I got this ebook from Netgalley. I would like to thank the Author O.O. Sangoyomi for allowing me to read this beautiful book. let me gush about it a little….this book was fantastic, beautiful, heartwrenching, and breathtaking. After a long time, I read a book that just take a special place in my head and in my heart.
BLURB
Ododo creates beautiful golden flowers. And then one day she captures the eye of a homeless person who will change her life forever. She gives him one of her flowers and sings a song to him and then a few days after she is kidnapped and transported to Sangote.
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There she was prepared to wed the Alaafin of the empire who is a king of Yorubaland. But when she sees him she remembers that he is the same person she gave her flower to. So in court, she is put through one hell of a life. She goes from an innocent and trusting person to a ruthless calculating queen who may be going to change the future of the whole land and the future of blacksmiths.
I also have to talk about the ending (spoilers). I knew Ododo and Aremo wouldn’t be the same after Aremo made Ododo kill her mother. And I was so scared to read it further waiting for something to happen and then it happened and my heart was like…..I was so stunned and confused and I didn’t know how to explain my feelings. My heart is breaking for them and then I am thinking there was no other way for them to move forward… whatever Ododo did was inevitable. And she was somewhat right in her own way…Ododo knew she wouldn’t be happy again but she did it anyway and Aremo accepted it. This scene was beautiful and heartbreaking. Ododo would never have gotten her freedom any other way knowing how things work in that Land. I am happy and sad for Ododo.
The author pictured the ancient African culture so beautifully and I can’t help but fall in love with this distant beautiful land. I searched after finishing the book and there was an actual Oyo empire that was majestic in the region. I never read a book depicting beautifully the culture and the story of African empires. I knew there were warlords in Africa who were ruthless but I never knew that there were rich empires too. I will thank the author again for writing this beautiful beautiful book.
My Rating
Overall: ★★★★★ | 5 Stars
Plot: ★★★★★ | 5 Stars
Characters: ★★★★★| 5 Stars
Ending: ★★★★★| 5 Stars
Book Cover: ★★★★★| 5 Stars
Ending: ★★★★★| 5 Stars
The Best Part:
The book is a whole package. Everything is the best part. The cover, the plot, the twists the characters. It’s just 💙💚💛💜
The Worst Part:
Nothing
Best Character
Alale Ododo
Aremo
Kolo
Worst Character
Aremo’s Mother
My Favorite Quotes:
Deception is a tool that Sahara uses well. Heat is the desert’s strength, but mirages are the strategy it utilizes to make its enemies succumb to that power.
“This is useless”, I huffed pushing the stick away. I am not learning anything.” Ododo. “Nonsense. You are doing a wonderful job learning how to die. And once you recognize death, you can understand what to avoid.” Aremo
The light in his eyes faded. I knew then that my world would be forever dimmed.
Do I recommend it?
Yes!!!! a thousand times yes…go read this book.
ABOUT AUTHOR
O.O. Sangoyomi is a Nigerian American author. During a childhood of constantly moving around, she found an anchored home in the fictional worlds of books. Sangoyomi is a recent graduate of Princeton University, where she studied literature. This is her debut novel. You can contact the author here (website).
☙ Kindle
Happy Reading!!
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