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Friday, February 17, 2017

A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi ARC Review

Publisher: St. Martin's Press/Macmillan
Pub. Date: March 28th, 2017
Pre-Order: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository 
Gauri, the princess of Bharata, has been taken as a prisoner of war by her kingdom’s enemies. Faced with a future of exile and scorn, Gauri has nothing left to lose. Hope unexpectedly comes in the form of Vikram, the cunning prince of a neighboring land and her sworn enemy kingdom. Unsatisfied with becoming a mere puppet king, Vikram offers Gauri a chance to win back her kingdom in exchange for her battle prowess. Together, they’ll have to set aside their differences and team up to win the Tournament of Wishes—a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor.

Reaching the tournament is just the beginning. Once they arrive, danger takes on new shapes: poisonous courtesans and mischievous story birds, a feast of fears and twisted fairy revels.

Every which way they turn new trials will test their wit and strength. But what Gauri and Vikram will soon discover is that there’s nothing more dangerous than what they most desire.



A Crown of Wishes has everything that I loved about The Star-Touched Queen, plus so much more. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I love this book even more than I loved The Star-Touched Queen—which I didn't even think was possible.

Gauri is a powerhouse leading lady, and Vikram utterly oozes with charm. I'm definitely adding these two to my list of top OTPs because together, they were magic. The writing in this phenomenal book—both the dialogue and the prose—are truly dazzling; I simply could not get enough of it. I clung onto every moment, phrase, and word—wanting nothing more than to continue being fully immersed in this indescribably fantastic world that Roshani has created.


With not a single dull moment in sight, the wondrous beauty and sparkling humor in A Crown of Wishes left me absolutely breathless.  Roshani's natural wit and snark shined through, and I adored every second of it. From the inside and out, this book is just utter perfection. I'm incredibly impressed with how much Roshani has grown as a writer since her bestselling The Star-Touched Queen, and I will be waiting with bated breath to see what she has in store for us in the future. 


1) Not only is Roshani's writing beautiful and witty—it's inspiring. It's the kind of writing that breathes life into my bookish heart and makes me want to work away at my own WIP. Both her words and her brilliance make me want to strive to be better, write better, and even to read more. A Crown of Wishes made me smile and laugh so much that I had to force myself to read slower (which was pretty difficult, trust me!) because I didn't want it to end; I wanted to savor every bit of this masterpiece.


2) Oh my gosh, the ship in this book, you guys! I can't even. I don't have the adequate words to describe the emotions and feels I got from these two. From the moment they met, my heart sang. I loved everything—their insane cuteness, their magnetic chemistry, their banter . . . Oh, I could go on and on (and on!) about their wonderful banter. And also, they actually compliment each other! They're equals in their relationship, and they spectacularly balance out each other's faults and virtues. Honestly, these two are relationship goals.


3) I love Gauri. She is a fighter, a badass, and just a well-rounded character overall. She loves fiercely and puts strength behind her convictions. But she isn't perfect. It's not easy for her to love, and she bares many emotional scars that have made her very guarded. The perfect balance of this made her a wonderfully real and relatable character.

4) Vikram. Oh, Vikram. How much I adore this man . . . He reminds me so much of my beloved Nikolai Lantsov from The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. He's even called the Fox Prince! His humor and charm are very similar, but he's also vulnerable in a way that I found extremely attractive. Basically, if you're a Nikolai fan, you will love Vikram.


5) The setting in this book is full to the brim with majesty and wonder. Best of all, Roshani is so good at world-building and at describing everything that it's very easy to imagine. The world just flies off the pages, and it's truly a feast for the senses.


1) *Spoiler Alert* Gauri is forced to make a sacrifice at the end of the book that I'm not sure I'm happy about haha.

"Do we not look wildly in love?"

"Not particularly."

"What's her favorite color?" asked a council member.

"The color of my eyes," said Vikram quickly.

"Yes," said Gauri woodenly. "They are so very . . . brown." 
"You're welcome, by the way, for dragging you back here. I had a couple of offers to sell you and almost considered it."

"Intriguing. For how much?"

"A bag of gold, the ability to make thunderstorms go to sleep. Something else. Five goats?"

"Just five goats?" I'm worth at least ten. Plus a cow."

44 comments:

  1. This is super exciting for me because I'm going to pick up TSTQ Sooon soooon soooon. I'm supposed to be reading it this month! Now I'm even more excited to get to it!!! Great review (and great way to 'sell' the books!).

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    1. I'm so glad that you enjoyed this review and I hope that you love TSTQ and ACOW as much as I do!

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  2. I'm currently reading this right now! I'm in bit of a lull with it, but I know I just need to force myself to sit down and plow through the rest!

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    1. Oh no! I hope you like it more when you get the chance to sit down and plow through it!

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  3. Woohoo! I am hoping to read this one either at the end of this month or the beginning of next month. I loved The Star-Touched Queen and I am looking forward to A Crown of Wishes. lovely review!

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    1. I hope you enjoy it! It's sooo good, definitely one of my favorites this year.

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  4. I'm super excited for this one! And hearing Vikram actually like Nikolai Lantsov is enough for me to get this book asap :D

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  5. I love your review and I should really start this series. I think book 2 has one of the best covers I've seen all year. So glad you enjoyed this follow up.

