Reader Rayna

Title: These Infinite Threads
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Series: This Woven Kingdom #2
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publish Date: February 7, 2023
Genre: YA Fantasy Romance/Romantasy
Pages: 402
Format: Paperback

With the heat of a kiss, the walls between Alizeh, the long-lost heir to an ancient Jinn kingdom, and Kamran, the crown prince of the Ardunian empire, have crumbled. And so have both of their lives.

Alizeh, the heir to the Jinn throne, is destined to free her people from the half-lives they’ve been forced to live under human rule. When Kamran, the heir to the human throne, falls in love with her, he’s forced to question everything he’s been taught about Jinn.

Kamran’s grandfather lays dead at the hand of Cyrus, ruler of the neighboring kingdom of Tulan. Cyrus has stolen Alizeh away to his homeland and plans to marry her there, giving her everything she needs to become the Jinn queen—and when she assumes the throne he will have fulfilled his own bargain with the devil.

Alizeh wants nothing to do with Cyrus’s deal or the devil. But without a way to escape Tulan, and with the fulfillment of her own destiny tantalizingly close, she’ll have to decide whether she can set aside her emotions to become the queen her people need.

Kamran, meanwhile, is picking up the pieces in Ardunia. Facing betrayal at every turn, all he knows is that he must go to Tulan to avenge his grandfather. He can only hope that Alizeh will be waiting for him there—and that she hasn’t yet become the queen of Tulan.

Full of explosive magic, searing romance, and heartbreaking betrayal, this breathtaking sequel to This Woven Kingdom is from the award-winning and bestselling author of the Shatter Me series and is perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo, Sabaa Tahir, and Tomi Adeyemi.

As this is a sequel, there may be spoilers in this review!

What an engaging second installment, I’ve gotta say! This book felt enthralling and exhilarating, drawing me in with each chapter, needing to know more and more. But also, in the same vein, I felt frustrated sometimes with the decisions the characters were making. Keeping in mind that these are teens who are making these decisions helps, but sometimes I just want to smack some sense into them, you know?

The plot of the book carries on with its dual perspectives, with some chapters following Alizeh and other Kamran as they go about their lives in the aftermath of the ending of the first book. I really liked how it felt like we were getting real time events happening with the two through the book, as I believe the entirety of this particular novel took place over the course of a singular day, maybe two. It felt faster in pace in that way, but I would still say that the pace, overall, was medium, allowing each chapter to breathe life into the characters, for you to get to know them better and for the plot to be able to build around them.

Following Alizeh, we are now in Tulan, and she is very angry – rightfully so – to be there. She’s had her life thrown into disarray, been asked to marry the king of Tulan, Cyrus, as is the devil’s plan, and she wants none of it. Not only does she not trust Cyrus given the many things she’s heard about him and experienced thus far with him, but he doesn’t exactly prove himself to be trustworthy for a large portion of this installment. One thing I really appreciate about Alizeh is how she sticks very firmly to her convictions, though it my tear at her heartstrings or pull her apart inside to do so.

Alizeh as a character, I think, we get to see grow more in this book. We get to see a few different sides of her than we did in the first book, such as her wonderment with bread, the amount of time she takes to appreciate her surroundings as she’s had a rough enough life in her teenage years that she always has to take in her surroundings – and not always for the good of it. She’s strong as hell, too, and capable, and she can also be headstrong, for sure.

For instance, Cyrus, who we get to see much more of in this installment, brings out a lot of her anger and vexation, but she still seems to find she has a heart with him, that she can’t fully harden herself against him.

Speaking of Cyrus, what an interesting character he is. He’s complex and intriguing, but he’s hiding so many secrets that it’s hard to trust much of what he says, which is honestly kind of the point of how we’re supposed to feel about him because that’s how Alizeh feels about him. I think Mafi did a great job in that regard. And the intensity in which he looks at Alizeh and the charged moments they have? SWOON.

Kamran has his own demons he has to deal with in the aftermath of the first book, and we see how rapidly this prince can be brought down, even though he seems a reluctant prince more than anything. I find Kamran to be equal parts frustrating and someone to root for, because not only does he make a lot of revelations on his own in his chapters, but it seems like he always goes to the wrong conclusion to start and acts on that base instinct. It can be infuriating in ways that I can’t describe.

However, I think we definitely see growth in his character in this book, which is great because again, this book’s plot only takes place over a day or two. It’s not a lot of time for things to happen, and yet there’s so much that happens in rapid succession that you can’t help but wonder what will happen next. I think that Kamran is going to make a lot of rash decisions, but that his growth is going to be really prominent given the circumstances in which he found himself at the very end of the book.

As for the romance, MY GOD! I thought that Kamran was romantic, which he is, but this tension between Cyrus and Alizeh was intense and brutal and I was begging them to kiss. They start off hating each other, but their hatred for one another stems from entirely different reasons. It was so nice to read about someone yearning another so much. Ugh, I need more.

Overall, I found myself really enjoying this book and already diving into the next book in the series. I’m glad I found such a fun and engaging series to start the year off with! If you’re looking for a good fantasy romance with good writing, driving plot, character growth, and romantic tension, then definitely consider the This Woven Kingdom series!