For She is Wrath is a a brilliant book about feminine rage, vengeance and righteous anger. I did really enjoy the book, but those aren't really emotions I like to focus on so don't really feel I can give it a 5 star for me personally. However, I would still recommend it as a mood read. The setting and worldbuilding were amazing, south east asian fantasy isn't something I've read much of before.

This ambitious YA fantasy novel was well-written and pacy. It immediately set off running. While this piqued my interest, it ultimately didn’t get me emotionally invested in the drama the characters were facing. This lack of build-up tempered the intensity of the scenes, so that they didn’t pack the emotional punch they could have. I wished the order of certain of events were rearranged, allowing me to feel for the characters more.

I wasn’t instantly drawn to Dania or interested in her revenge mission. She had a sharp personality and an extremely dogged mindset, neither of which I vibed with. She was an efficient cleaning machine, so efficient that I became desensitised to the frequent fighting/violence. I was waiting for Dania to unveil another dimension to her character.

I liked Dania’s friendship with the fellow escapee Noor, but Noor really was purely there to attempt to be a voice of reason for Dania. She was a side character who was very much on the side.

I’m all for a prominent romance sub-plot, but I found the romance itself to be very weak. Dania's irrational fixation on Mazin got repetitive fast, and if anything, made me root for the couple less.

Overall, even though I liked what this novel could have been, I crucially never became invested in the heroine’s mission. I thought the characters were flat and the emotional scenes lacked build-up.

While I thought the overall concepts for this Pakistani fantasy inspired by The Count of Monte Cristo were wonderfully imaginative and interesting, I found it a bit lacking in character development and depth. Dania and Noor just feel a bit lacklustre and I'm not sure that Dania in particular had a strong enough character to carry this kind of story. Main is a very stereotypical villain too, and felt very much like an over the top antagonist. There was no subtly involved. I loved the magic system though, and I thought it cleverly blended the original ideas of stolen identity from The Count of Monte Cristo into a more magical interpretation.

Overall a bit hit or miss for me, but there are some nice ideas.

----------- WHAT I ENJOYED ------------
- This is a book that, after reading the synopsis, had me feeling super excited, and so I was really happy and grateful to get an arc for this one. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint!! For She is Wrath is a book that is filled with drama, angst and chaos, and I was completely here for it.

- This story is one of vengeance, and so is filled with schemes fuelled by rage, where our main character is simultaneously looking to fulfil personal vendettas, whilst also working to tear down the patriarchal systems within her society. Seeing all of her schemes fall into place was so entertaining, and I could never guess what was going to happen next! This, combined with the "lovers to enemies" idea, not only flipped popular tropes on their heads, but also created a really refreshing and engaging plot. And honestly? There was so much more angst and drama than enemies to lovers - I definitely recommend if you are a fan of that trope!

- Our main character, Dania, takes morally grey to a whole new level. She is such an interesting character to follow as she is ridiculously intelligent and brutal, and so her plans were always super entertaining as she pulled no punches. She is someone who has nothing left to lose and is the embodiment of female rage, and so she takes risks and is pushed purely by desperation. This really helped to make this story completely unpredictable and always kept me on the edge of my seat!

- Dania is off-set by our other character, Noor, who she meets at the beginning of the book...in prison. Their connection was everything to me - Noor was 100% my favourite character. She was the light in the story, bringing the sarcasm and sass to their journey. Honestly, this made her character even more heart-breaking in ways, as she is just trying to hold everything together because Dania is the only person she has left. She was the one character that I desperately wanted to be okay, because I loved her so much! 😭

- The relationship between Dania and Noor was one of the highlights of this story for me, as it was forged through trauma and shared rage. They are desperate to hold onto their anger to avoid confronting their individual loss, and so help lead each other down this dark path of vengeance. But the more we see of their journey, the more desperate they get because they don't know how to continue what they are doing without losing themselves. They try and tether each other to their humanity, and it was so difficult to see play out at times, but it also created such a profound conversation surrounding the topics of grief, loss, and friendship.

- Now, as well as having fantastic characters and an engaging plot, this story was also set in a really interesting world! The blurb states that this is a "Pakistani romantic fantasy", and we can see this influence woven throughout the book, making this world feel so rich in culture. The political landscape was also super interesting, as the magic was used as a political chess piece rather than being a natural element of the world. It was an interesting use of a magic system - magic became a symbol for how resources are used to create a power imbalance within society. This not only allowed the author to explore different facets of the society she created, but also allowed room for reflection on the current state of our own world too. It was honestly just a joy to explore this fantasy setting!

------- WHAT DIDN'T WORK FOR ME -------
- The main thing that threw me off a little bit with this book was the pacing. At times near the middle, some conversations between our characters felt a bit repetitive, which slowed down the pace. But then, near the end, it completely switched up, and it was like we hit warp-speed!

- Everything wrapped up so quickly, so it was a bit hard to take it all in.
And a lot happened in the last 10% of this book. While it was all really fun to follow, I just wish that more time had been spent on fleshing everything out a bit more. It felt like the author knew what she wanted to fit in, but didn't leave enough space to wrap it all up. And so we were just getting scene after scene, going through a lot of reveals, but with no time to process anything. It left the ending feeling a bit unsatisfying for me, to be honest. Which was really upsetting because I loved the rest of this book!

