Book: The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni
Read From: 6th December - 11th December 2021
Rating: 3/5 stars
Summary: For 10 years, 17 year old Kiva has worked as the healer in the notorious death prison Zalindov. Kept afloat by coded messages from her family, her only goal is to stay alive. When the infamous Rebel Queen arrives at the prison on death's door, Kiva receives a new message: Don't let her die. We are coming. However, the Queen is sentenced to the deadly Trial by Ordeal - a series of elemental challenges. The Queen is too unfit to compete yet with her life in Kiva's hands, Kiva volunteers to take her place. If she survives, both her and the Queen will be granted their freedom. But no one has ever made it out alive.
This book was a lot of fun, even if it did end up being different from what I expected. From the synopsis, I thought it would be a The Hunger Games meets Prison Break kind of vibe but the actual trials themselves took more of a back-seat than I anticipated. Because of this, I felt like our main character Kiva could have been done so much more justice - after finishing the book I read some reviews and really agreed with the ones saying the trials were less about problem solving and more about throwing her into a deadly situation, where it sort of turned her into a damsel in distress. Without saying too much, I don’t think this really fit in with the direction the story was taking.
I tend to find it harder to get into a book if I’m not connected to the characters or invested into the story, and whilst this book was such a fun time it almost pains me to say that I’ve read YA fantasy books with better protagonists, especially because I had such high hopes for this one! I definitely liked Kiva but she didn’t stand out for me - the stars of the show in my opinion were definitely Tripp and Naari because they showed the importance of friendship and kindness.
I’m aware that this review has sounded really negative but please don’t take my criticisms as me disliking the book in any way! It was such an addictive and thought-provoking read because whilst this is a fictional prison, the horrendous things endured by the characters aren’t actually that far detached from what goes on behind closed doors in reality. This book is darker than your typical YA fantasy which is perfect if you want to change things up a bit but be sure to check the trigger warnings before reading.
Each page is dripping with tension and it’s definitely the kind of book that can keep you up into the early hours of the morning. I’ve settled for a 3 star rating because whilst I had a lot of fun reading this (and will definitely be picking up the sequel!), it wasn’t the most ground-breaking YA fantasy I’ve ever read and I doubt it’s one I will revisit in the future.