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bibi_reads_writes 's review for:
Spark of the Everflame
by Penn Cole
“We never needed to see all of each other to love all of each other.”
One of the reasons I got a Kindle and a subscription to Kindle Unlimited was to get access to this series. I'd heard so much about it, and I just couldn’t wait to read it.
Did I enjoy this book? Yes.
Will I continue the series? Yes.
Would I recommend to a friend? Yes.
Did I think it lived up to its full potential? Nope.
In short, this book starts off great, but things go slightly downhill after the first half. Fingers crossed that the things that annoyed me will be fixed in the next books!
Plot:
The epilogue was great and intriguing, the world-building accessible and easy to understand—but still interesting. The story starts as we get to know our FMC and the people around her. Diem first embarks on a personal quest, which is to find her mother or figure out what happened to her, but then things turn more political: clash between the classes, culture of violence against humans, civil unrest, bloodthirsty rebels, a dying king with no definite successor. Through Diem’s reflections and hesitations, the concept of justice (and especially justice without violence) is explored. Seeing both sides of this unequal society places the reader in the same state of uncertainty and prompts reflection.
Cole nailed the balance between politics, world-building, dialogue, romance, action, etc. There were no “slow” moments, and it was hard to put down as soon as I started reading.
And the feminist undertones were *chef’s kiss*:
“I’d always been a spitfire, and proud of it. An unbreakable spirit in a world that wanted me to be quiet, small, subservient.”
“Men sold the strength of their bodies as sellswords and assassins, bricklayers and carpenters. Why should it be any less acceptable for women to sell the softness of theirs?”
“Don’t choose a mediocre life for a mediocre man. Go be exceptional.”
Oh, and it’s the men that take the contraceptive tonic. Love it.
Characters: (some minor spoilers)
Main characters: I don’t know how I feel about Diem yet. She starts off as a strong, badass FMC who’s not afraid to say what she thinks (even to a royal’s face) and to shed a bit of blood to follow her convictions (or to punish anyone that touches her without her consent). I was like, “okaaaaay she is ballsy, sassy, and actually quite funny.” (Some of her thoughts and retorts made me crack up.) But then… her character gets basically destroyed in the second half of the book. She becomes excruciatingly reckless and unnecessarily rude—especially to Luther. I guess the author wanted their relationship to be a slow burn / enemies-to-lovers kinda thing, but Diem seemed to be rude to him just for the sake of being rude to him, and it made me cringe.
Now, about Luther. I love him, can’t wait to read more about him, and think he deserves much more than to be treated like crap by a 20-something brat. It’s unbelievable how many times he has to help her when she gets in trouble (entirely due to her reckless actions and lack of planning). And she’s rude to him every. single. time. Why does he bother? Because he thinks “she’s the one”? After so short an acquaintance and so many rude comments? Hard to believe. The “touch her and die” aspect also seemed out-of-nowhere and forced. It’s like the author just wanted to throw in the current popular romance tropes. It could have worked, but it was too rushed and poorly executed. Eh.
Secondary characters: Henry is insufferable and it’s hard to understand what Diem sees in him. The parents are very stereotypical of the genre, and they both annoyed me. On the other hand, Diem’s brother, Teller, was awesome and I can’t wait to read more about him. Same for Lily. Diem’s mentor, Maura, was also a great, funny character—seemingly opposite to Diam, but still strong and interesting.
Writing:
The book was well written, with a captivating narrative, fast-paced action, lovely descriptions, and tons of first-class banter. However, the second half felt rushed on all aspects, including writing.
To conclude, here's another quote I really enjoyed:
“I stared at the depthless midnight sky, my thoughts as turbulent as they’d ever been, and I burned and I burned and I burned. And I wondered how long I had until the fire in my soul burned me alive.”
One of the reasons I got a Kindle and a subscription to Kindle Unlimited was to get access to this series. I'd heard so much about it, and I just couldn’t wait to read it.
Did I enjoy this book? Yes.
Will I continue the series? Yes.
Would I recommend to a friend? Yes.
Did I think it lived up to its full potential? Nope.
In short, this book starts off great, but things go slightly downhill after the first half. Fingers crossed that the things that annoyed me will be fixed in the next books!
Plot:
The epilogue was great and intriguing, the world-building accessible and easy to understand—but still interesting. The story starts as we get to know our FMC and the people around her. Diem first embarks on a personal quest, which is to find her mother or figure out what happened to her, but then things turn more political: clash between the classes, culture of violence against humans, civil unrest, bloodthirsty rebels, a dying king with no definite successor. Through Diem’s reflections and hesitations, the concept of justice (and especially justice without violence) is explored. Seeing both sides of this unequal society places the reader in the same state of uncertainty and prompts reflection.
Cole nailed the balance between politics, world-building, dialogue, romance, action, etc. There were no “slow” moments, and it was hard to put down as soon as I started reading.
And the feminist undertones were *chef’s kiss*:
“I’d always been a spitfire, and proud of it. An unbreakable spirit in a world that wanted me to be quiet, small, subservient.”
“Men sold the strength of their bodies as sellswords and assassins, bricklayers and carpenters. Why should it be any less acceptable for women to sell the softness of theirs?”
“Don’t choose a mediocre life for a mediocre man. Go be exceptional.”
Oh, and it’s the men that take the contraceptive tonic. Love it.
Characters: (some minor spoilers)
Main characters: I don’t know how I feel about Diem yet. She starts off as a strong, badass FMC who’s not afraid to say what she thinks (even to a royal’s face) and to shed a bit of blood to follow her convictions (or to punish anyone that touches her without her consent). I was like, “okaaaaay she is ballsy, sassy, and actually quite funny.” (Some of her thoughts and retorts made me crack up.) But then… her character gets basically destroyed in the second half of the book. She becomes excruciatingly reckless and unnecessarily rude—especially to Luther. I guess the author wanted their relationship to be a slow burn / enemies-to-lovers kinda thing, but Diem seemed to be rude to him just for the sake of being rude to him, and it made me cringe.
Now, about Luther. I love him, can’t wait to read more about him, and think he deserves much more than to be treated like crap by a 20-something brat. It’s unbelievable how many times he has to help her when she gets in trouble (entirely due to her reckless actions and lack of planning). And she’s rude to him every. single. time. Why does he bother? Because he thinks “she’s the one”? After so short an acquaintance and so many rude comments? Hard to believe. The “touch her and die” aspect also seemed out-of-nowhere and forced. It’s like the author just wanted to throw in the current popular romance tropes. It could have worked, but it was too rushed and poorly executed. Eh.
Secondary characters: Henry is insufferable and it’s hard to understand what Diem sees in him. The parents are very stereotypical of the genre, and they both annoyed me. On the other hand, Diem’s brother, Teller, was awesome and I can’t wait to read more about him. Same for Lily. Diem’s mentor, Maura, was also a great, funny character—seemingly opposite to Diam, but still strong and interesting.
Writing:
The book was well written, with a captivating narrative, fast-paced action, lovely descriptions, and tons of first-class banter. However, the second half felt rushed on all aspects, including writing.
To conclude, here's another quote I really enjoyed:
“I stared at the depthless midnight sky, my thoughts as turbulent as they’d ever been, and I burned and I burned and I burned. And I wondered how long I had until the fire in my soul burned me alive.”