Book: Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove
Author: Rati Mehrotra
Rating: 2 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Wednesday Books, for sending me an ARC.

I think I am one of the few people who did not enjoy this title. This is a fantasy story that is a retelling of medieval India. Let me stop you right there. I love the idea of using medieval India as a backdrop. As of late, I have been on a southeast Asia fantasy kick. We follow our main character, Katyani, who has this bond with the queen. They are tied together because without out, one of them would have died. She doesn’t remember who she was and where she came from. She only knows what she has been told, which she puts her full trust in. Katyani is the prince’s bodyguard and they are sent to a training school. It is here that Katyani learns that she should start questioning those around her. She does so but doesn’t get much of a chance before war breaks out. This war changes the course of her life forever.

All of this should have been a great set-up. This is the type of fantasy book that I normally enjoy. I know it is a young adult, so I can’t talk about it the same way I would an adult title. However, some things made it very difficult for me to connect. I felt like certain things were rushed. I would have liked to have stayed longer at the training school to allow our characters are chance to grow. I honestly thought we were going to spend most of the novel, if not all, of it there. This could have been a great growing moment for the characters. We could see the bones of these characters coming to life here, but they are jerked back to the castle and the war before they had a chance to find their voice. This, to me, was rushed and a big miss. This could have been our chance to see the characters change and to bond with them. It may have made what happened in the next couple of chapters have more of an impact.

The characters were okay. I think the biggest issue I have with them is the fact that we did not get enough time to bond with them. We are told what they are supposed to be but are never really a chance to see that. For example, we are told time and time again that Katyani is the best guardswoman there is, but we don’t get to see that. She’s good, but based on what I saw in the book, I don’t know if I would call her the best. That’s just it. We are told that this character is this and that, but we are never really given a chance to see that. The characters’ actions do not match what we have been told about them. It’s like the author is trying to mould the characters to fit the story and this does not work.

There’s also not a lot of depth to the story. It felt like we were just going through the motions of having a story. It was very much sequence by sequence without anything to bring it together. The stakes are supposed to be high, but I never got a sense as to why the stakes are so high. It was more of going through the motions than giving us anything to cheer for. I know, again, that this is young adult fantasy. I have read several young fantasies and they have depth, all while staying YA. I felt that it needed something to put it over the edge.

Overall, this was a miss for me, which is a shame, because I did want to like it.

This book comes out on October 18, 2022.

Holy shit this book was amazing! I had such high hopes for this, but somehow I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as I did!

I would say that the beginning was a bit slow and info-dumpy to me, and I couldn’t grasp the extent of the world nor the magic system (though I deeply appreciated the glossary at the end). However, once the plot started thickening I found myself enjoying the story and the characters much more.

Though I have to say that the world and the magic were super intriguing and I found myself wanting to know more about the mythology and these creatures introduced, the thing I loved the most about Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove has to be its characters.

Our protagonist was deeply flawed and had such an interesting character arc. It was so easy for the reader to understand her actions and her way of thinking because of her inner monologues, and the way the writer made her interact with the rest of the characters was so well done. Her dynamics and relationships with the love interest and other less important characters were so interesting and I deeply enjoyed her evolution throughout the story.

I think that for a standalone (at least I think it is one), you got a grasp of everything: the world building, the magic, the mythology and the characters. However, I think that the author gave more importance and shine to the characters and their relationships and stories instead of to the world or the magic, but that did’t bother me that much.

Overall, I think Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove was a very interesting standalone with lots of action packed scenes and drama and tension between the characters’ dynamics. I adored the main character and her journey and the magic and creatures this book introduced to us.

DNF @ ~25%
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book, however it unfortunately wasn't for me.
I just couldn't get into the plot or the characters. In the time I was reading I did not feel like the magic or political systems were explained at all and I found myself confused. However looking at the glowing reviews on Goodreads it does appear that I'm in the minority so if you're intrigued by the summary and want to give it a go more power to you!

This story follows Katyani who bounded to the Queen and guards where she is in a position to guard the Prince and Princess whom we see are more like adopted siblings to her.

