Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

A la caza del fuego by Hafsah Faizal

67 reviews

jobaji's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book starts kind of slow, but really picks up when you get to the middle. The relationships between the characters are really compelling and special, and the fantasy world that Hafsah Faizal has crafted is so vast, complex, and fascinating!
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maple_dove's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I read this book SO QUICKLY. I started reading this book because I'm in the DAY (Dear Asian Youth) Book Club but then I ended up reading this book at a pace I used to read at.

For one thing, the double-life aspect. I'm a sucker for double lives. I absolutely adored the worldbuilding too.
I'm astonished on how the KulsumxNasir part was handled. Although it was like the cheating trope in a way, in this context, it just made sense. After all, can you really blame Kulsum for not falling in love with a person like Nasir? The reveal didn't feel forced in any way and felt natural.


I did have some qualms. For example, I didn't like that the reveal of the Hunter's identity was revealed so quickly in one chapter.
Also, the fact that each time the unveiling of the Demenhune Hunter's real gender was spontaneous each time? At the same time, I do like that Zafira wasn't afraid of revealing that she was a woman who took on traditionally masculine tasks.


Reviewers have probably complained about how they couldn't take Zafira or Nasir seriously as the Hunter or Prince of Death. However (if this is the case) I think they're missing the point. I believe that was the author's intention. Zafira and Nasir may have these intimidating roles and personas, but what this book shows is that those personas do not tell the full story of who they actually are.

Favorite Quotes:

Paranoia had a way of visiting when he was least desired.

Darkness had seized his mind, whispers and half-crazed screams echoing in his ears when his fingers passed over the inscriptions in the ancient tongue. It was a darkness wrought with pain, a darkness that could never end.
It was a darkness that despaired in itself.

Maybe the tiny lions were merely ornaments, a display of pride for the victory over a man who defied men, only to be slain by women.

In this moment, we are two souls, marooned.
That was life, wasn't it? A collection of moments, a menagerie of people. Everyone stranded everywhere, always. ⭐️
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caityreviews's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

It was a solid YA book, but it's just really not my style. If you anly read YA, I think you would enjoy the book a lot more than I did.
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book_loving_dragon's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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nieva098's review against another edition

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slow-paced
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.5

I was looking forward to this book. But it was hard to undersjanger what was happening and it was kind of boring and hard to get through, will not be reading the next one. But i would like to try something else from this author.
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bri__'s review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I really enjoyed this book, the chapters are versatile being both long and short and the dual pov was captivating. I was deeply enraptured in the writing style and main relationship of the characters. I will say I did not expect the plot twists and I found the main conflict scene to be very fast paced compared to the build up but other than that I found this to be an entertaining read and im anticipating the pure pain of the next one.
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edilyaaang's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I was so excited to read this book because it got so many good reviews only to be disappointed by the story. At first I disliked Nasir. How can someone be an assassin and be so weak-willed at the same time. My blood boiled when he said the lines "I wanted my father's approval so I became a monster" like wtf is wrong with you! I know he had a terrible time growing up but it's not like he lost his compassion. He still knows what he is doing for his evil father was wrong and it breaks his heart evertime he kills someone innocent but he does it anyway so that his dad can love him wtf. I got soooo tempted to drop the book a third of the way but then things got exciting so I pushed through. But then I started disliking Zafira. It's like she just can't make up her mind. She's all for camaraderie one moment then cold and angry the next. Despite everything the gang has been through, she just can't trust anyone and is always full of suspicion which in turn affects the groups dynamic. Not to mention she was sooo useless at the battle in the end, she can't even keep the Jawarat safe for pete's sake! There were tons of times that I wanted to just throw the book out of frustration and give up on it but I was nearing the end so I just gritted my teeth and tried my best to finish the book. Whew, what a journey. I heard the 2nd book is waaaaaaay better than this though so I look forward to reading that but this one drove me nuts. Lol
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kbairbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book gave me strong high fantasy vibes. I spent the first while confused because so many names, nicknames, words, and languages were thrown at me and although I got more used to it as the book went on even by the end I was still confused. That’s on me I’m sure as the reader but I also didn’t enjoy the romance (either of them) or the characters, or the fight scenes.. I dunno this was a dark high fantasy but I didn’t connect to any of it and the constant pov change and many tiny chapters felt exhausting to me.
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skyllarduncan's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

3.75

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maeverose's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

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