I pushed myself to finish this book last night, because I just didn't want to wake up in the morning and know that it was still waiting for me. I kept hoping it would get better. And sometimes, it did, but only briefly. All in all, it just wasn't enough.

I'll start with the positive, which is the Middle Eastern-inspired setting and the magic system. The world itself is interesting—Qalia is a city hidden by magic that the rest of the world has forgotten. The source of it is a spice called misra, from which they brew a tea. Once they drink it, they can use magic for a limited amount of time. Each sorcerer has a specific affinity as well—our main character, Imani, can manipulate the iron in her dagger. I liked the idea of tea fueling the magic. They take it very seriously, and have brewing ceremonies with which they start their day.

The plot itself is fairly straightforward, and consists of a lot of traveling. Imani's brother disappeared after stealing a large amount of misra, and Imani finally has a lead on where he is and is determined to bring him home. They encounter some precarious situations along the way, but none of what happens is very surprising what with all the foreshadowing. Except if your name is Imani, then everything is a shock to the system.

I don't mind reading about unlikeable characters, although I will say that I usually prefer not to read them in first person POV. But Imani was completely insufferable. For someone who is supposedly a great warrior, the Djinni Slayer, you'd think she would be much less naïve. Instead, she spends nearly half the book insisting that her brother would never do something like this and must've been brainwashed, despite all evidence to the contrary, including discussions she had with him that she reflects on. She's also extremely privileged but completely unaware of it, as if it is the most normal thing in the world that everything will be forgiven once she returns with her brother, including her blackmailing Qalia's leaders. She does get called out on this by Taha, but it still takes her an embarrassingly long time to figure out that she is the asshole to all the people in her life.

And even after she has this realization, she really doesn't do anything with it. The biggest example of this is her relationship/romance with Taha. Every interaction between them would start with Taha treating her almost kindly, and then suddenly doing a complete 180 and reverting back to his usual cold aloofness. And I can understand Imani being first confused by this, and then giving him the cold shoulder right back. Instead, she keeps joining him in this ridiculous cycle so that we can get constant internal monologues of, "wow he's so different when we're alone, maybe I like him, why did he just say that to me, he is the WORST I will never trust him again".

I wish I could say that the rest of the characters make up for it, but they really don't. I was mildly interested in Qayn, but the author teases a love triangle between Taha, Qayn, and Imani, and I have no interest in going down that road. I'm really sad that this didn't work for me.

Imani is one of the best shields in the kingdom. Nobody wields a blade like her, and no monster or djinn can stand in her way. When she receives news hinting at more information about her brother's disappearance, she doesn't hesitate. She'll find him, no matter what, even if she has to bite her tongue and work with her rival.

I love how strong and independent Imani is. I can't say the same about her sister, but one can't like all characters. Taha was a little bit annoying too, but at times he redeems himself. This is a great fantasy series with Middle Eastern folklore and magic. I can't wait to read more from this author.

The writing style here just did not work for me at all. I liked the concept, but I felt the execution lacked which was a shame. Considering the moments that really flashed, the connecting pieces of it fell flat.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The concept of this book is incredible. The moment I saw this book announced was the moment I got excited about it. It's just a great idea and I love the way the magic system works and I want so much more of it!

The prose is beautiful and lends itself well to the plot as it develops. Each location in the book is so vivid and the development of the MC as they journey through these locations is gorgeously done. Each character in the cast bring something different to the story and I was intrigued to see how each one would affect the story, with each of them being so unique.

Sadly, I did not love the romance in this one. I didn't particularly like the love interest and found that he only seemed to get more unlikable as the book went on, and not in the broody bad boy way. I found him difficult to care for in any sort of way.

Overall, a solid book and I look forward to seeing where the rest of this story goes.

Actual rating: 3.5/5

3.5 stars. I enjoyed this, the plot was really good and while some of the characters were stronger than others I did like the interactions. I felt the world could have been fleshed out a little more but overall it was a really solid story. I liked it enough to want to pick up the sequel when it is released.

