Reviews

Daughter of the Desert - Novel

Quick Summary: Daughter of the Desert is a fun, light story with engaging characters, but ultimately suffers from an unsatisfying conclusion.

 

Title: Daughter of the Desert

Author: Brennan, Noel-Anne

Imprint: Ace Books

Date of Publication: 2006

 

Daughter of the Desert is a fun, light story with engaging characters, but ultimately suffers from an unsatisfying conclusion. Had the ending been handled better, I would have no hesitation in recommending this book.

The story is set in an ethnically-stratified fantasy world. The Virsat, ruling class of the desert city of Tireera, consider themselves naturally superior to the native Tirdar. Forentel is the eldest child in a high-ranking Virsat family. She soon finds out that her ancestry is more complicated than she had been lead to believe. This revelation, coupled with an undesirable arranged marriage, causes her to run from the city. Meanwhile, Prince Erba, younger son of the city’s dying king, sets out to discover the secrets of the lost city of Dreffir. Naturally, the two meet up for a series of adventures.

Both Forentel and Erba are likeable and strong-minded. The two start off with an attitude of mutual distrust, and the author outlines their growing friendship with a refreshingly delicate hand. Forentel and Erba’s adventures are exciting, sometimes funny, and usually well-plotted. Each shorter adventure could act as a stand-alone story, making the book feel like a magazine serial. As the serial style is one I enjoy, I found their adventures engrossing.

 Unfortunately, the book ends at the worst possible spot. The story continues past one obvious stopping point, but then ends well before it reaches a satisfying conclusion. It’s pretty clear that the author intended for there to be a sequel, but there’s no evidence that the publisher ever released one. As it is, the ending is unsatisfying and annoying.

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. I liked the writing style, the characters, and the world they inhabited. I only wish that the ending had been handled better.

Originally Written: September 5, 2010