DR: You’vetalked beforeabout how The Oleander Swordwas difficult to write partially due to pandemic stress. Are you now into the writing onThe Burning Kingdoms #3? And if so, how are you feeling about nearing the end of the trilogy? The Jasmine Throne has been hailed as a series opener that will "undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come" ( Booklist, starred). Now, award-winning author Tasha Suri's provocative and powerful Burning Kingdoms trilogy continues with The Oleander Sword. The prophecy of the nameless god—the words that declared Malini the rightful empress of Parijatdvipa—has proven a blessing and curse. She is determined to claim the throne that fate offered her. But even with the strength of the rage in her heart and the army of loyal men by her side, deposing her brother is going to be a brutal and bloody fight. Will undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come."— Booklist (starred review) Chapter One then begins and the story shifts to the present day. When we last saw Malini, she had just used an opportune moment—Rao’s revelation of the prophecy that she would be the one to name Parijadvipa’s next leader—to crown herself as Empress. Now Malini travels with an army comprised of soldiers and princes from all the kingdoms of the empire. All the kingdoms except Ahiranya, Parijatdvipa’s oppressed former enemy. Is that what love is, Malini? Is that how awful love is? Because if it is then, I love you, the way that roots love the deep and leaves love the light. And no matter how much I try to be good, to do right - I'm all flowers in your arms, for your war, for you - "

Will undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come’ Booklist (starred review)

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The cuteness that is Priya's and Malini's relationship is filled with way too much angst and pining for me in this book. I did, however, enjoy the two delicate connections, one involving Rao and the other Bhumika, a lot more.

I felt their pain, their uncertainty, both their helplessness and their agency. Everything made sense. Everything hurt. I already wasn’t the biggest fan of most side characters in The Jasmine Throne, and the sentiment carried through The Oleander Sword. Rao, Aditya, and the rest of recurring pov characters don’t really offer much; they’re not easy to get attached to and are occasionally very irritating. Chandra seemed like a formidable force in The Jasmine Throne through Malini’s painful memories of him, but in this book, I almost wish Tasha Suri hadn’t given him a pov, because all it did was reveal him as a petulant idiotic child. What can I say to sum up The Oleander Sword? It’s the weakest of Tasha Suri’s five books for me, but based on how it’s set up, I expect that book three will be a lot better. I will read it, definitely. Nevertheless, I’m bummed. C+. The Jasmine Throne has been hailed as a series opener that will "undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come" ( Booklist, starred). Now, award-winning author Tasha Suri's provocative and powerful Burning Kingdoms trilogy continues with The Oleander Sword.The characterization is beautifully done. While The Jasmine Throne was more Priya's book and focused on her journey to become an Elder, The Oleander Sword focuses more on Malini and the price she is willing to pay for overthrowing her brother and finally attaining her much sought after power. As well as Bhumika and her struggle with trying to balance the rebels, the rising threat of the yaksa, and the consequences of motherhood. Bhumika really popped off in this book. She was easily my favorite character in book 1 and I was so glad to have more of her in book 2. I was also glad to see my Bhumika-Jeevan ship develop, I love them both so much. The tenderness was off the charts. I am really excited to see where Suri takes Bhumika and Padma's characters in the final installment. What is a star, he thought, in Aditya’s slurred, smiling voice, but distant fire, reaching for you across worlds?” For sure we’ll find out that Priya being the only child born in the Hirana itself has imbued her with an ability none of the other temple elders have or have had.

TS: Magic requiring sacrifice is an established concept in so much fantasy fiction, so I admit I’m borrowing from the hard work of writers who’ve come before me. In terms of how I layered in sacrifice – I’ll simply say that all the magic systems reflect some form of my complicated feelings on faith and religion and what they often demand from their believes. I’ll let readers draw their own conclusions on the intent, there. DR: The Jasmine Thronefeatured its fair share of both fantasy and romance, but the romantic vibes are dialed up to a whole other level in The Oleander Sword. Without getting into spoilers…the letters. Can you talk a little about how you decided to include those? TS: I am writing the third book! I’m afraid pandemic stress hasn’t entirely released my brain, but I love this series and it’s really been a comfort (as well as a source of stress in its own special way). As for Priya, she is now a temple elder in Ahiranya, with considerable magical powers including the ability to halt the spread of the rot that plagues Ahiranya’s people and its crops. She leaves the politics to Bhumika, who is far more adept at them, and focuses on that. While she misses Malini badly, she accepts that life has taken them down two different paths. Even if Malini asked her to join her, Priya doesn’t feel she could abandon her people when they need her aid.

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Malini is still determined to claim the throne as the empress of Parijatdvipa but knows that she has a long journey ahead of her. Not only must she engage with her brother’s forces, but she also must try to keep the men following her in line. Priya is an Elder of Ahiranya and wants to rid the land of the rot that is spreading and plaguing it. She’s torn between her duties and wanting to be near Malini. But when unexpected conflict rises that threatens the world as they know it, they realize they must work together to save everything they care about. Will undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come' Booklist (starred review) I agree that some of the supporting characters (Bhumika especially) got more development. That said I think Malini did develop some in her new position of empress, or maybe my perception of her did–we saw her in her element, maneuvering and scheming so as to survive. She did some of it in The Jasmine Throne but here we saw it in a more political context–the day to day role of leader as a woman, what that entailed as well as what the limits were. Maybe it was more shading than deepening, but it wasn’t bad at all, I just wish that at some point we’d moved on from that to something more personal (and I don’t mean just sex). Her confrontations with Chandra, Priya and Kartik near the end were all good but my reaction was one of “Finally!” Priya’s characterization once again felt like a walking conundrum to me, and even to herself, as she struggles with her love for Malini, and how it is often in contrast to what she must do for her own country and belief system. This time around, I found the romantic relationship between Malini and Priya to be less forced. Author Suri does a great job showing the complexity of their leadership roles and the impossibility of their desires in the face of the former.

You know what I know. You know our ancient enemy comes. That is the war that lies upon the horizon…..The yaksa will return. The rot heralded them. They will come, and there will be war again.” The prophecy of the nameless god—the words that declared Malini the rightful empress of Parijatdvipa—has proven a blessing and curse. She is determined to claim the throne that fate offered her. But even with rage in her heart and the army of loyal men by her side, deposing her brother is going to be a brutal and bloody fight. DR: Before writing The Burning Kingdoms, you published a different series: The Books of Ambha duology. How has working on The Burning Kingdomsbeen different from your last series? Their chosen paths once pulled them apart. But Malini and Priya's souls remain as entwined as their destinies. And they soon realize that coming together is the only way to save their kingdom from those who would rather see it burn—even if it will cost them. TS: I love Wuthering Heights, and remixing it in What Souls Are Made Of gave me the chance to use it as a vehicle to talk about a lot of things that matter to me: the complex, important multicultural history of Britain and of South Asians in Britain; the atrocities of the nascent British Empire; and the difficulties of overcoming familial trauma that’s exacerbated by geopolitical forces outside of your control. It was fun!

About this book

TS: So many! The gothic horror Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid and the wonderful sapphic epic The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi were particularly wonderful, though. as for the climax....well if you're invested in malini x priya, you'll be emotionally impacted. i did like it though and i'm interested to see where things go from here.