Huge thank you to Ellen over at OrbitBooks for a finished copy of THE JASMINE THRONE in exchange for an honest review!

TJT has been one of my most anticipated releases of 2021 for quite some time. This is one of the few adult fantasies I have read, and the first sapphic South Asian adult fantasy I have read. It DID NOT disappoint. I’m already dreaming about getting my hands on book 2 and 3.

Tasha Suri flawlessly weaves together numerous stories and mini plotlines in this absolutely magical book, and while it was definitely a little bit confusing in the beginning, you got used to it about a quarter of the way in. There is also a listing of all the characters with descriptions of who they are in the back that was incredibly helpful.

As a Indian-American, I was immediately drawn into the world Suri builds. It was full of familiar names, clothing, food, jewellery, weaponry etc. I doubt I'll ever see another character named Bhumika or Santosh or Prem in my lifetime.

The relationship with Malini and Priya was by far my favourite thing. I caught myself grumbling about the other POV's in anticipation of reading about Malini or Priya numerous times. You know how people say "it's the small moments in life that truly matter"? Well it was the small moments between Malini and Proya that really mattered. Those moments truly added so much to their characters and their character arcs.

If you’re a fan of slow burn, lemme just tell you that this was the slowest burn I have read in a really long time. Those small little moments I mentioned before really added up and the tension they built? Gods, I was cheering when they finally kissed!

And it’s not just the romance that draws you in! The political intrigue, the magic system, and the incredibly complex characters all kept me on the edge of my seat. I mean our main characters are morally grey lesbians whose kingdoms are literally enemies.

I could literally go on and on and on about all the wonderful things about this book but I don’t think I’d do it justice to be honest. I’m begging you to read it for yourself and just see what I’m talking about!

I was given a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri is a new adult fantasy that is set in a pseudo historical Indian world. The blurb sounded intriguing and I enjoyed Empire of Sand by the author, so I knew I wanted to read this.

I mostly enjoyed it. Suri is really great and worldbuilding in this novel. The world feels well thought out and real. I had a vivid idea of this setting. I really enjoyed all the politics at play and the complex relationships with the different countries in this Empire. I have zero complaints about those aspects.

My issue comes with the characters. I'm very much a character driven reader. I really wanted to grow attached to these characters but I never did. They felt a bit flat to me. I also had zero interest in the romantic relationship developed in this story. Empire of Sand had a wonderful slow burn romance. I didn't feel the chemistry in this one. It was really disappointing.

I would still recommend this book to readers who aren't character driven. I think there are a lot of great themes, politics and a really cool world. I do think I'll read the sequel but will probably for the audiobook for it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for my honest review!

Imprisoned for defying her imperial brother, Malini finds herself secluded far from home and allies. Priya, a maidservant, finds herself mere feet from the temple where she was raised, yet worlds away. Both women must learn to harness their own powers and make hard choices if they want to free their homes from a tyrant’s rule.

Tasha Siri has created a beautiful, rich, and complex fantasy world fully of equally beautiful, rich, and complex characters. I’ve said a thousand times how much I love morally grey characters, and The Jasmine Throne is one of the best examples I’ve seen. All of the sides are ambiguous, all of the sides make you question your own idea of morality. No party is without their faults, and the ends may or may not justify the means. As Malini puts it, sometimes you have to become monstrous if you want to win. Politics are as much a driver in this book as romance or action is, maybe even more so, and while I know that may not be everyone’s thing, I absolutely loved it. Seeing the characters grapple not just with themselves or with war, seeing them have to weigh diplomacy with action, was thought provoking and intriguing.

The pacing of this story had a few off moments, but overall was incredibly well done. While Malini and Priya are drawn to each other immediately, there is no insta love; their romance is drawn out and carefully developed, so that all their big moments are that much more satisfying. In many ways, this portrayal of love felt so much more real than most, because it shows them both falling and shows that love is not an immediate thing, that romances usually don’t start with love. I loved how the obstacles in their way, both romantically and personally, together and individually, were approached and I loved that the choices made weren’t always clearly the right ones.

As a final positive point, I want to take an entire separate paragraph to talk about the ending. Without any spoilers—wow. It was perfect. I will admit that it was predictable, but it was still done so well. The Jasmine Throne ends exactly the way the first book in a series should: everything is wrapped up enough that you’re not in a panic until the next one comes out, but with enough unanswered questions that you can’t wait for more. There’s so much that I can’t wait to see, and it’s nice to have a clear idea of where the story will go. Everything is set up amazingly.

As far as complaints go, I don’t have many. Based on the description, I assumed there would be two point of views at most. Instead, there were several, and while it was interesting to see some of the other characters’ perspectives, it felt like too much. I will say that it made characters like Ashok and Malini come alive in ways they otherwise wouldn’t have—seeing the way they think definitely made their stories richer—but the focus on so many different characters all doing their own things left the narrative a bit hard to follow. My only other complaint is in how the world building is done. As I mentioned, the world building is beautiful and complete and easy to understand, and while I appreciate not having a ton of info dumping on the front end, just a little bit of explanation would’ve been useful. I didn’t understand most of the world until halfway through, because it just wasn’t explained.

