Hard nope, no thank you, not even maybe.

Reader, the following quotes are all taken from the prologue + first two chapters.

<They were women who used their power to maintain peace, not sow seeds of destruction, it was their code, a mark of their livelihood.>

A mark of their livelihood? A livelihood is a job. But you’re talking about witches, and in this story, being a witch is not a job, it’s just something you are. What is meant here is something like ‘philosophy’ or maybe ‘calling’, not ‘job’.

<powers humans were wary of, and had kept an uneasy balance between fear and respect when it came to the mayakari.>

What does this sentence mean? What are you saying? The powers of the mayakari (witches) keep an uneasy balance between fear and respect…when it comes to the mayakari? What are you talking about? I think you’re trying to say that the humans feel respect and fear, but the actual sentence you have written is nonsensical.

<A round pink body atop a round head>

…so it’s upside down? The body is on top of the head. That’s not how humanoids work. What is happening?

<performing a simple kill equated to having the aptitude to conduct a complex one.>

Sorry, a complex what? A complex kill? Does one ‘conduct’ a kill now? I’m deeply sceptical that one ‘performs’ a kill, but I’m willing to let that one go. But ‘conduct’? Also what do you mean, doing a simple version of a thing means you can do a complex version of it? What?

<It didn’t stop Ashoka from viewing his father with contemptuousness.>

Contempt. You can just say ‘contempt’.

<To Emperor Adil, more power meant expansion.>

I think you mean, expansion equals more power. More power equalling expansion doesn’t make sense without more of an explanation.

<scores of iron ore>

Scores of what? That’s not a thing. You can’t say ‘scores of ore’ for the same reason you can’t say ‘hundreds of ore’. An ore is not a unit of measurement!

<minor disturbances where little was harmed as humanly possible.>

‘As little’ was harmed as humanly possible.

<Clearly his age was just an excuse. What a privilege to be father’s favourite.>

Okay, I think the favourite comment is meant about Ashoka’s sibling, but it sounds like you’re saying Ashoka is the favourite and because of that his age is an excuse for something. ?

<Once he was of age, his father would not be able to argue against royal decrees.>

What royal decrees? Is there a law saying when he’s of age he can enter the councils? No? Then what are you talking about?

<An innocent requires a cremation it didn’t deserve.>

What you mean is: this innocent didn’t deserve to die.

What you’ve said is: this innocent didn’t deserve to be honoured for its death.

<the scent of water buffalo lingered even after they had been taken in for the night by the farmers. Or perhaps it was their droppings; Shakti couldn’t tell. They smelled the same.>

Tell me you’ve never been around livestock without telling me you’ve never been around livestock.

<‘Slip, and you’ll be helping smelt my weapons this entire week.’>

I’m pretty sure no one has ever said ‘this entire week’ this way. ‘You’re going to be doing chores for this entire week!’ No? No, because it sounds deeply incorrect, that’s not how people speak.

<her penchant for explosiveness was difficult to set aside.>

This is trying to talk about the character’s explosive temper, but that’s not what ‘penchant’ means. This makes it sound like she just likes exploding. Also, ‘explosiveness’ is deeply awful.

Also Ashoka’s a stuck-up twit and Shakti is unlikeable in a very boring way. Winged snakes can’t save this story, not for me! DNF.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc!

This novel just did not do it for me. You can tell it’s a debut and I think the author tried to do too much and should have been reined in by an editor. Trying to do too much led to thinness of themes and an unenjoyable read. Characters also need significant work to be more than transparent shells.

i am SO UPSET, unfortunately i did not love this as much as i hoped i would :( first let’s start with the pros. this is a very competent (prose-wise), accessible fantasy, with a unique world. witches aren’t my favorite fantasy being, but i always get excited seeing them being taken on by bipoc authors. unfortunately, you can REALLY tell this is a debut novel. i wouldn’t call this book bad by any means, but rather overly ambitious for what it wants to do vs wijsekara’s ability. the political machinations and exploration of violence and pacificity as themes just did not feel very strong to me, and i felt the characters were fairly weak aspects of this book, too. overall, a 3.5 rated up

oof. this just felt rather clumsy, to put it in words. some characters felt very one-dimensional, and others felt very black and white - i was thinking "where is the moral greyness to any of this??" because it felt like a mentality of having only two choices: right or wrong, and nothing in between. the main characters were not developed very well. definitely read more ya than adult to me - and i don't mean that as a criticism, because i've adored many ya books. it's just the characters clearly haven't matured enough and are still in the same "innocent" mindset.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this ARC.

