I loved the glimpse at long-ago history and what the culture may have been like in present-day Spain at the time (15th century). The relationship between Fatima and Hassan was beautiful. But as far as the story itself, I never really did get into it much. I do like a slow burn, but this might be a bit too slow. Oh, and I love the cover!

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book, but I felt like I missed a lot of the metaphors. That's on me, not the author. I definitely plan to revisit the book in the future to see if I get more out of it.

Beautifully written and truly enjoyable. Some parts could have been more explored though. But I ended up loving the characters and the world.

While I found the writing really lovely and I wanted to really love this book... I must admit, I lost interest and my first pass at it wasn't quite the right moment I think for me to appreciate this book. That said, I thought it had a lot of promise, just not a ton of action I was enthralled by.

I sadly DNF'ed this book at around 12%. I didn't connect with the characters like I wanted or would have liked to. The writing got really confusing as well and easily became a hindrance for me.

Unfortunately, I did not get. the chance to read this ARC prior to its release--I'm hoping to work through my backlist now that we're home for the coming weeks!--but we did end up buying this book for the library collection.

A fantastical historical fiction illustrating the end of an era, the fall of the last sultunate of Iberia and the rise of Catholic Spain.

Alhambra, 1492. Granada has been under siege for months now. Fatima is a young concubine to the sultan. She spends her days with the harem, attending the lady mother of the sultan, being summoned to his chambers and sneaking out to meet with her friend Hassan – a young gay cartographer of the palace. Hassan’s map drawing is special for what he draws comes true. When a Spanish general comes to the palace with a whole entourage of what turns out to be the Spanish Inquisition, Hassan is deemed a sorcerer and a sodomite. With Fatima’s own future uncertain and order for Hassan’s arrest looming they decide to flee. Aided by a djinn and the sultan’s mother of all people. They set out on a dangerous journey to the Bird King’s island – a place as elusive as Atlantis. But with a cartographer drawing things into being only getting there seems like the true challenge.

I went into this expecting non-specific weirdness and prepared for the unthinkable. I got that. But I got that written with such a beautiful prose that I’m almost glad I knew next to nothing about the author or what I was walking into. I do love being so pleasantly surprised and the beautiful, lyrical writing style was so amazingly transportive that the book could have had next to no plot whatsoever and I still would have swooned over it.

I am probably in the minority when I say this but the first 20% or so of the book were my absolute favorite of the whole thing. I loved it best when nothing much was happening. Or rather we had Fatima going about her day lazily, not particularly happy with where she was but also never knowing anything else. Fatima bantering with an at-ease and comfortably oblivious Hassan. The calm before the storm was written so well that I found myself longing for it for the rest of the book. Which is not to say the rest of the book was bad or that it wasn’t important. Development wise it was so much more crucial than the beginning. It’s just that the melancholic in me couldn’t deal with the change of pace and what most readers probably found boring, I was reveling in it. The journey, the hide and seek, the introduction of secondary characters, the odd magic rearing its head here and there, the pursuit by the Spanish Inquisition, the clash between cultures and religions – all those things were interesting but also amounted to the sad realization that nothing can last forever. Perhaps it’s because I had the opportunity of visiting Alhambra a few years ago and now having to imagine its glory squashed and fading before the characters’ eyes… it made me sad. The way you get sad and amazed and sort of stunned at a loss for words when you see historical monuments turned into tourist attractions. You’re thankful they are still standing here but to imagine their former glory? That’s staggering.

The thing is that „The Bird King” hit me in the feels. Not particularly for the characters although my heart went out for Hassan many times (especially when he said why he wouldn’t convert or confess to being a sorcerer), nor because of Fatima although throughout her entire journey I was rooting for her hard. It hit me in the feels mostly because one empire swallowing the former, obliterating the former really, demanding it to denounce everything because THEY now KNOW what the truth is and they are its heralds? What hypocrisy. What audacity. I hate that about zealots. The Spanish Inquisition (and ALL other forced conversion pursuits) was such a dark, awful time in the history of Europe and it breaks my heart that a religion I was brought up in caused so much pain.