With how slow this book started (nothing unusual at all for fantasy), I started writing this review expecting to rate The Jasmine Throne 4/5 stars. As I wrote this, though, I realized how much I genuinely loved this book—and so, I give it 5/5 stars. At several points, The Jasmine Throne reminded me a lot of Priory of the Orange Tree (high praise, as it’s one of my favorite books). Read for a beautiful fantasy world, sapphic romance, and political intrigue.

Paths cross as a journey starts to rid the world of a tyrannical emperor.

First and foremost, thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for sending me a copy to review.

I am overall on the fence about how I feel about this book. On one hand, I didn't think this was a bad book, but on the other hand, I thought that the plot and characters were not as well-written as I was hoping it to be. Here are all the reasons why I thought so.


Writing:

As for most YA books, I found the writing very easy to digest. One issue I has was that because of the cultural setting/influences of the book, the names were hard for me to pronounce, but that is on me.

The biggest flaw when it comes to the format of the book has to do with the perspectives. Based on the synopsis for the book, I was expecting there to be two main POVs - Malini and Priya. It was made evident that I was wrong for assuming that as the number of POVs kept piling up the more you went on. There were chapters dedicated to a person who would only show in that chapter alone.

Needless to say, I had an issue with the excessive amount of POVs. I don't think it was beneficial for the story to be told this way. While it makes sense that by having multiple perspectives you get different sides of the story, but it took away from both the plot and character development. I'm sure the same story could have been told with less.


Plot:

Right off the bat, I thought that the setup for the story was a bit weak. I thought that it could have been more hard-hitting and informative. While it does set up the main conflict of the story, I don't think that the story was strong enough to support it. The basis of the plot is to overthrow the tyrannical Emperor Chandra, but not only is the emperor a mostly absent character, it is barely shown as to why people are trying to overthrow him. Sure he does some heinous acts throughout the book mainly through the use of other characters, but I felt like I was being told he was cruel rather than being shown.

Another element of the story that I felt was a bit weak was the addition of the rebels lead by Ashok. While this plotline made sense in relation to the rest of the story initially, it took a pretty steep dive bomb the more you read.

All the plotlines in this, by the end, diverged and ended very abruptly. It made me feel like the author didn't really know how to end the book and it also made it feel very much like a set-up for the next book or the ending to a standalone. So, by the end, the plot got a bit messy and kind of fell apart.

A lot of the reason why my enjoyability also plummeted was due to the use of themes that I just don't personally like the read about. There is a large focus on religious extremism and manipulation which just isn't for me.


World-Building:

This is set in a world where specific people like our main character Priya, called Temple Children, manifest abilities. As to why they have these abilities and how it works is not explained, all you know is that they can do things other people can't. The Temple Children are called -born depending on the number of times they enter and come out of something called the Deathless Waters. Again, why they do this is not really explained.

There is also a disease called rot which we don't really know much about. We know it manifests as roots under the skin and can result in blossoms externally and can only be held off with the use of sacred wood. Why this disease is occurring is a mystery to me.

Overall, I think the world-building could have been thought out more carefully in order to explain why these elements are important to the story.


Characters:

As I said earlier in the writing section, I thought that the character development suffered due to the large number of POVs. Too many characters meant less room to develop them and as such, they weren't fleshed out enough. I also found that there was a lot of going back and forth when it came to decisions.

As for specific characters, I didn't care much Priya or Malini (or their relationship). I considered both of them to be unreliable due to the fact that one of them had fractured memories and the other is drugged up. I thought that the dynamic between them was confusing and it felt like it was being forced. Their relationship was just stuck in this weird place and I don't think it amounted to anything in the end for me.

I also really did not like Ashok, although I'm not sure whether or not I was supposed to. Ashok is the leader of the rebels and is seeking to upend the Emperor's tyrannical rule. For a motive it is not necessarily bad, but where his character falls short for me is the fact that the decisions he makes in order to fulfill his goal are really questionable. I also thought that the way his character arc developed was not what I was expecting nor what I wanted by the end of the book.

The only character I liked was Bhumika, who was someone you did not want to mess with. Almost ready to give birth, she doesn't even hesitate to put herself in harm's way when needed. She was also the most logical character and sensible person in this which I appreciated.


Concluding Thoughts:

I thought that while this wasn't a bad book, it lost control of the plot. The characters that were supposed to drive the plot also didn't do anything for me, mainly because there were just too many perspectives.

If you are looking for a new YA fantasy series to delve into that is inspired by Indian culture, I would still give this a shot though.

