Tiger’s Curse by Colleen Houck

Hey all! Today I’m going to review the first book in one of my favorite series ever, The Tiger Saga by Colleen Houck. Fun fact: I first read this book when I was about 14, so this post will be a bit different as I’m going to do a little compare and contrast between my opinions now and how they differ from when I first read the book.

Description From Author Website:

Passion. Fate. Loyalty.

Would you risk it all to change your destiny?

The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she’d be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year-old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world. But that’s exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and  mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever.

Plot:

When I first read this book, I wasn’t reviewing semi-not-professionally like I am now, so I don’t have any detailed notes of my thoughts on it. All I know is what I wrote on Goodreads (please ignore the embarrassing text talk): “Awesome story! I adored it and absolutely LOVED Ren! If u like emotional, fantasy, romance stories, this is DEFINITELY 4 u!”

My opinions haven’t changed at all… and yet they have completely. I do still adore and I do still love Ren, and if you like emotional, romantic stories I’d definitely recommend it… but there are some other points I didn’t notice back then. For instance, the plot is actually a lot more romance than anything else. I mean, the fantasy epicness does come in (and it’s pretty darn cool) but that’s not till much later and it doesn’t last very long. Most of the book is Kelsey and Ren’s romance and setup for the fantasy part; but at the same time, I’m not sure how she could’ve done it any differently. The setup kind of had to be there so the story could make sense… but I don’t know, maybe it could’ve been shorter or involved more action or… something. Just a little extra coolness so it felt less like romance and setup, and more like a fantasy adventure.

Speaking of the romance, though: it really is adorable. My favorite part is that, even though they did fall in love quickly, it wasn’t insta-love. There was an immediate “connection,” but from Kelsey’s POV, they definitely started out as friends, got to know each other, and then became romantic from there. Rather than knowing for absolute certain that they were going to be together forever the second their eyes met.

*tries not to roll eyes. Fails*

Ahem. Anyways.

Overall, I do still love this plot and if you’re looking for an adorable romance with a tinge of fantasy, here it is. But you’ll have to wait another book before the real epicness kicks in (and in my opinion it’s totally worth it :D).

Plot: 3 1/2 stars out of 5.

Characters:

*STUFFS FIST IN MOUTH TO KEEP FROM FANGIRLING* Okay, so here’s one part of my opinion that has not changed. 

THE BEAUTIFUL GORGEOUS CHARRIES THOUGH. ASDFGHJKL THEY’RE JUST SO PRECIOUS.

*breathes* Okay. Maybe if I take this one at a time, I won’t strain my heart with the fangirling. Okie dokie. *breathes again* Let’s see if this thing works.

Ren: So Ren, or the Prince Alagan Dhiren Rajaram if you want to be technical, is one of two brothers cursed to be tigers by a power-hungry wizard. THERE ARE SO MANY REASONS WHY I LOVE REN, but it’s mostly because he can basically be the sweetest boy to exist ever. I mean, he freaking asks for Kelsey’s permission before kissing her, and I nearly died from that cuteness both times I read the book. He’s protective and adorable, and he quotes lines of Shakespeare in a way that is shockingly not cheesy. Plus, he’s just so interesting and complex: he’s got that sweet, perfect boyfriend side, but also this moody, kind of broken part of him that’s still trying to deal with his past, come to terms with being a tiger, and figure out how to be human again after 300 years under this spell. Even his arrogant, supremely stubborn side if amusing if nothing else, and he’s just… he’s kind of perfect. Not a perfect person, by any means, but a perfect character, and my love for him was certainly revived with this reread.

Kelsey: I didn’t mention Kelsey in my original review and honestly, I don’t remember much about what I thought of her. I remember one particular part where she made me very angry (I expand on that in this post if you don’t mind reading spoilers), but besides that I either didn’t notice her much or was too obsessed with Ren to remember to mention her in the review.

I don’t know. I was 14. Anything is possible.

