. He is not what she expected, and she quickly realizes all within this palace of marble and stone is not as it would appear.
A sumptuous and elegantly told tale, The Wrath and the Dawn will enthrall readers from beginning to end.

 
First Sentence: It would not be a welcome dawn.

My Review:

First of all, a HUGE thank you, thank you, thank you to Kristen from My Friends Are Fiction for lending me her ARC of The Wrath and the Dawn to read and borrow. THANK YOU KRISTEN. Without a doubt, The Wrath and the Dawn was one of my most anticipated books of 2015. I mean, have you seen a young adult retelling of A Thousand and One Nights before? Add nothing but praise for the book into the mix and I’m just full of neeeeeed and grabby hands for the book. I’m happy to report that after reading The Wrath and the Dawn, I am deeply in love with the book.

Before going into The Wrath and the Dawn, I expected it to be exactly like A Thousand and One Nights, which now that I think about it, doesn’t really make any sense. I expected the whole book to be about Shahrzad telling Khalid stories in order to stay alive and along the way, Khalid will fall in love with her. Instead, what I got was so many other different things. There were tons of conflicts between characters that was not Shahrzad and Khalid, magic, and tons of political intrigue. Storytelling was only a little part of the story.

They were not gentle. And why should they be?
After all, they did not expect her to live past the next morning. (ARC 5)

The Wrath and the Dawn is also very diverse. The people in The Wrath and the Dawn have their own unique culture: they wear their own type of clothing, carry their own unique kind of weapon, and have special names for one another, all things I haven’t heard of or read about before. There is even a glossary at the back of the book to help you understand and visualize what kind of clothes people are wearing, how their weapons look like, and what they are saying.

I absolutely love the way Renee Ahdieh writes romance. During some romantic moments in the book, I couldn’t help but have this disgustingly huge goofy smile pop up on my face. I would tell myself to stop smiling like that, that people are watching me right this moment on the subway (they probably are), but feel myself smiling at the book anyway because how can you not? Renee Ahdieh aced the romance in The Wrath and the Dawn perfectly.

“It is a gift from the caliph. You must wear it, my lady.”
Shahrzad stared down at the slight girl in amused disbelief. “And if I don’t? Will he kill me?” (ARC 5)

The Wrath and the Dawn has this deep addictive quality to it. Right after I finished The Wrath and the Dawn, I immediately wanted to reread it again, to enjoy Renee’s writing and characters all over again, and promptly did just that. The Wrath and the Dawn is just so addicting, although I can’t really say what exactly is so addicting about it.

Overall, I definitely, without a doubt, recommend The Wrath and the Dawn to everyone, especially if you’re a fan of retellings. The Wrath and the Dawn is guaranteed to not disappoint and make you just want to sigh and give the book a hug.

fourpointfive

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-Kelly

Posted by Kelly on 5-11-15 · 26 Comments
Categories: 2015 book, book review Tagged: 4.5 star

« The Week Where I’m Extremely Busy
ARC Book Review: End of Days – Susan Ee »

Speak Your Mind

  1. Ciarra says

    5-11-15 at 9:24 AM

    Great review! I’m really looking forward to reading this one :)

    Reply
  2. Laila Campos says

    5-11-15 at 9:58 AM

    Thank youuu for this review! this is on my top of my tbr list! i have never read any retellings of the A Thousand One Nights before evar! and this made me so extra excited.
    I have placed my orders thru my local bookstore and it will take time for it to arrive really. But i can wait and for the meantime the kindly copy will do for now :)

    Reply
  3. Smitha says

    5-11-15 at 10:40 AM

    I’ve been waiting to read this book ever since I heard about it! I read a short excerpt from it and fell in love with it! I hope I can read the whole thing soon because reading your review has just made me a 100 times more impatient for the book!