In The Jasmine Throne, Tasha Suri gives us a complex, absorbing and vivid fantasy adventure in a world inspired by the cultures and history of the Indian subcontinent. The storyfollows the lives of two women - a princess and a maidservant.

Malini, the princess, has been imprisoned because she refuses to accept the will of her brother, the new Emperor Chandra. Accepting his will would have led to her death: but it seems his plan is for her to find death anyway, forgotten in a distant corner of the empire. Malini is, though, educated, brave, and has taught herself both statecraft and war. She will be a dangerous enemy, if she can escape and she is perfectly capable of manipulating and using a young maidservant for her ends.

Priya, the maidservant, is a former temple child who now serves her nations's conquerors in the Regent's, the Imperial governor's, palace. She has secrets of her own though. When the temple was destroyed, she was learning to draw on the deep magic of the deathless waters. Now rebellion is flaming in Ahiranya and the rebels want to use her magic to support their uprising. But Priya has blotted out her memories of her earlier life to escape the trauma that she went though...

The Jasmine Throne is a very rich, morally ambiguous mixture of a book, exploring both personal dilemmas and relationships and the complex rights and wrongs of rising up against a cruel empire. There are those here who have tried to save what they can of Ahiranya's culture and traditions from the despotic Parijati empire. They aren't exactly wrong to have compromised. There are also those who see that the process of erasure - the very language has been obliterated - will not stop, and who demand more drastic action. They aren't completely wrong either, though this tactic may bring further destructions and suffering.

But while politics and power games may shape this book, The Jasmine Throne also throbs with the powerful heartbeat of personal relationships, and in particular of one relationship, that between Priya and Malini. For both, duty - to their own nations, their own cultures - may allow some cooperation, but they have different objectives and loyalties, meaning that same duty may also demand some manipulation. As if that wasn't complicated enough already, everything is also mixed up by the obvious pull that we can see between the two. This both creates new motivations - as they explore their frank interest kin one another - and muddies them, with actions, behaviour and motivations unclear and misunderstood. Suri really gets inside Priya and Malini, making the reader sympathise deeply with both for what they have lost while also making it clear that neither is an uncomplicated hero.

And there is more! Priya's culture would allow women to be lovers: Malini's wouldn't, but she's still not above using whatever levers she can find to escape and pursue her long-term plan to restore her "good" brother, the monkish Aditya, to the throne. So there's a thread of subversion - and a fear of discovery - here too, that perhaps undercuts how honest anyone can be.

Add in a vengeful mother, spies, a martinet Lord on the make who wants to replace Priya's master, the regent of Ahiranya, a rampant and incurable epidemic and a couple of meddling princelings, and you get epic fantasy at its best in a fresh and intricate setting which has, I'm sure, many more secrets to reveal.

I would strongly recommend The Jasmine Throne. (Those who've already enjoyed Suri's Empire of Sand and Realm of Ash won't of course be surprised by how good it is - and if you haven't read them, you should!)

I always find it fascinating how authors tie religious beliefs into fantasy storytelling. It adds a layer of complex character development that I enjoy reading.

Overall, I really liked this book. The characters were interesting (even the ones you’re definitely not supposed to like), and the story is definitely something I’m interested enough in to continue reading the series as it comes out.

Finally! The epic fantasy book I have been searching all year for. I love fantasy and there is nothing I would rather read then some sapphic fantasy. While I have read some okay and even some good fantasy books this year, there has not been anything I thought was great… well that is until now. I had high expectations for this book and it was exactly the type of fantasy that I want to read. I hope it comes out in audio soon as I would love to go on this adventure again.

I do have to mention that it takes a little bit to get into this book. There are a lot of names and places and the book starts a little slow. This is very common for epic fantasy books and by the 15% mark I was completely hooked anyway. This is a long book, almost three times as long as say an average romance book, but I easily finished it in two nights. I was so immersed into the story that once it had its hooks in me, the pages just flew by.

Suri writes so well and she took her time to really build up the characters, and then really launched the story. The first half is very character driven, where the second half is much more about the plot. This just clicked so well for the type of reader I am and is a big reason why this was such a winner for me. This book has multiple POV’s, although there are two obvious mains, but it was a pleasant surprise about how much I enjoyed all the POV’s. I’m not normally a fan of more than two POV’s but they all worked here for me. Even if I didn’t like a character, I wanted to know what was going on with them. All the characters were really well written and they easily stuck with me. I’m not one to always remember names but in this book I got this whole large cast remembered quickly.

Of course the heart of the book is really about the two main, morally grey, sapphic ladies. I was so happy with these two mains. I hate when characters in fantasy are passive and things just happened to them. Not these ladies who are willing to do, what they think is right, no matter what it takes. I enjoyed both characters so much that I was extra happy when they started to catch feels. There is not a lot of romance in this book, and what is there is very slow burn, but it completely worked for me. At one point, I just knew that they were truly meant to be together. In life or death, we will have to see, but I loved their connection.

