The Merciful Crow by Margaret Owen

Hello, my darling readers!
Today I bring you another novel I got via book subscription book. I am usually a rather fast reader but for some reason, it took me forever and a day to finish this one. Anyway, I am done now, so let’s talk about it!

The Merciful Crow on Goodreads

The Plot (as found on Goodreads):

A future chieftain.

Fie abides by one rule: look after your own. Her Crow caste of undertakers and mercy-killers takes more abuse than coin, but when they’re called to collect royal dead, she’s hoping they’ll find the payout of a lifetime.

A fugitive prince.

When Crown Prince Jasimir turns out to have faked his death, Fie’s ready to cut her losses—and perhaps his throat. But he offers a wager that she can’t refuse: protect him from a ruthless queen, and he’ll protect the Crows when he reigns.

A too-cunning bodyguard.

Hawk warrior Tavin has always put Jas’s life before his, magically assuming the prince’s appearance and shadowing his every step. But what happens when Tavin begins to want something to call his own?

The Rating:

Although I quite enjoyed the novel and the idea behind it, I have a few things to criticize. So, let’s start with those.

First of all, the language. I get that Owen used a certain choice of words to support the world-building and the vibe of the book but she ended up repeating the same words and phrases so often I got more and more annoyed by the page. I kept thinking if she writes “betwixt” or “you ken me” one more time, I will scream.

Furthermore, why does there always have to be a romance angle? Just once I would like to read a young adult book that can get by without one. By the way, it’s not important for the story and I didn’t feel like it furthered the plot in any way, so why? Why???

While I liked the world-building that going on and the caste system introduced, I found myself a little bored at times. There was more to be explored about the different castes but instead the book featured several repetitive moments without answering many of the questions I had.

This all sounds pretty negative so far, but the book wasn’t that bad. The idea behind the book is interesting but somehow the novel failed to hold my interest after initially sparking it. I was curious how this would all end but at the same time kept putting the book down.

Although I had my problems with this book, it was an intriguing read but I am not even all that curious about what’s going to happen next. It’s a decent book but I don’t think I’ll read the next part of the series (whenever that’ll come out).

Did you read this book? Let me know in the comments what you think!

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