#the ivory key

Ivory Key by Akshaya Raman

Thank you @hotkeybooksya for sending me a copy of the book!

I was very excited to read this YA novel, an Indian-inspired story (it’s going to be duology actually), set in a land where magic, a prized resource, is the only thing between peace and war. When magic runs out, four estranged royal siblings must find a new source before their country is swallowed by invading forces.

At a personal level, it is always great to see how the YA community is growing, creating a space for rich and diverse stories from different communities and cultures. To see not only a small ‘italicised’ mention of a familiar word or a phrase, but a whole book (duology eventually) be that immersive, from the characters names, backgrounds, clothing, foods etc. made me very happy.

It’s took me a while to get fully immersed into the story, as all the different characters were introduced and the plot was set up, but once it kicked off, I found myself yelling at the characters, ‘omg please just talk to each other’ and when they did I was cheering for them saying, ‘see this is why communication is key!!’ There we’re a lot of twists and turns, and it was a fun experience to watch it all unfold!

Riya and Kaleb were probably my favourite characters, and I am looking forward to reading the next book to see where they go next!