I will update the review with a link to our blog closer to publication date.
I'd like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me with an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

A perfect blend of fantasy & romance. I loved the lush prose and brilliantly drawn characters. I was devastated when it ended!

Tell me there’s a new f/f fantasy series and you know I’ll be keen. Especially when it involves unlikely allies. The Jasmine Throne is the first in a new fantasy trilogy inspired by the history and epics of India, written by Tasha Suri (Empire of Sand, Realm of Ash). Tasha’s debut, Empire of Sand, was great so I was so excited to see her growth. In The Jasmine Throne I’ve found a book where I love the characters, love the magic, and love the way the story is unfolding – this is such a unique story!

The central protagonists in The Jasmine Throne are Priya, a maidservant (with a big secret) who is one of a few that make the terrifying journey to the top of the Hirana every night where Princess Malini is imprisoned. Malini defied her cruel brother, now the emperor, and for that she is paying with some isolated reflection. Her only companion is a cruel woman who drugs her every night to keep her sedated, until Malini and Priya meet for the first time. Both of these women are wicked smart and have their own journeys throughout the book. Malini must recover from her trauma and return to her strongest self in order to fight her brother, and Priya must learn how to put her anonymous life behind her and step into her true self.

I loved the contrast between Priya and Malini – Priya is still working out who she is and how she will use her power after lying to herself for so long, but Malini already knows she is powerful even though being a woman in this world holds her back. This contrast made their relationship really exciting to see develop as they figure out whether their feelings for each other are real or if they are using each other for personal gain.

Other characters have points of view scattered throughout the book, sometimes only occurring once or twice. Key to the story are Ashok, a rebel looking to take down the emperor, Bhumika, a woman from Priya’s past who is now the wife of the regent of Ahiranya, and Rao, a man who’s true name holds a prophecy that carries the weight of more than his own future. I really enjoyed the depth that these points of view gave the story, particularly when Priya and Malini were co-located. I particularly enjoyed Bhumika’s character – she is smart and no-nonsense and I grew to love her as the story progressed. The mystery of Rao’s name also had me completely invested!

The world-building and politics were incredibly gripping. The magic surrounding the Hirana and the deathless waters was so unique, I’ve never read anything like it. The rebel movement in the conquered Ahiranya led by Ashok grows to free itself from control of Parijatdvipa (whose emperor, Malini’s brother, is cruel and extremist). It’s really up to the women in the story to use their power wisely and bring reason to the men who will destroy each other to get what they want. The threats don’t just come from the people either – there’s a magical disease called the rot to content with, and it’s spreading wider than where it originated. I’m sure there will be more nuanced thoughts on the politics when more people have read this story when it releases.

Overall, I love that this book gave us a full story but with room to grow in the rest of the trilogy. I feel satisfied by the progress and eager to see how the world and magic will be expanded. Malini and Priya both have a long way to go on their journeys and I’m really excited to see where they end up.

The Jasmine Throne is an exceptionally captivating Indian inspired fantasy with rich character development. The book develops the world with ease without any info-dumping, helping us feel fully immersed from the get go.

We have our main two characters, Priya and Malini, who are supported by others in this multi POV story. Every character was complex having distinctive strengths and weaknesses, especially our female characters who were all vastly unique. I often enjoyed being able to view the world or our main characters through such different lenses, although equally the glimpses into very minor character's POVs were often surface level and sometimes withdrew us from the advancing plot.

In terms of pacing, the characters and world were established so effortlessly it never withdrew from the advancement of the plot. However, I did feel a definite lull in the middle of the book, which did cause me to struggle to pick it up for a little while. Things do start to pick up again pretty quickly and I flew through the last third. The culmination of certain plot points set up the next book perfectly and I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series when it comes out.

Overall I would say this is a must read for fans of morally grey characters, captivating Indian inspired fantasy worlds and enemies to lovers sapphic romances.

**Thank you to NetGalley & Orbit for providing this arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All thoughts and opinions are subjective but my own.**

The morally grey, sapphic, Indian folklore-inspired fantasy we should all read this year. The main three characters were super compelling and complex, the additional POVs were super interesting. The magic system took me a while to get a handle on, but it's a visual feast. The whole book is, in fact. Roll on book 2!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this arc! This book- W H O A! I LOVE it so much.

