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A review by pages_with_panda
So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was such a fun book!
The characters were interesting, the magic system was unique, but I felt like there wasn't a lot of action.
There was some great rep (racially and sexuality-wise) with Elara being into girls and casual Queer relationships (the queen having two moms for example). I also think Faron's relationship with Reeve was fun to watch develop, especially as their both dedicated to Elara.
It went by very fast, and for the first part I genuinely thought I had started on book 2 or something because what do you mean we missed a whole war!? So listening to the main characters talk about these wars and battles that had already happened was a bit confusing for a second, I wish we could've experienced that with the characters instead of as exposition or flashbacks.
I think I would've liked to see more exposition on the worldbuilding though, some things weren't clear enough for me but maybe it'll clear up in the next book.
The characters were great. Having the alternating POV from Faron and Elara made the story interesting and I really liked both sisters. I liked how (spoiler for the last chapters):they basically switched at the end too. Faron really went through some development, and I'm curious to see where her story goes. I did have to remind myself that they're still pretty young kids though, so give them some grace...
We didn't really see a lot of fighting or action until the very end, which was disappointing.Faron really only used her powers for "kid-stuff" rather than anything substantial, especially when it would've saved the life of someone close to her.
The majority of the book felt dedicated to Characters > Plot, and it did have some romance side-plots for each sister, which is a plus if you're a fan of that.
The twist ending was a bit predictable, but it's a YA book so I didn't expect anything super complicated. Over all really great, can
The characters were interesting, the magic system was unique, but I felt like there wasn't a lot of action.
There was some great rep (racially and sexuality-wise) with Elara being into girls and casual Queer relationships (the queen having two moms for example). I also think Faron's relationship with Reeve was fun to watch develop, especially as their both dedicated to Elara.
It went by very fast, and for the first part I genuinely thought I had started on book 2 or something because what do you mean we missed a whole war!? So listening to the main characters talk about these wars and battles that had already happened was a bit confusing for a second, I wish we could've experienced that with the characters instead of as exposition or flashbacks.
I think I would've liked to see more exposition on the worldbuilding though, some things weren't clear enough for me but maybe it'll clear up in the next book.
The characters were great. Having the alternating POV from Faron and Elara made the story interesting and I really liked both sisters. I liked how (spoiler for the last chapters):
We didn't really see a lot of fighting or action until the very end, which was disappointing.
The majority of the book felt dedicated to Characters > Plot, and it did have some romance side-plots for each sister, which is a plus if you're a fan of that.
The twist ending was a bit predictable, but it's a YA book so I didn't expect anything super complicated. Over all really great, can
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Blood
Moderate: War
Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, and Colonisation