Review - The Prison Healer (The Prison Healer, #1) by Lynette Noni

 

 

Title: The Prison Healer (The Prison Healer, #1)

Author: Lynette Noni

Pages: 421

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Release Date: 13th April 2021

Blurb from Goodreads:

Here at Zalindov, the only person you can trust is yourself.

Seventeen-year-old Kiva Meridan is a survivor. For ten years, she has worked as the healer in the notorious death prison, Zalindov, making herself indispensable. Kept afloat by messages of hope from her family, Kiva has one goal and one goal only: stay alive.

Then one day the infamous Rebel Queen arrives at the prison on death's door and Kiva receives a new message: Don't let her die. We are coming.

The queen is sentenced to the Trial by Ordeal: a series of elemental challenges against the torments of air, fire, water, and earth, assigned to only the most dangerous of criminals. Aware the sickly queen has little chance of making it through the Trials alive, Kiva volunteers to take her place. If she succeeds, both she and the queen will be granted their freedom.

But no one has ever survived.

And with an incurable plague sweeping Zalindov, a mysterious new inmate fighting for Kiva's heart, and a prison rebellion brewing, Kiva can't escape the terrible feeling that her trials have only just begun.

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My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton*

For ten years, Kiva Meridan has been a healer at Zalindov prison, a place no one has ever escaped alive. The only scraps of hope Kiva has are the messages she rarely receives from her family on the outside.

When the Rebel Queen - who wants to claim the throne for herself - arrives at the prison, Kiva is told to keep her alive.

The ill Rebel Queen is condemed to undergo the Trial by Ordeal, a set of challenges each related to an element - air, fire, water and earth. Knowing how ill her patient is, Kiva decides to take her place, and if she survives they will both be allowed to leave the prison.

While trying to make it through each trial, Kiva also finds herself attempting to discover the source of the new plague sweeping through Zalindov.

Can Kiva survive the trials?

Having heard lots of positive things about this book I was excited to read it. However, I ended up being a bit disappointed.

Kiva was a good protagonist overall, who I found to be likeable and relatable, but at times she also felt a bit bland.

My favourite characters were Tipp, Kiva's friend, and Naari, one of the prison guards.

The setting of the prison was interesting, but it meant that the world-building was limited.

The plot was mixed for me - I enjoyed the beginning but I did get a little bit bored towards the end of the book. While there were some things that I saw coming, there were also some that I didn't, but these didn't have the intended shock value as I wasn't invested in what was happening.

The writing style was easy to follow.

I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more, but I think I was expecting it to be something that it wasn't.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read.