Before starting The Prince Without Sorrow by Maithree Wijesekara, I was concerned due to other reviews I saw. Interestingly enough, it had me lower my expectations to the point that I believe I had a much more enjoyable experience compared to other readers.

Their complaints have merit. The characters feel quite underdeveloped, with the main characters being obvious FOILs to one another but also primarily driven by one unrealistic personality trait. This leads this adult fantasy feeling more like it belongs in YA. The tone as well as the prose matches the more popular YA novels currently out, which made it easy to digest but also, unmemorable.

All in all I have so little to say about this story. It wasn't the greatest thing ever, and by next week I won't even remember having read it. The Prince Without Sorrow is sorely lacking in finding a middle ground to stand on, and make it stand out from the crowd. Wijesekara appears to have a foundation to start from, and I could see them growing into a more competent author. However, as it stands for a debut this is just alright.

ARC provided by NetGalley for a fair and honest review.

The Prince Without Sorrow is a unique, magical story with two main characters that have very different outlooks on the world. We follow Shakti, a mayakari on her journey of trying to stop the hatred and killings of her kind, and Prince Ashoka on his journey of trying to change the “legacy” his father left behind. I enjoyed the pacing of this book, the darkness of the fight between the royals and the mayakari, and the unexpected (as I didn’t read about the book before requesting the ARC) lgbtq inclusion. This is YA in the sense of there being a quiet love with no spice but I see this as an adult fantasy due to some of the darker subjects. I can’t wait to continue this series.

Unfortunate DNF around 30%. It seemed more like the layout for a story, not quite a finished story. I really tried to finish and get into it, but I couldn't.

I did not enjoy reading this book.

The Prince Without Sorrow is set in a world where mayakari (witches) are persecuted endlessly and violently by an evil emperor. The story follows two main characters: Shakti and Ashoka. Shakti is a witch herself who comes into incredible powers that she wants to use to remove the unjust rulers in power, even if it requires violence. Ashoka is a pacifist prince, looked down upon by his father and siblings, deeply disgusted by this father's ways, who wants to show that violence is not the only or the best way to rule.

My biggest complaint is that there is no through-line to the book, no coherence. It sets up many interesting questions and dichotomies and then refuses to take a stance on them, leaving the whole book feeling confused.

The prologue sets up a world where witches are persecuted and burned at the stake, but despite this they hold tight to their morals and preach a very explicit lesson that violence is not the answer. I would say it was heavy-handed, except instead of coming back to this and doing something with it, its treated more as a vague plot point than as an interesting moral question.

This book also sets up the main characters as clear foils to each other from the get go; Shakti, who turns towards violence and away from the pacifist teachings of witches in order to get revenge, is a mirror to Ashoka and his firm desire to never do harm. At first I was very curious to know where the author was going with this, would one of them be proven wrong? Would they each learn that absolutes aren't the answer and strive to find a middle ground? Nope, its never really discussed and whatever lesson they were supposed to learn is muddy and confusing.

Again with persecuted witches who have the power to curse people but refuse to use it, Wijesekara asks the very interesting question about whether violence is ever justified. Is it fair for an oppressed people to rise up and fight for their rights with violence? If killing one person would save many more, should you do it? And again, I don't know what message the book is trying to make. Part of this problem stems from the world building - the witches are pacifists because they would accrue bad karma if they used their powers for harm. Personally, I think this weakens any discussion of morals. If it's the rules of magic holding you back and not your own moral compass, then are you a pacifist or a coward?

Other issues in no particular order
- the evil emperor is very one-dimensional. He hates witches, likes killing witches, and hates his son, that's it. It's kind of alluded to that he is a good emperor otherwise (mostly to suggest that other people would be worse) but there is no evidence one way or another that he was good at ruling or even well-liked by the people
- an "innocent" deer is killed and the character is so distraught they say it needs to be cremated because it didn't deserve to die, instead of I don't know, using the meat so that it's death isn't a waste? AND I CANT EVEN TELL IF THIS IS INTENTIONAL Is this supposed to be a hint to the reader than pacifism can be problematic at times or just a symbol of how committed this character is to doing no harm? Who can say
- Many clever metaphors but so awkwardly placed that they often took me out of the story
- No explanation for why Ashoka is so pacifist. It doesn't make sense to me why one character in the whole book is violently opposed to well, being violent.
- Everyone is so remarkably candid. Both good and bad characters hold nothing back and willing explain everything they know to anyone including enemies even when it is not in their best interests.
- The descriptions of magic feel out of place, like sudden textbook chapters popping up out of nowhere. New facts about the magic system also continue to pop up as they become relevant which means that I didn't ever feel like I had any grasp of the magic system because on the next page a new rule could be revealed
- The general setting felt like the TV Show Merlin, but not executed as well. Evil King who hates magic users and burns them at the stake, prince who is good and (eventually) wants to save the magic users, one magic user living and working in the palace under the nose of the king, etc