Rati Mehrotra writes a stunning fantasy debut that has you sitting at the seat of your chair. Although the story does initially start a bit slow, everything that follows is completely action packed and worth the read. Katyani is an amazing protagonist who demonstrates what exactly straight and perseverance is. I loved her so much as the FMC that when the book ended, I couldn't help but want more.

I cannot rave about this book enough and would highly suggest this book to everyone.

Ratings 4 stars

*I received an ARC from NetGalley for my voluntary and honest review.

Katyani was told she was a sick child and in order to save her life the Queen of Chandela used forbidden magic to save Katyani and in exchange they became bonded. Katyani is then raised by the King and Queen along with their son, nephew, and niece. Her place was always to protect the royal family. When numerous assassinations are attempt, Katyani is sent along with the princes to the gurukul of Acharya Mahavir, who is one of the strongest spiritual advisors in the land. Ayan, the crown prince, and Bhairav, the prince’s cousin, and Katyani are to hone the skills to make them suitable leaders and learn how to deal with monsters plaguing the land. There they meet the guru’s youngest son Daksh, who Katyani enjoys pushing buttons. Unfortunately they are called back in the middle of training and Katyani’s world is turned upside down.

This book weaves political and court scheming with elements from Hindu mythology beautifully. Katyani is a strong FMC with a witty attitude. Her banter, especially with Daksh, were some of my favourite parts of the book. And I saw some other people upset that the romance took kind of a back burner in this book, but I liked that. It gave more story to focus on Katyani and her inner struggles. Trying to reconcile the person she was raised to be vs the person she wanted/needed to become. I'm glad the romance didn't really influence her decisions much. All in all, solid read and I would recommend it to people that love political intrigue mixed with fantasy.

Thank you NetGalley for a chance to read Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove.

This book was sooooo so so good. I loved how this book was written and I was hooked from the start. I love a strong female MC and Katyani is one of my new favorites. The romance and tension in this book were also amazing and a pleasant surprise. Honestly can’t say enough good things about this book and I can’t wait to read it again.

Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove is an Indian inspired fantasy, full of swordfighting, ghosts, and political intrigue (and some romance along the way). Katyani was magically bound to the queen at a young age, and raised alongside the princes, Ayan and Bhairav, as their bodyguard and adopted sister. When it comes time for them to go off to a school for additional training, she has to tag along. There she meets the handsome and standoffish Daksh. The action really starts to ramp up after they leave the gurukul. Things have been kept from Katya, and not everyone is who they seem to be. She will have to fight for her life, and for the future of their country. This novel has fully fleshed out characters and provides an interesting peek into Indian mythology.

Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove is a gripping fantasy novel set an alternate version of ancient India with a strong heroine who will win over the toughest of hearts. Katyani Is soulbounded to the Queen of Chandela and one of the best royal guards in the kingdom. Raised among the royal princes and princess, Katyani protects them not just out of duty but out of love too. The young Chandela princes travel to Acharya Mahavir’s school in the forest to learn ethics and how to kill monsters accompanied by Katyani. Surviving monsters and the strict discipline of the school, Katyani and the princes are called home early when a new threat invaded the kingdom of Chandela. With great loss comes great revelations as Katyani becomes a pawn between enemies in an action packed addicting fantasy that twists and turns with a light seasoning of romance. An unputtdownable read that this reader hopes turns into a continuing saga. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

I LOVED this. Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove was such an excellent story, I could barely put it down.

Katyani was a fantastic character, and reading the story through her was very enjoyable. She was a smart (and funny!) protagonist. Her loyalty and love for her adopted siblings was truly felt. Oftentimes, sibling dynamics in fantasy are not really believable, but they are here.

I especially enjoyed the setting. It takes place in an alternate, medieval India, with excellent worldbuilding. The inclusion of monsters, magic and myth added richness to the story, The monastic school where discussions of ethics in wartime were some of my favourite- we do not see that very frequently in YA fantasy.

Court politics can be a hit or miss, but Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove did them excellently. The events, politics, and betrayals all made narrative sense. The same with the actions of the characters (the characterizations were all fairly consistent).