Light not shared is light diminished

This quote from Spice Road says a lot about its characters and what their ultimate goal will be throughout the series, which is to have a world where the strong help the weak.

But this first part only lays the groundwork for it and has its own storyline which gripped me from the very start. I mean tea magic, djinns, pirates, warrior heroine, and a middle eastern inspired kingdom..what not to like?

It is an action-packed book where a sister goes to find her brother in an unknown land. And discovers herself on the way. With Imani, we also learn that while our younger siblings would always be kids to us, they are their own person and should grow up on their own terms.

I loved how the characters have all these secrets which creates the mood to learn more about them. Especially Qayn..his character can have a book dedicated to him and I would gladly read it. And Taha, he is so complex..you never know what he could be thinking or desiring. There is so much pain in his heart ready to be seen and understood.

I loved the enemy to status-unknown trope. It made me fuzzy and frustrated to read the scenes they share..the push & pull between them, their differences, their attraction, and their fight.

Overall, a great new fantasy and a brilliant new world to follow.

Trigger warning: violence

A great debut YA novel to open an engaging trilogy. Having themes anchored in social justice, colonisation, empire building and equality makes this a relevant title for young adults. Anchoring this in the Fantasy world ensures that the story is never preachy or didactic as it's a thoroughly engaging and enjoyable adventure story. The flawed main character learns lessons about herself in a range of authentic and age appropriate ways and finds strength by trusting those she may not have done so in the past.
I really loved the adventure in this novel. Imani has to fight for what she believes in but I also love how her understanding of what has influenced her beliefs encourages her to redraw her own ethical boundaries and her interactions with others. The authentic ways that she learns would both be helpful for middle years teens and without sermonising may help them establish their own beliefs and behaviours - even if they don't have to think about how they might wield their magical powers!
I enjoyed that it's clear that there is more to come but also the fact that this volume had a thoroughly satisfying close. Enough questions were answered while still opening up a range of questions for the future volumes, which I can't wait to read.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for accepting my request to read and review Spice Road!

I alternatied between the audiobook and ebook, and found no fault with either. The audiobook narrator was perfect and easy to listen to.

Starting off, I have to say that the beginning of this book had me hooked in REAL GOOD. I was so intrigued by this world, by the magic system through abilities amplified by the tea, and the school for shields. I loved how quickly we got to realising what the main plot would follow, and how quickly we got to meen Qayn (by the way - how dreaamy).

Soon in though, I did find that some of the titles being thrown around e.g. the protagnost is the BEST warrior did not make sense. She is trained as a shield dedicatedly and yet her character shows zero critical thinking nor general regard for the consequences of her actions. She is hot-tempered and goes against what everyone tells her, and we see her asking people for help and not being a good friend nor sister or daughter in her quest to retrieve her brother (seemingly against his will).

I also found it kind of jarring that the other cities existed for this long and somehow no one found out about it?

I did love the conversations regarding white colonizers and the way they destroy countries and peoples in their brutual ways. I think theres alot to be read between the lines there.

Overall I really did enjoy this book, I did find that the plot had a tendency to lull between the big dramatic moments and it was quite tropey, but at the end of the day it was super fun and a fast read.

In the hidden desert city of Qalia, secret spice magic awakens the affinities of those who drink the misra tea. With her affinity for iron, seventeen-year-old Imani can wield a dagger like no other - and for that she has gained a reputation as the next greatest Shield, battling djinn, ghouls, and the other monsters spreading across the sands.

A book that exceeds all my expectations is a book that I am sure going to recommend for years! I have always loved stories inspired by Arabian folktales, cultural elements and legends (Rebel of the Sands is my all time fave book!), so I was super excited to read Spice Road!

This gripping, unputtable YA fantasy is going to be your new favorite! The story is definitely plot and adventure-driven, so if this is something you like, you must pick it up. For the fans of character-driven stories, this book does not lack in beautiful and flawed characters. Their developement throughout the situations they get into in the story is remarkable and I think is very well-written! One of the best arcs I have read! I absolutely adored Imani (her caring soul) and Qayn's (the big mouthed djinn) dynamic.

