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Though The Oleander Sword tries to mimic the moral dilemma of Priya in The Jasmine Throne when she is forced to choose between the ideologies of Malini, her sister Bhumika, who is playing the long con of being loyal to Parijatdvipa, and her brother Ahsok, the leader of the rebellion of Ahiranya, the quandaries of The Oleander Sword never quite reach the same level of urgency and desperation. Instead, Priya once again stumbles along after Malini, figuring things out as she goes, with very little of her own agency, and I found myself taking much the same attitude as this protagonist—”whatever happens, happens.” I simply wasn’t able to get as invested in The Oleander Sword, despite the many tragedies brewing in the series. Their chosen paths once pulled them apart. But Malini and Priya's souls remain as entwined as their destinies. And they soon realize that coming together is the only way to save their kingdom from those who would rather see it burn - even if it will cost them. The book is like a war on all fronts, and no one is safe from them. As the story progresses, it starts to spin out into a beautiful, chaotic web of insanity that leaves you wondering what is going on here! But it doesn’t stay wonderful for too long. As the threads that Tasha has been weaving the whole time start to come together, you look at the tapestry she’s spun, clear that we’ve only seen a fraction of what’s coming. And I remember a tale of garlands. And ill stars. And two people who found their way to one another.
The romance was a small part of the book but like in the first book, I enjoyed it anyway. The small parts that were there were dramatic and fun to read. A fake example: “I love you so much” “No! I love you and can’t you see how tortured I am?” “You think you’re tortured? No, I’m the one so tortured by my love for you.” Yep gimmie more of that! I’ll read that angsty drama all day long, thank you.Yes same here with my husband! It would be hard to process and I would try hard to get to the bottom of it rather than jump to conclusions.
Lastly I have a prediction of some things that will happen in book three. These are pure speculation but in case you are interested. DR: So I know we can’t talk about themtoomuch, because spoilers. But we learned a bit more about the yaksa in The Oleander Sword, with a few pretty mind-blowing twists. Was the history of the yaksa and the Age of Flowers something you laid out before working on the series? (And will we learn more about them in book 3?) You know what I know. You know our ancient enemy comes. That is the war that lies upon the horizon…..The yaksa will return. The rot heralded them. They will come, and there will be war again.” All in all, The Oleander Sword, I think, is a fitting sequel to The Jasmine Throne. Unlike its predecessor, this one’s easier to sink into since you would already be familiar to an extent with the makings of the world, myth, and characters. The ancient element shone in this, and that was so great! The only thing that fell out of place to me was that in some parts, it sometimes felt like the plot was going nowhere but thankfully it doesn’t, because the climax is not disappointing at all.
And easily, easily, better than the first book! Which is not to say that the first book was nothing less than very good, it’s just that this book was viciously, breathtakingly stunning and I can’t think of a single bad thing to say about it.
The prophecy of the nameless god--the words that declared Malini the rightful empress of Parijatdvipa--has proven a blessing and curse. She is determined to claim the throne that fate offered her. But even with the strength of the rage in her heart and the army of loyal men by her side, deposing her brother is going to be a brutal and bloody fight. The plot is also extremely compelling. There is the war Malini is fighting, the stuff Bhumika is struggling with in Ahiranya and Aditya, and his destiny. There is this impending feeling of doom and disaster throughout the entirety of this book. I feel like that's part of the reason why this part is so much tighter plot-wise than book 1. The plot feels like a held breath, just waiting for the other shoe to drop because the foreshadowing is so wonderfully handled that you KNOW something is about to go horribly wrong and all you can do is watch the characters hurtle towards their fate. It might also be, due to the constant theme of Fate and the role it plays in the characters' lives. Ironically we have characters like Rao and Aditya who are ready to follow their fate, and then we have Malini who is trying desperately to wrench her character's autonomy out of the author's cold dead hands. There is this dramatic/structural irony which is why I compared it to Song of Achilles, and that lends a sort of helplessly tragic motif to the novel. All of my anticipated reads are proving to be absolutely amazing and I love that so much for me! The Oleander Sword, sequel to The Jasmine Throne, is a much-anticipated novel for many readers this year because boy, what a cliffhanger was that! I was so happy to have been approved for an e-ARC via Netgalley and safe to say, it’s a delight to have read it. Malini is still determined to claim the throne as the empress of Parijatdvipa but knows that she has a long journey ahead of her. Not only must she engage with her brother’s forces, but she also must try to keep the men following her in line. Priya is an Elder of Ahiranya and wants to rid the land of the rot that is spreading and plaguing it. She’s torn between her duties and wanting to be near Malini. But when unexpected conflict rises that threatens the world as they know it, they realize they must work together to save everything they care about. The Jasmine Throne has been hailed as a series opener that will "undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come" ( Booklist, starred). Now, award-winning author Tasha Suri's provocative and powerful Burning Kingdoms trilogy continues with The Oleander Sword. The prophecy of the nameless god—the words that declared Malini the rightful empress of Parijatdvipa—has proven a blessing and curse. She is determined to claim the throne that fate offered her. But even with the strength of the rage in her heart and the army of loyal men by her side, deposing her brother is going to be a brutal and bloody fight.TS: So many! The gothic horror Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid and the wonderful sapphic epic The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi were particularly wonderful, though. malini is such a poorly written protagonist. her chapters were painfully repetitive. her political savviness is really just the men around her being stupid. we're told over and over by the narrative how she's a brilliant scheming genius but in reality, all her wins are through plot conveniences and other characters helping her out of their own volition. What is a star, he thought, in Aditya’s slurred, smiling voice, but distant fire, reaching for you across worlds?” Suri's incandescent feminist masterpiece hits like a steel fist inside a velvet glove."—Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun I did really enjoy the magical aspects of the novel. The magic system and the new antagonists feel original and interesting and are very entertaining. I loved the eeriness of the yaksas, that was probably my favorite aspect of the whole novel.
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