Title: The Star-Touched Queen
Author: Roshani Chokshi
Series Title: The Star-Touched Queen
Published: April 26, 2016
Pages: 342
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible - Self Purchased
Narrator: Priya Ayyar
Summary: Fate and fortune. Power and passion. What does it take to be the queen of a kingdom when you’re only seventeen?
Maya is cursed. With a horoscope that promises a marriage of death and destruction, she has earned only the scorn and fear of her father’s kingdom. Content to follow more scholarly pursuits, her whole world is torn apart when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience to quell outside rebellions. Soon Maya becomes the queen of Akaran and wife of Amar. Neither roles are what she expected: As Akaran’s queen, she finds her voice and power. As Amar’s wife, she finds something else entirely: Compassion. Protection. Desire…
But Akaran has its own secrets—thousands of locked doors, gardens of glass, and a tree that bears memories instead of fruit. Soon, Maya suspects her life is in danger. Yet who, besides her husband, can she trust? With the fate of the human and Otherworldly realms hanging in the balance, Maya must unravel an ancient mystery that spans reincarnated lives to save those she loves the most…including herself.
Maya is cursed. With a horoscope that promises a marriage of death and destruction, she has earned only the scorn and fear of her father’s kingdom. Content to follow more scholarly pursuits, her whole world is torn apart when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience to quell outside rebellions. Soon Maya becomes the queen of Akaran and wife of Amar. Neither roles are what she expected: As Akaran’s queen, she finds her voice and power. As Amar’s wife, she finds something else entirely: Compassion. Protection. Desire…
But Akaran has its own secrets—thousands of locked doors, gardens of glass, and a tree that bears memories instead of fruit. Soon, Maya suspects her life is in danger. Yet who, besides her husband, can she trust? With the fate of the human and Otherworldly realms hanging in the balance, Maya must unravel an ancient mystery that spans reincarnated lives to save those she loves the most…including herself.
Reader/Listener Review: Let me start by saying I had a REALLY hard time with this book. It was quite confusing and I felt that it didn't flow very well.
I was determined not to mark this as a DNF. But by Ch. 15, everything started to fall into place. It took me over a month of listening to the audiobook, before I could finally get into it too. Which is sad.
Maya's character seemed doomed from the start. I didn't grasp the concept of her marriage with Ahmar. It seemed strained and wrong. She had so many questions, which caused the reader to have so many questions. She didn't trust her husband. Which was sad, alone. The only real connection she seemed to have was with Kamala, a demon horse who then becomes her best friend.
In the summary, it mentions that Maya find her voice as a Queen and unravels a mystery that spans through reincarnated lives. There are two problems I find with that.
1. Maya does not find her voice as a Queen. She finds it while trying to fix the damage she caused for Akaran and Amar.
2. An ancient mystery that spans between reincarnated lives? What lives? Maya, is a reincarnate of a goddess of sorts. But Maya is only one life. Not Lives. if it were lives, it would have been more than the goddess and Maya. But that is up for interpretation. Plus, there is no mystery behind it. At least not to me. It was quite obvious that Maya was and always was the wife of Amar.
In the end. When Maya finally had the guts to figure out her mistakes that she made to rekindle and save her marriage that she destroyed..... twice.... is when she FINALLY had her adventure. Meeting Kamala and seeing the damage to her old kingdom of Bharata. That is when she began to learn and grow as a character.
Now that I got Maya, the heroine, covered; let me point out a problem with Amar. Or two....
Why on heaven's name would you HIDE your face from your wife? She never met you (in this life) so how was she supposed to know who you were? Also, why keep your Queen from the real kingdom itself.
Maya, with out the help of her husband who's morals I question, discovered on her own that she was the Queen of a type of hell. The otherworld. But how was she too actually know when her husband kept it all away from her?
In the end, after part 2 of the novel began, is when things actually started rolling. Maya grew stronger by learning from her mistakes. Befriends Kamala. Helps her sister, Guari, betray a king. All while trying to return to her brainwashed husband and save him from Nritti, her ex-best friend from her time as a goddess.
My final thoughts about this book is the format, in which I purchased. I purchased an audiobook, which was pretty good. no skips or interruptions. however, the narrator used two different accents. I think it would've been better if she just used one.
My final thoughts about this book is the format, in which I purchased. I purchased an audiobook, which was pretty good. no skips or interruptions. however, the narrator used two different accents. I think it would've been better if she just used one.
I fell as though this novel earns 2 stars. But because part 2 made it finally worth while, I am giving it 3.
In the end, I am quite positive I will finish the series.
Check out the Author's website HERE.
** I was not asked to write a review for this novel.
It was not agreed for the review to be positive.
I'm not compensated for my reviews.**
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