The Demon Race by Alexandria Warwick [arc review]

A Race across the Desert
An unimaginable Prize
The Demon Race
It occurs once every thousand years: the Demon Race. A test of will and strength, it is a race across the Saraj, a fight for the prize of a lifetime. And it is the key to Namali Hafshar’s freedom.

When shy, seventeen-year-old Namali learns of her arranged marriage, she flees home and enters the Demon Race for the chance to change her fate. But to compete, she must cross the Saraj on a daeva, a shadow demon that desires its own reward: to infect her soul with darkness.

Namali soon learns the desert holds more dangers than meets the eye. The only person she can trust is Sameen, a kind competitor seeking his own destiny. As her affection for him grows, however, so too does the darkness in her heart.

In this race of men and demons, only one can win. But the price of winning might be more than Namali is willing to pay.

2.3 Stars

I liked the premise of the book. The idea of a race on the back of Daevas was enticing, I do enjoy most books that deal with demons that mess up your mind and your ability to distinguish right from wrong. It creates interesting moral dynamics on a story. 

All in all the book had a good story and a lot of potential. The romance was sweet as well.

One of the main issues I had with the book however was that it was repetitive.
Namali and Sameen would run, the merchant would capture Namali, somehow she would escape, and than the two of them would have some argument about her being a woman and therefore 'this or that'...
Namali would run, be capture, escape, argue.
Namali would run, be capture..... that got seriously annoying towards the end.

Also, I read to escape the real world not to be faced with political, social and religious agenda pushing and sadly the book often felt like that. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind books that have all of that, but only when it feels natural to the story. Here it didn't. The amount of times the main character mention she was a woman and therefore 'this or that' drove me crazy. I got it the first time!  Instead of coming across as a strong woman going after freedom she often came across as a whiny little kid. Is this an ya fantasy or a book for woman oppression? Cause there should be a difference between the two... There was also a lot of religious jargon and rich vs poor stuff. 
There was so much of it all it got on the way of the story. We didn't get anywhere near enough scenes with the demons for example. Let fantasy be fantasy (that's how I feel anyway, I know many feel differently). 
Often times it felt like reading a contemporary with a little bit of fantasy. I am sure that will work for many readers, but as a matter of personal preference it did not for me.

Release Date: September 18th, 2018
Find the Book at: