Now I Rise by Kiersten White is the second book in The Conqueror’s Saga and it is just as vicious and delicious as the first.
We pick up a few months after the first book. Lada has left Mehmed to pursue her dreams of Wallachia and the thought of Mehmed only pains her broken heart, as does her abandonment by her brother Radu. Lada and her men forge a bloody path home as they work to take back Wallachia but brute force isn’t working and she must find another way. If only she had her brother’s intellect and keen eye for strategy.
Radu on the other hand will do anything for his beloved Mehmed, anything to mean something to him, including infiltrate the very walls of Constantinople as a spy. But even as Radu’s skills make him an excellent spy, he finds that his heart is conflicted. How much of himself will he have to sacrifice to finally earn a place at Mehmed’s side?
As the Dracul siblings fight to gain their hearts desires, they must both decide how far they are willing to go and what they are willing to give up along the way.
I can’t tell you enough how much I love this series. It is well paced and intriguing and I just want to read more. The first book, And I Darken, was wonderfully written and this one definitely follows in it’s footsteps–no second book syndrome here. Each of these books feel complete in their own ways and yet you can’t wait for more.
There’s something about the time period and the history that really pulls you in. Such an interesting reimagining of Vlad the Impaler; I just love seeing Vlad as a girl and one that defies gender roles in wicked and dark ways. This book focuses on the Ottoman’s conquering of Constantinople and the Dracul reclamation of Wallachia. This series makes me want to study the history to find out where the divide between fiction and history lie.
In the first book I just adored Lada. She was vicious and strong and full of this burning life. She continues to be all of this and more in Now I Rise but her brother, Radu, becomes just as interesting. He is savage and strong in his own way, while still being vulnerable. Where Lada’s power is fear, Radu’s is his ability to gain the favor of almost anyone he meets. Radu is a master manipulator and Lada is purely brute force–I can only imagine what they could achieve if they were to come together.
There is a darkness to these books that are just so appealing. They are vicious without making you cringe. They draw you in–that’s really all there is to it. This one gets 4.5 stars from me.
That’s all for now!
-M-