I finished The Jasmine Throne in the kind of sleep deprived haze you get when it's 4am and you've been in the one spot for hours because you just don't want to stop. It was just that good.

This book has everything I've now come to expect from a Tasha Suri novel. Magic, empire, complex characters and the kind of romance that is just enough. It never overpowers the story and that's the way I like it.

But it's also more than her previous works. There are multiple POVs, and the scope is so big that I genuinely felt like I came away from it with an idea of the different cultures and beliefs in the same way I have vague conceptions of places I've never visited in our world and of religions I'm not a part of.

It's important to note that The Jasmine Throne is part of the golden sapphic trifecta of summer 2021 and having read The Unbroken by C. L Clark with only She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan to go, this is shaping up to be an absolutely excellent reading time.

I'll be buying a physical copy of this book ASAP and recommending it to everyone I know because we all need it in our life.

3.5* rounded down.

If you like gorgeous, lush worldbuilding I couldn't recommend a book more. It's impressive how little info-dumping there is in a book that is so reliant on a detailed political landscape with multiple POV's from different factions across this world. This book primarily follows Priya and Malini, two women forced into close quarters when rebellions start brewing and are in need of them, romance ensues, but they're also dragged further into political strife and violence.

Unfortunately despite a fantastic start, I did find that the middle of this book got muddled. Plot became convenient sometimes and Malini and Priya's developing relationship wasn't grabbing me. But I was a huge fan of Priya and I enjoyed Malini as an almost antihero. Their romance wasn't really doing it for me, but I at least appreciated that it was not simple and the two women were given a lot of depth not only about their sexualities but about how they approached their attraction with each other. I'm interested to see how their relationship develops in the sequel because I think books featuring romance these days are a little too preoccupied with Yearning™ that the set-ups are starting to lose me. There's a lot of emotion in this book that I very much enjoyed; Priya's a deeply empathetic character and I enjoyed her chapters a lot and every time she interacted with Rukh on page I started tearing up (like, actually.). Malini in contrast was a little harder for me to connect to because she is so much colder, though I appreciated the themes she presented and both characters' backstories were fascinating.

Plot was a little weak. Though if you're a big character and worldbuilding person, it's unlikely to bother you. I did find myself occasionally unimpressed by sudden developments but the ending saved it for me and it really came together. The two main POV's are Priya and Malini but they are supported by multiple different limited POV's from side characters that I found very interesting and when these characters and perspectives come together towards the end, it pays off. The themes about culture being diminished and land reclamation were moving and are backed up by wonderful, interesting detail about the culture, religion and physical setting. I cannot stress enough how much beautiful detail is in the worldbuilding and how unique it is.

Definitely having a pattern of being a little disappointed with anticipated reads, but this is still worth reading and I'll be picking up the sequel.

Morally grey lesbians reclaiming an empire? YES PLEASE.

I'm so bored of books with seemingly perfect protagonists, so this book was refreshing to read. Priya and Malini are secretive, driven by their own agendas and ruthless to boot.

The world building is complex and unique, and whilst this is your typical reclaim the throne trope, the religious aspects and world building make it feel unlike anything else I've read. It's a smart, complex high fantasy that we're just scratching the surface of in this book.

The only thing stopping this being a 5 star read is the viewpoint. If the author had stuck to just Priya, Malini and Bhumika for viewpoint chapters it would have been a lot less confusing. Instead this book bounces between lots of characters, some who only get one chapter? There's already a lot to take in with the vast worldbuilding and extensive character list, swapping viewpoints made things unnecessarily confusing for me. Also, by viewpoint swapping so extensively I feel like we missed out on some of Priya and Malini's character motivations, I'd have liked to have seen more of their relationship play out too.

Despite that this is a FANTASTIC read, I'd recommend for fans of complex high fantasy, Samantha Shannon fans particularly I think will like this!

I truly apologise if this post feels more like a brain rot and less like a review because I’m left speechless by Tasha’s writing and power of storytelling yet again. As if I needed a reminder as to why Tasha Suri is one of my favourite authors, still The Jasmine Throne served as one.

The Jasmine Throne, the start of a new trilogy, introduces us to a feminist tale, a revolution waiting to unfold, set in an Indian inspired world with a unique but deadly magic system, layers of politics and morally grey characters. This multi-POV story with our morally grey lesbians Malini and Priya as protagonists, is epic fantasy at its best.

Malini, our Imperial Princess, is imprisoned by her zealot brother in the Hiranya, a temple with secrets. She’s desperate to be released and is willing to do whatever she can to depose him from the throne. I really liked her character, being the strategist that she is. She’s tactful, an iron fist in a velvet glove, knows what cards to play and what politics to apply to achieve her goals which is what draws people to her cause.

Priya, the maidservant with secret powers, who has a tendency to kindness as seen from the beginning itself. Her soft heartedness is not a weakness though, her love for her family and her fading culture and the understanding of her magic is what drives her throughout the book. She’s all sharp edges, her resilience stood out to me.

And like the summary says, together they do change the fate of the empire. Both of them are complex, strong and ruthless with clear goals in sight. They are sharpened by their pain, the abuse they’ve suffered. They stand on opposite ends, ready to use one another but also learn to trust each other. It was an absolute delight to see their relationship develop, the conflicts that passed through them leading to a delicious slow burn. I was left wondering if they would betray each other or make it together to accomplish their goals.

To support our wonderful duo, we have the POVs of a supporting cast — Bhumika, a highborn lady with secret magic who only wants to see her land and people safe; Rao, the nameless prince with a prophecy to fulfill and Ashok, a rebel leader willing to pay any price to set his nation free. Despite the many characters, Tasha manages to keep us hooked to the tenuous plot without confusions. Each character had a distinct motivation and voice and I loved how their stories entangle. (All I ask is to see more of Rao).

Ultimately, the narrative is driven by the three women, Priya, Malini and Bhumika. I’m always all in to see women take the lead, and in an empire like Parijat these three are the real deal. They’ve all made sacrifices, steeled themselves because they know their power. It’s satisfying, to watch these women fight back in their own monstrous ways when they’re often subdued and burned in Parijat.

The world-building is top notch, to simply put it. We get to know of the different faiths to exists across the kingdoms — the nameless gods, mothers of flame, the yaksa; the history of the nations; the power plays and how imperialism cuts off people from their roots and their cultures are left to fade away.

The magic system does not only add to the fantasy element of the book but also demonstrates the terrible effects of Parijat’s imperial rule over Ahiranya. Tasha handles the oppression and how conquering of nations eats away their own culture and reduces the people to pawns of the empire with sensitivity and sharpness. It’s thought-provoking to us readers.

It’s so beautifully written, there are so many highlights in my copy, of quotes that shook me or passages that haunt me, I wish I could include them all. The dialogue and prose is exceptional and immersive. My favourite instances have to be the ones that describe the setting or architecture of the world. Tasha writes a vivid, ingenious tale of taking what’s stolen from you through characters that are flawed but can’t help rooting for. The pacing perfectly builds up the tensions and events through the book.

Reading The Jasmine Throne felt so comforting. A queer fantasy inspired by my own culture is all I’ve ever wanted and Tasha freaking delivered. The world and setting is so familiar to me, identifying the twists and fresh takes on elements of Indian history and folklore made my reading experience all the more thrilling.

All in all, The Jasmine Throne is a phenomenal story of brutal empires, reclaiming power, love and family. If you’re looking for a cleanly woven plot with interesting characters and a wonderful Indian inspired world, I highly recommend The Jasmine Throne! I cannot wait to see what unfolds in the coming books.

*Rated 4.5/5 stars

The Jasmine Throne is the first book in a fantasy series following a disgraced princess and a maidservant in possession of forbidden magic, who become unlikely allies to save the empire from the princess's traitor brother. It is an excellent start to Tasha Suri’s new fantasy series.

This trilogy is set in an Indian-inspired fantasy world, in the colonized nation of Ahiranya, where rebellion is brewing. It has incredible world-building, with so many layers, and I loved learning as many details as I could about this world. Reading about the politics of this world was interesting, and the fantasy elements were excellent. Tasha Suri also managed to show the diversity of the nations that make the empire through the multi-POVs narrative, especially through the different religions, which I appreciated.

The Jasmine Throne is a multi-POVs fantasy novel, and I enjoyed reading from all of these characters’ points of view, they were all so interesting and complex. The summary mainly mentions Malini, a disgraced princess, and Priya, a maidservant with secrets of her own, but there is also Bhumika, the wife of the regent, Ashok, leader of a rebellion, Rao, prince of another nation, as well as some chapters from the points of view of secondary characters. I loved that all characters were morally grey, and that Tasha Suri makes you understand each character’s motivations. I’m really excited to read the next books in the series when they come out, to see how the characters will evolve, because considering the ending, it will be quite promising. I also really liked the romance between Malini and Priya, and I can’t wait to see how it plays out in the rest of the series.

Just like in her Books of Ambha duology, Tasha Suri’s writing was stunning, and I couldn’t get enough of it. This book is a slow-paced fantasy novel, focusing on the politics of Ahiranya, which I loved. It’s the kind of book you want to savour, it’s a slow-burn with amazing pay-off, and there were so many layers to this story.

Overall, it was an excellent start to an adult fantasy series: it’s a queer indian fantasy novel, it has morally grey characters, excellent world-building, and there are many layers to everything. I adored Tasha Suri's Books of Ambha duology when I read it last year (btw it’s still quite underrated, so please read it!), so I was eagerly awaiting for her next book, and it solidified her as one of my favourite fantasy writers.

3.5 stars

I discovered Tasha Suri with her debut novel Empire of Sand, which I loved with all my heart. So, I was pretty excited to read this new book. Alas, I wasn't completely satisfied. What I loved most was her writing style, so captivating and lyrical. She has a way to describe events and moments that you can't help but lose yourself in them. However, the first part of the book was too slow to my liking, but the second part was more fast-paced. We have magic, political intrigue, conspiracy and rebel groups. I liked the characters but I didn't feel completely connected to them. Consequently, I wasn't involved in the romance either. All in all, it was a good book but some aspects penalized the reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher (Orbit) for providing me with an e-arc of this book. My opinions are my own.

<i>"If you think it is too cold for me, or too cruel. . .
If you don’t know me, if you fail to understand what I want to achieve, you alone are responsible for that.”</i>

This book has all the elements of a great saga. It has fierce women, an evil emperor, and religions with prophesies and magic. I was very excited to read this India-inspired fantasy story!

This book is about the Ahiranyi maidservant Priya. When she is appointed to work at the Hirana temple where princess Malini, the sister of the emperor, is held prisoner, she finds out she is more than she still thought possible. Meanwhile, princess Malini is feeling weaker by the day and is in need of rescue. Not one to give up a fight, she tries everything in her power to get Priya to help her. Which won't be easy, seeing as her brother is a malevolent dictator over Priya's country...

This is one of those books I'll still be thinking about, even though I've finished it. It didn't give me those 'omg I can't stop reading and need to know what happens NOW' kind of vibes. It is more of a simmering story, that creeps into you and makes you invested in it in a way you didn't expect. The main characters aren't the 'strong female characters' we're used to. I mean, they certainly are strong, but they are not lovable. They have a past that has damaged them. They fight for their own survival, and they are willing to do whatever they need to, to reach their goals. They are strong in a world where women are not seen as equal.

There are a lot of things going on in this book. I would have loved to read more about the history of the deathless waters, or about how the empire came to be, or about the rot and how that works exactly. A lot remains a mystery - though that is actually fitting to the story.

This is one of those books that just stay with you. I loved the morally grey characters, I loved the magic. I definitely recommend reading this book!

This book had everything: lush and intricate worldbuilding, complex female protagonists, sapphic yearning, a unique magic system and all of the threads being interwoven in a way that makes me long for the next book.

(Many thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.)

This book is so heartbreakingly beautiful and I’m not sure words can do it justice.

The Jasmine Throne has some of the best world building I’ve ever read. Although incredibly intricate, it is instantly immersive and all consuming. The South Asian inspired setting is beautiful and the author manages to perfectly depict the political and cultural issues of a place over taken by an empire that knows little about it. The magic and religions in this book are so well constructed and described without the need for full disclosure of the scope of them, and I can not wait to learn more about both in the later books.
A word you’ll hear a lot in regard to the main characters is yearning, and for good reason. Priya and Malini are such impeccably complex characters, full of flaws and constantly learning. Both just want to help and protect their people, but because of the state of the empire their paths and necessities differ, meaning they are both in constant battle of choosing between what they must do for the sake of others and what they want for themselves. Neither one can make the other their priority, and yet they treat each other with such heart wrenching tenderness.
So much of this book is about sacrifice and what you would do for love; either for your country, your family, your friends, or the girl you just met and has completely changed your life. Nothing is easy for the pair, and they both deal with conflict from their brothers as well as internal struggle with morality and the political pressures of the responsibility they are each forced to accept.

This book is perfect and I urge everyone to read it.

You know how some trilogies spend all of their first book, filling it out with exposition, and introductions, and why the big baddy is so bad, that by the time you reach the end, the plot has barely started? This isn't one of those, thank God.

There is a lot that happens, while giving us a taste of the character backgrounds, and what has happened to the great nation of Ahiranyi. While at the same time, it sets up a chain of events for the future books. Best of all, it answers questions and doesn't leave me hanging on a cliff, instead it gets me excited for what's to come.

This is a phenomenal story about rebelling against the empire, the family you make, and finding love.

There are maybe 5 points of view to follow, but it never feels overwhelming. The main characters being Priya and Malini, while some excellent chapters of Ashok, Bhumika, Rao are interspersed. I loved all the characters, even the mean ones.

So excited for the next book! The only thing to be sad about is that I have to wait so long for it to arrive.

Read it!!

I would say that this is more of a new adult or adult fantasy novel rather than a young adult one but I have heard some people classifying it as young adult. This is going to be the first book in a new trilogy set in a world built with influence from the history and epics of India. I really count myself lucky to have been given the chance to read an advanced copy of this book because I just know that I am not on my way to pre-order it from my nearest book shop. It is an enemies to lovers female x female book with morally grey characters.

This book has a main cast which include captivating and empowering women who are rising up from under the rule of men. The characters are written with such detail, complexity and are made enchanting enough to steal your heart away. I really loved the writing within this book, as well as the world building which is one that I have yet to read about and explore, it was so vivid, I felt like i could have been there. The only downside for me here was that the plot seemed quite slow and it took me a while to get into the book, maybe around 20% in however, once I did, I didn’t look back.

The book has multiple point of views, which I am a fan of because it gives the reader more than one set of eyes as insight to the world. One of the main characters is called Priya, she is a maidservant with many secrets, another main character is Malini who is a princess and the sister to the current ruler who has her locked away in the Hirana. The relationship between these two starts off as you would expect, maidservant and princess and I will leave it at that, you will need to read it to find out more. There is less emphasis drawn to the men within this book which is why I found this quite female empowering, and I enjoyed that.

Highly recommend this book and really hope you enjoy reading this as much as I did!

Matched the review written on my blog and goodreads. Thank you again!

I've just finished this book and I can't stop thinking about it. It has everything. The world building is incredible, there is beautiful imagery, morally grey characters and a slow burn romance. This is the first book I've read by Tasha Suri and I'm about to purchase Empire of Sand and Realm of Ash because I need more of the authors beautiful writing! Wow!

Okay, this BOOK. I truly don't know what I expected from it, but it was not this. In all the best ways. I'm stumpted at what to say about it - this was such a great read.
The Jasmine Throne follows the intertwined stories of several characters and manages to encompass so many different forms of love - between friends, between family, between lovers, between the loyal and the ones they are devoted to.
The worldbuilding in this book is wonderful, and the part that most transfixed me was the magic (definitely one of the coolest I've read, and exactly my cup of tea - dirt! plant! water that takes as much as it gives!), what it means to not only the characters but to the people, what it might say about or mean for about a strange disease going around (the disease itself left me with SO many questions that I truly hope to get answers to in the following books).
It's such a good beginning to a series, in my opinion at least, because it sucked me in and, while it _does_ have an end, I need! must! know where things go from here! What do the characters do! What to the developments in the story need for them!!
I've seen this book talked about as a desi f/f story and while yes, it is that, it's so much more. The characters and the relationships between them are complex, and the way things were left off ... oh, I need to know where they go from here. I want to know what happens to them.

Do I envy them their magic? Maybe, a little bit. It is not my magic, but I loved the glimpse I got into the world of it. I really hope this story reaches many people once it is out. It deserves to be read. Both by readers of epic fantasy and those who are not.

Thank you to the author for sharing this with us, and thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book!

I'm instantly biased towards any fantasy that has Indian elements. And I could sing praises upon praises for Tasha Suri's writing. The Jasmine Throne is no exception; it has fantastic world building and Priya and Malini are both wonderfully complex characters. The magic system is so unique and so well-done and the plot line, with all the different point of views, coming together to intertwine at the end was soo freaking amazing. I'm so excited for this book to officially release so that I can hold an actual physical copy of this!