    Reply
  4. Smitha says

    5-11-15 at 10:43 AM

    P.S I love your taste in books and keep coming back to this blog a lot for new reading material!
    Smitha recently posted…Look Out For These! #1My Profile

    Reply
  5. Zoey @ Uncreatively Zoey says

    5-11-15 at 12:08 PM

    Yet another glowing review for this one! IT’S KILLING ME. I CAN’T WAIT. I’m excited to get to be immersed in that culture and probably embarrass myself in public as well with that romance ;)
    Zoey @ Uncreatively Zoey recently posted…Review: One NightMy Profile

    Reply
  6. Cynthia says

    5-11-15 at 12:59 PM

    Great review! I can’t wait to read this one.
    Cynthia recently posted…Musing Mondays: Book to TV Adaptation of Wayward Pines TrilogyMy Profile

    Reply
  7. Jessica @ a GREAT read says

    5-11-15 at 3:07 PM

    Oh most excellent! I’ve read nothing but great reviews on this and I am SO excited to read it!! I don’t think I’ve ever read A Thousand and One Nights, but it sounds sort of like the Storyteller’s Daughter fairytale in which the girl tells a long story to the king every night in order to prolong her life and escape death. Though I can’t really remember how that one ended either! LOL! Assuming HEA…but you can never tell with the older ones! LOL!. But yes! Definitely cannot wait to read this one! Glad you thought so highly of it! Again, amazing review!
    Jessica @ a GREAT read recently posted…Review–Beckon Me by Cindy ThomasMy Profile

    Reply
  8. Lily (chapterspageswords.blogspot.com) says

    5-11-15 at 4:20 PM

    This book sounds really cool and the synopsis makes me think of The Book of Ivy! I love when books have a good romance so looks like I might be picking a copy of this up for myself soon!
    Lily (chapterspageswords.blogspot.com) recently posted…Review: The Heir by Kiera CassMy Profile

    Reply
  9. Pili @ In Love With Handmade says

    5-11-15 at 4:26 PM

    I’m so dying to get my hands on this one! Everything about this book screams for me, retelling based but not exactly, diverse characters and culture and romance that goes from hate to love? NEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!!!!!
    Pili @ In Love With Handmade recently posted…Interview with Holly Bodger author of 5 to 1!!!My Profile

    Reply
  10. Cali W. says

    5-11-15 at 6:08 PM

    Good review! This book sounds really good and I do enjoy retellings. :)

    Reply
  11. Meredith says

    5-11-15 at 6:41 PM

    Reading this made me all excited over again to read this! I clearly haven’t done my research though, because I didn’t realize that it was a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights. Do you recommend reading A Thousand and One Nights or would The Wrath and the Dawn be easy to understand by itself? Great review!!

    Meredith @ A Book Lover’s Corner
    Meredith recently posted…Amity ReviewMy Profile

    Reply
  12. Hillary R. says

    5-11-15 at 9:05 PM

    The first time I saw the cover for The Wrath and the Dawn and heard more about it, I wasn’t really excited about it. But now, thankfully, to your review, my doubts have been erased. It’s like you enthusiasm for this story leaked through my computer screen and made me want to read this book too so I could what you were talking about. I hope I get a copy soon! n_n

    Reply
  13. P.E. @ The Sirenic Codex says

    5-12-15 at 2:43 PM

    Sounds lovely! The concept of this book seems amazing and I don’t mind that it’s a retelling because I think I only got about halfway through A Thousand and One Nights. But awww your description of smiling while reading romance is so cute. Sometimes books make me so happy I have the biggest smile and, like you, I struggle to contain it. :D
    P.E. @ The Sirenic Codex recently posted…Review: Heir of FireMy Profile

    Reply
  14. Savannah says

    5-12-15 at 3:36 PM

    Aagh, I’m so excited, especially after your rave review! And who can say no to that cover anyways? :) So stoked to read it!
    Savannah recently posted…Review: The DivinersMy Profile

    Reply
  15. Cyn @ Book Munchies says

    5-12-15 at 9:15 PM

    “I couldn’t help but have this disgustingly huge goofy smile pop up on my face.” <– this makes me super happy!! Can't wait to start this, thanks for the review!
    Cyn @ Book Munchies recently posted…Release Day Blitz: The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee AhdiehMy Profile

    Reply
  16. Christina R. says

    5-13-15 at 1:48 PM

    Awesome review! I love how your expectations were met and you’re so in love with the book! It’s a unique retelling and I love how there’s magic in it and how the characters are awesome!