Okay I lied, these are in a particular order. Every issue listed in the bulleted list above, I noticed before I was 25% into the book. After finishing the book, I stand by all of them and also greatly regret not DNFing it at this point when I wanted to.

Onto more issues in the rest:
- This book overuses the word "innocent." At some point I'm not sure the author is using it correctly
- The characters feel like caricatures of pacifism and evil, very one dimensional and like they're repeating from a script of "how to be a pacifist"
- Too many of the book's major plot points are resolved by happy coincidences. One or two coincidences are fine, but when every major plot point happens because someone just happens to be in the right place, it all feels a little weak
- The main characters are obliviously naive. And terrible at subterfuge, it's like they're all allergic to lying even when it is the better option (or only option).
- There is no satisfaction in how conflict resolves, rather than the characters growing or changing to overcome problems, things are fixed by luck or undeserved power
- The title and cover have no relevance.

And a couple with spoilers:
[
- Shakti breaks the witch code for the sake of revenge, incurs massive bad karma, and is immediately rewarded with new incredibly strong magic powers. Sure, she can't be reborn, but it doesn't actually seem like people care about that all that much
- The witch resistance pretty much immediately agrees to use their powers to fight, despite their "deeply ingrained moral code." This feels at odds with everything we've learned of the witches so far. What's the point of this code if you throw it away so easily? Also won't this lead to very bad karma?
-I don't think The Collective was foreshadowed well enough and in some ways I don't think it was utilized all that well either. I really thought Shakti would tell Ashoka and they would use it to solve some of the puzzles by talking to past leaders, but instead its basically just an avenue for the very weird dream invasions and so Shakti can yell at the emperor.
- I am very upset about Shakti invading Ashoka's mind. I think it takes removes a lot of the blame and weight from his decision to kill the governor. Can you really have two viewpoints if one of the characters is unilaterally enforcing her will on others?
(hide spoiler)]

Overall an unsatisfying and unenjoyable read. The only reason I am not giving it 1 stars is because it is the first book in a series and it's possible that later books might address the question of violence and pacifism better.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an eARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book seems cute, and I think I’d like it later, but nothing I do, no trick I’ve tried, has endeared this book to me. So DNF for now.

Oof, this is unfortunately a DNF for me, around 30%. The premise is interesting, I liked some elements of the worldbuilding, and I'm always excited to see fantasy that pulls from a different cultural milieu than your generic medieval Europe. But the execution failed to grab me. The prose was heavyhanded and repetitive; the dialogue mostly served to reinforce what the narrative already told you; and while the characters certainly had momentum, they struggled to tap into any strong emotion for the reader.

I try to avoid saying "this reads like YA" because I think it's frequently used as a shorthand for "I didn't like this" without engaging with the broad range of YA and Adult fiction. It's fully possible to have dense prose that is YA, or young characters in Adult novels. With that out of the way, I do have to wonder why this is marketed as adult. Both Shakti and Ashoka are 22, but the first chapter is quick to point out that Ashoka is not legally an adult (which would be 25), and we are given little sense of Shakti's life before her revenge quest other than the fact that she sneaks out against her aunt's wishes to learn swordplay (which is at a minimum, evocative of youth). Both characters seem to be defined by the need to come into themselves after the loss of a parental figure. Now, can you have coming of age themes in an adult book? Sure. Are there adults who go through a coming of age around 22 (especially as many folks leave college around then)? Yeah, absolutely. But at the same time, neither character is grappling with any sort of adult responsibilities or obligations that make this feel uniquely adult. The prose is straightforward and insistent upon its themes as though it's scared I missed them. It pulls me aside to ask, do you remember? The Seven Day Flood I mentioned last chapter? Let me explain it again just in case. I do not read this and feel like an adult who is trusted with the complexities of a story.

