Originally posted on my blog, With Her Head in a Book. 
 I received a free copy of A Thousand Nights from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 
 I hesitated when deciding to read A Thousand Nights - simply because I read The Wrath and the Dawn only a short time before. I worried the two would be too similar story since they're both reimagined novels about 1,001 Nights. If you hold the same fears as me, worry not. Both are vastly different and fantastic for their own individual reasons. For example, I loved that E. K. Johnston's version told tales of the narrator's own life instead of other fairy tales as in The Wrath and the Dawn. The narrators of each novel are practically complete opposite, except for one fact: they won't take anyone's shit. One is made my heart beat fast and I waited anxiously for every steamy moment. The other is filled with a deeper message that took time to build and develop. Even though A Thousand Nights is a slower novel, I still burned through the work. 
 This is a novel about women. There's the main narrator, her mother, her sister, her sister's mother, her husband's mother, and all of her many maids and friends. This complex web of relationships are beautifully threaded together with every woman helping the other, teaching the tricks they have learned in their little villages and long lives. The women are the backbone of A Thousand Nights. 
 A Thousand Nights is an interesting novel, but more so for the writing challenge the author went through rather than the actual story. All characters remain unnamed, which is an amazing feat not many are willing to do, but I believe it left a weakness in the novel. Even now I'm having difficulty writing this review without character names (I hate repetition - where's my thesaurus?). I mean, how many books don't have a single named character? Not many that at least do it well. Luckily, the novel is pretty well written. I just couldn't find the spark that would really bring this book alive to me. I think the biggest reason of that is because the narrator is nameless; she could be almost any woman. I can't get a feel for who she is, though I know what kind of person she is. Her and her husband don't have a great relationship either as if they couldn't connect in the same way I couldn't. Unlike what I had expected going in, this is far from a romance novel. I was a little disappointed in that, but it is nice to have a YA novel that doesn't include any romance. 
 The writing style is absolutely beautiful. The words seemed to flow off the page, elegantly strung together. No spoilers, but the author herself seemed to have the magical powers her Narrator has. Unfortunately, I stood above watching every scene unfold. I wasn't in the room, but I could imagine the setting perfectly - the harsh desert, the thirst for water, the vicious wildlife contrasting the beauty and flowing rivers of the palace. Unfortunately, I wasn't even in her head despite being written in first person. I don't recall crying or any strong pulls of emotion. The final scene left me wanting more; I didn't quite care which way the ending went. 
 I would recommend this novel for anyone interested in a beautifully written classic reimagined, but do not want any romance and would prefer to get a feel for the land and people. E. K. Johnston is definitely an author to keep an eye out for. There's promise of a fantastic novel brewing in her fingers. 
 Plot: 2/5 
 Characters: 3/5 
 Writing Style: 4/5 
 All Around Idea: 4/5 
 Total: 3/5