This book is great for people who are new to fantasy and like watching adventure unfold before them.
I'm happy to say that this book was very fun to read. There were even a couple of instants that had me in a trance because of all the surprising reveals.

I'll start by saying that the setting, inspired by Arabia, was masterfully done. The author did her research well, and executed perfectly. As an Arab this book was like a warm hug when it came to both the atmosphere and vibes.
Also, The magic system was very creative. Involving tea in the matter.

The plot started off pretty well and at times I even had my heart race out of dread and fear. This fear stemed of the chance that what the characters may have discovered next would probably change them. There was even an eerie scene that I had not expected and I was anxious as to what happens next.
But unfortunately, the reason it lost a star for me was that, at a certain part I felt the plot shift a little from a high fantasy to a more philosophical type of story. I felt a little bored there since I've encountered these philosophies in other books and thus felt it was a little repitative.
Although, whatever happened in the last couple of chapters with the many half reveals that will pave the way to bigger reveals in next books definitely did well to have me forget any boredom felt before.

Another lovely thing in the story was how certain characters were very well composed and developed. I felt the many layers to them.
With how good those characters were written, I was sad that our main character developed a little too quickly for my liking, having a very quick shift in her perspective and demeanor. Also, most of the side characters felt a little flat.

Nevertheless, the writing style was beautiful. Easy to digest and run through but still retaining an aspect of poetry.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and look forward to more.

I'd like to add that I listened to an audiobook copy (Also provided by Netgalley) while following with my eyes. And that the Narrator was incredible. Her voice changes in all the right places. She uses the right intonations and emphasis. I was immensely invested in the story due to her amazing way of reading.

Thank you to the Author, Publisher and Netgalley for providing an early copy in exchange for a review.

"The soul is neither static nor finite; we feed it our entire lives through our choices. Injustice shrinks one's soul; generosity expands it. Acts of selflessness fortify it."

-----------------------

Steeped in Arabian myths with djinn and spice enhanced magic, Imani and her siblings are all training in different ways to defend their city. Their family is a part of the ruling council and are well respected within the city. Imani is an iron wielder who is training to be a warrior and has already gained quite the reputation. We follow her as she attempts to recover her brother, a lost scout, who may have been involved in more than the council knew about. She is forced to travel with her rival and two others through the dangerous desert full of monsters to a city she didn't knew existed to try to save him. There is all manner of danger she and her peers must face along the way. 

The Spice Road is fantasy done right. The world building is lush, the magic unique, the plot is action packed and the characters are complex and deep. I love a wholly good protagonist as much as a morally grey ambiguous one and this novel gives us a little of each. Imani is so principled and driven and yet entirely naive of what is really going on in the world beyond her bubble. As someone training to be a warrior, she has cultivated resilience but like any good soldier, expects to blindly follow orders. When she realizes her beloved brother was living a life beyond the one she thought he was, she's thrown into a world where she must stick her neck out and make some really tough choices. Her evolution throughout was fun to watch. 

I also appreciate so deeply that while this is to be a series we got a real ending to this adventure. The door is open to where it can go next but we were not left with the infernal cliffhanger that is so popular in books like this these days.

Thanks to Delacorte Press for gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions above are my own.

Rating: 2.5
I liked the main character in the beginning, but the more the story went on, the more ridiculous she got. I didn't realize this was going to be a love triangle and I really don't see the point in it when the two love-interests have such similar personalities. The magic wasn't really explained at all. I don't know if I'll continue on with this series.

Sadly, this suffers from the usual YA tropes: all tell and no show, weak or missing world building, a really tepid romance, emo love interest who inexplicably enjoys being yelled at/insulted by the heroine, and the ubiquitous impetuous heroine who really is too stupid to survive life. The setting should have been fascinating but just wasn't built up enough, the other characters were cardboard cutouts, and the magic just wasn't that interesting. The book skews very young - more like tween than YA.

Story: Imani is one of the best fighters of her generation. She protects their magical country from supernatural creatures - and from being discovered by the outside world. But then her brother goes rogue and Imani must go out of their magical dimension to find him. The problem is, there are issues with the balance of power in her home and it will soon involve her and her family- not to mention a vicious war and invasion in the mortal world.

