I feel like I've been waiting all year for this YA spin on A Thousand and One Nights. All the pieces are here, a caliph that marries a new woman every night, and kills them the next morning. The girl who staves off her imminent death by enthralling her new husband with a neverending story. In The Wrath and the Dawn, Shahrzad marries the Caliph, Khalid, to revenge the death of her best friend. Things get complicated when she gets to know him, and maybe starts to fall in love. Add in a curse, a childhood sweetheart, and some political intrigue and we're cooking with fire. 
 At first I was worried about the narrative being bogged down by Shahrzad's stories, but that wasn't the case. They were established early on, but fell to the wayside as the plot kicked in. And not in a way that offered continuity problems. I do wish the at the stories we did get had been a little more detailed, but their brevity helped with the pacing of the novel. 
 I loved Shazi as a character. She was strong and tough. After all, she originally was willing to sacrifice herself in order to avenge the death of her best friend. And she never doubted for a moment she would have the gumption to succeed. Even more, the characters in this story recognized and encouraged her strength, especially the men in her life. She was allowed to be strong and still have a heart 
 Did I recognize that the romance in the novel wasn't probably the best idea if this was real life? Yes. But you know what? This is book that features curses and the ability to tell a story and prevent your murder. So I enjoyed every moment of this forbidden romance. I loved the power plays between Shazi and Khalid. And even with their many secrets, they still managed to be more honest with each other than many couples in romances. 
 In addition to Shazi and Khalid, we get a wonderful cast of secondary characters. These characters and relationships are supported by strong writing and vivid imagery. I can't wait for this series to continue. It was everything I was hoping for.