The
Bird and the Blade
by
Megan Bannen
Publication
Date: June 5th 2018
Publisher:
Balzer + Bray
Find
This Book: The Bird and the Blade
Rating:
5/5
I
was given a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest
review.
I was *living* for
this historical fiction stand-alone book. The Prologue into Part One confused
me a bit because of the timeline, but I quickly wrapped my head around the
story of the book and once I picked the book up after a good night’s rest I
loved the flow Bannen picked. Like I said, the timeline is a little wonky at
first, but it fits the story being told perfectly.
The Prologue is two character’s meeting for the first time, and the beginning
of Part One is the beginning of the climax of the book. The novel then switches
between the journey leading up to the climax, and little snippets of the
climax. You slowly discover bits of information about the three main
characters, the recent history of the empire they live in, and LOTS of fun poetry/riddles.
I wouldn’t want the book set up any other way!
What I really love
about the novel is how seamlessly the story flows. It feels natural, even
though this specific story didn’t occur. The topic is obviously well-researched
to make the plot feel so smooth. The Bird and the Blade is actually a retelling
of “Prince Khalaf and the Princess of China” a story about how a great king
must be a competent warrior and extremely wise. A Princess tells 3 riddles that
must be answered in order to be married, a Prince and his slave respond to the
call- that’s as vaguely specific as I’m going to get so that I don’t spoil
anything not given away at the beginning of the book! Basically, I really
enjoyed how this non-mongolian story was able to be transplanted into the chaos
of the Mongolian/Song turmoil and was able to use historical East Asian events
to portray this new rendition of a Persian story.
Furthermore, the
characters and their development in this story felt so natural. It’s amazing
what traveling across a continent in close quarters will do to a small group of
travelers. Namely, a Khan in exile, a Prince in exile, and their slave. The POV
is from the slave, and the father-son dynamic seen from the outside was
stellar. Jinghua (the slave) is full of mystery and creates a compelling main
character, even for the parts of the story when you know practically nothing
about her.
This is definitely one
of my favorite books of the year and I would highly recommend it to anyone who
loves history, riddles, and intricate relationships (romantically and
familial).
No comments:
Post a Comment