Woven in moonlight - Rambling Readers

Hardcover, 384 pages

Published April 9, 2020 by Page Street Publishing Co, Page Street Kids.

ISBN:: 978-978-162-414-8

(1 review)

Ximena is the decoy Condesa, a stand-in for the last remaining Illustrian royal. Her people lost everything when the usurper, Atoc, used an ancient relic to summon ghosts and drive the Illustrians from La Ciudad. Now Ximena’s motivated by her insatiable thirst for revenge, and her rare ability to spin thread from moonlight.

When Atoc demands the real Condesa’s hand in marriage, it’s Ximena’s duty to go in her stead. She relishes the chance, as Illustrian spies have reported that Atoc’s no longer carrying his deadly relic. If Ximena can find it, she can return the true aristócrata to their rightful place.

She hunts for the relic, using her weaving ability to hide messages in tapestries for the resistance. But when a masked vigilante, a warm-hearted princess, and a thoughtful healer challenge Ximena, her mission becomes more complicated. There could be a way to overthrow the usurper without starting another …

Ximena is the decoy Condesa, a stand-in for the last remaining Illustrian royal. Her people lost everything when the usurper, Atoc, used an ancient relic to summon ghosts and drive the Illustrians from La Ciudad. Now Ximena’s motivated by her insatiable thirst for revenge, and her rare ability to spin thread from moonlight.

When Atoc demands the real Condesa’s hand in marriage, it’s Ximena’s duty to go in her stead. She relishes the chance, as Illustrian spies have reported that Atoc’s no longer carrying his deadly relic. If Ximena can find it, she can return the true aristócrata to their rightful place.

She hunts for the relic, using her weaving ability to hide messages in tapestries for the resistance. But when a masked vigilante, a warm-hearted princess, and a thoughtful healer challenge Ximena, her mission becomes more complicated. There could be a way to overthrow the usurper without starting another war, but only if Ximena turns her back on revenge—and her Condesa.

6 editions

Radioactivestardust reviewed Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibañez (Woven in Moonlight, #1)

Review of 'Woven in Moonlight' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

This book is a hot mess.
There were a lot of implications, that I find very hard to deal with. For example a black and white thinking "if we only remove the great evil, we can all live in peace"
The portrayal of the native andeans was infuriating. They do not have magic, they are not standing on equal feet and never have done so. There was never a moment in time where the white colonialists had to fear for their wealth. And the ending was disappointing. Also the whole Koka leave thing makes me angry, too. The whole Morales metaphor makes me angry. Atoc rebelled to get the throne, killing people. Morales was elected three times. And then he went megalomaniac.
The Spanish was horrible and annoying. Why not just call orange juice orange juice? Why not just write please. Why should the natives who speak the old language …

This book is a hot mess.
There were a lot of implications, that I find very hard to deal with. For example a black and white thinking "if we only remove the great evil, we can all live in peace"
The portrayal of the native andeans was infuriating. They do not have magic, they are not standing on equal feet and never have done so. There was never a moment in time where the white colonialists had to fear for their wealth. And the ending was disappointing. Also the whole Koka leave thing makes me angry, too. The whole Morales metaphor makes me angry. Atoc rebelled to get the throne, killing people. Morales was elected three times. And then he went megalomaniac.
The Spanish was horrible and annoying. Why not just call orange juice orange juice? Why not just write please. Why should the natives who speak the old language use the Spanish language again? So many issues.
But the book does have some appeal, in some way. If you ignore a lot of stuff, some parts of the plot is nice and the writing is decent.