I have so much else I would love to talk about but I don’t want to accidentally spoil anything for new readers. This is a book I absolutely recommend. If you are a fantasy fan and a fan of strong, kickass women, get this book. This is adult fantasy at its best and I could not be happier. This is the first book in the series, but the book ends on a good stopping point. It feels like the first part is complete and doesn’t end on a crappy cliffhanger feeling. I still cannot wait to see what happens to the characters next and I hope Suri writes fast.

If you loved stories like the City of Brass and the Poppy Wars then get ready to fall in love with The Jasmine Throne. I was hooked with this one as soon as I started the story and I need book two now. I love morale gray characters and new folklore. And this one did not disappoint.

In a world inspired by ancient Indian epics and culture, servant girl Priya must deny her past and her magic in order to to survive in a cruel empire. But when she’s assigned to be a maid to Princess Malini, the disgraced sister of the emperor, she finds herself in the midst of a budding revolution that needs her in order to succeed. This book discusses the effects of imperialism not just in terms of poverty and hunger, but also in erasure of culture, family, and ties to one’s ancestors. It’s a thrilling, thought-provoking book. And, while it’s a tad slow-paced, I think it set the stage beautifully for the rest of the series. I can’t wait to read more!

Malini is the only sister of the emperor of Parijatdvipa, imprisoned because she refused to self-immolate when the emperor demanded it of her. In a fit of cruel irony, Emperor Chandra has ordered her drugged and imprisoned in the Hirana, an abandoned Ahiranyi temple that died when the priests had self-immolated on the previous emperor's orders. Priya, a maidservant who has been tasked with cleaning the Hirana nightly, was a temple servant of the Hirana when she was a child. Now, she secretly seeks to fill in the gaps in her memory around her life there before everyone died. When Malini accidentally learns part of Priya's secret, it brings the two women together in ways that will change the world.

I should have liked this book more. It has so many pieces I enjoy, such as rich, culturally diverse world building, a complex political situation, and strong, fascinatingly flawed women characters. There's even a weird plague that kills people by slowly turning them into trees. There's a great deal of depth to the pieces of this story, but there were two places where I struggled to connect with it. The first is pacing and the second was the romance between Priya and Malini.

I struggled with the pacing in this novel. For so much of the book, I felt like the story was going nowhere. I could see the political situation reaching a tipping point and could see how the revelation of the characters' backstories was building toward something as they were revealed, but it was hard to see what that was until very near the end and there was very little action until things reached that tipping point. I liked the plot and I liked the ending, which is an excellent setup for book 2, but I struggled to get to the end where it all came together. Part of that may have been tied to the tone, which is on the dark side of epic fantasy. It's darker than I've been in the mood for lately, so it's entirely possible that this book would hit me differently when reread later.

I also struggled to connect with Priya and Malini's relationship. I enjoyed each character individually, but I didn't find them interesting together. Both are secretive women, and while "I'm lonely and I find you intriguing" is a perfectly valid reason for two characters to get together, I felt like the relationship jumped too fast from "I don't know or trust you" to the strong feelings they had for each other at the end. I will also say that I think I'm in the minority on that point, based on other early reviews that loved the queer romance story between those characters, so take my opinion here as you will.

With that said, there is a lot to like here. There are so many strong women in this book, all of whom are strong in different ways and exercise power in different ways. Priya is physically powerful and courageous. Malini's power comes from her political savviness and charisma. Bhumika's power comes from her ability to placate and disarm her colonizer husband while cultivating loyalty among her people. I loved reading the ways they navigate the deeply misogynistic world around them, both fighting the constraints the world has placed on them and manipulating those situations to bring them some advantage.

I do think this is an epic fantasy worth reading and I plan to read book 2. There are a lot of interesting plot points set up at the end, so I'm excited to see where the series goes next and how the author decides to develop these characters further. This is a more ambitious, complex work than Suri's Books of Ambha series and I think she pulls it off here, despite the reservations I mentioned earlier. If you're looking for a feminist epic fantasy with a tone on the darker end of the spectrum and enjoy morally gray characters, culturally diverse world building (in this case, inspired by the epics and history of India), and queer representation, then this is the book for you.

Arc provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

The Jasmine Throne is a multi PoV adult fantasy book which centers around our two main characters— Malini, an exiled and imprisoned princess, and Priya, a maidservant with forbidden magic. Bhumika, who makes a political marriage and uses the influence she cultivates in order to help save her people and together the three of them plot to overthrow the corrupt empire and save their people even if they don’t truly trust one another.

There are so many things to be said about this book. It has a very intricate world building, an intriguing and forbidden magical system, plague-like rot that infects the people, a sapphic romance subplot, and despite having numerous PoVs they all managed to be intertwined with all their various political plots.

