Book Review: "Rebel of the Sands" by Alwyn Hamilton

☆☆☆☆☆
Rebel of the Sands #1
Genre: High Fantasy
Source: NetGalley
Publication Date: Feb 4, 2016 by Faber and Faber Ltd

""Tell me that and we'll go. Right now. Save ourselves and leave this place to burn. Tell me that's how you want your story to go and we'll write it straight across the sand."

Dustwalk is Amani's home. The desert sand is in her bones. But she wants to escape. More than a want. A need. 

Then a foreigner with no name turns up to save her life, and with him the chance to run. But to where? The desert plains are full of danger. Sand and blood are swirling, and the Sultan's enemies are on the rise." - Goodreads

OMG, this was the best book ever!!!

First off, I want to thank NetGalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for giving me the chance to read this awesome book!

For me it was the perfect mix between The Demon Cycle and The Arabian Nights. The world building was so great and everything was so vividly described that for these past two days I was sent to the Sahara desert. And I loved it! Everything felt so real and it was like a movie inside my head with me playing the lead.

The characters kicked ass! I was in love with their sass and their overall behaviour. Amani is now hands down one of my favorite heroines. She had sass, brains and knows how to stay alive...well, she did try really hard to get herself killed, but she survived. Jin was also a very well developed character. I would love it if the next book is told both from Amani and Jin's POV. It would be fantastic to go inside his head.

I really liked the interaction between the characters. None of them was just there, everyone had a purpose, which was really great. I was fond of the romance in the book - really smooth and subtle.

The mythology used in the book was a really nice touch. I loved all of the creatures and the way they were portrayed - the Djinnis, Buraqis, Nightmares and all tha jazz. Everything fitted the setting so perfectly. Nothing was redundant.

I honestly can't believe this is a debut novel. It was definitely more than I expected, which makes me so happy and appreciative. "Rebel of the Sands" has everything I love in a novel - well developed characters, gripping story, great world building and whole lot of action. The only bad thing I can say about the book is that I need more and I have to wait for the second one. Anticipation is killing me...