So yes, cue YA trope fest. we have an emo love interest who spends most of their travel being insulted or having to save Imani from all the stupid things she does. Add in a younger sister who is even stupider and it is just a frustrating read (especially since the sister is completely wasted in the plot). The adults are, as usually, dense and clueless and only our plucky little heroine can save them from themselves (before their world is destroyed). Bad guys sprout their evil plans and jails are particularly easy to escape from.

Most of the book is a travelogue through the desert and then into an outside city. There's nothing new here and the settings could have been chucked out wholesale from a 'random Arabian city' generator. Our heroine is supposed to be incredibly talented and (surprising no one) has a unique snowflake magic ability. We don't see much of it and she never actually uses it in clever ways - only as a plot device to tepidly show that she has a unique snowflake ability. Of course, in order to do that, she has to constantly do stupid things that are just eye rollingly annoyingly inexplicable.

None of the other characters are interesting. The bad guys are evil (or, rather, EVIL!), her travel companions are as thin as paper and about as interesting to read about, and the adults make some whoppingly bad decisions that make little or not good sense. This is a world of very shallow and immature people.

I found the travel to be kind of boring, the town they arrived at uninteresting, and the banter between the characters on par with a junior high school playground. I found myself skimming a lot of the book as a result. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 stars
Spice Road is the first in a brand-new trilogy, about Imani, a seventeen-year-old girl raised to protect her nation from the monsters lurking in the sands, who is send on a mission beyond the borders to find her brother Atheer.

“We will fight, but first we will have tea”

Spice Road is a book that has been on my radar ever since I found out about it last year and it is one of my most anticipated releases of 2023! If I were to describe this book in one word; I’d chose enchanting!

From the very first pages I was enchanted by the lush and magical world I was introduced to. I loved learning about the world and the magic system especially. I loved the idea that magic comes from the spice Misra, that need to be drunken every morning as a tea! That plus the affinities that are present makes it such an amazing magic system!

The plot itself was very engaging and page-turning. While it starts of rather slow in terms of plot, the moment the quest starts it became so addicting to read! I loved reading about the quest and everything happening! While I did kinda predict where it was going, I still loved the direction the story took.

The characters are truly written so well! Imani easily stole my heart from the very beginning. I loved seeing her character grow so much throughout the story. From being very lost in the beginning to her changing views as the story progresses! Something I also love very much is her devotion to what she believes in and her loyalty and love for her family, something all from the Beya clan have! I loved Taha as well, he is such a complicated character from who we still have to learn a lot. I feel like we’ve only just scrapped the surface of who he is and I am looking forward to peeling back more of his layers. Qayn was such a fun character who really brought the humor and was a nice balance between the seriousness the quest brought and the tension between Imani and Taha.

The most important relationships that were shown in the book were definitely the family relationships. Everything Imani does is to find her brother Atheer and bring him home. Her somewhat estranged relationship with Amira as well, I loved seeing the growth and how strong their bonds were. They were Imani’s backbone throughout the whole quest. The chemistry between Imani and Taha was also really well written. I loved seeing how it progressed in a really natural way, but not overshadowing the story itself.

The ending was really action-packed and I loved every minute of it. I felt my heart beating faster at all that was happening and I was so anxious to continue reading and learn what would happen next to the characters! It really kept me on my toes in the best way!

Overall, I loved every minute I spent in this enchanted world, learning about it together with an amazing cast of characters. I can’t wait to see where this story will go!!

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced with great worldbuilding and interesting characters that are deeper than they first appear. At times the decision-making of the main character made me raise my eyebrows, but then again it is pretty fitting with a brash 16-year old. I like where the story left off and I'm looking forward to what comes next.

I received an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Dnf at 10%

I was really excited for this book - don't get me wrong. The premise had everything I was looking for in a fantasy: tea magic? check. female protagonist who is also a fighter? check.

But for me, I wasn't enjoying the voice. Imani's voice didn't click with me. We're supposed to believe that she's this fierce Shield, a soldier in their world, one of the best, but the one fight scene we do see was just so-so.
I would have preferred to have seen more of the town that they live in before they go farther to the outskirts of town and begin the adventure.

3 stars, because the voice issue was definitely a me thing and not anything about the author's quality. Thanks to Netgalley for my free copy in exchange for a review.

A wonderfully written and important story of war, social classes, and a reflection of the real world. I loved the tea magic and world-building, as well as the very important story the author conveyed. I can't wait for book 2!