The constant twists and turns throughout the book were done so well that as a reader you’re never certain what to expect next and with a slow paced book such as this, it definitely helped hook the reader into the story more. You have numerous characters and many aren’t what they seem even after revelations. In addition to the tension between the Parijat authorities and the Ahiranyi rebels, the tension between the different Ahiranyi and their thoughts on what would be the best decision for their people constantly kept the readers on their toes.

Priya, Malini, and Bhumika all come from different backgrounds and have different experiences but what they all share is that they’ve created personas to help them navigate and make their ways through this patriarchal empire which wants them to do nothing more than burn (quite literally).

TWs: Drug use (forced), Addiction & withdrawl, Trauma, Violence, Gore, Blood, Body Horror, Execution, Death, Murder, Death of a child, Execution by immolation,Torture, Homophobia, Trypophobia, Self-immolation, Self-mutilation, Homomisia & internalised homomisia, Suicidal ideation

Characters:
This story follows two main characters through multiple points of views; sometimes through the characters themselves, but more often through side characters.

Positives:
+ Hands down, coolest magical sickness ever. I gotta say, the rot has got to be my favorite thing in the entire book. I love that there is a sickness in the world that may or may not have to do with so many things that we haven’t yet learned about. I am super stoked to find out if we learn more in book two.
+ Ok. Some of the religions in this book are really freaking awesome; I am looking at you Roh. I eagerly await learning more in future books.
+ EPIC GIRL POWER in this book. You want strong female characters that aren’t strong ONLY physically, but are ruthless, cunning, schemey, long-term thinking? You want varied personalities and in-depth character growth? You want a Sapphic romance that is beautiful and unfolds naturally? CHECK CHECK CHECK!!!

Negatives:
- I would have liked to see and understand more differences between the people in the book. Maybe i understood it wrong, but it seemed like the main country we are following is made up of many regions (principalities?), and while it talked about some of the different religious aspects or beliefs, it doesn't really talk about what made those places so distinct from each other.

Final Thoughts:
I will absolutely be continuing this series! I have to say how much I really enjoyed the characters in this book; there was an amazing portrayal of the various types of strengths that people possess. I really appreciated that all the main and secondary c characters had clear priorities and goals for themselves - that isn’t always the case in so many books I read. I like that the female characters weren’t all damsels in distress and that they didn't all want to be traditional and rear children. I loved that the ones that did want to do those roles, were more than just “that mom figure”. The characters were all so wonderfully multi-faceted. I liked that the romance was gradual and budding, but also wasn’t the main priority for the story OR for the characters embroiled in the romance themselves - they have goals and aspirations that are important to them and love isn’t conquering all.

I will not know peace until I get my hands on the second and third book. I didn't even want to read the last chapter because I didn't want to stop experiencing these characters and this world.

The political intrigue, the in-depth magic systems, the complex characters, the beautiful writing style, the always changing POVs, and the romantic tension between our main characters were all so overwhelmingly real and well done.

I was constantly fascinated by how Malini and Priya interacted with each other and how their flaws bounced off of one another.

There were numerous times where I laughed and times I was almost moved to tears and how this story and this world explores morality in a complete gray-scale pulled so much emotion out of me as a reader.

I am so beyond excited to see how the rest of the trilogy plays out.

Arc provided by Netgalley for an honest review

“You and Chandra both believe the right to rule is something that must be given to you, by the mothers of flame, by blood, by the nameless. I’m no such fool. I know there is no higher power that sanctions a king or emperor. There is only the moment when power is placed in your hands, and there is one truth: either you take the power and wield it, or someone else will.”

The Jasmine Throne was one of my highly anticipated reads for this year and it did not disappoint. I was promised morally grey lesbians with political intrigue and it most definitely delivered and kept me hooked the entire time I was reading it.

The prose was beautifully written immediately immerses you into the world of a corrupt empire and the women who fight to tear it down. I thought that the descriptions of both the magic and the settings were wonderfully written and all the different storylines were intertwined quite well. There are three main plots in this story— Priya’s, Malini’s, and the Rot.
A big part of Priya’s story is finding herself, her people have suffered unspeakable horrors and the effects that it has both on her and her culture’s identities are astronomical. As her story progresses we see her love for the Ahiranyi and her magic grow as well as her connection to both. While she does become involved with Malini’s plans for the throne, Priya is Ahiranyi first and foremost and she will always fight for her people, we see this from the very beginning of the book until the end.
Malini’s story is quite different, while Priya’s people are suffering under the Empire she is a Parijati princess and her brother the Emperor of Parijatdvipa. But he is a dictator who has her locked away in the Hirana, a place that will always remind her of how he wants her to burn. She is a master manipulator and wears numerous of masks and will do whatever she can to free herself from her family, her story is very interesting to follow along especially when you get to see things unfold more as you get further in the story.
The Rot is a fatal disease that has spread all throughout the Empire and there is no cure, once someone has it they know that they will die. But that doesn’t stop their loved ones from using remedies to help them combat it. One of the characters, Rukh, has the Rot which we learn immediately and we see how several other characters quickly grow attached to him while knowing what will happen. Usually, we will see fatal diseases written as something awful and disgusting but the Rot will have flowers and buds growing out of you so it was a very different take. Like most of the other parts of the book, I thought that the way the Rot was written was very captivating, something so beautiful is killing you and there’s nothing you can do about it.