The romance between Katyani and Daksh! I absolutely would have loved more of them, their slowburn was excellent. It is so nice to see the girl be the flirty one in the relationship.

The pacing in the first quarter of the book felt a little slow. Although, I do not think the beginning was very info dumpy, which is a positive.

4.5 stars rounded up.

I’m not usually a fan of fantasy, but I really loved this book. The female protagonist was strong, fierce, funny, and real. She was multi-faceted: in touch with her emotions while also being a warrior. The world-building was as rich and complex as the characters.

This book was overall an enjoyable read. It had a bit of a slow start, and it took a while for me to get into the storyline. But it did have some intriguing twists and plotlines along the way that drew me in to the rest of the story.

I really enjoyed Katyani and her personality, She was a good counterpart to the array of relationships she had throughout the book and was a good focal point for a lot of the "lessons" that were taught throughout the book or challenged. I liked her counterpart Daksh as times but at other times he fell kind of flat. I wish their relationship together had been fleshed out a bit more by the end of the book because I think it held a lot of potential.

I really appreciated all of the plot twists that came throughout the book and how they were spread out. There were many layers to the deception that ran rampant in the story. Although I do think some of the reveals happened a bit too early and at times it seemed like there were too many shocking changes being thrown at us.

Overall, it was a nice read and I glad I got the opportunity to read it.

This was so engaging! This was a fast paced, India-set, standalone fantasy story and I had a fantastic time reading it. It read like crossover YA/Adult, where the characters read authentically as late teens. The prose is very readable, easy to fall into and not dense at all.

What really stuck out to me was how action-packed this was. Pretty much every single scene moved the plot forward and big dramatic things were happening All The Time. This made everything move very quickly of course. I would definitely characterize this as a fast, plot-driven fantasy.

The characters were likable, especially the main character Katyani, but I wanted more depth overall. I wanted more time to be devoted to really fleshing out character motivations, including prominent side characters and especially the antagonists. There is so much betrayal and revenge and violence and reveals that I wanted to really understand the characters who are making these big moves.

I also wanted more from the romance. This was slow burn, and I really enjoyed that aspect. They really don't get together until the end. But also I wanted more scenes between them. More dialogue and bonding and especially more steamy stuff. If this is YA. then its fine there isn't a lot of explicit content. But if this is going to be marketed and shelved as Adult fantasy, I really could have used more. There was a lot of buildup for the sexual tension, but hardly any payoff.

I also wanted more description of this world. Though there is plenty of Indian terminology, I wanted to know what things looked like. I wanted to hear about the weather, the dress, the food. I wanted more worldbuilding.

Essentially this is a fast paced, action packed, twisty turny fantasy, but I personally would have preferred if we got another 100-150 pages of character development and worldbuilding, and if it was aged up to Adult. I think this would have benefited from being slower and more atmospheric.

I received an advance copy from NetGalley.

I loved Rati Mehrota's previous books, and I loved her YA fantasy debut! I read almost the entire book in one day. It zoomed by. This book has it all: a fantasy setting based on India loaded with magic, gods, and monsters; a sassy protagonist in Katyani, a trained body guard who can't hold back her tongue; betrayals galore along with court intrigues; a sweet, nicely-escalating romance that never goes anywhere graphic but is good, flirtatious fun. This is the kind of book where you THINK early on that you know how the plot will go, but wow, it twisted and turned and surprised me all the way through.

a gorgeous, lush south-asian fantasy, with beautiful mythology, compelling characters, political intrigue, and witty humor.

this story was just so rich, i could talk about it for hours. there was always so much going on, with the royal courts and politics, the complicated family dynamics, the fascinating monsters and spirits, and the seemingly never-ending betrayals and secrets. its IMPOSSIBLE to get bored.

i loved our mc, katyani, most of all though. she was bold, snarky, courageous, and her narration was just so fun. her sense of humor will have you smiling, and her frequent light-hearted quips keep the book from ever getting too dark and heavy.

idk if i want to BE her or be WITH her 🧎‍♀️
“I miss my sword,” said Katyani. “Any time someone used to annoy me, I could point my sword at them and make them stop.”


