A Quick Dip in The Crown and the Arrow

The Crown and the Arrow by Renée Ahdieh

3.5/5 STARS

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Retelling, Novella
Author: Renée Ahdieh
Published: March 2016
Publisher:
Pages: 9 {e-book}

Original review on Goodreads

But First, An Apology

I feel SO stingy giving this a meager 3.5/5 stars. Ahdieh is a wicked author and I thoroughly enjoyed The Wrath and the Dawn, and whilst this was the exact same, wonderful writing, it was only 9 pages. And it’s really difficult to fall in love with something that’s just longer than an essay. So yes! Maybe in the world the teeny tiny novels I’d be throwing a 4.5 star rating at this, but in comparison to other things this felt more like a painfully short deleted scene than an actual short story.

Short-Story Fun

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this, being all of 9 pages, but it was okay. It just felt a little pointless and cruel – I’m so excited for the release of book two, The Rose and the Dagger, and this just wasn’t enough. I know there’s a slightly longer novella coming out in the future but I don’t really understand the point of this one. It gives a cool little insight into Khalid’s mindset, from his perspective, about the character of Shahrzad. But it’s nothing you don’t already know after reading The Wrath and the Dawn. I would certainly say this should be read after book one because the nods towards all the relationships in the book make a lot more sense that way.

The best thing about this was that, most importantly, we get more of this world! But also it’s nice to see the set up of the story prior to when Sharhzad properly enters it. That, and an acknowledgment of what exactly Despina’s role within the court was (as she mentions she’s a spy in the first book). So all in all this was enjoyable if a little pointless.