But I digress. „The Bird King” was an incredibly clever book that could have been slow-paced and delightfully boring to some unschooled at literary historical fiction (especially at the beginning), yet I ate it all up and I loved that to bits. From the „at leisure” beginning I adore best, through the ups and downs and close hits of the pursuit with those odd djinns whose own agendas remain a mystery to me (as they probably should) to the book’s VILLAIN who – oh my gosh – she was terrific. I loved where this book went with Luz and you know? It’s best if you just read it for yourself. I just knew it would be SO. GOOD. from the first scene she appears in. And finally to the book’s end which kind of took me by surprise. In some ways it did and in some I should have seen that coming.

I am sorry for this being a mess of feels and thoughts but I guess this book did a number on me? When I opened my Word document to type out my thoughts I didn’t expect these things to come out. And yet here they are. So, go read it y’all if you aren’t scared of literary, delightful slowness that’s like a nice cup of tea on a summer afternoon when time stands still and all is well.
4.5 really.

**massive thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

I received a free copy for an honest review.

A promising story but waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too slow. Sometimes I got really tired while reading, even though being an interesting story

This is a good historical fantasy with intelligent commentary on religion and a compelling ancient world setting. I did, however, find that the beginning was the part that really absorbed me, and I found the plot to be slower and slower as the book went on. But overall, I enjoyed it a lot.

A beautifully-written, magical story about the friendship between a girl and a mapmaker (and their demon-jinn dog).

The Bird King, by G. Willow Wilson

Set during the fall of Muslim Granada, Fatima, a concubine, and her best friend, Hassan, the royal mapmaker begin a journey to freedom as the Spanish Christian regime takes hold... and takes special interest in Hassan's ability. Not only can he draw beautiful and detailed maps, Hassan's unique gift allows him to chart places he's never been, even charting hidden paths. Soon, Fatima and Hassan are on the run, facing the choice of going to Morocco or escaping to the magical isle of the Bird King. A fantastic store of love and friendship, I found The Bird King enchanting and rich with emotion.

Thanks to NetGalley for a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.

LOVE this beautiful story! You won't regret picking this one up. For fantasy fans looking for something different than the usual.

DNF at 6%. This book is definitely different from anything I've read. I feel like the beginning was very confusing to follow and I'm not sure if that's just because of my lack of understanding of the time period and religion, or the book doesn't do a good enough job of setting up the story.

This book was disappointing and for a moment I thought I wouldn’t finish it. The beginning of it totally caught my attention, though.

As the synopsis says, the story is set during the reign of a sultan that falls into the hands of the Spanish Inquisition, a situation that changes the lives of two friends, Fatima and Hassan. The story looks promising at this point because we can read a little bit about the traditions held around that time and place (Iberian Peninsula), like the way Fatima and Hassan arrived at the palace, the way they served their masters (Fatima as a concubine and Hassan as a magic mapmaker, as well as their subsequent longing for freedom, and how this freedom looks even more impossible to achieve with the arrival of the Holy Office representatives.

In order to save Hassan of a terrible fate involving his talent with mapmaking, he and Fatima embarked in a journey that I think it lacked a feeling of adventure and emotion, which made it boring; a journey that also added unnecessary characters that didn’t have enough background to make you feel anything for them, not love nor hate (and I'm afraid to say I felt nothing for the main characters either). Also, they were parts that were a little bit confusing to me, but I have the feeling that it was because of the Kindle format I got.

This story wasn’t for me. Definitely.

I really wanted to love this book because of the theme, premise and setting. I tried three times to read it but unfortunately I cannot connect with the story.

I very much love Wilson's writing style. Very beautiful and really makes you feel like your there. Was a bit disappointed with the story itself, maybe like it more on reread.

I may try to finish The Bird King at some point, but for now it's been sitting on my kindle for months partially finished and I haven't felt the desire to pick it back up. Beautiful writing, but I struggled to stay interested in the storyline. DNF at 24%

This is so beautifully written, and the first quarter of the book was fascinating and really held my attention. I thought the characters were interesting, flawed abd yet fascinating. After about the 30% mark though, I found the pacing and number of 'close calls' started to really wear on me, and I started to find I didn't really care what was going to happen. It also started to feel a little disjointed, so I decided to DNF this one at about 50% of the way through. I still think the prose is beautiful, though.

