Date of Completion: 22/05/2021
It is very rare for me to be undecided in the rating I want to give a book right after I finish reading it. Yet, here I am, confused because I was not fully enthralled by the contents of this book, but I still found myself constantly drawn to it by something I cannot put my finger on.
I have learned that it is possible to stand in the open air with the wind on my face and still suffocate
‘A throne of Swans’ is a book heaving with a great deal of potential on account of the fascinating and creative world established within its pages. In fact, I found the world-building to be the strongest feature of this book. It is both detailed and easy to grasp as the information is gently layered to lure readers into the fabricated world.
Within this world is Aderyn, the main character who tragically falls short of being a relatable and canny protagonist. Instead, I found her character childish, naïve and irritating for several reasons:
One, her entire objective throughout this book is to avenge her family, but somehow, she ends up doing very little of this herself. After all, why would she when she has a posse of oh-so-attractive men who are more than willing to do everything for her?
Two, Aderyn is unreasonably stubborn and constantly ignores the good advice she is given. Of course, this regularly leads her into trouble, but never fear, the oh-so-attractive posse are always at hand to save her.
Three, at one point, Aderyn slaps another character in response to their hurtful words. Now, do not get me wrong, I am someone who is all for violence and action, but this slap simply felt like a child throwing a tantrum. It was downright uncivil! She even has the gall to expect an apology from the poor person that she struck?! It is no surprise that after this, all attempts to present Aderyn as a kind and caring character were quickly dismissed with an eye roll for the trouble.
Unfortunately, the other characters in this book do not fare any better. Each one is simply too one-dimensional and uninteresting for me to find engaging. Even the love interest does not have much depth to his character. One moment he is berating Aderyn for her actions and the next he is confessing his undeniable love, with no middle ground.
A good man can still do terrible things
Besides Aderyn’s need for vengeance, the storyline also includes political and mystery elements. However, these failed to generate enough suspense and tension to keep me intrigued. The use of numerous cliques associated with the Young Adult Fantasy genre also made the storyline very predictable and dull. Honestly, I had corrected guessed the romantic interest just from a conversation about him that occurs before he makes his first appearance.
Now that I have had a chance to probe my feelings about this book, I realise that my confusion on what rating to give this book comes from a place of frustration. ‘A throne of Swans’ has so much potential but still somehow misses the mark. Yes, the world-building is great and fascinating, but everything else is painfully average. Fewer cliques, a stronger atmosphere, and some well-developed characters could have turned this book into a masterpiece.
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