So before I spoil the whole book with my lengthy review and word-rush, here are a few aspects I LOVED in this book, and I think you will too:
- spices and tea wields magic is probably the most unique and epic fantasy element
- enchanting setting: Arabian-inspired, lushious descriptions of the desert and the Eastern World!
- rich descriptions, beautiful iagery and lyrical prose
- perfectly realistic characters and their flaws - leads to great character developements!
- a very mysterious, witty and always ready to argue djinn companion
- also explores topics like family relationships, priviledges and colonialism
- assassin in progress

Thank you so much for the publisher, the author and Netgalley for my advanced e-galley! All thoughts are my own.

first of all, thank you to netgalley and hodder & stoughton for providing me with an arc! i’ve heard so much about this book and i was very much excited abt going in.

i didn’t like this as much as i thought i would. some of the things i liked about this was the overall plot and also the first few chapters of introduction and the world building. however, my main issues stem from the characters and the romance.

i didn’t like imani - it first going from me thinking that her character was written that way in the beginning for “character development” purposes of her not knowing how privileged she is and how close minded she felt about atheer and the shields, so that she would somehow change her mind during the journey. it did end up a little like that i guess which i would count a win, but her stubbornness and her decision making during the middle really wasn’t something i enjoy as she is always written as someone “brave” (which i didn’t really see as well). i also didn’t like most of the characters so that didn’t help as well. qayn is the only one i’m interested in reading tbh.

the romance! i think characters aside, i would enjoy this book without the romance between imani and the love interest. it did intrigued me at first as those little moments when they were alone were cute but the suddenness of imani’s crush and the way she went back and forth saying she liked him after a little bit of kindness and then not trusting him a minute after just gave me whiplash. i really did not care abt the back and forth romance.

giving this a 3 because i did really like the plot but i feel like i would’ve enjoyed it more if the romance side plot was put aside because that was really the 1 thing that turned me off. not sure whether i’ll be following the series or not but this definitely has potential. would really love to know more about the world building bc it was the one interesting aspect that i think could be explored a lot more in the second one

I really enjoyed the premise of this book however I found the magic system a tad confusing and hard to understand.

The characters were all very well written and rounded but I would have liked more of a back story for them. Maybe we will find out more in the next 2 books.

Would recommend but wouldn’t run to buy the next part

I had high hopes for this novel, especially as it is the first in a planned trilogy, but unfortunately it left me wanting. Its promising plot, which revolved around adventure and mythology, was let down by an underdeveloped world and characters. There were moments when facts about the magic system confused me. I think more world-building would have helped remedy this as it would have made the author’s fantasy realm feel more real.

I liked the idea of Imani more than how she actually was in the novel. She was described as a fearsome warrior but her fighting background was never properly delved into. At times she could be overly whiny but luckily she improved over the course of the novel, growing in compassion and becoming more open-minded.

Unfortunately, none of the supporting characters stood out for me. They were either thinly drawn or just plain annoying. Imani’s flighty younger sister Amira was particularly infuriating as she consistently acted without thinking and did not take others into consideration. Taha also got on my nerves as he seemed to have a split personality – one minute fawning over Imani, the next callously ignoring her. This would not bode well for any future romance as it could only ever be toxic. I thought that the djinni Qayn was underutilised. He brought unexpected charisma to each scene he was in but those were few and far between. Also, I wasn’t quite sure about the power dynamic between Imani and Qayn and I wished their relationship was developed further.

I was disappointed that this novel didn’t embrace the energy of a quest. The action sequences weren’t immersive and a real sense of danger was lacking. While there were some great ideas, I couldn’t quite muster up excitement for them. Sadly, I doubt I’ll want to continue on with the series.

OVERALL: While being a solid start to what could be an exciting trilogy, this first instalment didn’t develop its fantasy world or characters enough for me to get invested in their journey.

As a reader who like fantasy story with strong elements from different countries, I cant missed this one. Spice Road was following a young shield warrior name Imani who endure long journey from home to clean up and save her lost brother. She lived in desert city of Qalia, a beautiful mysterious place inspired by middle east world where magic was awakened by special blend misra spice tea.

