A review by cortanasreadingnook
The Dagger and the Flame by Catherine Doyle

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad 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? Yes

5.0

Thank you Simon & Schuster, Margaret K. McElderry Books for sending me a review copy through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This does not affect my thoughts about the book in any way. 

The first book in the City of Fantome series is nostalgic of every YA fantasy that I have loved and is perfect for fans of These Violent Delights and We Hunt The Flame. The engaging, fast-paced prose perfectly balances the buildup of the plot and romance through two alternating perspectives. Moreover, the characters were well thought out to fit the flow of the narrative, with the lack of a defining line of morality in Doyle’s storytelling making the book more thrilling and unpredictable. 

THIS is how you write an enemies to lovers’ story because the weight of the themes weren’t toned down in favor of a love story and yet the undeniable tension and chemistry between Seraphine and Ransom was absolutely well done. It’s not every day that you meet a girl that will stab you and yet miss your liver, right? The Dagger & The Flame is a book about centuries-old rival gangs all vying for control of a city on the edge of destruction, an inevitable fate of ruin, and found family. Nothing could have truly prepared for that ending. Out on shelves on October 1, 2024! 
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