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The Rose and the Dagger Is the Diverse, Feminist Fantasy Sequel You’ve Been Waiting For
A year ago, Renée Ahdieh gifted to the world her sumptuous The Wrath and the Dawn, a breathtaking retelling of A Thousand and One Nights. In that first novel, we grew to love Shahrzad, the bold and dastardly clever girl who outruns a killer curse by simply telling stories, and Khalid, the despised and misunderstood Caliph of Khorasan who falls without measure for the girl who should’ve died at sunrise.
Now, Ahdieh has returned with the sequel to Shazi and Khalid’s troubled love story, The Rose and the Dagger, and it hits every note conceivable for a pitch-perfect YA smorgasbord. Here are more than a few reasons this series should have a prized place on your bookshelves.
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A feisty, flawed heroine
To say Shazi is willful would be a significant understatement. Sure, she fell into one of those improbable romances that flow so freely in fictional fantasy lands, but she did so because she set out to avenge the death of her greatest friend. She stayed alive because she’s more warrior than wallflower, and she caught the eye of Khalid because she never looks away from a fight. Shazi is no less strong-willed and, at times, obstinate in The Rose and the Dagger, in which she must defy not only her enemies, but her closest friends and family, to protect the marriage and the man she never expected to want. She’s far from perfect, with her reticence to trust at the center of her troubles, but that’s what makes her so perfect to carry this story.
A complicated sisterly bond
Many of the chinks in Shahrzad’s armor come thanks to her sister, Irsa, whose presence in this sequel is significant, even if she doesn’t always rank at the top of her sister’s priorities. The love between the two can’t be denied; each makes sacrifices to preserve the other’s safety and secrets. Those secrets are a constant source of tension. For Irsa, she has a sister back, but it’s not the same one she once knew. This Shazi has seen and learned troubling things in her palace life that can’t easily be disclosed or believed. When you’re married to a man everyone thinks is a monster, it’s difficult to stay close with anybody while you’re hiding his secrets.
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A sweeping love story (or two)
At the heart of The Rose and the Dagger is the star-crossed romance of Khalid and Shazi, just as it was in The Wrath and the Dawn. Breaking the curse that binds them is the root of the plot, but in this second installment, passion abounds. When people fall in love around these parts, they fall hard, and it makes for some emotionally stirring moments.
A setting both familiar and diverse
Because this series is so closely tied to folklore, the story feels familiar in the best ways. But the importance of seeing diverse portrayals of masculinity and femininity, of love and loss, and of all types of relationship roles in a historical Mideast setting can’t be overstated, and this is the type of storytelling YA handles better than perhaps any other fiction.
A little magic for good measure
What would all this be without a little magic? The fantasy elements flow easily here, without calling too much attention to themselves. There are spells and sorcery, and, of course, a magic carpet, and they make for escapism at its best.
The Rose and the Dagger is on sale now.