A count of monte christo gender swapped retelling
I found this book ok
She wasn’t very wrathful and I did find her a hypocrite a bit but I love the original story so enjoyed those elements and I like the addition of magic but it wasn’t that much and more like illegal consumable substances

I just feel like this just fell a little short for me but I enjoyed it still

This was such a unique and captivating ya book. I really enjoyed the narrative and our FMC was strong and fiesty.

The perfect starting place for young readers who are looking for a story of a strong powerful young girl with female rage.

I also listened to the audio for this and the narrator does a fantastic job. Highly recommend checking this one out.

I absolutely loved this book! The story was captivating and exceptionally well-written, making it a joy to read. It was the kind of book that grips you from the first page and keeps you turning until the very end. The balance between the intricately woven revenge plot and the romance subplot was perfect, keeping me on the edge of my seat one moment and laughing the next.

The "enemies to lovers" trope was executed flawlessly here. The progression from animosity to romance was natural and seamless, especially in the earlier chapters, where the shift felt organic and heartfelt. I was completely enamoured by it. I also adored the friendship between Dania and Noor—it was refreshing to see two characters supporting and standing up for each other so strongly.

The revenge-driven narrative was masterfully crafted, unfolding in layers that kept me guessing. The final twist left me stunned—it was entirely unexpected and brilliantly done. This book truly stands out as a must-read for anyone who enjoys an engaging and unpredictable story.

Dania, the heroine, is someone you can’t help but root for. She’s a strong, accomplished fighter and survivor, but what makes her so compelling is her complexity. Beneath her tough exterior, she has vulnerabilities and deeply cares for her loved ones. Her backstory was gripping, making her motivations for revenge so easy to understand. Her relationship with her father was also a beautifully written touch that added warmth to her otherwise brutal journey.

After being betrayed by the boy she loved and falsely imprisoned for 364 days, Dania endured torture at the hands of the infamous prison warden, Touffsa. The warden was a cruel and vengeful antagonist, perfectly written to make your skin crawl. Dania’s quest for vengeance is aimed at Mazin, her former lover and Emperor Vahid's right-hand man, as well as Darbaran, the traitor who helped orchestrate her imprisonment.
While in prison, Dania’s life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Noor, a young girl trying to escape the same brutal conditions. Noor’s skills with zoraat—a rare plant that grants the empire its wealth and power—become key to their shared plan of escape and eventual overthrow of the empire. Their bond was one of my favourite aspects of the story. Noor served as Dania’s moral compass, balancing her darker tendencies with wisdom and restraint.

Dania’s inner struggle was deeply moving. Her thirst for vengeance was understandable, yet it put her at risk of becoming what she despised most. This moral complexity made her journey so compelling—I found myself torn between cheering her on and dreading the consequences of her choices. The moments where Dania’s pain and vulnerability shone through were heart-wrenching, and I even shed a few tears at a twist I didn’t see coming.

Mazin, on the other hand, was an intriguing and enigmatic character. While I didn’t particularly like him, his role in the story was essential and well-written. The tension between him and Dania added an edge to their interactions, and I was constantly questioning his true motives.

This book was a thrilling, fast-paced fantasy with well-developed characters and an intricately layered plot. The romance was beautifully done, especially the connection between Mazin and Dania, which made the romantic moments even more impactful. It’s one of the best retellings I’ve read, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone looking for an engaging, emotional, and action-packed story.

Quality Rating: Three Stars
Enjoyment Rating: Two Stars

For the record, I put this book down at 51%. I was determined to get far enough into the story for Dania to start acting rather than just talking but, unfortunately, she'd sidestepped actually doing anything too many times for me. This book is very dramatic and grand in its idea of itself, but the actual encounters between characters are trivial. The protagonist builds things up in her prose but does very little to act on her threats when she gets the opportunity.

I really don't need to be told three to five times a chapter that Dania's ex-lover took advantage of her and betrayed her - that's made clear enough in the synopsis and first couple of sentences in the story. I didn't find the relationship flashbacks overly compelling in driving this part of the story (and I would bet that the book ends with them getting back together and it all being a big misunderstanding) but I still understand that you're using the enemies-to-lover trope reversed, please stop spamming the prose with it. This book would be 100 pages shorter and probably more tense for letting the reader draw their own conclusions if this detail wasn't written plainly every couple of pages.

