Thursday, August 25, 2016

Review: The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi


Title: The Star-Touched Queen

Author: Roshani Chokshi

Rating: 2 Stars

Well...that was disappointing! The Star-Touched Queen is a novel I've been looking forward to reading all year, mainly because of its inclusion of Indian mythology. I've grown up on tales of Indian mythology and was so incredibly excited to see Chokshi use these myths to build her fantasy world and characters. While the stories within these pages are accurate, they are also few and far between. I didn't feel as if this was a realm based upon India mythology. I didn't feel, really, like this was a world that was well-developed at all, frankly.

Maya, a princess of Bharata, has been told she is cursed from the time of her birth. Her horoscope speaks of death and destruction and, as such, Maya has always believed that she will never marry. But when her father, the Raja, compels her to kill herself on the eve of her wedding, all to prevent a war, Maya nearly follows his instructions. Until, that is, Amar knocks the vial of poison out of her hands and whisks her away to become the Queen of Naraka. Amar cannot tell her about his palace or its mysterious corridors until the next cycle of the moon but he asks Maya to trust him. But strange doors keep propping up and the whispers of the palace warn Maya away from Amar. Is she in more danger listening to them or falling for Amar?

I think this story really begins to crumble once Maya reaches the Otherworld with Amar. Not only does the pace of the tale slow down, the days long and filled with Maya basically wandering around the palace, but the world-building is extremely flimsy. Amar and his scribe, Gupta, cannot tell Maya anything and, as such, we don't really learn much about this world either. What's more, I felt as if Maya acted foolishly for the majority of this novel. She listens to strangers she's never met before, re-calls the advice of Mother Dina, a woman who hated her in her father's harem, and ultimately causes all the problems she has to face in this novel. I admired her resiliency and her relationship with her younger sister, Gauri, but she wasn't a heroine I really understood or felt for.

Maya and Amar's romance is also...unremarkable. My main issue with it, frankly, was that Maya doesn't trust Amar. She feels drawn towards him because of some connection she feels to him, but despite his actions and words she doesn't trust Amar at all. So during the second-half of this book when she has to save Amar due to circumstances, she suddenly falls in love with him through her memories and realizes she can trust him. It just wasn't romantic or believable to me.

There are very few strong secondary characters in this book beyond Gauri and the villain. Maya makes almost no friends in the palace and this book simply sparked no feeling in me. I wish this had been a stronger fantasy and a stronger romance. I understand why readers of fantasy-lite would enjoy this one. If you're not someone who requires a depth of world-building then I could overlook a lot of flaws and get into this romance, too. But, sadly, The Star-Touched Queen has wound up being the most hyped-up and disappointing book of the year for me.

8 comments:

  1. Oh no, I'm sorry you were let down by this one, especially since you were so excited. It does sound like a very slow-paced novel with an not-so believable romance. Not exactly what I'm looking for in my reads.

    -Lauren

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hmm, yeah I can see the flaws there and not really drawn to it

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh no! I hate when a book I've been waiting forever for turns out to be as disappointment! Maya does sound like a tricky heroine with a number of flaws that usually drive me crazy. Why does she have to listen to complete strangers? Maybe take what they say under advisement and then look into things before you believe them as fact. Grrr. Sorry this didn't work for you Keertana!

    ReplyDelete
  4. ''She listens to strangers she's never met before''

    Are you crazy, you can't trust strangers blindly like that. It's saddening that a fantasy world is that flimsy. Here's to hoping that future Indian mythology-inspired books are better. Tnx for the review Keertana

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh no! I had a lot of hope for this one as well. I do need that worldbuilding and this one really sounds like it falls flat. I also think the heroine would bother me to no end. Brilly review!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I saw this one a couple of time and I love the cover but I haven't tried it. I'm sorry it was finally a bit disappointing for you

    ReplyDelete
  7. I was really interested in this one - it's rare you see Indian mythology woven into fiction and I really wanted to read it.

    However, this isn't the first review I've read that said that the book could have been better, so I think I'll give it a miss for now.

    It does have a beautiful cover though :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I felt the same way. I didn't even manage to finish it! Hopefully your next read is more enjoyable.

    Great review. :)

    ReplyDelete

I love hearing from my readers and I read, reply, and appreciate every one of the comments I receive!(: If you're a fellow blogger, please leave a link to your blog - I'd love to drop by!

Unfortunately, this is now an award-free blog. I simply do not have the time to respond and forward on the award, but I truly appreciate the nomination regardless.