The Jasmine Throne is about rebellion, political intrigue, revenge, suspense, alliances, magic, fighting for the throne, disbalance of power, sacrifice, identity, colonialisation, and family. There are so may different combinations of topics woven together and written so well that despite there being a rush of information thrown at you, it pushed you to keep on reading more so that you could understand it. Something that I really liked that I feel is often times ignored in many fantasy books is the discussion of what do you do once you have gotten rid of the oppressor. There was a conversation between Ashok and Bhumika about this earlier in the book which clearly outlined their differences and the different ways they want to take down the Empire. There are so many political webs in this book that everything is connected one way or another, but every person has a different agenda on hand.

This book was not heavy on romance which as a person who doesn’t get attached to ships often, I did like. But if your main reason for reading this book is because of the pairing, I probably would not recommend this to you. The Jasmine Throne has a very rich worldbuilding so choosing to read this book because of a minor part of the book may not be in your best interest especially if you plan to reduce the book to just that.

While initially I thought I was going to struggle with the numerous PoVs (5+) since from my experience it makes it harder to connect the different storylines, I actually enjoyed them quite well and the glossary in the back is also helpful. Would definitely recommend going through it but only after you’ve read about the characters for some time seeing as the glossary most definitely does have spoilers in it.
Ahiranyi Characters
— Priya: Is a maidservant who is tasked with working in the Hirana and while she is there we learn more of her connection to her culture and past. She is very straightforward, loyal, kind, incredibly stubborn, and physically strong. But her strength does not come just from her physical power, from the very beginning we see how much she tries to help the people who have the Rot and her relationship with Rukh is the absolute sweetest.
— Ashok: He has a very clear idea on what his next steps are and what he must do to get to them which usually is in connection to violence. Like many other characters, he has lived through the horrors that have happened to his people and vengeance is something he is very dedicated to, even if it puts him in the crosshairs of his loved ones.
— Rukh: A child who has the Rot and is taken in by Priya. He is naive and innocent but also clever and brave, Rukh grew up on the streets so he knows how cruel and harsh can be but despite it all he deeply longs for a family.
— Bhumika: Plays the part of a sweet, dutiful, and softhearted wife so well meanwhile working the system so it best benefits her and her people. I found her to be incredibly fascinating and she is probably my favourite character. By both her people and her husband’s people, she is easily dismissed because of who she married (her people’s perspective) and the persona that she has adapted so well (her husband’s people’s perspective). But she is incredibly strong but she does not give into violence easily and has incredibly high amounts of patience that helps her fight the system along with her quiet, good wife persona. She has carefully built this persona and uses it both as a shield and as an armour for both herself and the Ahiranyi.
Parijati Characters
— Chandra: He is the Emperor of Parijatdvipa and completely and utterly cruel. From the very first chapter he makes a lasting impression and even though he is not in the majority of the book, you can feel his prescience in all of the different storylines.
— Malini: She is the Princess of Parijat and imprisoned at the Hirana, her brother’s message by having her sent there is very clear and it is enforced throughout the entirety of the book. Malini is manipulative and a well versed politician both similarly to Bhumika and in opposite to Bhumika. Her interactions with different characters are fascinating because you can see the different masks she has and how she uses them to her advantage.
— Pramila: Is Malini’s jailor and someone who has a very personal connection to Malini which is why she behaves how she behaves with Malini but she is still cruel and oppressive. Her pain is understandable but it is not an excuse, I did find her to be an interesting character to read about especially towards the latter half of the book
— Aditya: Without revealing much, the only thing to say about him is that he is a frustrating character. In a book with numerous morally grey characters, he is the good guy who is strictly loyal to his beliefs but he refuses to act which has painful consequences.
Aloran Characters
— Rao: He was a joy to read about, Rao really stands out from so many of the other characters because he is secretive and sweet but also incredibly loyal and determined. Much of his past is still unknown to us as readers and I will look forward to reading more about him.


Before reading The Jasmine Throne, read the trigger warnings ahead of time and remember that this is an adult fantasy book and not YA fantasy.

Trigger Warnings: Drug use (forced), Addiction & withdrawl, Trauma, Violence, Gore, Blood, Body Horror, Execution, Death, Murder, Death of a child, Execution by immolation,Torture, Homophobia, Trypophobia, Self-immolation, Self-mutilation, Homomisia & internalised homomisia, Suicidal ideation

DNF @ 45%

I want to preface this by saying this is probably a book that just is not for me at this given moment, for a variety of reasons. I'm not quite in the right headspace for it, but it was also not at all what I was expecting, and I think I will need to revisit this in the future once I have readjusted my expectations.

