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a_reader_obsessed's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
As per the blurb, Emerson seems to be a walking ticking time bomb but something or someone out in the ether seems to take his mortality very seriously, making sure he narrowly avoids imminent death several times. While Emerson’s trying to reconnect with his first hookup, the elusive enigmatic magnetic Morrie, he also tries to find out who his guardian angel is.
An interesting concept for sure. This bridges fate and destiny with clairvoyance and love with a paranormal twist, all against a college NA backdrop. Short but impactful, Emerson and Morrie are two complex endearing characters to root for. A satisfying 90 min read!
As per the blurb, Emerson seems to be a walking ticking time bomb but something or someone out in the ether seems to take his mortality very seriously, making sure he narrowly avoids imminent death several times. While Emerson’s trying to reconnect with his first hookup, the elusive enigmatic magnetic Morrie, he also tries to find out who his guardian angel is.
An interesting concept for sure. This bridges fate and destiny with clairvoyance and love with a paranormal twist, all against a college NA backdrop. Short but impactful, Emerson and Morrie are two complex endearing characters to root for. A satisfying 90 min read!
alandd's review
4.0
I loved it so much it hurt that it's this short. The ideas and characters are amazing, the style made me feel I was immersed in Emerson's world, and the descriptions were just as good. I just hope the author writes more about these characters!
scrow1022's review against another edition
4.0
Lovely, haunting... I wanted more! Especially on Morrie's story, and how Emerson decided to trust so completely. But mostly more of them together, after the story ends.
leannj's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Very quick read, but to the point that it felt rushed and not very memorable.
emhamill's review against another edition
5.0
I’m kind of in love with this weird, sweet little story. Just read it!
faerieboo's review against another edition
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
To the Flame is a quick, relaxing read for a day when you don't want to invest yourself on 300+ pages and instead just want to pass some time while walking or snuggling under your duvet. Unfortunately, the only positives I could take away from this novella is the length and the eerie vibes.
The characterisation was somewhat annoying and, frankly, I went into this novel expecting something different. In my status updates, you can see how I felt about the writing style, which was dull and unnecessarily droning. The scenarios that Emerson and Morrie found themselves in felt as if they'd be pulled from a Hallmark romance movie, and the chemistry between them fell flat.
I did adore the concept though, just not the execution. I wanted to love it so bad. I'd certainly recommend it to people who enjoy cringey romances (nothing wrong with that!) with a paranormal twist. I suppose I prefer cliché romances that are a little less... emo? I'm not sure how to put it nicely, since this isn't a criticism, it's simply not my preference.
The characterisation was somewhat annoying and, frankly, I went into this novel expecting something different. In my status updates, you can see how I felt about the writing style, which was dull and unnecessarily droning. The scenarios that Emerson and Morrie found themselves in felt as if they'd be pulled from a Hallmark romance movie, and the chemistry between them fell flat.
I did adore the concept though, just not the execution. I wanted to love it so bad. I'd certainly recommend it to people who enjoy cringey romances (nothing wrong with that!) with a paranormal twist. I suppose I prefer cliché romances that are a little less... emo? I'm not sure how to put it nicely, since this isn't a criticism, it's simply not my preference.
marimoth's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was quite odd but I actually kind of liked it. And there was nonbinary rep! Yay!
The story is told in two POVs: Emerson Oakley (a pre-med student from Seattle) and Morrie (a mothperson). Morrie is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns throughout the book, however, I did catch some slip-ups such as the one here:
"Morrie tried to pretend he didn't feel his guts tremble under that gaze."
I found the premise interesting, but I think it fell short when it came to fleshing out the characters. I would really have liked to learn more about Morrie and where he came from. While there are brief flashbacks to Morrie's past, they didn't answer most of my questions. In some cases, it ended up resulting in more questions that were pretty much left hanging at the conclusion of the book.
Also, Emerson's POV is filled with priding himself on being cool and logical, but when it comes to a whole alien moth creature physically landing on him or Morrie being a moth-creature and flying him around on campus, he doesn't seem to question it very much. Something doesn't seem right there. Either he's severely overestimating his observational skills and is about as scientific as a brick, or he has the memory of a goldfish.
"I know it isn't reasonable, but what fucking is? You're the Mothman, Morrie. That doesn't make any sense, so why does this need to?"
Emerson did end up making it sweet, though.
I think that's mostly what the story came down to. A sweet relationship between a human and a moth-creature. It made me feel good and fuzzy inside. I would recommend it to anyone looking for something new!
Also, this:
"Are you still cold? Do you want to shower?" he asked.