The writing is good and easy to read even with all foreign name and lore. The premise and magic system sound so cool and promising, but this first installment still open for some improvement. I appreciate the family bonding become main theme in this journey adventure but this kind of plot not really my favorite. It is very details for some small scenes but for important details still lacking and I found my self lost with confusion. I wish explanation and extra depth from this intriguing world.

Imani, Taha and Qayn was strong characters. But all of them wasn't flesh out for me. Their personality is lack of depth and sadly isnt memorable. Alot supporting characters being introducing but I cant feel any connection with them. Their journey was dangerous and they must fight all creatures lurking in the sand. But I feel all those fighting scenes are low stakes and isnt highlighting the best skill of our characters. I wish the next installment will stronger than this one.

Thank you Hodder and Stoughton for provided me another great book. I truly enjoyed this one and my thoughts are my own

2023 shouldn’t be the year in which I’m still forcing myself to finish a book that is so bad, it nearly reduced me to tears but here we are. Unfortunately, Spice Road or, as I started referring to it, Spice Toad was exactly that kind of book.

I don’t want to bore you or myself with recapping the story’s set-up so let’s dive straight into whatever this hot mess of a book is:

There is Imani, our lead character, who is said to be extremely good with a blade, she is the BEST djinni slayer of all the Shields, she “wields a dagger like no other warrior” blah blah, she’s not like other girls, we get it. I looooaaaaathe when characters are said to be THE BEST or GREATEST soldier/fighter/spy/whatever and then we are never shown how or why. Imani swaggers around with her little dagger and all readers get is ONE fight against some monsters, just ONE, while being constantly reminded just how capable a Shield she is.
Listen to me, no one in their right mind would deem that girl in the least bit capable judging by her actions throughout the book. She says one thing and does the other, can’t lie to save her life, constantly endangers the mission she wanted to go on, and overall does not present herself as “the next greatest Shield.”

Now, whom of the TWO as-interesting-and-unique-as-a-sack-of-rice love interests should I describe next? And yes, two love interests, as in LOVE TRIANGLE which expired in August… OF 2012. The way I’m getting green around the gills just thinking about the love triangle trope, someone hand me a bucket. 🤡

Let’s start with Taha, who is your regular YA male love interest cardboard cut-out. By now I’m simply out of energy when it comes to complaining about tall, green-eyed, “six-foot-two and built like a stallion” (direct quote from the book, I’m not kidding) boylies with sharp cheekbones and dark hair. I feel like I’m screaming into nothingness when I say that diverse (YA) books aren’t truly diverse until male love interests can be any size and shape imaginable and that there is nothing inherently feminist about making your heroine fall in love with the same chiselled, six-pack hunk of a man (*cough* boylie) in every second book published today but okay, screaming into the abyss it is.

“Maybe he just looks like every other male love interest but has a unique personality?”

No. He is literally Draco Malfoy. He bullies, belittles, or ignores Imani every chance he gets and what does Imani do? Fall for him anyway because she begins to see the bully as “the tortured, lonely boy who just wants to please his abusive father”. Girl, you are being PLAYED.

He is elated, and something about that thrills me deeply. My stomach drops.
Oh no, I think. No, no, it can’t be. It isn’t. We’ve been spending too much time together, that’s all, especially after he ignored me for so long, and he is so imposing with his swagger.

Stop your pining, girl, it’s not like you can’t turn a corner to find twenty more of his sort waiting around to be nice to you when the two of you are alone but bully you when surrounded by their friends. Husband material right here and there! 😍😍

Of course, he is special 💅🏼, too, in that he is a beast seer who can control the mind of his pet falcon and who is also an incredible archer, fighter, whatever job title you can think of. Yet when Imani, who CAN’T LIE for her own good, tries to lie to his face, he doesn’t even notice.

His head turns and he looks across the plain.
Heat rises in me. “Something the matter?”
“Missing some things,” he murmurs.
“Ah. Hmm.” I fold my arms over my chest where the letter is hidden.
He sighs. “Anyway, what about you?” he asks, looking up at me.
I start on the spot. “Me? What do you mean?”