    Reply
  17. Carina Olsen says

    5-14-15 at 4:10 PM

    Ahh, yesss. So happy that you loved this book Kelly :D You make it sound amazing. <3 I can't wait to read it. Just worried about her ex :( I don't like characters who have exes :p I'm weird like that, lol. But you make the romance sound awesome. And the plot. And everything. Yeah. I'm excited for this one :D Thank you for sharing about it sweetie. <3
    Carina Olsen recently posted…UK Cover Reveal: The Winner’s Kiss by Marie RutkoskiMy Profile

    Reply
  18. Christina R. says

    5-15-15 at 1:58 PM

    I love how there’s political intrigue, it makes the world they live in truly affect their lives!

    Lovely review :)

    Reply
  19. Christina R. says

    5-18-15 at 12:46 PM

    She’s an awesome main character, really devoted to her goal but also very smart!

    Love the magic :)

    Lovely review :)

    Reply
  20. Holly U says

    5-19-15 at 1:32 AM

    “Renee Ahdieh aced the romance in The Wrath and the Dawn perfectly.” <–nothing truer has ever been said. I SHIP THESE TWO SO HARD AND I WILL GO DOWN WITH IT. But seriously, the romance was superb. Tariq who? HAHAHAHA.

    Like you, I can't even pinpoint what it is exactly about this book that I find so addicting and wonderful and amazing. And I have the STRONGEST urge to reread and take my time with it. Gah. I JUST NEED THE SEQUEL NOW.

    Lovely review, Kelly! :)
    Holly U recently posted…(31) Top Ten Things You Should Know About Me Before BEAMy Profile

    Reply
  21. Christina R. says

    5-21-15 at 1:45 PM

    How awesome that you were ready to reread it immediately! It shows how well written the characters and world were :)

    Lovely review :)

    Reply
  22. Olivia says

    5-22-15 at 9:23 PM

    I wasn’t too interested when I first saw this book because I didn’t like the cover and it simply didn’t seem too intriguing. But not that I have learned more about it and have started to see people loving it I am curious! It sounds so original and unique – a retelling of One thousand and one nights? I have to check it out now!
    Olivia recently posted…Edge of Evil (Review & Giveaway!)My Profile

    Reply
  23. Sophie @ Seamless Reader says

    6-03-15 at 9:11 AM

    I didn’t even know this was a re-telling! Now I’m even more excited to read it. I really like when books have a glossary of some kind.

    Great review, Kelly! i hope I can read this one soon.
    Sophie @ Seamless Reader recently posted…Book Review: The Distance Between Us by Kasie WestMy Profile

    Reply
  24. Angelica says

    6-06-15 at 6:53 AM

    I’ve got this in my TBR and what originally liking it was because of the cover, but after reading your review, I think I’ll read that as soon as my review books are finished, fantastic review :) Do you think it would make a difference that I haven’t read the original book/story?
    Angelica recently posted…Opening the Veil by C.L. Clark {Review Tour + Giveaway}My Profile

    Reply
  25. Nitzan Schwarz says

    6-13-15 at 10:09 AM

    Gee, thanks Kells. Another book to the TBR – like I don’t have enough!! lol, jk.
    This actually sounds amazing! I didn’t hear much about this book before (this is the first review of it I’ve read), but damn, it sounds great!
    The author created this whole culture? and the romance is awesome? and it’s more than just a re-telling?? Now I want it!
    This seems to be a duology though. How does this one end? Does it end in a cliffhanger or is it safe to read before the #2 comes out?

    Reply
  26. J says

    6-10-16 at 5:06 PM

    Interesting…
    I just finished reading this book and I came to see if you’ve read it and might’ve posted up a review of it.
    Surprisingly, our opinions of this book are quite opposite each other’s. But, well, to each their own, I suppose! It’s nice to see different opinions on the same book.

    Reply

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