4.5
Thanks for netgalley and the publisher for giving me an E-arc of this book and here's my honest review.
This book crept up to my top list in no time. I admit that I had high expectations getting into this and thankfully it didn't disappoint at all. The world is so mesmerising and very well-written. Also loved how the author captured the Arabic names, food and some little traditions. The characters had amazing depth and storylines it made me go crazy, also their development was so great I got attached to them so much. Lastly, the plot and the twists, when I tell you the last 20% literally altered my whole experience with the book I mean it. Definitely recommend this to fantasy lovers like myself this is one of the best books out there can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy. Also patiently waiting for more books with these characters can't wait to see what the author will do.

I had high hopes for this read. I overall enjoyed it. I just felt like this book was a bit on the long side and the plot was not as strong as it could have been. I really loved the focused on both the family dynamics and siblings elements. I also really enjoyed the magic system. I just felt like the end middle of the book had some pacing issues. But i loved the character and really thought the magic system was cool!! I will def check out book 2 in the future. It gave me ivory key vibes and also ember in the ashes vibes!!

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so good! I really enjoyed the world and the culture. The characters were wonderful as well and Imani is such a strong willed character! The journey was so much fun and learning about the magic of this world was wonderful. I can’t wait to read the next one when it comes out!!!

Thank you Netgalley and to the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.


This was such a wonderful and captivating read and I've been telling everyone about it. I hope that many others go out and buy it or check it out from their libraries as I feel that it is a 2023 must-read! The story is plot driven and I felt as though the author did a great job with pacing. Letting us feel all the soft and emotional moments, while speeding up the action scenes that made the reader excited about unfolding events. While reading, I felt totally immersed in this world because of the descriptive settings that were written so eloquently. I loved going on this adventure and being able to picture this world and the characters motivations and central conflicts.
I am really looking forward to reading the next book in the trilogy and more from Ibrahim!

This series opener definitely leaves me wanting more. Although the immediate problem—find Imani’s brother—is resolved, the door is left wide open for further problems. The enemy he left to fight still exists, and the threat to their magically-protected homeland is real.

Imani has been in a dark place ever since her brother disappeared, and her spunky younger sister, Amira, has been getting into trouble. When they discover a djinn who promises that he can help them find Atheer, Imani does the unthinkable, binding him to her sword, and tells the council. They send her on a mission with an elite group of scouts to bring him back, at all costs.

Naturally, things don’t go smoothly. There is conflict between Imani, born to privilege, and Taha, whose father came from humbler roots and somehow secured a position as leader of the council. There are many hints about Taha’s past, though little is stated explicitly, as he and Imani become closer—but only when no one else is watching. Naturally, the point comes when Taha must choose between the task his father set him and his burgeoning friendship with Imani—who had caught definite feelings for him.

Of course, little sister has made herself an unwanted part of the mission. And the djinn, Qayn, also manages to stir the pot—and help immensely. His past is painful and complex, and he, too, has some hidden motivation.
Imani begins the book ignorant of her privilege, and ignorant of many of the struggles that others experience. She has blindly believed what she has been told about the world outside Qalia, and struggles to accept the revelations that face her in her travels.

I love the variety of magical affinities, and I love that Imani’s is for metal, changing the form of her sword at will to what will be most useful at the time. She is a fierce and capable warrior. It is her blind spots that hold her back, and we see her constantly shifting her schema as new information is added.

The conflicts here ring true, and seem to follow all the classic ones that English teachers like me teach: conflict with self, conflict with nature, conflict with the supernatural, conflict with other people.

Even Taha’s sidekicks, though the flattest of the characters, have some personality quirks.

I look forward to the next installment!

Possible Objectionable Material:
Magic, multiple gods, non-human creatures. There is definitely some violence, fighting, and bloodshed. People get drunk. People lie and mislead others. There is a slight romantic element, but it doesn’t go past a kiss. Description of a young man’s body—non-sexual.

Who Might Like This Book:
Those who like quest fantasy, magic, Middle Eastern culture.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book also reviewed at https://biblioquacious.blogspot.com/2023/01/two-new-young-adult-releases.html

I really enjoyed this book, though Imani was kind of insufferable. As someone trained to be a bad ass shield she isn’t very smart or tough. There were several occasions where she just gives up instead of fighting lol. I enjoyed when Qayn was in the scene and I’m excited to see more of him in the next book (also hope something develops between him and Imani, though I highly doubt it). I really didn’t like Taha, but hopefully he gets a solid arc that makes me dislike him less.

