So, another month has finished (and we're all still in quarantine) and I thought it'd be nice to write my first monthly wrap up/tbr in this blog! Please, bear with me while I figure this out.
I officially finished my TBR for the #asianreadathon! I'm so glad I didn't fail this time, although, to be honest, I chose only two books (Wicked As You Wish and Of Curses and Kisses) for this exact reason.
The challenges I completed by reading Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco were Read any book by an Asian author — Rin is Chinese Filipina — and Read a book featuring an Asian character or written by an Asian author who you can relate to — Tala is half-Asian like me!
Wicked As You Wish (A Hundred Names for Magic #1)
by Rin Chupeco
Genre: Fantasy, YA
Pages: 432
★★★★/.5
Synopsis: “A great read for fans of fairy tales, myths and legends… Come for the adventure, stay for the sassy jerkwad firebird.” —Kendare Blake, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Three Dark Crowns series
When a hidden prince, a girl with secrets, a ragtag group of unlikely heroes, and a legendary firebird come together…something wicked is going down.
Many years ago, the magical Kingdom of Avalon was left encased in ice when the Snow Queen waged war. Its former citizens are now refugees in a world mostly devoid of magic. Which is why the crown prince and his protectors are stuck in…Arizona.
Prince Alexei, the sole survivor of the Avalon royal family, is hiding in a town so boring, magic doesn’t even work there. Few know his secret identity, but his friend Tala is one of them.
A new hope for their abandoned homeland reignites when a famous creature of legend, the Firebird, appears for the first time in decades. Alex and Tala must unite with a ragtag group of new friends to journey back to Avalon for a showdown that will change the world as they know it.
“First, do no harm; King thou may be, Thy divine right to magic Is no cause to be As wicked as you wish.”― Rin Chupeco, Wicked As You Wish
Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco is a YA Fantasy set in a contemporary world where tales — such as Sleeping Beauty —, well-known stories — like Alice in Wonderland, King Arthur of Avalon, Peter Pan and the Neverland — and myths and are true (even if a bit different).
Tala Warnock is a Makiling, a spell breaker descendant of Maria Makiling, a hero from the Philipines. And her best friend is Alex, or Alexei Tsarevich, the last remaining prince of Avalon and current refugee. However, when the legendary Firebird appears close to Alex's eighteenth birthday, a new hope of rescuing the frozen Avalon and defeat the evil Snow Queen arises. So, alongside the great Bandersnatches, an elite team of soldiers, Tala and Alex join a quest to return to the Maidenkeep, Alex's castle, and claim the throne of Avalon.
"Magic barely worked in Invierno, this dry forgotten armpit of a town in Arizona, so nobody ever knew Tala was responsible." ― Rin Chupeco, Wicked As You Wish
Tala is the protagonist of Wicked As You Wish. but there are SEVEN other important characters in the book and, usually, I find it hard to keep up (and care) for every single one (I'm a dumbass, sorry). This time was no different, however, I'd like to confess a few things as well.
First, I didn't like Alex. I know he's like super significant to the plot, I know he's going through a lot and whatever, but I didn't care enough for him, as a person. Sure, I was emotionally invested with the mission of saving Avalon and therefore his righteous king, but as a character he's kind of a jackass.
"Sure, he was an idiot. But it was also partly her fault for being best friend with an idiot." ― Rin Chupeco, Wicked As You Wish
Secondly, the Bandersnatch team totally grew on me. I loved the dynamics of the group and even the characters individually (even though there are very few scenes in which they're not all together). Also, I'm kind of sensing some romantic feelings blooming amongst them and I'm curious about what will happen.
And, lastly, Tala and her parents were the best characters. I loved that they are all badasses who can fight (you don't find it in a lot of books!) and their whole relationship is great (and even when it's not, it's still well written). Tala is relatable to, mostly in the sense that I am half-Asian as well, so I could see myself in a lot of her struggles. But I also didn't find it hard to care for her and her actions throughout the book.
“Just because you’ve never been to the Philippines doesn’t mean their rivers don’t course through your blood. It doesn’t mean you don’t have their mountains in your eyes. It’s not where we are, it’s who we are. You’ll always be both a Makiling and a Warnock, and always a Filipina. Never forget that.” ― Rin Chupeco, Wicked As You Wish
The world that Rin Chupeco wrote is beautifully built. I found so interesting how she managed to intertwine stories that we all know and some others we don't to construct an original reality that is both foreign and very familiar to us. I have to admit it took me a while to comprehend how it worked and to get all the history and mythology involved, but that's not necessarily Rin's fault (again, I'm a dumbass).
