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A review by allthatissim
The Wolf of Oren-Yaro by K.S. Villoso
5.0
Full review on:
And so my friends, I found my first 5-star read of 2020! Before starting this book, I had no expectations whatsoever, actually, I didn’t know what to expect but this book blew me. Thank you, Shealea @ Caffeine Book Tours for including me on #HailTheBitchQueen blog tour.
The story follows Talyien Orenar, fondly known as The Bitch Queen, who is the first queen of Jin-Sayeng and the last heir of the Oren-Yaro clan. She is the only living child of Warlord Yeshin, the man who started a civil war that almost torn Jin-Sayeng apart. She was betrothed to Rayyel Ikessar, the last heir of their rival clan, and their marriage was hoped to bring peace to the nation. But Rayyel leaves her, and their son, the night before their coronation, leaving her to rule the divided nation on her own. But five years later, Rayyel requests a meeting in an empire that was unknown to Talyien. But despite her doubts, she decided to go meet him in hope of reconciliation and bringing him back. However, their meeting didn’t go as expected and now Talyien is running for her life in a hostile nation without no one she could trust.
Now, if you haven’t put this series in your TBR yet or if you are still thinking about reading this one, then I am giving you 5 reasons why you should read this amazing book.
1. A STRONG & BADASS FEMALE LEAD
I loved Talyien. She is one of the most complex and interesting characters I have read recently. She is a ruthless ruler. She is loud, unapologetic, wants the respect she deserves. She is hot-minded and doesn’t think for a moment before reaching for a weapon if someone insults her. Though she is tough outside, secretly is a woman who is afraid for her child, who is insecure about her future, who wants to be with her husband and wants to live a normal life. Moreover, she wants someone trustworthy after the betrayals she had. She does live up to her name of the bitch queen.
2. FANTASTIC WORLD-BUILDING
The world-building is really great. The world that Villoso has created is rich and lush. There is no info-dump at all (considering there is a series written by author before this book) and world-building is spread throughout the story. She has revealed a little about the world at each point and that keeps the readers invested in the world-building. The world is heavily inspired by Filipino culture. The author has drawn on her experiences to brought us this imaginative universe. and her attention to detail is amazing. The issues like classism, bigotry, racism and xenophobia were heavily present in the book.
3. AN INTRIGUING SET OF SIDE CHARACTERS
All the side characters are distinct in their own ways and play an important part in the story. Actually, most of them aren’t likeable at all! Khine was my favourite. I think he was included to provide lighter moments in the story, what otherwise is a tensed one. I was constantly looking forward to reading Khine and Taylien’s interactions as they were so moody and interesting. What started as banters soon converts to friendship.
I am not sure what I feel about Rayyel though. I was frustrated of course because he left Taylien and then asks her to meet him. I hope we get to see more of Rayyel’s side in the next book. We don’t get to see much of Agos but I suspected his role in the story at the beginning itself. He was a childhood friend of Taylien and was sent away by her on the same night her husband left her. Though I liked him, in the beginning, I wasn’t sure how I felt about him at the end. Then we have Prince Yuebek. Oh God, I hated that man so much and at this point. I don’t even want to describe him apart from the fact that he was a madman.
I was amazed by the variety of characters Villoso had introduced. They were so different from each other and represented different sections of society. We have thugs, bandits, royals, priests, scholars, governors, con artist, warlords, city officials and whatnot.
4. FAST-PACED AND ENGAGING PLOT
Though this is a character-driven story, the plot is never dull. It is quite fast-paced and well, very intriguing. I was utterly lost in the story within the first few chapters. Though the beginning was a little slower, after 10% the pace was quite steady and by the end, it was like the real action was happening there.
Talyien’s journey was the one to remember. You will feel yourself with her at every moment. There are so many twists and turns and each of them made me worried for her. I can say there was no room for me to catch my breath. One after the another, bad things were happening to Talyien and she was facing so many obstacles and that kept me turning the pages. I was afraid for her, for her life. I wanted to see her with people she could trust. But at every point, there were more surprises.
Throughout the story, we get flashbacks of Talyien’s past–the moments she spent with her father, how she met Rayyel and how their relationship progressed–and these flashbacks help the readers to connect with Talyien in a better way. Those flashbacks show how lonely she is and how much she misses the assistance of her father, how much she missed her partner. And then you would certainly feel for her.
5. AMAZING WRITING AND CLEVER USE OF FIRST-PERSON POV
The writing is one of the strongest points of the story. It is difficult to see a first-person POV being handled so well in an adult fantasy. Actually, I think this story worked BECAUSE the narrative was told in the first person. It was the requirement to see the world from Taylien’s eyes to understand her better. Though the story is mostly dark and tensed, Villoso threw some humour here and there and I cracked up at a few places. Those light moments were definitely needed in the story.
Overall, The Wolf of Oren-Yaro is a mesmerizing story of an ambitious Queen and the efforts she has to make to survive and save her nation from another war. She is fierce, badass, graceful and ruthless. With an amazing world-building, fast-paced plot, wonderful side characters, gripping writing and most importantly a strong female lead, Villoso has woven a story that is hard to be forgotten. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series. If you are a fan of above-mentioned points, then this one is highly recommended.
