Ever since Yesubai has been a little girl, she has lived in fear of her father, Lokesh. But she knows enough not to show the fear. Instead, she keeps her wits about her and, with the emotional support of her servant and friend, Isha Yesubai quietly hones her powers in the hopes that one day, she will be able to defeat her father and his evil goal of acquiring a full set of magical amulets that will make him invincible. When the time comes, Yesubai must decide whether she can let her father win or whether she will challenge his dark powers.
In this prequel to The Tiger’s Curse series, author Colleen Houck offers an enticing backstory that creates the enchanted world in which good struggles against evil. Yesubai is a captivating strong, young female protagonist. Her voice and language with its propriety reveals the opulence of the land and world in which she lives. Yesubai’s composed and peaceful demeanor is effectively contrasted to the stark and vivid descriptions of Lokesh’s quick and fierce violence: “The little girl lay still, her broken body hung like a lifeless doll tossed carelessly over jagged pieces of stone.”
Houck’s flowing, storytelling style offers a fast-paced and intriguing adventure, that as a stand alone might be somewhat perplexing as it is unclear where the story is heading, but as a quick prequel will no doubt offer some insight to the next book.
TIGER’S PROMISE is a spellbinding story about a young girl’s struggle against evil personified – in her father.
Reviewed by Maya Fleischmann for IndieReader.