Nocturnal Book Reviews: Early review: The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke

Early review: The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke

Wednesday, September 26, 2012 | Posted by kara-karina@Nocturnal Book Reviews

The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke (The Assassin's Curse #1)

Egalley thanks to Strange Chemistry

Synopsis from Goodreads
Ananna of the Tanarau abandons ship when her parents try to marry her off to an allying pirate clan: she wants to captain her own boat, not serve as second-in-command to her handsome yet clueless fiance. But her escape has dire consequences when she learns the scorned clan has sent an assassin after her.

And when the assassin, Naji, finally catches up with her, things get even worse. Ananna inadvertently triggers a nasty curse — with a life-altering result. Now Ananna and Naji are forced to become uneasy allies as they work together to break the curse and return their lives back to normal. Or at least as normal as the lives of a pirate and an assassin can be.

Release date: October 2nd 2012.

Amazon US/UK | Amazon kindle US | The Book Depository US/UK(£4.60) | Fishpond

6/10

* * *

I'm a bit disappointed with this book, folks. In theory it should be brilliant - a pirate girl and an assassin...

But in reality, it's a ragged, overly simplified and very short narration of a story that ended so suddenly I had to verify I had the full version of an ebook. Which I did. Perhaps it's meant for a younger YA audience despite that the main heroine herself is 17?

Ananna refuses to marry a fellow pirate's son, runs away without talking to her parents or friends or anyone, when he proposes, and his family sends an assassin to kill her for the offence. The whole situation from the very beginning is baffling... There is no prevarication, gathering the supplies or pleading her case with her parents. She. Just. Runs. For a pirates' daughter she sure acts incredibly stupid.

Naji, the assassin (mysteriously disfigured) has a certain curse on him, which activates when someone saves him, and that someone is Ananna. Now they are both trying to escape people sent to kill her and strange creatures from The Mist that constantly attempt to kill Naji, while our couple is trying to free him from the curse.

Ananna and Naji, they are an odd couple. Ananna doesn't think or analyse much, and we can not get into Naji's head at all. I don't know him. I only know what he does, and it's all just bits and pieces, so I couldn't grasp their characters at all. Naji also acts like a teenage boy incredibly vulnerable about his appearance most of the time although I felt that he should have been older and more mature. He kills people for living. It should provide certain air of soullessness not moping, shouldn't it?

Overall, it felt like I was supposed to like The Assassin's Curse, but I didn't get it. So sorry, guys! I wish you more luck with it than I had. Plenty of people loved it well enough, it just wasn't complex enough or deep enough for my liking. Oh well.

* * *

Задумка очень интересная, но её исполнение...*вздох* Хреново всё вышло, дамы и господа! *брюки превращаются...брюки превращаются...*

Ананна - юная дочка пиратов отказывается выйти замуж по контракту, и семья жениха посылает за ней ассасина Найджи. Тот находится под проклятьем, которое активизируется когда Ананна спасает его от укуса змеи.

Теперь он должен её защищать пока за ним самим гоняются существа из таинственных Туманных Земель, от которых он когда-то спас мир. Парочка всю книгу ищет способ снять с Найджи проклятье и под конец оказывается на ледяном острове, где Найджи дают три невозможные задачки, которые его освободят.

Такая простенькая сказочка, которая обрывается очень быстро и непонятно. Очень упрощённый сюжет и построение мира, да и в головы героев я никак не могла залезть, хотя оба вели себя как незрелые подростки.

В общем, не для меня, хотя очень многим блоггерам понравилось.

Tags: 6/10, assassin, Cassandra Rose Clarke, fantasy, pirates, YA, ассассин, пираты, фэнтэзи

5 comments:

Ellie Warren said...: Awww sad that you were disappointed. I loved it myself, although I do approach a young adult book in a certain mindset. I didn't expect the depth of an adult high fantasy book (which I rarely read anyway).; 26 September 2012 at 19:20
Blodeuedd said...: This does get me worried, sure if it showed up on my doorstop. But I will not go out and look for it; 26 September 2012 at 21:09
kara-karina@Nocturnal Book Reviews said...: Ellie, I think it's my own fault. I don't read MG, and this one caught me completely by surprise because there was no indication it would be a read more suitable for younger YA reader. I think it was just not for me.

Blodeuedd, it was cute, but unfortunately not my cup of tea :(; 26 September 2012 at 23:17
Melissa (My World...in words and pages) said...: I read one other review on this book and she was a little disappointed as well. I do like that cover though, reminds me of Aladdin. :) Thanks for the thoughts.; 27 September 2012 at 00:50
Christina said...: Oh no! Sad! I've had that same experience a couple of times with NetGalley books, another reason digital galleys aren't my fav: being convinced that the book isn't complete. Is some missing? Is the file corrupted? THIS CAN'T BE THE WHOLE THING, CAN IT?

Well, I still plan to try this one, but I'm prepared now!; 28 September 2012 at 21:14