A review by sophiesmallhands
This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria

adventurous hopeful tense fast-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

4.0

 This Golden Flame was one of my most anticipated debuts this year and I wasn’t disappointed. The story and plotting hits the ground running; Emily does a fantastic job of orienting the reader very quickly regarding the world we are reading about, who our main protagonist is and her motivations. The enter Alix, a sentient automaton who is a total cinnamon-roll (I have no shame in admitting this is my most favourite type of character!). 
 
As with a few other of my reads for pride month, the world in this book is queer-normative. Karis is asexual, and there are a variety of other queer and non-binary characters. Not to mention a sight-impaired character. 
 
I only wish there was a sequel! The world Emily has created is so rich with many countries mentioned in passing. There was a lot of build-up and then so suddenly it felt like the story had ended; I would love some more exploration and fleshing out of this world in the future. 
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