"Actually, I was hoping we could kind of just cocoon," Morrie said.
Bahahaha!
This was quite odd but I actually kind of liked it. And there was nonbinary rep! Yay!
The story is told in two POVs: Emerson Oakley (a pre-med student from Seattle) and Morrie (a mothperson). Morrie is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns throughout the book, however, I did catch some slip-ups such as the one here:
"Morrie tried to pretend he didn't feel his guts tremble under that gaze."
I found the premise interesting, but I think it fell short when it came to fleshing out the characters. I would really have liked to learn more about Morrie and where he came from. While there are brief flashbacks to Morrie's past, they didn't answer most of my questions. In some cases, it ended up resulting in more questions that were pretty much left hanging at the conclusion of the book.
Also, Emerson's POV is filled with priding himself on being cool and logical, but when it comes to a whole alien moth creature physically landing on him or Morrie being a moth-creature and flying him around on campus, he doesn't seem to question it very much. Something doesn't seem right there. Either he's severely overestimating his observational skills and is about as scientific as a brick, or he has the memory of a goldfish.
"I know it isn't reasonable, but what fucking is? You're the Mothman, Morrie. That doesn't make any sense, so why does this need to?"
Emerson did end up making it sweet, though.
I think that's mostly what the story came down to. A sweet relationship between a human and a moth-creature. It made me feel good and fuzzy inside. I would recommend it to anyone looking for something new!
Also, this:
"Are you still cold? Do you want to shower?" he asked.
"Actually, I was hoping we could kind of just cocoon," Morrie said.
Bahahaha!
pam_h's review against another edition
3.0
This little novella does a fantastic job of answering the question from the blurb: "What is a reasonable response to falling in love when the world itself is without reason?"
I would call this more of a fable/morality story -- although there's probably a more precise term I should be using! -- and that makes this a very different type of romance. I almost wouldn't even call it a "romance" even though it very much has one. The story doesn't even exist without the romance, but that really just serves as the kicking off point for the real story, which is about that moment in time when you get slapped in the face by the scariest reality of our fragile human existence: our inevitable mortality.
The MCs are freshmen in college, and the author does a wonderful job walking that fine line between making them intelligent, mature and likable while still feeling like flawed, completely realistic teenagers.
The lesson learned is well-crafted, subtle AND enjoyable, which is impressive for something that's tackling a pretty damn serious subject matter underneath all the entertaining layers. And most importantly, it achieves all of that while dripping in casual queerness. Lovely.
I am not a huge fan of novellas in general, and probably wouldn't have picked this one up if I had realized how short it is, but I'm glad I did. It's the perfect amount of thought-provoking -- it just happens to be about a topic I have already come to terms with in my middle age :)
In that regard, I think this would work best for the NA audience. And that is not at all a criticism. It's just what had me reading this more as an objective observer instead of getting completely sucked into it. Which is why ultimately it's a three-star read for me personally, even though I think it's a 4-star entry in queer literature.
I could easily identify the few areas that would need to be developed further to turn this into a full-length novel, and I think that would be brilliant. But it's still fantastic for what it is.
**This book was provided for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley**
I would call this more of a fable/morality story -- although there's probably a more precise term I should be using! -- and that makes this a very different type of romance. I almost wouldn't even call it a "romance" even though it very much has one. The story doesn't even exist without the romance, but that really just serves as the kicking off point for the real story, which is about that moment in time when you get slapped in the face by the scariest reality of our fragile human existence: our inevitable mortality.
The MCs are freshmen in college, and the author does a wonderful job walking that fine line between making them intelligent, mature and likable while still feeling like flawed, completely realistic teenagers.
The lesson learned is well-crafted, subtle AND enjoyable, which is impressive for something that's tackling a pretty damn serious subject matter underneath all the entertaining layers. And most importantly, it achieves all of that while dripping in casual queerness. Lovely.
I am not a huge fan of novellas in general, and probably wouldn't have picked this one up if I had realized how short it is, but I'm glad I did. It's the perfect amount of thought-provoking -- it just happens to be about a topic I have already come to terms with in my middle age :)
In that regard, I think this would work best for the NA audience. And that is not at all a criticism. It's just what had me reading this more as an objective observer instead of getting completely sucked into it. Which is why ultimately it's a three-star read for me personally, even though I think it's a 4-star entry in queer literature.
I could easily identify the few areas that would need to be developed further to turn this into a full-length novel, and I think that would be brilliant. But it's still fantastic for what it is.
**This book was provided for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley**