Bhumika Hive, I am finally ready to report for duty.

(Yes, I know it took forever for me to finish THE JASMINE THRONE, but my brain simply could not process epic fantasy worldbuilding for many months. Glad I waited until I was in a better frame-of-mind.)

DNF at 20%

It's not that this book is bad, or that anything is wrong with it. I just tried to push myself to read it for weeks, and despite picking it up over and over again I could never get pulled into the story to read it in more than 10 page bursts.

I think for me personally there are too many POV's to follow, and not enough distinction in each one for me to easily jump around with them, which ended up making me confused. That, mixed with not connecting to any of the characters really set me up for failure. So, while this book isn't for me, I'm sure lots of people out there will still enjoy it!

A big thank you to Orbit for allowing me this copy, I just wish I could've had a better review to give, so I'll be opting out of posting on goodreads.

This is my first sapphic book and was so excited!!
I loved the morally grey MCs, the world building was amazing and how politics are presented was so interesting, there is still much to learn from the world and how everything connects is amazing.
I loved the magic and violence in the book, the creepy vibes were amazing!

The world building in this novel is fantastic. The Indian influences had me completely engrossed. I loved how the story introduces this new fantasy world gradually and slowly lets the reader know the rules and intricacies.
That being said I wish the actual plot line had progressed faster. I also got a little disoriented switching between the interconnecting storyline and would have rather just POVs from Priya and Malini.
I loved the feminist themes and lesbian nuances. This book definitely centers around women finding their strength and becoming who they are meant to be.

This was objectively a fabulous read, The world-building was so lush, and I loved the dynamic between these two badass women. As someone who doesn't read much adult high fantasy, I did struggle a bit with the length and all the different POVs, but that's on me, not the author.

I think one of the trends I'm most enjoying in epic fantasy is taking inspiration from cultures/histories/religions of groups other than the classic English/Irish/French - don't get me wrong, I love some Tolkien and Brooks, but this broadening of inspiration has really expanded the availability of fantastic books. Tasha Suri's The Jasmine Throne is an excellent example of great epic fantasy that draws from less-examined traditions to great effect. Suri writes very well; her setting is vivid and life-like without stale exposition, and her characters develop and grow throughout the story. The plot unfolds organically without a set start and stop - it doesn't feel like the reader is being presented the whole story from beginning to end, which adds to the organic feel. Definitely one to read.

Ever since Tasha Suri first hinted at the possibility of this book on Twitter, I’ve been dying to get my hands on it. I finally, FINALLY downloaded this ARC from NetGalley yesterday, and here I am 24 hours later sitting down to figure out how to write an adequately glowing review while my mind is still blown from turning the last page.

First and foremost, the author’s worldbuilding is honestly some of the very best I’ve ever encountered. The sheer inventiveness and beauty of some of these concepts: a people whose names are prophecies, intended to be uttered at exactly the right moment; a false garden made entirely of carved and painted lacquer; a temple that is alive, to those who know how to speak to it. Not only that, but Suri’s books have become my gold standard for how to do fantasy cultures and politics well. There are no boring, monolithic cultures here--every faith, every country seems like it could have been drawn from real history, and there are often heroes and villains on every side.

The real genius of The Jasmine Throne--and all of the very best fantasy writing, in my opinion--is the author’s ability to combine sublime, fantastic ideas with characters and struggles that feel utterly real. I loved Priya, Malini, and Bhumika because each of them was so complex and messy in a way that female characters are so often not allowed to be. It's tiring to only see one face, one kind of woman reflected in fiction--and so, so refreshing to find a book that hangs a lantern on all the things we feel but never show. I’m a little worried about what all my favorite characters are going to do to each other in the sequel, but I can’t wait to read it.

If you loved Monstress, or Nghi Vo’s books (really, who wouldn’t?) The Jasmine Throne is going to be your new favorite book. And if you’ve never heard of those, pick this up anyway--I promise, it’s going to show you everything that fantasy as a genre can be, if it’s brave enough.

Tasha Suri has never failed me ! The angst in this book is so incredibly well written that it’s insane. The tension between Priya and Malini was so beautiful and I am a sucker for morally grey characters that would do anything for each other. The world building is so intriguing and intricate that I can’t help but be amazed.

In this 1st book in a new series, the female characters are trying to save the empire, but they refuse to allow it to maintain its current societal practices. The women want the status of the past restored to them, and most of them are willing to fight their male counterparts (i.e. brothers, husbands, etc.) for it. They do NOT hide the fact that they are NOT submissive, they embrace everything they have, and they use it to gain what they want. And, many male characters support their actions.

"The Jasmine Throne" is a dominant start to a new series in which the actions of most of these gray characters are justified. Tasha Suri presents her female characters as ruthless and as willful as their male counterparts in order to achieve their goals and to obtain their desires. The rebellions are waiting for these women to lead the way, and they do so fiercely and gracefully.

I used this review copy to inform my interview with Tasha Suri on the Fantasy Inn podcast: https://thefantasyinn.com/2021/06/08/e84-tasha-suri-interview/

An amazing and fast paced fantasy with the Indian rep I needed! This is the future of epic fantasy. I adored Suri's writing and the characters, and would love to read more from this world.

This was soooo good! I kept trying to read it when I was depressed and my ADHD made it hard to stick with one book, so it took me a long time to get through. But I'm so glad I gave it another chance, because it wasn't the story's fault at all. And now I'm scared for all my beloved characters in the sequel omg. There's more pain and angst (and deaths, I'm sure) to come, and I'M NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO DEAL WITH IT

The Jasmine Throne was one of my favourite reads of 2021! This doorstopper fantasy captured my attention in all the right ways with complex protagonists and antagonists and dynamic relationships, captivating and lush world-building (including a fascinating magic system!), and engaging multi-perspective storytelling. There's also sincere discussions of queerness and colonialism that contribute to the over-arching themes of the novel. I am incredibly excited to see where Suri takes us in The Oleander Sword!

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book immensely. This is obviously Priya and Malini's story, so the majority of it focuses on their relationship and how they go from maid/princess to equals and then to more. Their romance was such a beautiful slow burn that never felt too drawn out or too rushed. It progressed exactly as it was meant to and dear god their dynamic is everything. It's such an achingly sweet bond and I adore them. Similarly, I really enjoyed the side characters. They were a little pushed aside for the sake of Priya and Malini, but I'm hoping the important ones will have the space needed to breathe in the sequel. Tasha Suri's writing style is also beautiful. It's simple, but in the way that makes it easy to read. It's packed with emotion and anchored in setting and character. It was so easy to get lost in and be carried off into Priya and Malini's world. My smallest gripe is that at some points, it felt like the narrative was withholding information at odd places, specifically in how characters were related to each other, how they were working together (Jeevan and Bhumika) and Rao's status. None of the small issues were enough to bring the rating down. The Jasmine Throne deserves every one of the five stars.

One of my favorite reads of 2021! An emotional, fantastical, colossal masterpiece, with an adrenaline-fueled sapphic romance to break your heart and mysterious, godly magic described with such attention-grabbing mysticism. Absolutely adored the complexity of the world and the multiple elaborate facets of each characters, which the authors explores as passionately as an archivist.

While the world is undoubtedly well thought out and intricate, I wish the author had given us a little more explanation as to how things worked. I understand that based on what the character's know, it wouldn't have made sense for the reader to be given more information about the magic and the world, but this did end up impacting the pacing and reveals for me. I will absolutely pick up something else by this author, but The Jasmine Throne isn't one I see myself continuing with.

3.75ish stars.

I really liked the concept and the unique setting and magic system. It just ended up being way too long. I got to 50% and couldn't believe there was still so much left.

Rich and enrapturing. A unique fantasy set in a world that is not touched on enough in modern fantasy. The build is slow, creeping, and intoxicating, sweeping you away in an epic that will linger long after you've turned the last page.

DNF @ 63%.

I sincerely tried with this book on four different occasions over the last year, and I just have to throw in the towel. The pacing is drudgery. It felt like we were so close to the final action and there were somehow still another 200 pages in the book. We spent far too long on the central relationship between Priya and Malini having the same conversations again and again with no palpable chemistry between them. I did not understand Priya's reactions to Malini's request to free her, and the shifting POVs persistently threw me out and refocused the paradigm. The magic system as introduced in the early chapters really pulled me in, and I wanted to read much, much more about the trees growing out of people; but sadly it has only re-entered the story at the 55% mark, and even then it's not propelling me adequately through the rest of the book.

I wanted to love this; I tried so many times. It just never grabbed me. The prose is really skilled; it's just repetitious and overly plodding. A problem of epic fantasy in general more than, necessarily, of this book on its own.

Attempted to read this in several formats, the eARC and the audiobook from the library but I can't seem to make it past 15%. I think this is a 'me thing' and doesn't have anything to do with the book. It's just not for me. Maybe I'll try a different book by this author and see if that goes better.