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sp00ky's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Amazing for the tension between Nasir and Zafira. Otherwise (plotwise) not very original, not much is going on. I didn't need a plot tho.
mayalex's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
4.25
kitaysnt's review against another edition
3.0
3 stars because my mind kept wavering while reading this i couldn't stay focused? maybe this is just me and my mind but still it affected how i feel..
esraa97's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
elliev_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved this book. It took a while to get into it but it was worth it there were plenty of unseen and seen plot twists and great backstories for each character.
jaeeelow's review against another edition
4.0
(He had never cared about how these scars made him look until last night. He had never felt as much as he had last night.)
(Skies, he's beautiful.)
I can't, this book is the blueprint of slow burn, it's beautifully written but the beginning was way to slow for me so only 4 stars, and I also wanted more tension between them because you could see how much he was rotting for her all of the time but didn't wanted to admit it, it killed me.
(Skies, he's beautiful.)
I can't, this book is the blueprint of slow burn, it's beautifully written but the beginning was way to slow for me so only 4 stars, and I also wanted more tension between them because you could see how much he was rotting for her all of the time but didn't wanted to admit it, it killed me.
thebookshelfmonster's review against another edition
4.0
Hafsah Faizal's debut novel We Hunt the Flame is the first of her Sands of Arawiya duology, a young adult fantasy set against the backdrop of ancient Arabian mythology. The story alternately follows the perspectives of Zafira, the hunter and Nasir, the assassin to introduce the world of Arawiya, which is a land in decline in the aftermath of the loss of magic in the recent past as an all-consuming darkness encroaches upon the land. Zafira is the only person who can find her way in the darkness of the cursed forest of Arz which causes all others to lose their bearings and their minds, while Nasir has been groomed into a life of cruelty and ruthlessness by his tyrant father who has drilled into his mind that the darkness is his only purpose. Even as the darkness of the Arz grows and threatens to engulf all of Arawiya, an even worse evil seems to be on the rise. Zafira embarks on a quest to uncover a lost artifact that can restore magic to her suffering world and stop the Arz, while Nasir is sent by the sultan to kill the Hunter and retrieve the artefact.
The biggest strengths of We Hunt the Flame are Hafsah Faizal's rich, lyrical prose and her complex and imaginative world-building. Inspired by ancient Arabian mythology, the fictional world of Arawaiya is generously embellished with diverse and complex societies, established history, politics and culture, and a loosely-defined magic system. The author's poetic and descriptive writing style also renders a magical quality to the prose and utterances in the novel. Faisal makes an important distinction between the categories of Arabian and Islamic which is worth takin note of. Her novel's myth-building asserts and explores the idea that these categories can be mutually exclusive, dispelling monolithic assumptions about the history and culture of Arab people in West Asia and North Africa in the real world.
Even as the plot of the book follows standard tropes prevalent in the genre of YA fantasy - chosen ones, the quest motif, threat of a catastrophe, found family, enemies to lovers - the author deploys these tropes both effectively and creatively to keep the reader drawn to the story. The book also does great service to the genre by exploring important themes that have long been crucial to the success and continuing relevance of the genre, like questions of community and identity, one's purpose and place in the world, the extent of one's agency in the face of greater forces, the importance of finding a community of one's own.
The book also offers a rich mosaic of characters, painstakingly and complexly rendered with empathy and care. Deen and Altair, though side characters and present for only about half of the novel each, are my favourites, and beautifully compliment the main characters. While Deen's warmth and love are a perfect foil to the sharp edges of Zafira's personality, Altair's lighteartedness and loyalty help draw out the contrast in Nasir's bleak and lonely existence. The relationships between the different characters are also presented realistically and shown to evolve with the progression of the plot. I particularly enjoyed reading Zafira's relationship with her best friend Yasmine, and the tender playfulness and underlying romantic tension between them. As the rag-tag group of people tasked with saving their world, their interpersonal relationships are also shown growing and fracturing and solidifying with every new challenge.
The aspect of the book that did not sit right with me was the direction the plot seemed to take at its conclusion. While the decisions the author takes at the end of the novel make sense towards setting up the sequel and raising the stakes, it could have been done with greater finesse, and in keeping with the arcs of the characters. The decision in questions reads unpremeditated and hastily executed, and completely incongruous with the tenor and direction of the character development the rest of the novel followed. It would be interesting to see how and if the sequel is able to justify or at least resolve the way We Hunt the Flame concluded.
The biggest strengths of We Hunt the Flame are Hafsah Faizal's rich, lyrical prose and her complex and imaginative world-building. Inspired by ancient Arabian mythology, the fictional world of Arawaiya is generously embellished with diverse and complex societies, established history, politics and culture, and a loosely-defined magic system. The author's poetic and descriptive writing style also renders a magical quality to the prose and utterances in the novel. Faisal makes an important distinction between the categories of Arabian and Islamic which is worth takin note of. Her novel's myth-building asserts and explores the idea that these categories can be mutually exclusive, dispelling monolithic assumptions about the history and culture of Arab people in West Asia and North Africa in the real world.
Even as the plot of the book follows standard tropes prevalent in the genre of YA fantasy - chosen ones, the quest motif, threat of a catastrophe, found family, enemies to lovers - the author deploys these tropes both effectively and creatively to keep the reader drawn to the story. The book also does great service to the genre by exploring important themes that have long been crucial to the success and continuing relevance of the genre, like questions of community and identity, one's purpose and place in the world, the extent of one's agency in the face of greater forces, the importance of finding a community of one's own.
The book also offers a rich mosaic of characters, painstakingly and complexly rendered with empathy and care. Deen and Altair, though side characters and present for only about half of the novel each, are my favourites, and beautifully compliment the main characters. While Deen's warmth and love are a perfect foil to the sharp edges of Zafira's personality, Altair's lighteartedness and loyalty help draw out the contrast in Nasir's bleak and lonely existence. The relationships between the different characters are also presented realistically and shown to evolve with the progression of the plot. I particularly enjoyed reading Zafira's relationship with her best friend Yasmine, and the tender playfulness and underlying romantic tension between them. As the rag-tag group of people tasked with saving their world, their interpersonal relationships are also shown growing and fracturing and solidifying with every new challenge.
The aspect of the book that did not sit right with me was the direction the plot seemed to take at its conclusion. While the decisions the author takes at the end of the novel make sense towards setting up the sequel and raising the stakes, it could have been done with greater finesse, and in keeping with the arcs of the characters. The decision in questions reads unpremeditated and hastily executed, and completely incongruous with the tenor and direction of the character development the rest of the novel followed. It would be interesting to see how and if the sequel is able to justify or at least resolve the way We Hunt the Flame concluded.
vrunda's review against another edition
4.0
Wow!! Okayyy that was amazing!!! Totally loved zafira and nasir and altair