An interesting concept, though it took a while to get there. This is not the longest book but the pacing dragged in places. You have to love female rage though. 

Both Dania and Noor are perfect examples of not taking the beating lying down. Both are strong and intelligent women. Noor is a herbalist, trained to properly mix special seeds that give the person who intakes them certain magics, if not uncertain death. Dania is the daughter of a blacksmith and a sword fighter in her own right, having been trained by her father all her life. Through a series of betrayals and missteps, both women in up in prison, that is until they both break free. Hungry for revenge, they plot to strike down those who did them wrong.

The part that was hardest for me was the jumping back and forth between the past and present to tell the story. Other books use this tactic, but in this one, it felt a little awkward. I appreciated that gender never seemed to be roadblock for the female characters. We saw women in all different roles without it being commented on. 

I would have loved to learn more about Maz’s story. It’s felt like the bits we were given provided an incomplete picture and left some gaps. For example, why did the emperor take Maz and his sister in to raise as his own? 

Altogether, I appreciated this story and the different backdrop it took place in. This was not the typical fairytale, and at the end of the day, none of the women needed a man to rush in to rescue them. This is a story about strong independent women, friendship, and revenge.