I am, coincidentally, reading Hannah Kaner's GODKILLER alongside this, and I think it's worth comparing the prologues. Both are about the main character's family being burned alive, setting a revenge narrative into motion. THE PRINCE WITHOUT SORROW uses the space to tell us a little about the mayakari code of pacifism, and show Jaya's commitment to it even in the face of death as she wishes better for her niece, Shakti. It's quite short, and emotionally one-note, as Jaya considers this inevitable, and does not struggle or grieve her fellows. GODKILLER's prologue is similarly short (6 pages in my paperback) but manages to establish what the gods are, how they work, shows us a conflict between these gods, shows us Kissen's grief and confusion and betrayal and struggle, and create a tense and tragic air throughout. It's simply doing a lot more with the space, and there is a lot of action to compel the reader even though in both books we know the end: the families are doomed. I'm missing that sense of tension, and the way it uses events to help you infer how the world works instead of simply telling you "here are the rules."

This isn't a bad book. Some of my issues with the prose are a matter of personal taste, and there's compelling tidbits in the royal family's dynamics and in the setting and its nature spirits. Other people may find lots to love here. Unfortunately, after eleven chapters, I did not find something I loved, and so I move on to the next thing.

This is a very solid fantasy that held my attention throughout. While it's not the most original or complex, it has some elements I often look for and don't find. The lack of romance--for the most part--is a major selling point for me; there is just the smallest taste, which is the perfect amount for me. I also really appreciate the moral complexity of the two main characters, one doing whatever she can to survive and the other doing whatever he can to be powerful. I find this so much more interesting then the thoroughly *good* characters that we usually follow. I do think that this book is missing a certain *something* that would make it five stars, but I'm definitely excited to continue the series.

The Prince Without Sorrow by Maithree Wijesekara, the first book in the Obsidian Throne trilogy, draws readers into a rich world inspired by the Mauryan Empire, with a deep story of witches, political tension, and an empire on the brink of transformation. Prince Ashoka, the youngest son of a brutal emperor, seeks peace despite the violent legacy he’s born into, longing to end his father’s persecution of witches. When he is assigned to govern a tumultuous region haunted by nature spirits, he finds himself in a precarious balance between his ideals and the ruthless expectations of the empire.

Meanwhile, Shakti, a witch and pacifist scarred by the emperor's tyranny, is driven to revenge after witnessing her family’s destruction. Armed with hidden powers and posing as a maid in the Mauryan palace, she aims to tear down the monarchy from within. As Ashoka and Shakti’s lives intertwine, they must navigate complex choices and face the risk of becoming like those they despise.

The world-building is dense, with layered political intrigue and unique magic that feels inspired by the historical South Asian setting. Readers will find themselves in a morally ambiguous world where nature spirits and magic face extinction under a ruthless empire. Though the beginning may feel slow and the action uneven, the story deepens as characters confront their internal conflicts and question the cost of power.

This is a thoughtful, multifaceted fantasy debut that, while occasionally clunky in pacing, promises a fascinating exploration of ideals versus survival. The Prince Without Sorrow offers a captivating start to a series that will likely appeal to fans of complex, morally grey fantasy in the vein of The Jasmine Throne or The Hurricane Wars. As the tale unfolds, Wijesekara leaves readers with intriguing questions about duty, revenge, and what it truly means to pursue peace in a world built on bloodshed.

The best word I can think of to describe this book is clumsy. It was easy to read, but I didn’t particularly enjoy the journey. Ashoka as a character felt quite flat, and there seems to be a pretty all or nothing perspective on violence that feels underdeveloped and unsatisfying. Most of the characters behaved like petulant children despite being in their 20s, and I didn’t find myself particularly invested in any of their stories.

The Prince without Sorrow is not a bad book. Unfortunately, it’s also just not a particularly good one.

This book takes place in an empire which is nearly single-minded devoted to stamping out witches under both order and legacy of Emperor Adil. The plot revolves around two characters: Prince Ashoka, the youngest son of Emperor Adil and a pacifist who wishes to end the burning of witches, and Shakti, a witch who stumbles into incredible power and mostly uses them to f*** around and find out. I do like the general premise of the book, in grappling with the complex dynamics of a pacifist group targeted by a militant government. It does raise some complex questions of group identity, advocacy, and the debate between a strict moral code and the needs of a revolution.

