Review: The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

The Wrath and the Dawn

Renee Ahdieh

Series: The Wrath and the Dawn #1

Published: May 12, 2015

Rating: ★★★★★

Summary: (Taken from Goodreads)

One Life to One Dawn.

In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad's dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph's reign of terror once and for all.

Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she'd imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It's an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid's life as retribution for the many lives he's stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?

Inspired by A Thousand and One Nights, The Wrath and the Dawn is a sumptuous and enthralling read from beginning to end.

Links:

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Cover Comments:

I love, love, love this cover. Now that I've read the book, I want to own the hardcover on my bookshelf of prettiness. It's simple, but so beautiful. I just love it. 

My Review: 

I'm not going to lie, I put off reading this book for a long time. I just knew I wasn't going ot like it. Yes, everyone else seemed to be loving it. But, I was so certain it just wouldn't be my style. Now that I read it, I have to rescind that thought. I LOVED it. Everything about it. I couldn't put it down. My poor son had to entertain himself all day, because I literally could not put the book down.

Are there things that annoy me? A couple small things. But, nothing is strong enough to take a star away. I didn't like the way Tariq was being dismissed .. Honestly, I felt bad for him. This guy has been focusing on nothing but rescuing his best friend, and I felt like quite a few people thought he was juvenile. Maybe he was, but I can garauntee if my husband were in a similar situation, I'd move the whole earth to get him... whether he wanted me to or not.

Now onto the main couple. Shazi and Khalid. Oh my goodness. I love that this wasn't insta-love. In fact, it was instant hatred on her part. But, the progression was just beautiful! I loved the way she struggled so bad with her attraction. I love that he was so hopeful at having found someone to care about. I love that he can't help but protect her, even when it could ruin him. Everytime these 2 were together, I was grinning. I'm so worried Ahdieh will keep them seperated most of the next book. I really hope not. I need more of them!

This book was a lot lighter than I was expecting. It had a lot more romance than I expected as well. When you read the summary, you don't expect it to be so hopeful. That was probably why I kept putting it off. It wasn't a light read, but it wasn't nearly as dark as I expected. It was this perfect combination of everything. Just read it. If you haven't yet. I promise you won't regret it. 

Now I just have to get through 5 more months until the 2nd book comes out! Are you counting down? I know I am.