Book Review – The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri
The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri
Fantasy | Adult | 484 pages
Published on 21 October 2025 by Orbit Books
Synopsis
From World Fantasy Award-winning author Tasha Suri comes The Isle in the Silver Sea, a heart-shattering romantasy of sapphic longing, medieval folklore and a love that spans the centuries.
In a mirror England fuelled by stories, the knight and the witch are fated to fall in love and doom each other over and over, the same fable retold over thousands of lifetimes.
But Vina and Simran are looking for a way to break the cycle, just as a mysterious assassin begins targeting tales like theirs.
From the author of the World Fantasy Award-winning The Jasmine Throne, comes a sapphic epic fantasy of medieval myth, romance, and the magic of stories.
My rating:
Review
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This is one of the most stunning books I’ve ever read. Every word feels so intentional and the language is so lyrical and beautiful. There are so many layers to this story – it’s not just about two people fated to fall in love and destroy each other, tied to a story they cannot escape and can only hope to change. It’s a statement about stories themselves and how they can be used as weapons. It’s a fight against governments acting in greed and in their own self interest and not that of the people. It’s also standing against othering and colonialism and racism and so many other things.
There’s been a real fight back against politics in books recently, but this highlights to me why they are so important. Isle is so clearly political, in its message and in its past. I think it’s something Tasha Suri does wonderfully well, as I saw it in the Jasmine Throne as well. I could see that you could perhaps not see it here, choosing to get lost in the beautiful world, but I feel that would heavily detract from Isle’s impact. Its beauty is in reflecting our reality, and our history, and giving us a story that chooses differently. It’s about choosing to change and learning from everything that’s past and moving consciously forward away from that path.
Funnily, this is fairly heavily marketed on the romance, and the relationship between Vina and Simran is so beautifully done, but it’s in so many ways NOT a romance. We don’t get to see them fall for each other or get to know each other. Instead their past lives make it almost a given and that makes it so much more than a romance. It’s inevitability meeting and endless fight against it.
As much as I loved and adored this book, I will say that I spent a little time confused near the start as there’s a lot going on and the language is done in a way that doesn’t mesh seamlessly into my brain. But that’s basically the only mild thing I could say about this book. I will be thinking about it for years to come, and already can’t wait to reread it in future. Possibly on audio, partially because it’s my favourite format and partially because I think I’d take different things away from it, find new things to spot.
Highly recommended. 4.5 stars.
Buy The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri from Waterstones or Blackwells.
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