As for the plot, I thought it was very gripping and full of conflicts. Like I said before, while reading, I was emotionally invested in saving Avalon. However, I have to address the fact that the romance part was not exactly spot on. There's still the angst and the enemies-to-lovers trope I like, but it's clear it's not a love story. It felt a bit rushed and on the nose, but it's understandable since there's a lot of other things happening.
“How do you offer your condolences to someone whose parents were killed when he was only five years old? How do you cheer up a prince whose kingdom had been literally frozen, seemingly for all of eternity?” ― Rin Chupeco, Wicked As You Wish
Also, I'm aware Wicked As You Wish is just the first book of a series, so I get why there's so much the readers don't know yet. The plot is still incomplete but the ending, though, was on point. It has just the perfect amount of twists and cliffhanger and happy ending for me to be satisfied, crave the next book and feel relieved my favorite characters are okay.
Regarding the author, I've been curious about Rin Chupeco for a while now (curtesy of Shealea), and finally reading one of her books was everything I wished it would be. I can't wait for more! Actually, I'm thinking about reading The Bone Witch trilogy while I count the days until the Wicked As You Wish sequel.
“I’ve done things, love, and you know it. A lot of things I should’ve done if I wanted real repentance, but I’d rather have their hate as long as I have your forgiveness.” ― Rin Chupeco, Wicked As You Wish
Speaking of the sequel, here are the things I'm looking forward to:
- I want to know more about the Snow Queen! Including her ulterior motivations.
- I want more of Tala fight scenes! I know she has trained with her Mom and Dad and I need more badass scenes!
- Also, Loki needs to have more scenes as well. I'm begging Rin.
- And I craving to see all the things the Dame predicted happen. It will be so good.
As for some points that stood out to me while reading, I loved the addition of Seers (prophecies and predictions are a goldmine, really) and ICE as a villain (even if it's a secondary one) was AWESOME (and so true).
Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco is a fresh and compelling YA Fantasy. I recommended it to everyone looking for diverse, addictive (and #ownvoices!) story that will take you to an adventure!
till nex time!
So, I read the first book for the #asianreadathon! If you haven't read the post, you should know that my tbr is purposely very small, but still, I'm very proud of myself.
The challenges were read a book featuring an Asian character or written by an Asian author who is different from you and read a book recommended by an Asian, so I chose Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon that features an Indian character (and author) — I'm Japanese — and was recommended by Ikram from Readlogy who is Indonesian.
by Sandhya Menon
Genre: romance, YA
Pages: 384
★★★/.5
Synopsis: The first novel in a series set at an elite international boarding school, that’s a contemporary spin on Beauty and the Beast.
Will the princess save the beast?
For Princess Jaya Rao, nothing is more important than family. When the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s little sister, nothing will keep Jaya from exacting her revenge. Then Jaya finds out she’ll be attending the same elite boarding school as Grey Emerson, and it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. She knows what she must do: Make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But much to Jaya’s annoyance, Grey’s brooding demeanor and lupine blue eyes have drawn her in. There’s simply no way she and her sworn enemy could find their fairy-tale ending…right?
His Lordship Grey Emerson is a misanthrope. Thanks to an ancient curse by a Rao matriarch, Grey knows he’s doomed once he turns eighteen. Sequestered away in the mountains at St. Rosetta’s International Academy, he’s lived an isolated existence—until Jaya Rao bursts into his life, but he can't shake the feeling that she’s hiding something. Something that might just have to do with the rose-shaped ruby pendant around her neck…
As the stars conspire to keep them apart, Jaya and Grey grapple with questions of love, loyalty, and whether it’s possible to write your own happy ending.
"One thing she’d come to realize–sabotage wasn’t always cloak-and-dagger. I wasn’t always dead-of-night escapades, or masked people swathed in midnight and stars. Sometimes it looked like this: ageless mountains that kept watch and saw all. An elite boarding school 8,800 miles away from home. And somewhere deep inside, an unsuspecting aristocrat."― Sandhya Menon, Of Curses and Kisses
Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon is an enemies-to-lovers(?) romance set in an elite boarding school around Aspen. As a contemporary retelling of Beauty and the Beast, we follow Princess Jaya Rao of the Imperial House of Mysuru and Grey Emerson (or Lord Northcliffe) as they navigate through their family feud (that has been going on for generations now) and a secret revenge mission.