In all fairness, I do think my opinion of the book ultimately suffered from expectations set by the marketing. I was expecting a fresh new take on this well-known trope with a rich magical system, but it ended up quite bland and didn't offer anything new to help me put with the YA narrator.

This book was good but I went in with wrong expectations and i think that’s what ruined it a bit. I knew it was a retelling of the count of monte cristo and I always like to know the source material so I can see where it’s similar and where it differs. I didn’t have the courage to read it (it’s a long book) so watched the film and really enjoyed it. Based on the film, my prior knowledge that the original is a story focussed on revenge and the title of this book I expected a revenge story where she is angry and bitter and won’t let any man stop her. I wanted fire and emotion and it just wasn’t giving that to me, she was a little angry but rational and I was so disappointed. Now ultimately the book does deliver it just starts slow, she doesn’t want revenge immediately it builds up to that. She gets angry she becomes bitter and I loved it I just wanted it to be there earlier in the story, I wanted to feel that fire straight away, so when I was like 30% in and it had been like drinking a Luke warm cup of tea instead of a strong shot of whisky I was disappointed. Overall I enjoyed it, the writing was great and I loved that it was set in Pakistan. If I had different expectations this would have 4 stars or more

THE FEMALE RAGE!!! I adored this book. Loved the action packed nature, adored the FMC, the romance was perfection. Dania is a SURVIVOR and I was rooting for her from the first page. The feminism and girl power vibes were fantastic. Thank you for the ARC!

“A history of women and girls being wronged by men who never had any consequences. Now I would be the consequences".

This book is a thrilling Pakistani retelling of the classic The Count of Monte Cristo, full of immersive world building, supernatural mythology and incredible action sequences.
After a year of being imprisoned for a crime she did not commit, Dania is ready to escape and when she comes across a fellow captive who may be able to help they join together in a plot for freedom and revenge.

This book had a little bit of everything but what I loved the most about this book was the Pakistani lore and supernatural mythology used in this story, in a day an age where lots of us love a paranormal/ supernatural element it was a breath of fresh air to have the Djinn used in this plot rather than the more commonly used vampires, werewolves etc.

This story had a heavy revenge plot but also held elements of an intriguing magic system, political intrigue, feminine rage, enemies to lovers, found family and a personal favourite - one bed.
Dania was a well written and likeable, filled with feminine rage but when it came down to it her friendship and loyalty to Noor was more important and of course we love to see woman lift other women. The romance in the book was delicious, with all the tension and the the plot twist at the end I genuinely did not see coming but non the less was perfect.

This was an incredibly well rounded book, as far as I am aware it is a standalone but this author did such a good job that I could see it working as a series too. Can't wait to see what else she has to offer,

I loved this book. It is a beautifully written tale of strong women seeking vengeance for the wrongs done to them and their loved ones. The rage that constantly bubbles beneath the surface is palpable (and, frankly, understandable), and it builds a great sense of tension. There is a feeling that Dania could boil over at any moment and wreak havoc - something akin to a berserker rage, in that you don't know where it would end. And you don't want her to lose it (...but you also kinda do...)
The story is well-paced and engrossing - I devoured the 2nd half in 2 days, which is largely unheard of for me these days!

All in all, it's a book that has left me wanting more. But in the best way. I want more of Noor, and Dani, more of their back stories, and their pasts. I want to learn more about the djinn, zoraat, and the magic of their world. I even want to know more about Thohfsa and her prison regime. How did she end up there? And how does someone become so brutal and desensitised?
I just want more!

Thank you Netgalley & Macmillan Children's Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I loved the premise of this book and there were some parts that were absolutely brilliant.

Unfortunately the other parts fell a bit flat for me. I struggled with the pacing at times and I couldn't understand why Dania made the choices she did at the end. It felt like the build up to the end was packed with her need for revenge and then when she got the chance she just forgot about it.

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.