Anyways, this time around I definitely noticed her. Kelsey was fascinating and courageous and so, so cool. In a sense, she was everygirl, but at the same time, she was completely unique. She wasn’t particularly special or brave, but she was all of those things and more, because she chose to go on this crazy fantasy adventure, risking her life for people she hardly knew, just because she wanted the boys to be free. She was remarkably caring and courageous, while still being confused and broken enough to feel totally real.

And I haven’t even gotten to her phenomenal sarcasm streak. Seriously, that was just great, and I officially love her now. 

😀

And now we come to my favorite character. I will not fangirl. I will not fangirl. I WILL NOT FANGIRL.

Aw, what the hey.

KIshan: PRINCE SOHAN KISHAN RAJARAM IS THE BOMB DOT COM. LIKE NOT EVEN KIDDING. He’s so freaking gorgeous, and I’m not just talking about the way he’s physically described.

Sadly, though, I can’t say much about him because he’s actually not in this book very much and everything I love about him doesn’t come up till later. Which is why I was trying to convince myself not to fangirl, but I think we can all see how well (or NOT) that went.

*scrambles to refocus* Let’s take a look at past me, shall we? Might help current-me get her feelings under under control.

When I first read this book, I don’t think I thought much of Kishan. I didn’t hate him, but beyond finding him slightly amusing, I don’t think I loved him either. I was probably too focused on being madly in love with Ren and occasionally yelling at Kelsey.

But seriously, Kishan is the bae to end all baes… eventually. In this book, he’s really just a cameo with a flippant, playboy personality, but because I was paying so much more attention to his character, I could see his potential greatness hidden beneath the playful, tiger-hair-don’t-care personality, and it was JUST SO COOL for me to look back at where he started and see those little bits of character development that will blossom ever so beautifully later on.

There are a few other characters, but this post is getting a little long, so suffice it to say, they’re all fun, fascinating people and they play their parts well. I loved reading about each and every one of them, and they only get better as the books go on.

Character: 5 stars out of 5.

Writing Style/Setting:

I didn’t mention anything about the writing in my first review, but I remember that I didn’t have a problem with it. I’d only just started writing myself at that point, so I didn’t know any better—which I guess is enough to tell you that I now see some rough spots. It’s certainly not all bad—in fact there are several sections that are quite good—but there are also several moments where the writing’s kinda… amateurish. It’s not the worst I’ve ever read by any stretch of the imagination (and mine can stretch pretty far), but it could’ve used a little help as well.

As far as the setting and descriptions, they’re very thorough… maybe a bit too thorough. There are numerous paragraphs of careful description that are vivid and really quite beautiful… but, in my opinion, go on a bit too long and pop up a bit too often.

For instance, this paragraph sets the scene gorgeously.

I slid open the glass door and stepped outside. The air was warm and fragrant with the scent of jasmine and the woodsy aroma of the jungle. I watched the sun dip down below the horizon, leaving the sky carnation pink and clementine orange. The pool and fountain lights clicked on below as I sat back on the cushioned patio loveseat and rocked gently, enjoying the balmy, sweet-smelling breeze as it wafted over my skin.

But when it pops up every couple of pages, it starts to be a bit too much.

Writing Style/Setting: 3 stars out of 5.

Overall, we come in at around 4 stars out of 5. Three and a half years of life have knocked one star off my rating, but nothing’s going to change the fact that I adore this book. If nothing else, the characters are brilliant, and the rest of the story gets even better as it goes along: the plots get stronger, the epicness becomes more prevalent, and the sweet baby charries grow to be even more wonderful than they already are. Even with my current opinions, I’d still recommend Tiger’s Curse, just so you can reach the phenomenal ride that waits after this book. If you’d like to take me (and little-me) up on our recommendation, you can buy it here for $9.95.

Comment time! Have you ever read Tiger’s Curse? What’d you think of it? Tell me about a book you’ve reread recently and how your opinions changed since the first time. I look forward to seeing you all in the comments. 😀