Review: Kiersten White – And I Darken

And I Darken
Kierstan White

Lada has been ruthless from the day she was born. Destined to be a boy, but born a weakling girl, Lada knows that the only way up in the world is to be hard and cruel. When she and her brother are sent off as hostages, Lada sees it as both exile and freedom.

I wanted to like this novel, I really did. But instead it reminded me of Ruined, without the magic. Or maybe Red Queen, which also has that whole creeping up on the throne thing. Have I lost my touch, and I only love fantasy novels again? I don’t think so…

Apparently this is based on the Ottoman empire and Vlad the Impaler, but I didn’t realise that until later. The Ottoman empire sounded familiar, but if you’ve been reading my blog for a while, I’m certain you would remember that I’m not all that great at history or geography.

I finished this novel with a sense of having slogged through a hard read. I then complained to my partner that it felt like I had wasted my time. It’s not badly written, but the story and characters lack a spark that would have made the novel better. For that reason, I’m giving it a rather miserable 2 stars. Spend your reading time elsewhere.