Winning what you want may cost you everything you love
They were never meant to be together. As a general’s daughter, seventeen-year-old Kestrel enjoys an extravagant and privileged life. Arin has nothing but the clothes on his back. Then Kestrel makes an impulsive decision that binds Arin to her. Though they try to fight it, they can’t help but fall in love. In order to be together, they must … together, they must betray their people . . . but to be loyal to their country, they must betray each other.
Set in a new world, The Winner’s Curse is a story of rebellion, duels, ballroom dances, wicked rumors, dirty secrets, and games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.
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I finished The Winner’s Curse this morning, just in time to go see her speak at Harvard Book Store tonight!
I really enjoyed this YA fantasy and found the strong female / male slave romance to have an interesting power dynamic. The world-building was superb and I’m looking forward to reading the rest in this series!
I admit that I picked up this book because of the beautiful cover. I was looking for something epic with a more complicated storyline. This was the perfect call. Of course, there is a lot that happens in this book, but more importantly, there is deep emotional conflict that draws you in. From the moment the hero and heroine meet, you know this is going to get complicated. He is a slave and she is from ruling class aristocracy. They live in an age where the conquered are enslaved and a despot is on the throne. Getting good, right? The second book gets even better and then the ending is just right. This story invites me to read the book over and over again.
This one was a blast! The characters were wonderful and the plot was exciting and I really cannot fault the wordbuilding at all. One of the better YA fantasies I’ve been reading lately.
It had me hooked from start to finish
This was such an enjoyable off-world fantasy, with beautiful prose and worldbuilding, and a story line that sucked me in from the first chapter! I was entranced throughout the whole novel–highly recommend!
If I read this series as a teenager, I would rate this 5 amazing stars.
But I just can’t get over one of the decisions she made to save her friend.
And I can’t get over how she just gave away her father’s secrets.
Favorite part of this was the romance. A slow burn with two characters from opposite sides.
This book was so close to being perfect. Amazing balance between romance, justice, and war.
But just…. WHY KESTREL? WHY?
It was a nice read just a little drawn out at times
The characters weren’t that interesting for me. I found myself not remembering certain secondary characters that Kestrel had relationships with. It was also hard to relate to Kestrel. She’s smart and strategic, but is conflicted and not that confident. Maybe that changes and she grows in the other books.
The worldbuilding was okay. I found some aspects to be lackluster. I personally love when the author goes all out on seeing the stage and I found this stage glossed over.
The themes of forbidden love and slavery weren’t my cup of tea. I found myself getting frustrated with the two characters because they’re relationship was too cushiony to have a forbidden feel to it.
I might continue to read the rest of the series down the line; however my TBR pile is currently overflowing and I find myself not super compelled to jump to the next book right away.