Not going to lie, I was a little bit disappointed… The book was not bad by any means, I was just expecting too much. The first book literally had me in a chokehold. I loved it and the tension was so high. This fell a little flat for me. With Shahrzad and Khalid separated I thought I would get angst. Instead the moment of them meeting again was kinda boring. I don’t know the whole war/battle thing kinda felt forced. They were preparing for so long and THAT was the big revelation. Don’t get me wrong I still enjoyed reading it. The writing style is lovely and the characters even more so. I just had too high expectations and wanted something different. Basically if you enjoyed the first book then dial down your expectations a little and you‘ll be fine. The epilogue was great and it really felt like a great ending. So no complaints there.

Also ich würde dem Buch so gerne mehr Sterne geben aber selbst die drei Sterne sind schon mit Augen zusammenkneifen und daran denken das ich die Charaktere und das Setting einfach liebe und trotz dem mageren Plot Spaß hatte entstanden & eigentlich sind es auch eher 2,75.. Werde vielleicht ein Review später schreien da ich das zum ersten auch getan habe aber mal sehen

What a fantastic second book. I think that the second book feels like a filler sometimes, especially if there is a third book to come. It was brilliant. I loved the fact that it started exactly where the first one finished and was on the same spec as the first one too. It didn't disappoint and was a complete page turner. I was hooked from the very beginning. I loved it and cant wait to see more from this author!

Es kommt nicht an den ersten Teil ran, aber das ist völlig ok. Sehr fast read! Liebs! Ich fand einige Charakterentwicklungen sehr gut, andere sehr schade, das Ende bisschen zu schnell abgewickelt, ich hätte mehr shazi+khalid szenen gebraucht, warum hat sie nie ihre magie verwendet/gelernt??, despinas plotwist hat mich erwischt bin ich ehrlich, hätte mir omar und shazi mal zusammen redend gewünscht??!, hab erstaunlicherweise rotz und wasser wegen rahim geheult, irsa und seine love story war süß, aber unnötig, artans charakter und storyline fühlte sich bisschen last minute eingefügt an, shazi wirkt wie ne echte queen, das ganze buch durch! Ich shippe tariq und yasmine extrem doll

4.5 stars! Four and a half stars dedicated to beautiful moments between Shazi and Khalid, the amazing character development of so many characters, Irsa especially, new and fascinating magic, wonderful places we get to visit and an action-packed, thrilling story-line that does take the time to let us feel the atmosphere in this oriental, wonderful story! Mild spoilers: The only thing that I did not really like was that/how Irsa fell in love, because it didn't feel very enchanting and also not very necessary to me. Some things in the end were in my opinion too easy for our squad and kind of unrealistic considering how bad it was supposed to be earlier in the novel.

This book was a ride from beginning to end! It was so amazing and full of twists and the characters are everything! I didn't like Tariq in the first book, I found him a nuisance an and annoying, but he was much better developed here! He understood what he was fighting for now that Shazi was beside him. He had a very good arc. Rahim and Irsa were also very good additions to the narrators of this book, also with a beautiful arc (although I hate that he died, but in war people die and if one of the near and dear characters didn't die then it might not have felt real, I think...). Irsa was too shy and weak most of the time, but it was something she was well aware of and something she tried to fight. I was not expecting to like her so much and, even though I perfectly understand Sharzad's position and thoughts, I would have liked to see her trust her sister and be a sister to Irsa. As a sister myself, I found their relationship sad, especially because Irsa says several times that she feels alone and lonely, that she had no one. When you have a sibling you should always stand by them, in my opinion, and Shazi seemed to love her sister dearly, so I found their relationship lacking... But continuing on. Jahandar was such a self-centred character! Loving his daughters so dearly only to think only about that terrible book! And Reza, who seemed like a level-headed character, turned out not to be so. So willing to go to war! And I get it, I do!, but it was too much, felt too forced on his part (not on the righting, but on the character's part). Shazi also had an amazing arc, although I would have liked to see her learning magic and not just making those flourish again in the Epilogue (that part with Vikram and the shackles doesn't exactly count because of the description). Artan is a great character! And an amazing help! So glad he stuck by Shazi's side! Oh! And Khalid! Also amazing! As always! I think it was very important and very well written the part where he fights Tariq and then they, eventually, after taking care of Shazi, understand each other and a relationship starts to form. They star to understand each other, especially Tariq when it comes to Khalid. And I knew I liked Yasmine! She was nice! Nice enough that Shazi is trying to set her up with Tariq in the Epilogue! And Despina! I was not expecting that revelation! I mean, I thought that she was just trying to safeguard herself and her baby, in a way, from heartbreak and pain when she decided to take Vikram as her "husband" and basically flee with him! Look at all the complications that came from that! Jalal was furious with Khalid! And her showing up at Amardha with the news that she was Salim Ali el-Sharif daughter! I thought her father was some rich man in Greece, no the freaking Sultan of Parthia! And I think she and Yasmine have a good relationship (at least I hope so, I love them both very much). For a second I was afraid Khalid would die... And I was so glad that Jahandar was so selfless at that moment when he was not the rest of the time! That he gave his life for his daughter's love. And that Epilogue was the sweetest ending I have ever read! I loved it! So cute and lovely and sweet! It was an amazing duology that I want to read again and again, always. Because it had everything: great characters, great plot, great settings, magic, love and friendship. It is also a fast read, and that's always a plus!