One of my favourites now. Loved the main character and the ending. Hated how family treated her and how lonely her life had been. Also every time everything was beginning to go well something went wrong. The story rly kept me on my toes the whole time just waiting for the next blow. 

It started off boring(to much info dumping) then it got really good then it got bad and the ending was nice but it didn't make up for the dumpster fire that was the second half of this book,

Soraya gets taken and held prisoner

this makes the plot more character driven and since the characters were so one dimensional and unlovable this didn't work out so well 

“She had thought nothing would be more incredible than the simple sensation of touch, but she'd been wrong: more incredible still was the idea that she could be dangerous, all her thorns on display, and that someone would dare to touch her anyway.” 

This book was absolutely beautiful in every way. I absolutely loved how descriptive it was, without droning on or slowing down the pace. It helped me connect with all of the characters, individually.

I didn't find myself relating with anyone in particular, which is unusual when I read. Typically, I can find myself in one or two of the characters, but in this case, I didn't. However, it didn't take away from my reading journey. Instead of looking for myself throughout, I was focused entirely on the cast and what would happen next.

I found the plot to be somewhat predictable, overall, but it was another thing that didn't bother me. I knew it was a fairytale and inspired by Sleeping Beauty, so it wouldn't be without its stereotypical moments. What I did love was the representation! It's not every day that you find a LGBTQIA+ fairytale and this one was just gorgeous.

Since I listened to the audiobook, I have no clue how to spell any of the character names, yet again, but I just want to say that they were all brilliant. There was no lack of character development or world-building. It was the perfect mixture of both!

I enjoyed the world building. It was thorough enough to feel real without being bogged down. I enjoyed the Persian rather than European foundation. I think we weren’t given enough time with Soraya before the action to understand what her life was really like and to be able to notice how much she changes. I wish the context of Soraya’s bisexuality had been better placed in her world (is it acceptable or subversive?). I also think the two relationships Soraya had were unevenly developed and explored, which was a shame. Overall though, I enjoyed this fresh, dark take on fantasy.

At first, it took me some time to get into it and I didn’t feel the urge to keep reading, yet it was totally worth it! I love the mystery and not knowing what character had what motives! The author’s note helped understand this masterpiece even more!