I loved The Books of Ambha duology, and had really high expectations for this book going into it, especially since I had heard (through marketing, the author's Twitter, and other reviewers) that this was going to be the start of a new epic fantasy trilogy featuring morally grey sapphics who are working together to take down an empire. I was also expecting the same level of slow burn romance that Tasha Suri so masterfully executed in her debut series. These are all some of my favourite things, and in theory, this should've been right up my alley.

My main issue with this book is that it is not at all what I expected. This is in part my own bias in having read her other books, but I think also in part because of the way this book has been marketed/sold. As of the halfway point where I stopped, I would not actually call any of the characters morally grey. In fact, Priya, one of our main characters, is quite literally the opposite of morally grey, so I'm really not sure where this whole tagline came from. Malini could maybe be considered morally grey, but to be completely honest, I don't think we've gotten to know her well enough for me to really say so. I've also seen some people describe the romance as enemies to lovers - it definitely is not that, so just keep that in mind if that's what you're expecting.. Even with regards to the slow burn, I think while I wouldn't call this book insta-love or anything like that, it's certainly not the slow burn that I've come to expect from Tasha Suri.

Aside from my expectations not being met, I also just had some issues overall with feeling like there was something missing from the 200-odd pages I read. I felt like in terms of worldbuilding and character development, maybe because the scope of this series is so large, I did feel like there were a lot of chunks of information that were missing, and not intentionally either. There were certain things that the narrative made me feel like I should know, but I didn't. There is absolutely no info-dumping in this book, but I honestly kind of feel like the book could've benefitted from some info-dumping.

I also was just expecting a lot more from the characters as well - I know it's probably because there's a much larger cast here than her previous works, but one of my favourite things about The Books of Ambha is how quickly Tasha Suri manages to make you fall in love with the characters, and how nuanced they are right from the get-go, and I just didn't feel like I got that here.

All that being said, I don't think this is a bad book by any means. I think the themes of empire, colonialism, cultural heritage, and resistance are so interesting and for the most part, seem like they're going to be well-executed. I think for me personally, I just went into this book with a lot of expectations that were not met. This is definitely a book I'll want to return to in the future, perhaps once I've distanced myself a little more from her previous works and readjusted my expectations based on what I now know about this book.

I do still recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the premise, but just be aware of your own expectations going into it.

An elegantly written novel, The Jasmine Throne is a lyrical and languid fantasy that weaves magic and politics.

It is beautifully constructed, in that the sentences flow with a prose that perfectly balances describing a scene and incorporating turns of phrase. I was never confused while reading it and though the world-building was on the light side of things, I understood the motivations and drives of the characters. That being said, I could have used more explanation into how the world worked regarding the various Lords and how their fiefdoms interacted with the emperor.

I enjoyed the premise and the non-Western inspiration for the novel. The alternating viewpoints allowed for different perspectives on the action taking place, though I wish we’d gotten a few more chapters with some of the antagonists.

Unfortunately, I found the story quite slow. Part of this could have been because I knew going in that it was a lesbian love story, so the build-up to their relationship was dampened for me given I was expecting it. While I usually prefer slow-burn love stories, this needed a lot more passion. It was too chaste for adult fantasy. I wasn’t expecting any bodice-ripping (as a sex scene isn’t necessarily the end result of sexual tension), but there was a lack of intensity behind the romance that kept me from “shipping” them as a couple. This could be because we don’t get to see the women interact other than in periods of heightened drama - they never get to flirt, to talk, to break down barriers in a casual or at least calm setting. The romance was, to put it very simply, flat.

I really enjoyed other facets of the novel, though I didn’t love them. I thought the magic was interesting, I enjoyed the political aspects, I loved the female-centred cast, and there were side characters that I cared for, such as Rao and Captain Jeevan, but overall I was left underwhelmed by the novel. I wasn’t engaged to the point of loving it, though I believe a lot of people will be.

It took some serious contemplation before I realized that my main issue was I found the novel a little formulaic. We know from the start what the love story will be, Priya’s connection to the Hirana took too long to get to despite the reader knowing there was one from the get-go, and I expected the twist at the end from pretty much the start. Maybe it wasn’t intended to be a twist, but it felt like it was supposed to be one, given the build-up to it.

Don’t get me wrong - I’m not trying to tear the novel down. I think it’s a beautiful book that I did enjoy, I just feel the need to explain why I didn’t love it. Will I read the next in the series? I’m not sure if I’m compelled enough, to be honest.

I’m recommending it to people who enjoy lyrical fantasy.

Under the rule of a zealous dictator, a princess in exile, a maidservant with a magical secret, and a gang of rebels who will stop at nothing to get what they want discover that the legends at the heart of the empire they wish to topple hold a lot more sway than any of their positions.

