A general's daughter impulsively buys a young man at auction and is drawn into a dangerous rebellion
A choice that changes everything
Kestrel is the seventeen-year-old daughter of a famous general in the Valorian empire, which conquered the land of Herran ten years ago and forced its people into servitude. Her father wants her to join the army; Kestrel would rather play music, and sooner or later she must choose between the military and marriage. One day at the market, on an impulse, she outbids everyone for a young Herrani man named Arin.
Who will enjoy it
Readers aged about fourteen and up who enjoy romantic fantasy built on strategy, divided loyalties and slow-burning tension rather than magic.
What you will get
A tense, elegant romantic fantasy about a clever heroine, divided loyalties and the high cost of winning, with a slow-burning forbidden romance.
The Winner's Curse Facts: Pages, Genre and Setting
Genre
Young Adult · Forbidden romance · Strategy · Rebellion
Length
384 pages · ≈ 11 h
More about this book
Arin is a blacksmith with a fine singing voice and a quiet, watchful manner, and Kestrel soon realizes he is far more than he seems. As they spend time together, playing a game of strategy and talking about music and history, they begin to understand each other, though they stand on opposite sides of a deep injustice. Arin, it turns out, has his own secret purpose, and the city is closer to rebellion than any of the conquerors suspect.
Kestrel is not a warrior, but her mind for strategy makes her formidable, and the novel is at its best when she and Arin try to outthink each other. The world feels drawn from ancient history, with an empire, a conquered people and a ruling class who never question their privilege. The book treats the suffering of the Herrani seriously without being graphic, and it does not pretend that love can easily cross such a divide. There are scenes of violence during the uprising and a duel, handled with restraint.
Thoughtful, tense and romantic, a trilogy opener that ends with a painful choice and leads into The Winner's Crime. Readers who prefer clever plotting and emotional tension to magic and monsters will find it especially rewarding. About 384 pages in the Square Fish paperback.
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