Scan barcode
booklvrkat's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This one was fast! We've already got our known world of Havenfall, and the basics of all the realms. When Maddie heads into a different realm she's looking for the secret that is behind the Silver Prince. We get a lot of answers that were left open from the first book too.
vitasix's review
1.0
Ending was rushed, leaving a lot of things unanswered. I’m also fascinated by how stupid Maddie is..
fishsticks26's review
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
bookedbymadeline's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I read the first book of the duology, Havenfall, earlier in the year. Phoenix Flame was a quick and easy read but so disappointing for the end of the series 🙈
Maddie made the dumbest decisions and was more passive compared to Havenfall which I hated-what happened to our strong, capable MC?! Also Brekken completely changed like allllll the character development from book one is just gone.
The ending was rushed and honestly I felt like so many things were rushed or unresolved. The amount of holes left by the end YOU COULD HAVE DONE SO MUCH WITH CERTAIN NEW IDEAS INTRODUCED (I’m trying so hard not to spoil in this review so I’m sorry if my rants don’t make sense). The plot twists were underwhelming and solved way too easily- it was like whiplash with a twist happening and then being resolved by the next two pages.
I think if it was longer or had been developed into a trilogy instead of duology it would’ve been more fleshed out, and therefore better.
Honestly the only positives are that it’s a quick read and it sort of resolved some of the cliffhangers of Havenfall. In the words of Taylor swift, “I wish you’d left me wondering”
Rating: 2.5
nat1998's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
story_sanctuary's review
I think my favorite thing about this book is the plot about stopping a magical form of trafficking. Powerful people have been kidnapping magic-bearers of a certain race and forcing pieces of their souls to bind with objects, creating soul-silver. The practice literally destroys a person. Maddie and her friends have vowed to take down the trade and bring the perpetrators to justice.
From there it gets a little complicated. A couple times, Maddie and her friends use soul-silver, justifying it as a necessary step in their plans. It felt… icky. To me. I don’t know. Like, continuing to abuse someone because the end justified the means. The person whose soul was trapped in the silver had no choice, and the piece of their soul is lost when the magic is used. Which could prevent the person from being rescued, because too many pieces of their soul are missing or used.
I thought the tug of war between Maddie and her feelings for Brekken and Taya added some tension and interest. I couldn’t decide which I wanted her to choose. Until a thing happens– basically Brekken takes responsibility for something while Maddie’s like, yeah, but can’t we just not take responsibility?? And I get that she worried about the consequences, but it felt like another selfish choice, and made me feel like she kinda doesn’t deserve Brekken.
I feel like I’ve listed a lot of the things I struggled with in this book. To be honest, I still read it really quickly and enjoyed a lot of things about it. I liked the politics between the different worlds and Maddie’s complicated relationship with her mom. I like that Maddie never gives up.
If you enjoyed HAVENFALL, it’s worth reading PHOENIX FLAME to see how things resolve. The series is under contract for development with Amazon Studios, so it’s possible you’ll get to see it come to life on screen, too.
From there it gets a little complicated. A couple times, Maddie and her friends use soul-silver, justifying it as a necessary step in their plans. It felt… icky. To me. I don’t know. Like, continuing to abuse someone because the end justified the means. The person whose soul was trapped in the silver had no choice, and the piece of their soul is lost when the magic is used. Which could prevent the person from being rescued, because too many pieces of their soul are missing or used.
I thought the tug of war between Maddie and her feelings for Brekken and Taya added some tension and interest. I couldn’t decide which I wanted her to choose. Until a thing happens– basically Brekken takes responsibility for something while Maddie’s like, yeah, but can’t we just not take responsibility?? And I get that she worried about the consequences, but it felt like another selfish choice, and made me feel like she kinda doesn’t deserve Brekken.
I feel like I’ve listed a lot of the things I struggled with in this book. To be honest, I still read it really quickly and enjoyed a lot of things about it. I liked the politics between the different worlds and Maddie’s complicated relationship with her mom. I like that Maddie never gives up.
If you enjoyed HAVENFALL, it’s worth reading PHOENIX FLAME to see how things resolve. The series is under contract for development with Amazon Studios, so it’s possible you’ll get to see it come to life on screen, too.
crownofcrafting's review against another edition
5.0
Really a magical series. Actual rating 4.5 stars. I enjoyed this immensely, and Havenfall was the kind of book that you can’t stop thinking about. Phoenixflame was a really great read. The only problem was that the end dragged a bit. I listened to this as an audiobook and the narrator was great. Over all I would recommend this to a younger YA audience. I still really enjoyed it and will be recommending to friends and family
gabbsterthebookworm's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
2.0