A Crown of Wishes ~ Roshani Chokshi (earc) review [@NotRashKnee @StMartinsPress]

A Crown of Wishes (The Star-Touched Queen #2)
St Martin's Griffin
March 28, 2017
352 pages
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Gauri, the princess of Bharata, has been taken as a prisoner of war by her kingdom’s enemies. Faced with a future of exile and scorn, Gauri has nothing left to lose. Hope unexpectedly comes in the form of Vikram, the cunning prince of a neighboring land and her sworn enemy kingdom. Unsatisfied with becoming a mere puppet king, Vikram offers Gauri a chance to win back her kingdom in exchange for her battle prowess. Together, they’ll have to set aside their differences and team up to win the Tournament of Wishes—a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor.

Reaching the tournament is just the beginning. Once they arrive, danger takes on new shapes: poisonous courtesans and mischievous story birds, a feast of fears and twisted fairy revels.

Every which way they turn new trials will test their wit and strength. But what Gauri and Vikram will soon discover is that there’s nothing more dangerous than what they most desire.

A Crown of Wishes is The Star-Touched Queen #2 but it is not exactly a sequel to The Star-Touched Queen. The world is the same and Gauri, like Maya, is from Bharata and like Maya was the Raja's daughter, Gauri is a princess, too. This novel focuses on an eighteen-year-old Gauri, though. there are a few glimpses into and mentions of what happened in The Star-Touched Queen but mostly this is a tale about Gauri - and Vikram.

I loved the world created - or, perhaps, expanded on - in A Crown of Wishes. There is that same magic and fantasy that was introduced in The Star-Touched Queen but now we see different parts and possibilities of it, and through different eyes.

Author Roshani Chokshi has brilliant writing again and descriptions that are unexpected but still help readers to perfectly envision or understand a feeling, character, item, location.

Both Gauri and Vikram were characters who grew on me as the story progresses. I liked both of them in the beginning but really came to relate to them more and care for them more as we learned of their pasts, their desires for the future and how they got into their present situation. They seem quite unmatched at the start but then we see how they can work together. Even while annoying one another.

I loved the fantasy around The Tournament of Wishes and the characters' journey to get there. The characters and creatures introduced there, the rules, what they had to do, what they could do, and what all of it could (and would) mean made for a thrilling, magical read. I didn't really connect who Gauri had been in The Star-Touched Queen until close to the end but once I did, I loved her that much more.

Author Roshani Chokshi has created a wonderful world of fantasy and magic with characters both human and not with whom you will relate and want to succeed (or maybe not, depending). I loved a further glimpse into this imaginative world and those who inhabit it.






digital review copy received, via NetGalley, thanks to publisher