Thank you again to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

HOW is this a debut?? Blown away doesn't cover it.

I really enjoyed this book. Just the right balance of feminine rage, enemies to lovers and girl power. I couldn't put it down. It's one of those books that will have you thinking about the plot five years from now.

The magic system was different to what I'm used to reading, and rather refreshing. Though at times it could have triggered an addict. Besides that, I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking to read YA fantasy with a lot of revenge, and a dash of romance.

For She Is Wrath is a brilliant YA romantasy filled with yearning and righteous anger.

I was hooked from the opening line and absolutely adored Dania and Noor. The characterisations in this were fantastic and I had so much fun watching their adventures. The romance is everything; the chemistry between Dania and Mazin was electric.

“Did you think I wouldn’t know you? I’d know you with any face. Any skin. Any hair. A thousand djinn could disguise you from me and I’d still be able to find you just by the sound of your breath.”

This has all the elements you know and love from romantasy with the flare you expect from The Count of Montecristo.

I would highly recommend this easy to read delightful debut!

Struggled with this one to be honest. A very dry and repetitive main character, a side character who's mostly forgotten except to help the plot move along and every fight scene is filled with cheesy one liners like a very poor comic book movie.

This book is brilliant! The path of vengeance Dani finds herself on was captivating right from the start and the pacing is excellent. EV has an easy writing style that flows beautifully, and an endearing cast of characters that compliment one another well. I'm excited to read whatever this author publishes next

4.5/5 rounded down

For she is wrath is a fantasy romance retelling of The count of monte cristo. It follows Dania, a skilled swordswoman who was imprisoned for a crime she did not commit and Noor, her friend who was also falsely imprisoned as they enact their revenge.

I have not read The count of monte cristo so I do not know where the similarities start and end. Or how much inspiration the book takes from Dumas' classic.

"You don't get to decide my retribution"

Dania is the morally grey FMC we all deserve. She is not afraid to kill or hurt in the name of vengeance and justice.

"Being a girl never stopped me from stabbing someone who deserved it"

This book had me hooked from page 1. It is fast paced and action packed, the story had me on the edge of my seat and kept me enthralled. The friendship between Dania and Noor was written beautifully. They were different sides of the same coin. Their interactions and arguments were believable and precious. Honestly, I could have read more pages of just the two of them traveling and plotting their revenge.

At 400 pages this book isn't short but it did feel like sometimes some plot points were a bit rushed. I would have liked to see more plotting and different ways of taking down those who betrayed them.

Now the romance. This book is enemies to lovers to enemies and then back to lovers. I really enjoyed the flashbacks of Dania and Mazin seeing how their relationship started and developed in their teens up to the point where he betrays her and leaves her incarcerated. Their connection was also very beautiful and I loved how he recognised her through the Djinn magic and the reveals of what actually happened had me tearing up.

"Did you think I wouldn't know you? I'd know you with any face. Any skin. Any hair. A thousand djinn could disguise you from me and I'd still be able to find you just by the sound of your breath."

A very strong debut from Emily Varga. I'd love to read more from her in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's books for providing an ARC copy for review. All opinions are my own.

This is the story of Dania who ends up in prison for a crime she didn't commit.
This is a retelling of the Count of Monte Cristo.
Dania meets Noor in prison who is already digging out. There is a collapse in the tunnel and Noor is hurt however they manage to escape.
I found there was a lot of focus on Dana's anger (I know that is the title meaning) but it took up an awful lot of the story.
I did like Noor but her character isn't really built on as much as i would like.
I found it quite slow and I don't think I would read another book by this author.
It was however interesting to see how the author handled the retelling.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley.

Usually this type of book is right up my alley, I love Y/A fantasy, feminine rage and dark magic. For some reason this book simply did not do it for me. Objectively it's good, I like the premise and the writing, it was just really slow to me and hard to get into.

I quite liked this — I thought it was a fantastic debut from Emily Varga and I’m excited to see what she does next. This book was good, and as an author I think Varga has a ton of potential that will only grow.

The world building was quite good, the writing very vivid — I could feel the world around me and easily imagine the settings.

The plot was exciting and I really loved both Dania and Noor. I liked their friendship and the found family aspect of their relationship, and I liked seeing them bond over the course of the book and the sacrifices they would make for each other and the sacrifices they wouldn’t make if it meant losing each other.

I do think at times the plot felt a little slow and a little repetitive and was slow to go forward and I wish we had more development in terms of the politics of the world, but ultimately the book was quite solid in what it was trying to do. I just wish we got more on the Djinn! For such a prominent part of the book I felt it was rather unexplored.

All in all, I did like this and I’d be interested in future sequels or spin offs.

Dania is a tough, skilled swordswoman who finds herself imprisoned for a crime she didn’t commit. plotting her revenge on those who framed her, she finds friendship in Noor, and the two set out to seek vengeance together.

