(Rebel of the Sands #2)
by Alwyn Hamilton
This is not about blood or love. This is about treason.
Nearly a year has passed since Amani and the rebels won their epic battle at Fahali. Amani has come into both her powers and her reputation as the Blue-Eyed Bandit, and the Rebel Prince's message has spread across the desert - and some might say out of control. But when a surprise encounter turns into a brutal kidnapping, Amani finds herself betrayed in the cruelest manner possible.
Stripped of her powers and her identity, and torn from the man she loves, Amani must return to her desert-girl's instinct for survival. For the Sultan's palace is a dangerous one, and the harem is a viper's nest of suspicion, fear and intrigue. Just the right place for a spy to thrive... But spying is a dangerous game, and when ghosts from Amani's past emerge to haunt her, she begins to wonder if she can trust her own treacherous heart.
_________________________________
I hate it when I have to wait for sequels of books to come out. I remember reading A Rebel in the Sands more than 8 months ago if I'm not mistaken, and then had to wait for this. I had to reread the ending of the 1st book just to get a refresher as to which of the hundreds of books I read is this a sequel of. Just don't mind that there isn't a review for the first book since I only resurrected my blog last March. I might have rated the 1st book a 4/5 Stars though.
Anyway, just a little bit of background. Amani is a desert girl who discovers that she is a Demnji - half human children of Djinnis. She is called the Blue-eyed Bandit because it her eyes that mark her as a child of a Djinni. Amani had to leave her backwater (backdesert?) town and join the rebellion of Prince Ahmed to take the Kingdom from his father the Sultan. They are a bunch of humans and Demnji fighting for their freedom.
This installment isn't like any other 2nd books in series. Some would drag the story just to get to the 3rd part of the trilogy where everything starts actually happening before the finale. I saw a review calling that the Middle Book Syndrome (love that.), and I think the only other book that doesn't have that was A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas. That book was where the real action started.
Traitor to the Throne had a different kind of action - more of the subtle and political kind, the ones normally seen in palaces and royalty. Amani was betrayed by her Aunt and sold to the Sultan. She is used by the Sultan to capture Djinnis, starting with her own father. I liked how the author made me rethink about the purpose of the rebellion and the Sultans own attitude towards ruling. There was a part in the story where I was like the Sultan has a point and Prince Ahmed didn't have enough in him to be the ruler the kingdom really needs. And I think Amani saw it as well. The ending had a twist I was already seeing as happening and there was a need for it to cross the story over to the last book in the trilogy.
Thank goodness for small miracles - the romance between Jin and Amani wasn't all that mushy. It's already the 2nd book and they are still feeling around each other even if they already now they want one another and already kissed a handful of times. I have always loved how royalty of the desert kingdoms are portrayed - the opulence, the harem of women, the politics of the wives, even the description of the outfits.
Overall, this a book I'd definitely recommend people to read.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
No comments:
Post a Comment