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    1. Thank you and yes you should! And the cover is absolutely gorgeous!

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  6. I can't believe I haven't read The Star-Touched Queen yet. But I will. Soon! I'm so happy you loved this one as well, and great review (I may have peeked a little here and there, but no spoilers). :)

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    1. I can't either, you definitely should! Thank you for your kind words! The only spoiler was in the dislikes section :)

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  7. I loved Star Touched and I have an ARC of this one that I can't wait to start. I'm glad you loved it :)

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    1. I hope you read it soon and that you love it as much as I do!

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  8. I am SO excited to see how much you loved this! The Star-Touched Queen is one of my favorite books from 2016, and I've been looking forward to more of Roshani Chokshi's beautiful and lyrical storytelling! Awesome review!

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    1. Well, I'll wager that ACOW might be your favorite of 2017. I can't wait to see what you think!

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  9. I just wanted to comment to say YOUR BLOG IS GORGEOUS. I've been following you on Twitter but somehow never saw your blog ?! WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME. Loving it <33

    Molly @ Molly's Book Nook

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    1. Thank you! The change to my blog's appearance is still relatively new but I'm so glad that you like it.

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  10. I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS BOOK OMG! I am pretty excited for this book and I cannot wait to get around to read my ARC because it sounds amazing!

    xx Anisha @ Sprinkled Pages

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    1. It's really good! You should read your ARC ASAP because you're missing out!

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  11. i'm so excited for this book! (in saying that, i haven't even read the star touched queen yet oops). this cover is so stunning! i'm glad you enjoyed it!

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  12. Ahhh! ACOW is up very soon on my TBR schedule and I am even more excited for it now that I know how much you enjoyed it! Roshani does have quite a bit of snark to her gorgeous writing and I am so happy that there is some of it in this book, too. I can't wait to start it! Lovely review, Brittany. <3

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    1. It's so fantastic, I can go on and on about how wonderful this book is. Roshani's essence is in this very book, you can feel it in the pages. Thanks for stopping by!

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  13. WHAT A WONDERFUL REVIEW!! GAAAHHHH!! will be reading TSTQ next week!! I'M SO EXCITED TO READ IT NOW!! and oh my! Vikram sounds dreamy *heart eyes*

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    1. Thank you! I hope you love TSTQ, you must read it quickly so you can read ACOW!

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  14. I got approved for this recently and can't wait to read it! Loved the first one so much! Great review, makes me even more excited to read.

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    1. Thank you so much! I hope that you read this one immediately!

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  15. I have got to start these books!!! I've heard nothing but amazing things about them! Great post :P
    Kariny @kariny's boox frenzy

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    1. Yes, you do! Believe all of the amazing things, they're all true. Thank you!

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  16. Now I'm even more excited to get to this one! I love that you say there's never a dull moment, because I do remember a few in TSTQ. This authors writing and creativity is amazing, though. And I loved Gauri in book one, even what little we saw of her, so Im excited that she's taking center stage in this one!

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    1. I'm so glad! And really, you won't be able to put this one down because it's so freaking good. I only put it down when forced by other obligations. I can't wait to see what you think of this one <3

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  17. OH. MY. LIFE. I LOVE THIS BOOK. AND TOTALLY AGREE ABOUT WHAT YOU SAID.

    Okay so, totally agree about this ship. They are more OTP in my heart than Maya and Amar from book 1 tbh, which I didn't even know was possible. But OMG, their banter was A+++++++ and I loveeee how sly Vikram was. I feel like he was the brains and she was the brawns? Anyhow, I LOVED IT. God, words can't express my love for this series honestly. Love this review.

    - Aila @ Happy Indulgence

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    1. You're excitement is always infectious ^_^ I figured we'd agree 100% on this one and I totally agree that Vikram and Gauri are better than Maya and Amar, which I also didn't think was possible.

      Thank you so much for stopping by, lovely <3

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  18. Ooh I'm not sure I'm prepared for that sacrifice O.O I can't wait to read this book soon!!!! Very soon!!! Love your review <3 <3

    ~Karina @ A Reader Under The Sea

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    1. It's really not that bad, it just irked me a little bit. I hope you love it though, can't wait to see what you think!

      Thank you <3

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  19. OMG!!!! Brittany, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!?!??? MY HEART is no longer mine for the taking, can I just snatch Vikram from Gauri? ;)
    Great review, I really need to start this series!!!

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    1. Apparently S. Jae-Jones has the first claim to Vikram according to Roshani so you'll have to go through her, Gauri, and of course me before you can snatch him haha.

      I highly recommend this series, get to it ASAP!

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  20. This is a series I have been meaning to start for a while! I'm glad to hear the sequel delivers ever more than the first book. Great review!

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    1. Thank you! Definitely get your hands on The Star-Touched Queen as soon as possible so you're prepared for A Crown of Wishes!

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  21. This series has been on my TBR for a while so I'm glad to see you loved it so much! Hoping to get to it soon :)

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  22. Ohhh :D So glad you loved this book so much Brittany. <3 Yess. Your review is so lovely :) I haven't read her first book yet.. but I do have it :) And I have ordered this one, hih. Hope I will love them both too :D

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  23. I really thank you for the valuable info on this great subject and look forward to more great posts bo parfet

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