ellenisntcool's reviews
518 reviews

This was probably the most disappointing read for me. I’ve been excited to read this for a couple years and honestly regret not DNF’ing when I had the gut feeling I wouldn’t like it.

I can't deal with Cameron for any second longer and the fact that this isn't mainly focused on the octopus is a let down as I assumed it would be from the blurb.

I do adore chainsaw man a lot, so I'm excited to continue 

The writing isn't for me, so I'd rather not force myself to read the entire book when I'm not enjoying it.

I actually didn’t know this was going to be a romance until I was 50% in and had a peak at some reviews. 

At first I was really invested in this story about this lonely witch coming down to help the young girls who didn’t have control over their powers, I loved the side characters who were introduced and got excited for the story about how they will keep it under control for when the solicitor arrives.

That was until we get to the end and learn Lillian, the witch who brought everyone in is dead.

There’s so much that could have been done to improve this story, like utilising show not tell and removing the romance and the bloody sex scene because it felt very jarring. Overall, I should have checked what type of book this is but it also could have been better. 

LOOK, I BROUGHT THIS YESTERDAY BECAUSE IT WAS ON SALE AND ALSO IT FELL BEHIND THE BOOKSHELVES IN MY LOCAL INDIE BOOKSHOP AND I HAD TO FISH IT OUT AND I DAMAGED IT SO I FELT BAD AND BROUGHT IT.

But I was interested in reading!! But instead I got confused.

Edit/Update:

I'm lowering the rating, cause I'm not going to re-read and the more I think about it the more meh I am about this book and the characters.


I definitely enjoyed this book, but it isn't my favourite by Emily Henry. Some of the characters were good, like Cleo and Kimmy, some had their moments but I still liked aka the main characters Harriet and Wyn (who has a very stupid name).

Then there's Sabrina and Parth. They exist.

If there was less of the miscommunication I think it would be higher up on the list of romances I do like, but overall it was an enjoyable read and I am excited to try you and me on vacation.

The Jasmine Throne is a story about a princess who became an exile and a maidservant struggling to find her past.

I was unsure what I would be getting into when first picking this book up as the only thing ever mentioned in reviews or maybe even in a haul is that this is a sapphic fantasy set in Ancient Inida, which definitely intrigued me as someone who is queer and loves fantasy. I brought myself a copy second hand (I did this twice, as the first got lost then showed up a month later) then devoured this story about these two very gay women fighting together for their freedom.

The Plot

The book is set in Ancient India in a state called Ahrianya, who's culture, language and religion were supressed by the Emperor thus creating rebellions within the state and ploys to remove him from his throne.
When we first meet Malini, she is introduced within the prologue where she and her ladies-in-waiting are being sent to burn alive at a pyre so they can become mothers of flame, but Malini refused and fought back so her brother sends her into exile banishing her to Ahrianya where she is to life out her exile until death.
Priya on the other hand is introduced navigating the Old Bazaar with a blade under her sari and trying to get to the stalls to collect goods for the young children living on the streets but when they all suddenly closed she is forced to go to them empty handed, but finds a young boy who is becoming consumed by Rot.
What brings these two women together is the Hirana, a Ahiryani temple once bustling with temple children and Elders only to be burned down long ago, was once a home to Priya but is now a prison for Malini.


The Actual Review before I give away all of the plot

AH. This is within my list for top ten fantasy books I have ever read. The pacing, the characters, the story!! All of it was tied together with the finest ribbon and blessed with magic that kept me invested yet I took my time savouring the story as I didn't want this to end, (holy shit nearly lost my entire review thanks computer xx)

The characters themselves were truly amazing as we have five main POVs throughout the book who all brought an element of intrigue and richness to the story that I think works so well. We even had a couple extra POV's from secondary characters that added extra context for certain scenes and added more to the previous characters we met and how quickly they change when the tension and the plot truly begin. 

Overall, this is one of the easiest 5 stars I can give and I'm grateful to have read this book and I am very excited to get stuck into the sequel once I find a copy. 

I don’t know what rating to give this as I genuinely have no thoughts about it, like I may give it a 3 but I’m unsure. I adore the shades of magic series but this just felt like filler. I do wonder if it were a novella would the story work out more but I’m not reading the other volumes to find out.

Update: it’s a one star