Book Review // Wonder Woman: Warbringer (DC Icons #1) by Leigh Bardugo

Daughter of immortals. Princess Diana longs to prove herself to her legendary warrior sisters. But when the opportunity finally comes, she throws away her chance at glory and breaks Amazon law—risking exile—to save a mortal. Diana will soon learn that she has rescued no ordinary girl, and that with this single brave act, she may have doomed the world.

Daughter of death. Alia Keralis just wanted to escape her overprotective brother with a semester at sea. She doesn’t know she is being hunted by people who think her very existence could spark a world war. When a bomb detonates aboard her ship, Alia is rescued by a mysterious girl of extraordinary strength and forced to confront a horrible truth: Alia is a Warbringer—a direct descendant of the infamous Helen of Troy, fated to bring about an age of bloodshed and misery.

Together. Two girls will face an army of enemies—mortal and divine—determined to either destroy or possess the Warbringer. Tested beyond the bounds of their abilities, Diana and Alia must find a way to unleash hidden strengths and forge an unlikely alliance. Because if they have any hope of saving both their worlds, they will have to stand side by side against the tide of war.

Wonder Woman: Warbringer (DC Icons #1) by Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publication Date: August 29th, 2017
RATING: ⭐⭐⭐½

“Sisters in battle, I am shield and blade to you. As I breathe, your enemies will know no sanctuary. While I live, your cause is mine.”

Contrary to my usual mode of behaviour, I actually watched the movie Wonder Woman before reading this book, since the movie release preceded the book publication, and therefore had certain expectations and assumptions about it—and, to my surprise, the story Leigh Bardugo told differed from the story in the movie quite a bit.

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While the romantic relationship between a woman and a man—Diana and Trevor—holds a considerable significance in the film version, Wonder Woman: Warbringer puts the friendship between two girls, Diana and Alia, at its heart, which I appreciated a lot.

Leigh Bardugo creates a story about friendship, trust, bravery, and loyalty, and touches upon various relevant issues such as racism, and feminism, as well as shows us what it truly means to be bold; in more ways than one.

“It’s the people who never learn the word impossible who make history, because they’re the ones who keep trying.”

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I love reading about strong heroines in books, but Diana wasn’t merely reduced to her strength, she was still real. All too often, in an attempt to create strong female characters, “strong” is equated with having a tough, cold, and unyielding personality, and many character traits, especially empathy, get lost in the process, but that’s not the case here. Diana’s not only strong in the physical sense; she’s quick-witted, sensitive, and kind-hearted.

I only wish the story itself could have been more riveting, and managed to engage me more. I didn’t enjoy the romantic part (if you can call it that) of the story very much, and the pacing felt a bit off, which resulted in parts of the story dragging, and others feeling rushed, as well as side characters that lacked depth, because there simply wasn’t enough time to explore their personality.

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“We can’t help the way we’re born. We can’t help what we are, only what life we choose to make for ourselves.”

All in all, I still found Wonder Woman: Warbringer to be an entertaining read, but I guess a little disappointment remains—probably partly owing to the fact that I love everything Leigh Bardugo has written so far, and expected to be absolutely amazed by this book.

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You’ll have my eternal gratitude, love, and a life-long supply of virtual chocolate. 💞

Have you read this book, or have you seen the movie?
Which one did you like more?
Do you prefer to read about romances or friendships in books?

xx, Lily