Bro, something is not clicking and it’s not just the #wattpad-like writing. This is how I wrote a scene in which a character was very obviously lying when I was 12.

But let’s not forget about, ✨Qayn✨, love interest no. 2. Again, I don’t know what to say about the fact that ofc he, too, has a six-pack, is alluringly beautiful, has dark hair, and *checks smudged writing on hand* oh yeah, he is another one of those boys who is also a 1000+-year-old djinni with immense power (which was taken away from his, so sad 😔). Anyway, it’s giving Shadow & Bone meets City of Bones, it’s giving cringe, it’s giving 2012, it’s giving take me the hell away from here.

The thing is, even when I didn’t have to deal with those two boys or Imani, there was still Amira, whose personality traits are 1) being annoying and 2) being the MC’s sister. She spends the first half of the book being an annoying brat and the second half crying on Imani’s shoulder. There was nothing else for her to do and it felt like the author didn’t really know what to do with this character once she became part of the group.

“You’ve covered all the characters, surely you have at least something nice to say about the writing?”

Yeah no, put that in your pan and lick it.

I was once told not to throw around accusations of plagiarism too lightly and I’m not doing it here, but I do want to say that there is a very fine line between paying homage to other works of fiction in your own books by basically quoting them, and using other people’s work for the sole purpose of bolstering your own.

Take this quote, for example:
“Grief is a puzzling thing, the most; it is mangled love persist- ing in spite of the world’s best efforts to hinder it.”

I didn’t suffer through the trauma that is WandaVision not to know a Marvel quote when I see one, please don’t think me stupid. Hell, if you copy the quote from the novel and paste it into Google, your first two results are LITERALLY the WandaVision quote.

Now, I could have let this stand if it hadn’t been for the following:

“I am but a simple djinni trying to make his way in the world.” from Star Wars: Attack of the Clones

and

“If you’ve only distressing things to say, pack your forked tongue back into your mouth, snake from LOTR: The Two Towers

“You will die before your arrow flees the bow” which, oh hey, is also from LOTR!!
description

as well as

“‘I do not know what awaits you on this journey, but a lamppost in the dark is often all one needs to find one’s way.' The crystal vial” with the whole concept of the crystal vial containing blueish-white light to show you the way when you are lost taken straight from—ah, you’ve already guessed it...

I hope the author didn’t think readers are stupid enough to notice, because trust me, I have noticed and I bet there are even more in there that I didn’t notice. If the writing had been a lot better, I don’t think I would have minded as much. But with writing as shoddy as this I very much did mind.

No novel since “´The Song of Achilles” has been able to make first-person narrative sound good and Spice Toad fails gloriously. The problem with 1st person POV is always how to supply readers with the necessary information they need to understand the world the characters inhabit without making it sound stupid. This often results in characters saying the most obvious things out loud (or thinking them) with the sole purpose of telling the reader what xy is.

I draw the dagger strapped to my thigh, through which I am able to channel my magical affinity.

The resulting dialogues were incredibly stilted:

“What do you want?” Taha asks when he notices my arrival.
“To help,” I say, looking between them. “What can I do?” “How about go away?” Reza suggests brightly.
I purse my lips. Pleasant thoughts, Imani. When you see
Atheer again, this will all be worth it. “My food was lost too. I’d like to contribute.”

Furthermore, there was an absolute overabundance of metaphors, metonymies, and similies that often enough were little more than hot air.

Time stretches. Waits, almost, with bated breath in the lengthening shadow of suspense. Then it exhales.

I swipe my tongue along my lips. They are parched, as rough as the surface of sandstone [...] The statement soars back at me like a spear and hits me square in the chest. I hunch forward, pressing a hand over my pounding heart [...] An angry vise pinches my temples, interrupting the thought.

And the characters endure all this trauma only for Imani’s takeaway to be the same as the most-said word in the Fast and the Furious franchise: FAMILY (in Vin Diesel’s voice).