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And so my friends, I found my first 5-star read of 2020! Before starting this book, I had no expectations whatsoever, actually, I didn’t know what to expect but this book blew me. Thank you, Shealea @ Caffeine Book Tours for including me on #HailTheBitchQueen blog tour.
The story follows Talyien Orenar, fondly known as The Bitch Queen, who is the first queen of Jin-Sayeng and the last heir of the Oren-Yaro clan. She is the only living child of Warlord Yeshin, the man who started a civil war that almost torn Jin-Sayeng apart. She was betrothed to Rayyel Ikessar, the last heir of their rival clan, and their marriage was hoped to bring peace to the nation. But Rayyel leaves her, and their son, the night before their coronation, leaving her to rule the divided nation on her own. But five years later, Rayyel requests a meeting in an empire that was unknown to Talyien. But despite her doubts, she decided to go meet him in hope of reconciliation and bringing him back. However, their meeting didn’t go as expected and now Talyien is running for her life in a hostile nation without no one she could trust.
Now, if you haven’t put this series in your TBR yet or if you are still thinking about reading this one, then I am giving you 5 reasons why you should read this amazing book.
1. A STRONG & BADASS FEMALE LEAD
I loved Talyien. She is one of the most complex and interesting characters I have read recently. She is a ruthless ruler. She is loud, unapologetic, wants the respect she deserves. She is hot-minded and doesn’t think for a moment before reaching for a weapon if someone insults her. Though she is tough outside, secretly is a woman who is afraid for her child, who is insecure about her future, who wants to be with her husband and wants to live a normal life. Moreover, she wants someone trustworthy after the betrayals she had. She does live up to her name of the bitch queen.
2. FANTASTIC WORLD-BUILDING
The world-building is really great. The world that Villoso has created is rich and lush. There is no info-dump at all (considering there is a series written by author before this book) and world-building is spread throughout the story. She has revealed a little about the world at each point and that keeps the readers invested in the world-building. The world is heavily inspired by Filipino culture. The author has drawn on her experiences to brought us this imaginative universe. and her attention to detail is amazing. The issues like classism, bigotry, racism and xenophobia were heavily present in the book.
3. AN INTRIGUING SET OF SIDE CHARACTERS
All the side characters are distinct in their own ways and play an important part in the story. Actually, most of them aren’t likeable at all! Khine was my favourite. I think he was included to provide lighter moments in the story, what otherwise is a tensed one. I was constantly looking forward to reading Khine and Taylien’s interactions as they were so moody and interesting. What started as banters soon converts to friendship.
I am not sure what I feel about Rayyel though. I was frustrated of course because he left Taylien and then asks her to meet him. I hope we get to see more of Rayyel’s side in the next book. We don’t get to see much of Agos but I suspected his role in the story at the beginning itself. He was a childhood friend of Taylien and was sent away by her on the same night her husband left her. Though I liked him, in the beginning, I wasn’t sure how I felt about him at the end. Then we have Prince Yuebek. Oh God, I hated that man so much and at this point. I don’t even want to describe him apart from the fact that he was a madman.
I was amazed by the variety of characters Villoso had introduced. They were so different from each other and represented different sections of society. We have thugs, bandits, royals, priests, scholars, governors, con artist, warlords, city officials and whatnot.
4. FAST-PACED AND ENGAGING PLOT
Though this is a character-driven story, the plot is never dull. It is quite fast-paced and well, very intriguing. I was utterly lost in the story within the first few chapters. Though the beginning was a little slower, after 10% the pace was quite steady and by the end, it was like the real action was happening there.
Talyien’s journey was the one to remember. You will feel yourself with her at every moment. There are so many twists and turns and each of them made me worried for her. I can say there was no room for me to catch my breath. One after the another, bad things were happening to Talyien and she was facing so many obstacles and that kept me turning the pages. I was afraid for her, for her life. I wanted to see her with people she could trust. But at every point, there were more surprises.
Throughout the story, we get flashbacks of Talyien’s past–the moments she spent with her father, how she met Rayyel and how their relationship progressed–and these flashbacks help the readers to connect with Talyien in a better way. Those flashbacks show how lonely she is and how much she misses the assistance of her father, how much she missed her partner. And then you would certainly feel for her.
5. AMAZING WRITING AND CLEVER USE OF FIRST-PERSON POV
The writing is one of the strongest points of the story. It is difficult to see a first-person POV being handled so well in an adult fantasy. Actually, I think this story worked BECAUSE the narrative was told in the first person. It was the requirement to see the world from Taylien’s eyes to understand her better. Though the story is mostly dark and tensed, Villoso threw some humour here and there and I cracked up at a few places. Those light moments were definitely needed in the story.
Overall, The Wolf of Oren-Yaro is a mesmerizing story of an ambitious Queen and the efforts she has to make to survive and save her nation from another war. She is fierce, badass, graceful and ruthless. With an amazing world-building, fast-paced plot, wonderful side characters, gripping writing and most importantly a strong female lead, Villoso has woven a story that is hard to be forgotten. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series. If you are a fan of above-mentioned points, then this one is highly recommended.
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