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A review by emily_therese_4
The Dagger and the Flame by Catherine Doyle
Did not finish book. Stopped at 30%.
I was very intrigued by the premise of this book, but I decided to DNF after 30% and here's why...
This book follows Seraphine. She finds her way into the Cloaks (a thieves guild) and is looking to seek revenge on the dagger (assasin) that killed her mother.
I found that there really wasn't any substance to any of the characters. Seraphine was just a girl looking for revenge. She barely showed any signs of the grief and trauma she must have gone through right after losing someone. She joins the guild and immediately makes 2 close friends, which I found didn't get me a chance at all to watch their relationship grow. Ransom (mmc) just seems like another run of the mill shadow daddy with no actual personality most of the time.
The plot was so so dragged on. It didn't start to get anywhere until about 20% through, and even then I found that I just had no incentive to want to know what happened next. The magic system was kind of lackluster, and for an almost 600 page book, reading 30% of it isn't a small amount. You would expect for things to pick up much sooner.
I will say, I did really like the writing style and the prologue had me intrigued. This book just was not for me and I didn't love it as much as I thought I would.
Regardless, I'm so appreciative to have been able to read this as an e-arc. I hope it finds the right audience.
This book follows Seraphine. She finds her way into the Cloaks (a thieves guild) and is looking to seek revenge on the dagger (assasin) that killed her mother.
I found that there really wasn't any substance to any of the characters. Seraphine was just a girl looking for revenge. She barely showed any signs of the grief and trauma she must have gone through right after losing someone. She joins the guild and immediately makes 2 close friends, which I found didn't get me a chance at all to watch their relationship grow. Ransom (mmc) just seems like another run of the mill shadow daddy with no actual personality most of the time.
The plot was so so dragged on. It didn't start to get anywhere until about 20% through, and even then I found that I just had no incentive to want to know what happened next. The magic system was kind of lackluster, and for an almost 600 page book, reading 30% of it isn't a small amount. You would expect for things to pick up much sooner.
I will say, I did really like the writing style and the prologue had me intrigued. This book just was not for me and I didn't love it as much as I thought I would.
Regardless, I'm so appreciative to have been able to read this as an e-arc. I hope it finds the right audience.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use