Monday, March 3, 2014

Review: THE WINNER'S CURSE by Marie Rutkoski

Title: THE WINNER'S CURSE
Author: Marie Rutkoski
Published: March 4th, 2014
Series: The Winner's Trilogy #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pages: 368
POV: 3rd, multiple
Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Format: Printed ARC, e-ARC
Source: Publicist
Rating: The Royal Library, Top Shelf
Winning what you want may cost you everything you love 

As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions.

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin.

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

I knew going into The Winner's Curse that this would be a novel worth reading, if only because of how much I loved the creativity featured in Rutkoski's The Shadow Society. But even knowing that, I was still amazed by how outstanding this novel turned out to be. The story revolves around two main characters: Kestral, a Valerian and the daughter of a great military General, and Arin, a Herrani slave whom Kestral buys on impulse at an auction. Kestral is expected to join the military, while Arin must do whatever it takes to survive as one of the Herrani slaves. Despite their different stations in life, Kestral and Arin slowly form a forbidden friendship that could change the fate of their world's future.

Rutkoski excels at painting a vivid picture within her readers' minds – the characters, the world, the culture, everything proved to be easy enough to envision and imagine. But, it was the characters who stole the show. From Kestral's observant and strategic nature to Arin's subtle intelligence and sharp personality, it was easy to root for both of them. Even the side characters were wonderfully developed, and continually intriguing. I went into this expecting a good story, but Rutkoski delivered a quiet, stunning tale that pleasantly surprised me. The Winner's Curse is a surprising, captivating tale of family, love, and honor. This book? It should be on your to-read list. Or, better yet, your bookshelf.

Highlights: The romance is slow, subtle, and almost barely beginning. This story focuses on the intelligence of main characters, rather than their ability to be physical threats. I loved how this story was written in a 3rd person POV, because it allowed Rutkoski to go into detail and really show off the fantasy world she crafted. While this as a quieter story, there are bursts of action-packed moments, strategic manipulations, and a couple surprising revelations. Worldbuilding, characters, story – it was all fantastic.

Lowlights: It has a slightly slow beginning and a couple moments felt slightly rushed, but I have no big issues with this story. The ending was pretty brutal, emotionally. It leaves you wanting the sequel, desperately! 

Rating: The Royal Library, Top Shelflove this book, so it is going on the top shelves in the royal library where everyone can see it. I'd highly recommend The Winner's Curse, because it is an incredible story.

24 comments:

  1. Wow--fantastic review! I am so excited about this book and relieved that you liked it. The world building sounds awesome! I am definitely going to buy a copy of this one.

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    1. It's amazing!! I hope you love it once you get your hands on a copy :)

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  2. The vivid world and characters sound wonderful and can't wait for a chance to read

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    1. They both are wonderful - Rutkoski went above and beyond my expectations with this book.

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  3. Oh, I'm so glad you loved this one, too, Lea! I thought it was fabulous...and I was SO surprised because I was worried about all the hype. Wonderful review, girly!

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    1. I was really worried too, but the hype was fortunately correct! Such a relief ;)

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  4. YAY :D I'm so glad you loved this. <3 I did too. Sigh. Such an AMAZING book. I've read it twice and I want to read it again. I loved it so much. But yesss. That ending is evil. I need book two right away. <3 Amazing review sweetie :)

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    1. Glad you loved it, too! That ending...the wait for the sequel is going to be torture :(

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  5. This sounds so interesting, thanks for sharing. I'll have to add it to my list!!

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  6. It's coming out tomorrow ahhhh. So excited! I'm glad you loved it =D I'm okay with a slow beginning if the writing is good and the rest is worth it. Kestral & Arin sound like amazing characters I can't wait to meet. Lovely review!

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    1. I know!! SO EXCITING! The writing is wonderful, and K+A are fantastic characters. I hope you love TWC!

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  7. I've been seeing so much hype for this book but it seems to live up to it, which is good! I haven't read anything by Marie, yet, but this is one I'll read for sure!

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    1. If you end up reading TWC, I really hope you end up loving it, too! :)

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  8. I pre-ordered this one, cannot wait to read it!
    Missie @ A Flurry of Ponderings

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  9. I've seen nothing but praise for this one so far, the cover alone has me sucked in. Artistically beautiful. Love a slow burning romance, none of that horrid instant love. It really does sound brilliant, I'll have to grab a copy. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. It's wonderful. The romance is far from insta-love.

      Hope you like the story!

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  10. Oh man, I need this book badly!! You make it sound pretty incredible! It has so many things going for it that I just know I will love it, as well. The only thing that occurs to me is that maybe I should hold off on reading it until the sequel is about to come out so I don't have to wait after such an intense sounding ending!

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    1. It is incredible! Very slow moving, but wonderfully written. It might be smart to wait though - the ending definitely leaves you wanting more!

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  11. The beginning felt really slow to me but I'm thinking my mood affected that. I did like that the romance was subtle but I found myself wanting more. Possibly that was a positive though. It was much better than them falling into each others arms immediately. I did enjoy this for the most part!

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    1. I really liked the slowness to their relationship - it's nice to watch it build. Glad you enjoyed it, despite some issues!

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  12. I've seen this in Goodreads lately too but it's not available in our local bookstores yet. :( I guess I have to wait for a few more months. NocturnalReader

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