I’m excited to see where the story goes. The magic system is unique and I hope we get to dive deeper into how it works in the next book.

Qalia is a hidden desert city, where the bark of a magical tree--spice--brews a tea that allows drinkers to use magic. Imani, a Shield with an affinity for iron, has sworn to protect Qalia and uphold the secrecy that keeps it hidden from outsiders. Then she discovers that her brother, whom she thought was dead, is likely alive and has made his way to outer cities, where magic is unknown. Imani joins a mission to bring back her brother, toting a mischievous djinni and accompanied by her rival, where she soon discovers that there are truths that will change her entire world view.

SPICE ROAD is the first book in a series that is heavily influenced by Arabian history and culture. I loved the atmosphere of the novel, which the author took full advantage of, but can't deny that this book has several pitfalls that make it less than stellar. 3 stars, because I liked it well enough.

My favorite thing in this book was the atmosphere of it; the Arabian feeling emanates through the pages. Imani hails from a city hidden beyond "the Forbidden Wastes," in a land her people call the Sands, where magic has been given to them by a Great Spirit in exchange for protecting the Sands from the outside world. Any threats to this agreement should be swiftly dealt with--which includes Imani's brother, Atheer, who has stolen their magic spice and shared his knowledge with outsiders.

My least favorite thing about the book is that the writing is a little on the flowery side for my tastes. It's very grand and sometimes awkward, and there are some metaphors that were a little funky. Of course, this is a personal preference, and others may really enjoy this type of writing style.

This brings me to the rest of the book. Imani is the sole narrator of the novel, and therefore is the most well-rounded character, but I often found her a little on the annoying side, especially when she's in the same space as her rival/love interest, Taha. Alone, Imani is haughty and self-important, and while her character does change over the course of the novel, it was a little hard to like her in the beginning.

But when she's in the presence of Taha, they're either fighting about the same thing over and over, or Taha is being a little bit sweet and Imani's heart is swooning. I strongly felt that the middle of the book dragged, as this was primarily the time period in which Imani and the others are traveling across the Sands/Forbidden Wastes/outside world. And during this time, it is a constant hot and cold argument between characters, which I thought was tiring.

I found the second half of the book immensely better, as Imani begins her character arc. She learns about her people and the outsiders, about herself and her magic, and her place in society. Ibrahim drew some interesting parallels to the history of colonization, as well, since the outside kingdom is currently inhabited by "paler skinned" warriors who are taking the lands and money of the natives.

The end of the novel was very action packed, where everything comes together and comes apart again. It solidly lays out the set for the next book, which is still unnamed as the time of this review. There were some major hits and misses in this book, which is likely due to its status as a debut novel. I can only hope that Ibrahim will continue to expand in her craft.

Posted to Goodreads on January 12, 2023.

As a huge fan of middle-eastern fantasy, Spice Road did not disappoint. The author took her time with world building and used such vivid language. Imagining the setting and immersing yourself in the story is easy with Ibrahim's writing style. This is definitely a plot driven story and I am here for it. The magic system, plot, world building and complex characters make this book a must read!

This is such a good read for those who are fans of Hafsah Faizal and Shannon Chakraborty. It was a fun read with strong characters and I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.

⭐⭐⭐

Imani is following the path expected by her clan: joining the ranks of the magical Shields at an unheard of age, mastering her unique affinity for iron faster than expected, and making a name for herself as the Djinn Slayer thanks to all the monsters killed by her hand. But it's not enough to make her forget her grief about her brother's betrayal and subsequent death. When rumors that he may actually be alive reach her, they are tainted by the possibility that he revealed her people's greatest secret: their magic. Joined by a djinn who loves irony and one of Imani's most stoney rivals, Imani will set out to see if her brother is beyond redemption.

This book took some turns that I didn't expect, and I really enjoyed each of them! Imani is a well-rounded character, complete with really strong character development that felt well-paced. I'm looking forward to a little more world development relating to the magic...the premise is so cool, with tea being the source of their ability to channel magic, and it tasting different for everyone. But we honestly didn't see anyone use magic very often. I'm hoping there's more of that in the next book.

