Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn HamiltonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
There are some YA books that hook you straight away and you can feel a bit of a cult following coming on, and then there are some that are sub-par that you kind of enjoy but know will eventually fade into oblivion, replaced by more exciting characters and stories to obsess over.
I fully expected this to fall into the latter category, but instead it captured my heart in about 35 pages and I've just spent half a day demolishing the rest of it through a rollercoaster of emotions. I love the fast, easy relationship between Amani and Jin, I love their cool nicknames and their rebellious exploits. It was just so easy to fall into the rhythm of the story. Adventure comes fast and there are some great characters, but Jin is just so lovable that really I just kept reading for more of him. The magic and myths were pretty cool as well, and I love the unique focus on creatures less commonly used in fantasy fiction.
The writing is simple, but there were elements that surprised me in their thoughtfulness. This is a story that was well planned, giving it strength and a solid narration to sink your teeth into. The language is easy and the world-building is simply stated but rich with detail. I found it so easy to become a part of the story, becoming familiar with characters easily and picking up the new details nice and quick. This is a story where you'll find friends - which is to say the characterisation uses familiar elements to craft entertaining characters with traits that are easy to relate to.
Did I mention I'm a little bit in love with Jin?
I mean, he's talented, handsome, and a total softie with a sense of humour that means he's not all smouldering gazes and declarations of profound, universe-shattering love. He and Amani work well together, and she's not reliant on him any more than he's reliant on her. I recently discovered the meaning of OTP (I know, I'm old and so not down with the lingo, sorry) and I think I'd like to make my first use of it describing these two together. They're so adorably deadly. <3
The story flows really well with adventure coming from a few different angles but always driving towards one end. There's plenty of diverse characters but they're introduced at a pace that makes it easy to keep track of who is who, and characterisation comes into play here again. There are some cliches and obvious occurrences thanks to that, but there's still a great cast here to work with. (view spoiler)
Parts of this book really wrenched at my heart, with physical responses including lip biting, gasping, brow furrowing, open-mouthed gaping, sneering, finger clicking Zs and laughing out loud.
I was fully invested. Head over heels down the sandy rabbit hole. I think I'm ready to admit it: I loved this book.
Why no 5 stars?
I guess the stereotypes and cliches? I mean, I really loved reading this but there's something holding me back from giving it all the stars. Maybe just because I'm expecting to be blown away by the next one. Which I must have immediately.
Either way, highly recommend. Come join me in my cult following at your own leisure.
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