Folks, Tasha Suri is on a roll, and has yet again written a book that I’ve lost sleep over (in the best way, I would have stayed up reading even later if i could have). It’s filled with political intrigue, civil unrest, complicated families, cute sapphics, and deadly magic in an Indian-inspired epic, and I loved it.

I think that this politically-driven fantasy is really where Suri shines as a writer. As with her other books, the main plot of The Jasmine Throne follows the political power struggles of the people living in a conquered country and the way that they contrast with the people in power, although they want the same things. It’s so detailed and elaborately complex, but also never boring like a political book might seem to be on the surface.

And as complicated as her politics and plot lines are, this book would be nothing without its large cast of characters (and I mean, like, 30 named characters large. Thankfully there is a character guide at the back of the book to prevent too much confusion). When I started this book, I was frankly a little wary of the sheer number of points of view across all of the chapters, but each chapter gives a new perspective on the situation that the characters find themselves in and unites them across all of their roles within it. They’re morally gray in a way that makes it so human and real, despite all of the elements of fantasy woven around and within them.

I would be remiss to not talk about the main selling point for me (aside from the fact that I loved her other books so dearly that I’ve been anticipating another since I found out it was coming), the romance (okay, the pining mostly). You know that it’s coming, right when you pick the book up, but the way that it’s slowly hinted at, built up, and made so sweetly casual was so heartwarming to me. While it was what, I assume, most readers came for, and it absolutely shines on its own, it’s almost secondary to the rest of the story. I think people who need a lot of outward chemistry may be disappointed by it, however, it made me love the characters individually so much more and set the story up in more meaningful ways than I expected it to.

It took me a minute to get really into this book, but once I started to figure things out, I was IN IT. I’m so eager for the sequel, and I cannot wait to see this book take off.

Irresistible from the first page, The Jasmine Throne is lush, gorgeous and sprawling. It takes its time & every page turn is worth it. Thank you to Orbit for giving us queers the 500+ pages of epic fantasy we deserve. My only regret is that I can’t order the sequel yet.

I was given a free copy of The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri (author), Orbit Books (publisher), and Net Galley to provide an honest review. The Jasmine Throne is the first book in the Burning Kingdom series.

This review will be spoiler free.

I would characterize The Jasmine Throne as epic fantasy.

The world-building in this story seems to be inspired by Indian and South Asian culture and religion. The setting is very lush, tropical, hot, grimy, and I became immediately intrigued. As I made my way through the story, I thought the setting was just like any other engaging character in this story. The setting adds another layer of complexity to the story.

The magic system is very unique and that it has to do with water, but it is somewhat amorphous, mystical, and has a religious component. Some of the people who tried to access the mysterious waters did so because they were afflicted by an insidious malady which caused them to sprout leaves, branches, and other plant-like symptoms. The magic system was important to the political aspect of the story. I do not want to expound any further for the concern of revealing spoilers.

Politics is especially important in this story. Part of the story features a group of people, from a region of the kingdom, embark on the journey to independence because the ruler of the empire is ruthless and brutal. One of the major minor characters is one of the primary freedom fighters and her character arc is very interesting. I do not want to say anything further for the concern of revealing spoilers.

The strongest aspect of The Jasmine Throne are the characters. The two main characters are a maid and an exiled princess and how their lives intersect and come to rely on each other. It is very interesting to see their relationship evolves and deepens throughout the story. Each of the main characters is unique, fully developed, and has a distinct character arc. The minor characters are interesting, engaging, and have something to do that impacts the main characters and the story.

The writing of Ms. Suri is another strong aspect of this story. The writing is smooth, the story is moving forward, and I do not think there are any dead spots. The story does not meander. I did find a bit of the middle of the story to be a little slow because I thought a few of the chapters were extraneous, but it did not take me out of the story or diminish my reading experience.

I would recommend The Jasmine Throne to a reader who is interested in reading fantasy that takes place in a very unique and Asian-inspired setting with a bid of romance from a budding relationship, magic, and a heavy dose of politics.

I really enjoyed reading The Jasmine Throne.

I rate The Jasmine Throne 5 stars.

I would like to thank Tasha Suri, Orbit Books, and Netgalley for the free arc.

This is the first installment in a future trilogy. An imprisoned princess, Malini, and magical maidservant, Priya, team up to take down the princess’s traitor brother.

One thing I particularly loved about this book is the multiple POVs that show not only the main characters’ sides but also the side characters’ so that the readers can see everything that’s happening. This made the story easier to comprehend, I think, than if it had only been told through Malini’s and Priya’s points of view.

As I said before, this is the first book, so a lot of worldbuilding had to be done, which led to a slow pacing. Despite the slow pacing, I found this extremely enjoyable and I did not want to put it down. Highly anticipating book two!