A few lulls but for the most part an excellent read. It felt like I was reading a Guy Gavriel Kay book; which is a huge compliment! There is a lot of Muslim culture here that most Westerners are not likely to be familiar with. I loved learning about the culture and seeing the world from the Muslim viewpoint. And while this is Earth during the 13th century; it has all the magical aspects of the stories we know from that time. Use of 'magic', secret islands, famous swords, etc. You can decide for yourself if you think it's "fantasy" enough; but this quote by a character really struck me as all the proof I need:
- "You’ve transported us into open water without a damned idea where we're pointed, all by cutting through a f-f---ing rope. That’s magic.”

Jinn & Lore
Certainly the best characters in The Bird King are the jinn. I loved how the jinn told little stories and gave out puzzles and clues that would confuse me until I'd have an ah-ha moment later on. The most interesting part with the lore used here was learning new stories that sound like some I know but have a spin or different take than I have heard before. I don't want to spoil them all as they are so fun to discover throughout the story! I will say there is a reference to a mysterious misty island (steeped in religion) that I immediately identified as a version of Avalon.

The Ladies
I really appreciate how strong and smart the women are in The Bird King. Anyone who thinks this story will be oppressive to women because it's viewpoint is from Muslims will potentially be surprised to learn that the women encountered, and those whom are a part of the lead story, are all fierce. Our leading lady and her friend are all at once adorable and admirable. How can you not love a character who is sarcastically told this early on (she's technically a slave) because she's acting out and embarrassing her owner(s):
- "What will the foreigners think if we can’t even manage our slave girls? Pretend to be meek and obedient for once in your life. It will be good for practice."

Quotable!
This is by far the most quotable book I've read in 2019. G. Willow Wilson has taken so many social issues and brought them done to perfect one-line descriptions. Additional it's done with intelligent wit and sarcasm. A few of my favourites (besides the ones shared above):
- "If justice is what you want, then you may often be right, but you will rarely be happy."
- "Happiness she decided, comes only in pauses brother regularly, nor predictably."

Overall
Wilson has given us a true gem. I know many will argue this doesn't belong on fantasy shelves and is more 'magical realism'. For me it's like The Night Circus, The Bird King is so well written and put together from a literary standpoint that it belongs in every genre it might qualify for in order to get more people seeing and reading it. The social connections and empathy that are made in The Bird King between today's reality and that of the 13th century are astonishing. Wilson does an incredible job of making this a very relatable story regardless of your cultural or religious background. It breaks my heart that we (humanity) are not further along than we were back then.

Now after reading this rave review you may wonder why I only gave this 4-stars. The reason, there was a large-ish section that dragged for me. I'm not sure if it was just me on that day (I was grumpy) or that the section was actually a bit dull. For now I'm leaving this at 4-stars but I could easily see me re-reading it in the future and bumped it up to five.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

To say that I am not used to this kind of book is a major understatement. I’m just not quite sure what this kind of book is: is it magical realism? I’d rather say realist magic. Is it historical fiction with a huge flight of fancy? Of course not, but the reader would probably benefit from a bit of knowledge about the historical context of 1491, when the book is set. It’s only because of the glowy recommendation of Annie from A Bookish Type that I downloaded this ARC from Netgalley. I’m so thankful of this opportunity to expand my reading horizon!

I’d never thought that I would read about the concubine of the last Muslim Sultan of Granada before the catholic armies of the Spanish Inquisition would reconquer the whole of Spain. Especially when the said mistress’ best friend is a gay cartographer who can draw new doors in a room and open corridors in places where there were none before. Which is totally useful when a palace head been under siege for a long time. And even more useful when our heroes need to make a speedy exit to save their lives.

The book mixes very dark and real preoccupations (the end of a kingdom in violent attacks, the forced marriage of a girl to the Sultan, the crushing weight of extreme religion, …) with elements of fairy tales. Some would say it is a bit too much and muddled, but I went along enthusiastically. The result is really enchanting, although I wouldn’t put the book in very young hands.

There was a lot of good surprises all along this adventure, and whenever I thought I’d got “it”, whatever “it” is, the author threw another twist and turn for me to ride along. I enjoyed the complexity of the characters and the relationships between them all. The only point of comparison would be with Naondel by Maria Turtschaninoff, another YA fantasy with lots of strong female characters embarking on a dangerous journey, but this one really shines in comparison.

The best thing I discovered while writing this post is that the poetry book about birds that Fatima loves reading actually exists! It’s a true medieval Sufi poem: “The Conference of the Birds” by Farid ud-Din Attar.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley, for review consideration.