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Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a murderer and a monster. Each night he takes a new bride. Each morning she is strangled to death with a silk cord. No one knows why he is doing this or how long it will continue: Until he’s brought heartache and grief to each family in the land? Until every eligible maiden in their city is dead?
When Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid’s wrath, Shahrzad volunteers to be his next bride, vowing silently to herself that she will stay alive, that she will get vengeance for her friend, and that she will end the Caliph’s reign of terror once and for all.
Night after night, Shahrzad weaves stories until the dawn, hoping it is enough to beguile and enchant her new husband and ensure her survival until she can uncover Khalid’s weakness. But Khalid is nothing like Shahrzad imagined. Is he really a monster or just a tormented boy-king? Either way, how can she forgive him for the countless lives he has taken? And how can she forgive herself for falling in love with the man who could kill her too come morning?
The Wrath and the Dawn is a retelling of the classic collection of stories A Thousand and One Nights and is set in a rich and vivid ancient Persia with a pinch of magic and enough descriptions of food to make your mouth water. The writing is as beautiful, bold, and poetic as the setting, with well-rounded characters. I loved Shahrzad’s wit and bitter bravery, as well as Khalid’s tortured self-loathing.
That being said, this book is also romance-heavy. There are several sex scenes I could have done without. They are vague and between a married couple, so they didn’t bother me as much, but it’s definitely not a book I would not be comfortable recommending to a younger or immature reader.
In the end, the story remains fierce and beautiful and touches on poignant topics of forgiveness, loyalty, and sacrificial love.
Rated: Moderate, for three sex scenes (all of which are vague with very little detail). After one such scene, a character does not dress and lounges naked on the bed. There are a few intense kisses. A servant gets pregnant by a noble’s son. There is also at least one sexual innuendo and about 10-12 instances of mild and moderate language.
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