Content Warnings: references to suicide, violence, mild language, domestic abuse

Imani lives in a secret land, one that she and others are sworn to guard in exchange for the magic they are granted. And while Imani is loyal to her people, and wants nothing more than to guard them, her heart is broken after the disappearance of her older brother. Rumors are that he took too much of the misra tea that grants them their abilities and became magically obsessed, but Imani doesn’t want to believe that. And when she runs into a djinn in the desert who tells her that her brother is still very much alive and in a world beyond the secret sands, Imani is shocked. She was always told that there was nothing outside of their little world, and knowing that her brother has betrayed their magic is a lot. But now, her goal has become to bring her brother back home and prove all the rumors wrong. To put the world back as it was, and pretend nothing ever happened.

I received an advanced reading copy of Spice Road in exchange for an honest review.

Spice Road is a young adult novel by Maiya Ibrahim. It’s also the beginning of a new Arabian-inspired fantasy trilogy, and as soon as I opened this book I was swept away by the story of tea magic and a hidden city. And the Shields who guard them.

Speaking of Shields, let’s talk about Imani! Imani is our main character here, and I thought she was so fascinating. So often in novels of this type, we have a main character who’s dubious about her world and the system from the very beginning, but Imani is a character who so firmly believes in what she’s been told, and it’s so interesting to see her react when she finds out it’s a lie. For example (and this isn’t really a spoiler since it’s in the summary and happens way early on), she’s been told all her life that there’s nothing outside of Qalia, the magic city she lives in, but then she finds out that there’s a whole other world outside, with other people. And that’s not the only shock she gets. She starts out so stubborn and inflexible, which made her believable, but also I loved seeing how everything she learned affected her world view. I won’t tell you what it was by the end of the book, but I had a great time watching her evolution.

The other characters in this book were fun and complex too, with special shoutouts to Taha and Amira. Amira is Imani’s headstrong little sister, and Taha is the fellow Shield that the council sends with Imani to track down her brother. Taha especially was complex, and he and Imani had a fascinating push-pull relationship going on, where, even if there seemed to be true hatred between them, there was also a bit of a spark.

The plot was exciting, the world expansive, and while the story in Spice Road was self-contained, there was so much setting up of future books in the trilogy, and I can tell that the world is only going to get bigger. I’m excited to pick up the following books, and to spend more time in this world. I would recommend this to any fantasy fans, people who like stories about characters who would do anything for their families, or Arabian-inspired fantasy.

Spice Road will be released on January 24. You can preorder your copy from Delacorte Press here.

The beginning was a bit disorienting because you’re thrown right in and there’s a ton of information about the magic, the council, the legends and ghouls, it feels overwhelming. But that does settle down a bit as we follow Imani along on her quest to find her brother.

Imani herself is an interesting character that I haven’t quite decided on. She’s incredibly talented physically — she’s absolutely lethal and she knows it, but her social skills are seriously lacking. She doesn’t really understand how to read a room and that disconnect was hard to get through at times. I understand she’s meant to have a growth arc from her spoiled and sheltered upper class upbringing, but I just find it hard to believe she’s THAT ignorant of the social and economic issues affecting other classes below herself. Ultimately she does come around (though not a total 180 which I think is believable) and that went a long way for me, but the beginning half with her and her viewpoints was tough.

Another tough aspect for me was her little sister, Amira. Amira in the beginning and a bit throughout is quite annoying and repeatedly puts everyone in danger, I know she’s meant to be some counterbalance to Imani, to help nudge her away from her naïveté about her brother and the Council, but there are plenty of other and more effective ways to do that through the remaining characters involved in the quest. Amira talks incessantly about free will and respecting choices yet she neglects the consequences of her choices at every turn, often putting her own sister at risk without any shred of remorse of care, it feels so needlessly flippant and a bit lazy to just use her as some device to prod Imani along.

Despite these issues, I liked the complex romance set up, they really do feel like enemies based on philosophy and values, and I can absolutely see each viewpoint. I like the added mystery element of our broody emo Djinn companion who I am honestly rooting for in the romance department. The second half was much really strong and hade racing to finish. I liked that the ending didn’t end in a cliffhanger so to speak, but with a clear direction of what’s next.

Overall, 4 strong stars as a great series opener full of great world building and interesting characters that are still sorting themselves out. I loved the cultural aspects of this and the strong discussion of imperialism and history (as told by the victors) was quite smart.