Personal Rating: 3.75 Stars Goodreads Rating: 3.84 Stars Content Rating: PG-13 Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia—and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakhs threatening, the tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side. And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the greatest test an enchanter will ever know. The victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death. Raised on tiny Ovchinin Island her whole life, Vika is eager for the chance to show off her talent in the grand capital of Saint Petersburg. But can she kill another enchanter—even when his magic calls to her like nothing else ever has? For Nikolai, an orphan, the Crown’s Game is the chance of a lifetime. But his deadly opponent is a force to be reckoned with—beautiful, whip-smart, imaginative—and he can’t stop thinking about her. And when Pasha, Nikolai’s best friend and heir to the throne, also starts to fall for the mysterious enchantress, Nikolai must defeat the girl they both love…or be killed himself. As long-buried secrets emerge, threatening the future of the empire, it becomes dangerously clear—the Crown’s Game is not one to lose. (goodreads.com) Another read for my O.W.L.s TBR, one that has been on my list of “want-to-reads” for several years but not one that I thought I’d be reading soon because I forgot what it was about until I was frantically looking for a book with a white cover to fill the Charms prompt for O.W.L.s. I’ve read a few different reviews that said this book was similar to Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, but I’m pretty sure that the only reason people say that is because it’s set in Imperial Russia and the Grisha Trilogy is set in Ravka, which is based off of late Imperial Russia and they both have magic. However, apart from the fact that I enjoyed both of them, that’s about where the similarities end. The Grisha Trilogy has a more eerie tone and is full of mystery, monsters, and darkness. The Crown’s Game is brighter, more straightforward, and more full of wonder. Oh, I guess they both have love triangles in them and super powerful protagonists, but that is where the similarities end! Mostly. Rather than compare two books, however, I’d prefer to talk about this one as its own thing. Because if you go into reading it expecting it to be of the same tone as Shadow and Bone or Six of Crows then you will be disappointed. But if you look at it as its own, separate book, then you’ll probably enjoy it more. So I’m definitely, probably, mostly done talking about Leigh Bardugo’s books from here on out in this review. It actually reminded me more of Caraval by Stephanie Graber than the Grishaverse. Anyway, back to the book we’re actually here to discuss. Let’s start by talking about the things that I didn’t like so that we can get the negative out of the way and end on the positive: I did not like how little fleshing out the characters had. The book seemed to stick to the superficial traits of the characters and I felt that we didn’t really get to know them very well. It is hard to explain, but it felt like they were just characters in a book. They didn’t really come alive for me. Which is not to say that they weren’t fun characters, but they just didn’t “pop off the page”. They felt flat and maybe a bit static. There wasn’t a whole lot of development happening (though that could come in the sequel). I also did not like the “insta-love”. I’m sure that the sequel will delve more into the romance, as there wasn’t much of it in this book beyond a couple of boys declaring themselves in love with a girl they just met. Seriously, the three main characters barely talk to each other and somehow two of them are head over heels in love with the third one. And I kind of understand for Nikolai (one of the male MCs) because he and Vika (the female MC) are like two sides of the same mystic-magic coin, but it would be nice for them to get to know each other a bit more before we get to confessions of love. And I don’t really get Pasha (the other male MC) falling for her as much as he did because he barely knows her and he isn’t her magical rival like Nikolai is. I would be totally fine with the romance in this book if it a little more time was spent actually making me believe that these kids know each other. Listen to me, calling book teens “kids”. I’m becoming a grouchy old lady. Get off my lawn you dang kids with your dang magical powers and your love triangles! Bah! Back in my day… Anywho, moving on to the things that I really enjoyed. I loved the whimsy of this book. Despite the fact that two teenagers are battling to the death and the fate of the country is at stake, this is a fairly light hearted book (that doesn’t bode well for the sequel, I’m sure) full of over the top magical feats. I said I wouldn’t make any more comparisons, but I lied (*Darth Vader voice* as I have from the very beginning). The magic contest that Vika and Nikolai have in this book reminds me so much of Caraval by Stephanie Garber. I thought it was going to be this dark, serious duel of violent magic, but instead it was creative, joyful, and even playful at times. It was exciting to see what the next move would be for each player and I loved the displays they made to one up each other. Another thing I really liked about this book was how the author’s passion for Russian history shone through. You can tell by reading it that, despite the liberties she takes with some of the facts, she really has done her research and that she enjoyed it. Reading books that clearly have the author’s heart in them is the best. It always makes me excited to learn more about whatever the author is writing about and be part of the story. I also have to mention that I love the cover for this book and the cover for the sequel even more because, well, look at them! Beautiful! Gorgeous! Magnificent! I’m in love with the covers and that makes it really hard for me not to love the books, okay? Give me a break. There are so many other things I enjoyed about this book (there are other things I disliked as well, but we aren’t going to linger on that), but I don’t want to say too much because of spoilers. Part of the reason I enjoyed The Crown’s Game so much might be because I’ve been reading up on Imperial Russia lately and enjoying some “Russian” music (none of it is actually Russian, but it’s inspired by Russia, so that counts, right?), so I was totally ready for a new story taking place in that historical setting with a heaping dose of magic thrown in. I’m not going to lie to you, I’ve already read a few chapters of the second book, The Crown’s Fate (my mom first read the title as “The Crow is Fat”) and I’m loving it. I’m already afraid that 417 pages aren’t going to be enough for me and I’ve barely made a dent in it. To the age old question that I ask myself in every review: do I recommend it? Heck yeah I do! Unless you’re one of those angry people who is going to get really down on the characters and the fast paced plot. I recommend it to you if you are ready for some whimsy and some Russian history. Alright, I’m off to make sure that there are no stinky zombies wandering around (did I mention there is a zombie in this book?) doing not very nice things, so I’ll see you in the next post! Thanks for reading! Image source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26156203-the-crown-s-game?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=uWpcYVg70K&rank=1
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