Tired doesn’t even begin to describe the state I was in when I finally finished this. I’m just glad I didn’t spend any money on it as this was a NetGalley ARC. Bro, the things I do to keep my reviewer rating up.

This book was just like any other YA fantasy book, point blank. I didn't see any differences. The plot and the characters' personalities were the same. The story was good, but I couldn't find something special about it.

Spice Road by Maiya Ibrahim ☕️🧞

Thank you for this eArc!!

I’m definitely leaning towards more 4.5 stars!

I am an absolute sucker for fantasy set in this setting, there’s something about it that’s magical to begin with so I knew I had to read this!

This book wastes no time in getting stuck straight into the story and I was glad for it with it being nearly 500 pages long

It’s action packed from start to finish with a quest, a rescue mission, an ancient city, family matters, a rebellion and magical tea (as a typical brit who is a tea drinker this was greatly appreciated)

The character development was lacking slightly and could’ve done with more depth but with the focus on the close family relationships and the motives for what they were doing, it compensated for this

I will definitely be reading book 2 in this trilogy as something is definitely brewing in this world (I couldn’t resist)

Actual rating 4,5/5⭐

Spice Road is the first book of a new Middle-Eastern inspired fantasy trilogy. There's a special tea in the Sahir that could make its drinker have a certain magical affinity that lasts only for a day. Imani (the MC) is a 17 y.o girl warrior who has steel manipulation affinity to an extent. Since her brother was presumed dead, she’s been doing whatever she could to avoid grief, unlike her little sister, Amira, who believed that their brother was still alive.

One day Imani & Amira found solid proof that their brother might still be alive. She told the Council, and they agreed to depart a small team to bring him back. That small team included Imani and her mortal rival, Taha.

The journey itself was hard even without additional obstacles, and both Imani and Taha have secrets that they should keep from each other. Soon they developed a complicated relationship, where Taha seemed to dislike Imani in front of other members but his personality was completely different when they were alone.

I requested this book’s ARC because it’s pitched as “perfect for fans of Sabaa Tahir and Elizabeth Lim” and that gave me excitement and anxiety at once because I LOVE their books and my expectation was automatically high. Yes I got similar vibes with those authors' books, but this is actually quite different. More importantly, I’m soo glad that it did NOT disappoint<3

The writing is stunning but not overly done. Maiya knows exactly how to put a fun scene with banters, engaging plot, and tense situations perfectly. All the characters have strong personalities, including the side characters and I love that so much. Imani is the perfect “imperfect” character for this book. She has a lot of good traits but Maiya didn't forget to give Imani something that made me want to strangle her affectionately sometimes (most of the time I wanted to strangle Taha but I won't elaborate). The love-hate relationship between Imani & Amira was relatable. But of all the characters, I like Qayn the most (who’s him? Read this book to find out😉) I hope there’s more scenes of him in the next book(s).

In conclusion: read this book. It’s an impressive debut.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me this arc in exchange for an honest review*

This was an excellent book and I loved it. I read it two times just because. The pacing and the world building were really awesome. The characters were really good and developed beautifully. I can't wait for the second book.

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for the ARC 🫡

First of all : I am in love with this book!! Every other book I read this year better be ready to fight for first place on my list of favorite 2023 books ⚔️

Spice Road is a YA Fantasy set in an Arabian-inspired world filled with magic and mayhem✨ it’s unlike anything I’ve read in terms of fantasy inspired by the Arabian culture and I loved every aspect of it. The magic system was a breath of fresh air and tbh I’m just jealous of the worldbuilding 👀

The action filled plot and the lush writing style were what drew me into the story but it was the characters, and their relationships with one another, that ultimately made this book speak to my heart. I love the way the story centers around siblings who’ll do anything for each other. And I also loved how flawed they were but at the same time everyone was just trying to do ✨their best✨

If you like dashing adventures, plot twists that’ll keep you at the edge of your seat and nuanced characters that will make your heart bleed and sing at the same time, this book is for you 😌

Spice Road comes out on January 24th, don’t forget to grab a copy 💜