With all the hype surrounding the new 50 Shades of Grey movie, I was almost tempted to read the first novel and see what all the fuss is about, while waiting for the movie to come out on DVD so I can download it because I refuse to pay to watch the movie. Instead, I convinced myself out of such a horrendous thought, and decided to read a book I already had loaded into my Kobo — The Winner’s Curse, by Marie Rutkoski. After having a Lord of the Rings marathon session and binge watching season one of Game of Thrones, I was in the mood for something set in a similar fantasy, medieval-esque setting. And what a brilliant choice I made, because I finished the book in a week. Within as week. As in, less than seven days. If you know me, you know I’m not much of a reader. I usually try to read more, so that I’m not always watching a TV show/anime/drama/movie of some sort. (It generally doesn’t work).
The Winner’s Curse is when you come out on top of the bid, but only by paying a steep price.
The synopsis itself was enough to intrigue me — I mean, “a girl buys a boy at a slave auction” pretty much sounds like the perfect star-crossed lovers type romance setting. A forbidden love between master and slave. But The Winner’s Curse is so much more than just another “YA fantasy romance”. It’s political, betrayal, intense, so full of lies… and the author portrays these elements exceptionally well. The story falls between fantasy and historical fiction — set in an alternate yet believable world between the Valorian aristocrats and the Herrani slaves. It reads like a fantasy, yet there are no fantasy elements. While the relationship between the two main characters is a main focus of the book, it doesn’t cloud their judgement. They’re aware that they can’t be selfish in the middle of war.
The characters are fascinating. I wasn’t too fond of Kestrel at first, but she grew on me as she developed throughout the book. I like how she’s not perfect, how she’s not a fighter. Instead, she excels in her intelligence, and she knowingly uses it to her advantage. Arin on the other hand, I liked from the beginning. He’s rude, rebellious, the exact opposite of an obedient slave, yet it’s these qualities of his that attracted Kestrel (and me) to him in the first place. In regards to these aspects, the book was so close to perfection. There was just one aspect that I couldn’t quite understand: the romance. Now before I shock the world, let me explain. I do like Arin and Kestral together. I like how their relationship is heartbreaking, minimal yet apparent. But I couldn’t see when (and why) Arin fell in love. I saw it coming from Kestrel (because who wouldn’t fall in love with him?), but it took me a while to take in that Arin was also in love with her. I loved them eventually, but I could barely feel the “slow burn” that everyone else seemed to have felt right from the beginning. Despite that, everything else just fit so flawlessly, so I’m willing to overlook that fact.
The writing is beautiful, both in the attention to detail it gives, and the simplicity of it. Every detail weaves through the story perfectly, there’s no unnecessary blocks of information. Marie’s writing is gorgeous, and easy to read at the same time. She created a fictional world that seems so oddly familiar, and completely captivated me with her words, sentences, and incredible imagery. I cannot recommend this book enough — and The Winner’s Crime is definitely on my to-read-list once it’s released. Apparently it’s even better.
My verdict: ★★★★½
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