Beautiful prose but the story left me wanting more
The Bird King is a beautifully written historical fantasy set in 15th century Spain during the fall of Moorish sultanates and the rise of the Inquisition. For me, the best parts of the book were the gorgeous prose and a fascinating historical setting of medieval Spain. In The Bird King we follow Fatima, the sultan's concubine, and her friend, Hassan, who are forced to flee the last sultan of Granada's palace because the Spanish Inquisition is after Hassan, a mapmaker with the ability to draw maps of places he has never seen. The Spaniards consider Hassan's talent a sorcery and a sin.
During their travels Fatima and Hassan meet and forge new relationships with a number of magical creatures and ordinary people, who either help them escape or betray them. I must say, I enjoyed the first half of the book a lot, but kind of lost interest in the second half. I felt like the story lost steam in the second half. The symbolism of the place Fatima and Hassan arrived at by the end of the book went over my head. I didn't really understand what was happening and why it was happening. I didn’t get the moral of the story. I was expecting an exciting adventure and was disappointed when I didn't get one. But I did enjoy the beautiful writing and I liked both Fatima and Hassan, so it wasn't a total letdown.
During their travels Fatima and Hassan meet and forge new relationships with a number of magical creatures and ordinary people, who either help them escape or betray them. I must say, I enjoyed the first half of the book a lot, but kind of lost interest in the second half. I felt like the story lost steam in the second half. The symbolism of the place Fatima and Hassan arrived at by the end of the book went over my head. I didn't really understand what was happening and why it was happening. I didn’t get the moral of the story. I was expecting an exciting adventure and was disappointed when I didn't get one. But I did enjoy the beautiful writing and I liked both Fatima and Hassan, so it wasn't a total letdown.