2 out of 4 stars
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There are some instances in reading where I feel like the author has many interesting ideas, yet he or she can’t seem to decide which ones to focus on. Sometimes I find myself more intrigued by a side character or story line than in the main story itself in a novel. Sometimes it seems like an author is so eager to include all of the ideas he or she has, that all of the ideas are dumped in a pile for the reader to sift through. Unfortunately, I found all of these issues present in Daisies and Dragon Slayers on the Equator by Penny Singham.
Daisies and Dragon Slayers on the Equator deals with Oormila, a young Malaysian woman whose father is a high ranking doctor. After long descriptions of Malaysia’s history, the book focuses on Mila and her trials as she goes off to school and pines for Michael, a friend of her brother. The situation is complicated even further when Mila becomes engaged to VK, a man her family approves of, even though she doesn’t really love him. Mila is forced to make a decision, and that’s when things get even more complex.
I ended up giving this novel 2 out of 4 stars. The biggest problem with the novel is that it advertises itself as a fantasy novel in the blurb, but nothing fantastic happens through about eighty percent of the novel. Much of the book is devoted to Malaysian history which, while interesting, isn’t what the book is supposed to be about according to the description. When the book turns to fantasy, it does it suddenly and with little build-up. It honestly feels as though the reader has switched to a completely different book. All of the previous parts that deal with Oormila’s life are completely pedestrian until the sudden shift. It is very jarring. The author could also use an editor. There are a large number of grammar errors throughout the book, and there also are a lot of formatting errors. The situation is even more confusing because the book has many chapters within chapters.
The book does have a lot of interesting history about the country of Malaysia. The author clearly knows a great deal about the topic. I also liked the addition of pictures to the book. It’s not something often done with adult novels, but I liked it. It feels like this would have been a very workable nonfiction book about Malaysia if it had been separated from the plot line. I would have actually probably liked a full fantasy book about the plot line and a full nonfiction book about the history of Malaysia.
I wanted to like this book based off of how much the author understood her topic. Unfortunately, it felt like there were two totally different books going on within one book. I would happily read the books had they been separated and had some editing, but as one novel there is too much going on for me to recommend the book wholeheartedly. Also, I must warn fantasy readers that this is probably not the book you’re looking for. If you’re interested in the history of Malaysia, this book is very informative. If you want a fantasy, which is what the blurb claims it is, this is probably not the best place to find it.
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Daisies and Dragon Slayers In The Equator
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