her bantering and flirting with daksh, our hot, handsome grump, was my absolute favorite!!!! i adored their dynamic omg it had me smiling and giggling and kicking my feet ESPECIALLY WHEN SHE WOULD TEASE HIM AND MAKE HIM BLUSH OMGGGG they were so cute im in love
”This is all just an excuse,” she said, matching his tone. “You’ve been wanting to tie me up like this right from the beginning.”
He blinked. “What? No.”
She went on, determined to push her advantage and crack his facade. “I wonder why? What exactly do you wish to do while I’m tied up and helpless before you?”
“Nothing,” he said, looking at her mouth.
“Liar,” she said, and smiled."

AND HERES ANOTHER CUTE LITTLE SNIPPET BC I CANT CONTROL MYSELF
He couldn’t ignore her then; he had to demonstrate the pose and move her limbs when she failed to copy him. He had been perfectly courteous about it, but the tips of his ears had gone red. She’d given him a big wink at the end when the Acharya was looking elsewhere, making him drop his spear, which had delighted her.


but it was actually their romance that prevented this from getting a full 5 stars.. I WANTED MORE. they had so much tension, and angst, and banter in the beginning but like NOTHING happened. they just lost all their momentum as the story progressed, which made the ending so underwhelming.


i wish the author just gave us a bit more with the romance, but this was an otherwise stunning fantasy that will have your eyes glued to the pages for hours and hours, as you never want to leave this lush, beautiful world.

I guess I don't really see what everyone is seeing in this.
I was pretty bored.
I have a hard time getting into political books unless there's a lot of fantasy.
While there was magic I honestly didn't notice it.
I think a lot of people will like this though

Katyani is a bondswoman, bound to her queen in a life debt because the queen saved her life as a very young child. She is the royal family's most loyal bodyguard and was raised as an almost daughter. But she never stopped to question why the queen never released her from her bond, or why she had no memories of her family from before the bond was placed. When she is sent off to a monastic school with Crown Prince Ayan and his cousin Bharaiv to keep an eye on them while they learn how to become good leaders she meets the complicated Daksh, who she delights in teasing.

When they are called back to their homeland for an emergency, Katyani learns many hard truths about who she really is and must determine what her own future holds.

I have to say that the only thing I did not really like about this book was the title. There is an intensity in Mehrotra's writing that shows true empathy for her characters and their difficulties. There is one particular scene where Katyani faces a punishment that actually had me in tears and stayed with me for a couple of days. I can't remember the last time that happened.

The romance between Daksh and Katyani is a serious slow-burn without much to deliver at the end, but I feel like that is a more realistic depiction of romance. I did feel satisfied with the ending I was given for that reason.

Though I have had days to wrap my mind around the greatness of this book, I still can't possibly write a proper review. I really liked this book. It was a nice blend of everything you could really ask for out of a fantasy book. The characters and setting were amazing and in my opinion the strongest point of the story.In the end, I really liked this, I would recommend it, and I hope you enjoy it if you read it.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Judge this book by its beautiful cover, because this was one great treat of a book. The world-building was based on an alternate medieval India, and was thoroughly described and well done. I loved the characters, especially the strong-willed resilient Katyani, and wish I was as awesome as her. This book kept me turning the pages well into the night, and I highly suggest this for all fans of Sarah J. Maas who enjoy a strong, fighting heroine,

I really wanted to like Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove. I love a strong, weapon-wielding main character and mysterious love interest, but this book unfortunately fell flat for me. To start, there was way too much exposition in the beginning of this book. Although I appreciated the Indian-Inspired fantasy world, every page was full of unfamiliar names and terms--it was too much to keep track of. Aside from the information dump, I had a hard time getting into the characters. Although this book is tagged as YA, the characters felt much more middle-grade to me. The main character is very immature (not in a bad way, just childish) and her companions are extremely annoying. Because of her age and maturity, the main character's romance with male lead was not very compelling to me.

Overall, I don't think the writing was bad, but this book was ultimately not for me. I tried to keep going, but ultimately only managed to get a third of the way through, DNF.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this novel. I am rating this book based the stars due to lack of time to leave a full review.