Carina's Books: And I Darken Blog Tour: Review

So thrilled to be taking part in this blog tour :D YAY! I loved And I Darken a whole bunch. And I'm so happy to be sharing my full review of it today. This book came out just days ago, so if you haven't read it yet, then you need to go buy it. Because And I Darken is truly amazing. I liked it oh so much. And you are going to enjoy it too. So curious to know what you all think of it :D Anyway. Sharing my complete four star review of the book today. I'm sorry if it looks a bit weird, I got a new laptop after I wrote my review, and the screen is a bit different for me. But I didn't want to change my review any :) Huge thank you to Cassie at Random House Children's for letting me take part in this blog tour. <3 You are the bestest. I adore this.

I don't know how to even begin to describe my feelings for this book. I just loved it so, so much. I shared a lot of my feelings in my preview review, but still going to share so much now too. I just. Wow. I'm so glad I read this book. It broke my heart. Yet I loved reading every moment of it. There were a couple of things I had issues with, but for the most part I only loved this book. I could not stop reading. Just so thrilled by how good it was, lol. And how amazing the writing was. It just made me oh so happy.

This is a book told from the point of view of Lada and Radu, sister and brother. I loved that about half the book is about them growing up, about their father leaving them, about them being held in enemy country. There was so much interesting happening. And I loved reading about them growing and getting to know each other and others and just. Ugh. This book was amazing. I loved when they met Mehmed. Their friendship was simply amazing to read about. All these characters were so dear to me. Sad face.

I have so much to say about this book. I loved it so much. The writing was the very best. And the world was so well written and I loved everything about it. So many wars. So many secrets and rulers and so much happening at all times. I loved reading about Lada discovering things, discovering herself. She is the most fierce girl and I loved her to pieces. New favorite. I disliked her a bit at first, lol, but I ended up loving her more than anyone else. She is so sweet and brutal and I loved every single thing about her.

I'm not going to say all the things I'm thinking about this book. But still sharing so much, hih, sorry about that :D Not really. But yeah. I loved Lada so much. And I loved her relationship with everyone. I loved how brutal she was, how she was amazing at just about everything. I loved how she tried to protect herself. Sniffs. She was the best. But anyway. There is also a whole bunch of religion in this book. I did not like that very much. Yet it was interesting, and made sense to the plot. Was written well.

I don't know what I can say about Radu, Lada's one year younger brother. He cried all the time in the beginning. He was such a baby. Yet I felt so sorry for him most of the time and I did love reading about him. But then he fell in love with Mehmed. And he started pushing Lada away and not caring for her the same way. And he started doing things that made me angry with him. Right now, I do not like him. Ugh. He is dishonest. But I also loved his character. Just wish he had been a bit better and kinder to Lada.

But even though I disliked Radu, I did like reading about him and Lada together. They were amazing siblings. I mean, yeah, in the beginning they were horrible together, lol, and Lada was so mean towards him. But she grew to like him. And she protects him most of the time. I did like reading about them. I just wish Radu hadn't been in love with Mehmed too. Hmph. Bothers me a little bit. I shipped Radu with so many other boys that he met, lol, yet he just used them. How mean of him. But I did like him. Mostly.

There are so, so many characters in this book. And I'm not going to begin mentioning all of them. Just, wow. So many characters to get to know and to love and to hate. I loved how Lada trained with a bunch of men, and how she grew close to a few of them. They were so kind and awesome. I liked reading about her childhood best friend, he was pretty awesome, maybe. But I fear he will make book two into a love triangle. Ugh. And I do not want that. But yeah. There were many interesting characters to know.

I can't help but share this one spoilery thing. The romance. I loved it. Reading about Lada and Mehmed together was amazing, and I shipped them so hard. They are both so cute and adorable together. But then there are the issues. The reason for why I didn't fully love this book. See, Mehmed is an important person in this world. And so he has many women that he sleeps with. And he gets married. And he has two sons. And I just. What. Why. How could he claim to love Lada, yet sleep with others? Don't get it.

Gosh, this bothered me so much. Yes, him and Lada weren't truly official, but he did claim to love her. And still loves her. But then why does he sleep with so many? Why does he father children, that isn't with Lada? I just. I'm not sure I can get over it. Sigh. I'm hurt by it. Still hurt by it. And I just. I want Lada and Mehmed to happen. But he needs to stop being with other women. And I need to know that he has stopped for sure. Pretty please. My heart cannot take it. Sigh. It wasn't written badly, though. Hmm.

But even so. I had those issues, but I still loved this book so much. And I still love Mehmed. I did understand that things were just done like that in that world. But it still hurt. Sigh. But yes. I love Mehmed. And I loved getting to know him and I loved how strong he was and I thought he was an awesome ruler. And mostly a good friend. I just wanted him and Lada to be together. Hmph. His father was pretty awful. And his mom too. Shudders. Yet I liked reading about them; interesting characters.

The ending was a little bit cruel. Ack. I would call it a cliffhanger. Okay, it wasn't all that bad, just bad for my heart, lol. I hate that I must now wait so long for book two. I don't like waiting. Want it right away. I need to know what happens next with everyone. I fear that there will end up being a huge love triangle in the next book, and I just need to know that it does not happen. Sniffs. My heart is aching a bit, just thinking about it. I need for there to be no real love triangles. Pretty please. It is all I want.

And I Darken was everything I wanted it to be and more. The writing was stunning. The characters so real and so brutal. There is heartbreaking romance. There is amazing friendships. I loved this book so much. And I'm so excited about everyone else reading it too. This is a book that everyone must read and love. Like I did. And just, wow. I'm so glad that I loved it so much, despite having a few small issues. I know that I will read this book again sometime. It is a new favorite of mine. So brutal and awesome.

This book was read from April 15th to 16th. And I loved every moment of it. And I Darken is now out in the world, and I need for you all to go buy it and read it. This is not a book to be missed. I'm thrilled that I read it. And I cannot wait to read it again. Someday, lol, after book two comes out. I need to know what happens next. Simply cannot wait to read the next books. Eee. But yes. You must all read this precious book. And love it like I did. Thank you, Kiersten, for writing this stunning novel. I loved it.

Preview Review of And I Darken

No one expects a princess to be brutal. And Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets.

Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion.

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.

Buy And I Darken: Amazon - B&N - The Book Depository - Indiebound - Kobo - iBooks

KIERSTEN WHITE is the New York Times bestselling author of the Paranormalcy trilogy; the dark thrillers Mind Games and Perfect Lies; The Chaos of Stars; and Illusions of Fate. She also coauthored In the Shadows with Jim Di Bartolo. She lives with her family near the ocean in San Diego, which, in spite of its perfection, spurs her to dream of faraway places and even further away times. Visit Kiersten online at kierstenwhite.com and follow @kierstenwhite on Twitter.

Where to find Kiersten White:

Twitter. Website. Facebook.

Goodreads. Instagram. Tumblr.

AND I DARKEN BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE

Monday, May 30^th through Friday, July 8^th (Mondays through Fridays)

Monday, May 30^th: Icey Books, Review

Tuesday, May 31^st: Bookiemoji, Guest Post (Character Profiles)

Wednesday, June 1^st: Seeing Double in Neverland, Review

Thursday, June 2^nd: Alexa Loves Books, Playlist Post

Friday, June 3^rd: Awesome Book Nut, Review

Monday, June 6^th: Jessabella Reads, Review

Tuesday, June 7^th: The Eater of Books!, Top Five Roundup

Wednesday, June 8^th: Across the Words, Review