All in all, I felt that this book really lacked both verisimilitude and stakes. While fantasy books have some suspension of disbelief, in this book, characters simply act however will be quickest to get the plot development across, whether or not it fits their character. For example, an emperor devoted to devastating violence against witches is approached in a dream state by a witch with questions, and while this emperor is fully aware of what will happen, he answers every question with little more than a few weak insults. At the climax of the book, a big bad character just…knows things? And tells the character she is targeting all of her evil plans and how she plans on covering up those evil plans? Not only do characters break at random moments to serve the plot, this is also the kind of book where problems just solve themselves. Shakti finds herself with strange new powers? That’s okay, a nature spirit will materialize out of the world and tell her everything she needs to know about them. There’s a mystery about an event that happened 3 years ago? Its okay, Ashoka stumbles across the answer in his own literal garden. There’s no tension, no build up, and no problem solving. I never really felt like the characters were in danger. Everything just works out. Like I said above, I didn’t necessarily find these plot points bad—they’re just uninteresting. Unfortunately, so much of this book is like this, and there just aren’t any particular high points to make a weaker plot worth it.

I have also seen other reviewers talk about the language used in this book. There’s too much metaphor used, and an awful lot of anachronistic language that can really break immersion. Normally, this stuff does not bother me much, but in this book, I did find the writing to be uninteresting and clunky. This book really would be better marketed as YA than as adult. It would take seldom few edits to make the subject matter YA-appropriote, and it would make the often simplistic writing style and less immersive plot a bit more understandable.

One thing that I couldn’t shake while reading this book was its comparison to The Burning Kingdoms series. I am deeply against these surface comparisons to other books as a marketing strategy. Regardless of how good the book compared to book it is being held up against, it always leads readers to expect the book they already have read and thus diminishes what the book they’re actually reading is actually trying to do. That being said, this book feels like it was trying so hard to be The Jasmine Throne. Ignoring the on-the-nose note that this is the Obsidian Throne series, there’s just so much that feels like a YA attempt at replicating the feel series. Characters starting with strong ideals but facing corruption arcs, flowery metaphorical language, POV characters that are very rarely in the same room, a big bad who is mostly used to set characters on their corruption arcs and then fall away—it’s a lot. I don’t mean to call this book a rip-off or even to say that its intentional. My point is more that this comparison diminished my reading experience as I was often comparing it to a better-crafted series.

In the end, I’m giving this book 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3. Its fine, and it’s a very readable book. I do have hopes that the author will be able to improve the plot as the series develops, but for now I would struggle to recommend the series.

An enjoyable and engaging dark fantasy with a unique world! Definitely recommended! Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyage for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the arc,

I felt that the this book was a little confused as what genre this is adult or ya?

It fell flat for me I just couldn’t get past the 30% mark

I can see why people will like it though I did enjoy the mythical aspect

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this read as a standard fantasy. It has a cool concept and unique world building. I'm eagerly looking forward to checking out the maps when they get added to the final product! That said, the characters felt a little one-dimensional. We have Shakti, who is fiery, passionate, and she goes against the peaceful ways of the mayakari - and Ashoka, who is extremely pacifist to a fault despite being raised in a genocidal oppressive ruling class. We don't really have much growth into these roles or beyond, and not much challenges their world views, save for the very end.

At times, because the characters where a bit flat and the plot was very Good Vs. Evil, it felt as though the author was intending this to be more of a Young Adult novel. There were a few instances with awkwardly worded sentences, and another pass through an editor would have been appreciated.
All that said, I still enjoyed this especially as a debut novel and I'm looking forward to the next in the series!

3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for a well-thought out plot, extensive depth of characters and character development, a unique magic system, and interesting mythological spirits. The mayakari are passive witches who have been mercilessly hunted by the empire; as such, strong themes of discrimination and genocide are directly ingrained in the plot, giving the novel a heavier weight to it. Despite many strong, well-developed elements, it didn’t sweep me away. It could have been the pacing or it could have been the lack of attachment to any character. Overall, I enjoyed it and felt that the story was so intricate while simultaneously being simple in a beautiful way. The stakes are incredibly high at the end, and I’m not sure I like where it’s heading (“it’s starting to go very wrong!” was on an internal loop). I predict that I’ll think about this book and its themes for a while - and that, in the end, is one of the hallmarks of a well-written novel.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It comes around in the end, but this was a struggle. The prose is overwritten and I found the lore really dense and impenetrable. I'm sure this is gonna land for some, but it just didn't work for me.

Actual rating 2.5/5 stars

I'm sorry to say, I had a really difficult time with this book. I felt no attachment to the characters, and therefore did not care much for what was going on around them. The pacing felt clumsy in a way I can't quite describe - like it was both too fast and too slow - and I kept tripping over the clunky writing in a way that kept throwing me out of the momentum of the story.

I do like the idea behind the premise, the execution just needs a bit of fine tuning.