“𝘿𝙞𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪? 𝙄’𝙙 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚. 𝘼𝙣𝙮 𝙨𝙠𝙞𝙣. 𝘼𝙣𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙞𝙧. 𝘼 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙟𝙞𝙣𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙜𝙪𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄’𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝.”

the cover was what sucked me in originally but damn, i fell in love with this story and it’s characters.

despite being a retelling, this was still unique, action-packed and exciting; i was hooked to the point of not wanting to put the book down.
as a big enemies-to-lovers/ lovers-to-enemies etc. etc. lover, this was executed flawlessly and reminded me why i love the trope so much.

thank you to netgalley & the publisher for the arc. this rating and review are honest and entirely my own.

"A thousand djinn could disguise you from me and I’d still be able to find you just by the sound of your breath.”

I absolutely loved and devoured this book.

The narration was amazing and the world-building and setting was everything!!

The romance was timed just right and the tension between Dania and Mazin was everything. I love enemies to lovers to enemies to lovers again. The cycle of hate and vengeance that Dania as a character held was so well done and her female rage was beautifully written and narrated. I absolutely adored the romance, the Pakistani representation and influences, through the clothing, food and makeup. I saw a lot of myself in the characters outfits and clothings. I also loved the friendship between Daniyah and Noor.

The magic system including Djinn was such a refreshing take and lovely to see. It means everything seeing Pakistani culture being in a mainstream form of media. Especially in a fantasy book.

I absolutely loved the story overall. I highly recommend it anyone who is interested in a South Asian romantasy..

🔥 For She Is Wrath • Emily Varga 🔥
★★★.5

Read if you enjoy:
🔥 YA fantasy
🔥 Strong female friendship
🔥 Girls out for revenge
🔥 Betrayals that cut deep
🔥 King’s with far too much power
🔥 Prison escapes
🔥 The sound of Djinn powers
🔥 Throne of Glass

Dania was betrayed by the boy she loved and imprisoned for a year. Despite the torture she undergoes in prison, Dania continues to plot her escape, and her revenge, which feels more possible when Dania meets Noor.

This was a Pakistani reimagining of The Count of Monte Cristo that had explosive potential. Dania is a bloodthirsty main character with a feisty disposition and a grudge that has just got her through the worst year of her life. Unfortunately, I did feel that most of her wrath was Dania describing how she would enact out her wrath rather than actually executing her wrath 😂. But I adored the dynamics between her and Noor, and though this is a standalone fantasy, I could definitely see Noor having her own book! She came across as quite enigmatic to me. I’d also love to explore more of the world as the supernatural Djinn’s are super intriguing! I would have just preferred more devious revenge than pondering over vendetta’s.

“You don’t get to decide my retribution.”

“Being a girl never stopped me from stabbing someone who deserved it.”

“It didn’t go with my outfit.”
I stared at her. “A knife goes with every outfit.”
“You only say that because you clearly pick your outfits based on your knives. Most people do it the other way around.”

“I am a tool of vengeance now,” I uttered. “I exist to destroy those who came for me and my family.”

This was so good! For she is wrath is a story about revenge and feminine rage and I ate it up! It was the best.

A gripping tale of friendship and love fueled by vengeance.


“Dani, you know I’ll follow you anywhere.”

This story had me hooked from the very begining. It was fast paced, action packed and the flow of the book was very nice.

Dania was truly a force to be reckoned with. Raised by her father, practically born with a sword in her hand, she meant business. Powered by her need for vengeance, it was really interesting to read Dania's inner turmoil when it came to Mazin. I mean, the man did betray her after claiming to love her, as angry as one would be, the feelings wouldn't just go away.

Noor & Dania - the friendship between them was so beautifully written. I imagine there is a special kind of bond you form with a person you escape prison with. They were different sides of a same coin, balancing each other out.

I truly enjoyed this book and Emily Varga did a fantastic job bringing these characters and story to life. I completely immersed myself into the book and felt every emotion Dania felt.

For She is Wrath is one of my favourite reads this year.

I got to 26% and over 100 pages before I just couldn’t continue.

It’s a very mid book, with a very young writing style. The main character’s internal monologue was very grating and she lacked so much depth.

I was so excited for this book (even got two special editions as I thought this would be one I loved!!) and I’m so disappointed.

The constantly attempt to make the MC like Arya from Game of Thrones was also incredibly irritating and unoriginal.

3.75 ⭐️

If you’re looking for books filled with feminine rage and revenge plots, this is one for you. A Pakistani inspired retelling of the Count of Monte Cristo, this book focuses on Dania’s mission to get revenge on those who betrayed her and sent her to a hell-hole of a prison for the last year.

A chance encounter with another wannabe escapee leads to a female friendship subplot which is a great contrast to the main lover betrayal plot (or should I say enemies to friends, to lovers, to enemies again plot).

I loved the elements of Pakistani culture layered throughout and the premise of this story was fantastic. However, it did fall down slightly on the execution for me and I was just left wanting a bit more from the action and the magic system. I don’t feel like we ever got much explanation or insight into the djinns which is where the magic came from, which would have been one of the most interesting elements for me.

Currently struggled to finish but will likely pick up again in future. It's a good book, the story is enjoyable just right now I am finding it is not clicking with me to want to read more