I have to admit I (an anti-monarchy, done-with-retellings reader) enjoyed Of Curses and Kisses more than I thought I would. Don't get me wrong, it was not a five-star book for me, but nevertheless, I thought it was a good reading, a fun and light (even if somewhat predictable) one.
Anyway, concerning the characters, I think it was the highlight of the book. I liked that the author maintained a few characteristics from the story everyone knows (like the main characters' love for books) while changing some key elements that allowed the story to feel new as well.
“You could break his heart,” she whispered to her reection. “You could make him fall in love with you and wreak havoc on his life, just like he wreaked havoc on yours. You could teach him to never come aer the Raos again.” ― Sandhya Menon, Of Curses and Kisses
Jaya was relatable enough for me, being the older sister, worrying about family duty, and struggling with what is expected of her. Even her vendetta/plan of seduction regarding Grey was interesting enough for me to keep turning the pages. Can you imagine Disney-Belle doing something like that?
And as for Grey, well. My problem with straight romances is that it is saturated with brooding, mean, wall-punching guys, and, as far as they go, Grey was ok. Even if he did brood a lot and was constantly described as 'feral/wild animal', he wasn't in any way mean (the bar is low, ladies). However, if I appreciated the fact that Jaya is different from Belle (and therefore more interesting), I can not say the same about the Grey/Beast situation. They are both sad and lonely but at least in this book, the love interest is cute.
Concerning the plot. Well, it was cliche-as-fuck but not bad, necessarily. Three years ago, I would've eaten that shit up, 2020-quarantined me, however, was unimpressed, to say the least. I'd like to note that the author did make an effort to leave behind some of the cliches. The mean girl-turned-friend twist was refreshing and I'm totally here for the boarding school trope. It's just that the romance parts were a bit... bland. I felt like I had read similar stories a thousand times before, which is really not the goal while reading a retelling. I wanted a revamp of the fairytale but instead got a 21st-century remake (which, again, is not bad, but I can't help to feel a bit disappointed).
Bit by bit, she was chipping at the block of stone he’d always surrounded himself with. Bit by bit, she was unearthing who he really was underneath. And to his astonishment, Grey was okay with that. He was kind of excited to see who he was underneath too, even if just briefly. ― Sandhya Menon, Of Curses and Kisses
The ending was, well, I think it was responsible for the loss of one whole star. I always say finales are a hit or miss for me and, gods, the last thirty pages were a huge miss(take). It felt rushed and convenient and, worst of all, predictable. I could see that outcome from a mile away. It was foreseeable and, at the same time, lacked depth. The characters were neither ready to act the way they did nor ready to make the decisions they made. Also, I suspect there was supposed to be a big plot twist at the very end, but it just felt lazy.
I'm aware I come out as a hater, but as far as readings go, I enjoyed Of Curses and Kisses very much. One can not read an entire book (all three hundred and eighty-four pages) in one sitting without being entertained. And because of that, how great of a reading it was, I'll definitely be checking out other books by Sandhya Menon in the near future (I got my eyes on When Dimple Met Rishi already).
Lastly, some other points that stood out to me while reading were, first of all, the love interest being described upfront as "having something feral about him, reminiscent of a wild animal. Or a beast." does not paint a great initial image (at least in my mind), even if it is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. And second of all, to put it mildly, fuck the monarchy. I don't know if it's the fact that I was born in a Republic in which the monarchy hasn't been around for over a century, but I couldn't help to roll my eyes at this quote,
"I'm a royal, reputation is half — if not more — of what we do. If people don't feel they can trust us, that we're... better than them, in some way, they're not happy. And if they're not happy, we can't lead them the way we're meant to [...] Well, it's not that we're better, exactly, it's that they must think we are. They have to feel that we were born more able to cope with dilemmas and problems on a large scale. It makes them feel safe, taken care of. It's for the greater good."
It's 2020, thank you very much. We believe in democracy and wealth distribution.
Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon has its ups and downs but it was an overall enjoyable and cozy reading. It definitely has feel-good potential and I recommend it to anyone looking for a cute retelling with a representation twist.
till next time!
So, two days ago I was bored on twitter and saw the #asianreadathon and thought: what a great idea! I'm Asian! And trying to read more books by Asian authors! But then I remembered all the other readathons I miserably failed and hesitated. However, I'm stuck at home for another month with barely anything to do, so WE'RE ON BABY.
