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rae_v123 's review for:
A Light in the Flame
by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Overall # of Stars: 5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• OBSESSED
🥰 nickname: liessa 😍
Source: library 📚
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I love how these books pick up literally immediately after the previous one:
“You are the heir to the lands and seas, skies and realms. A Queen instead of a King. You are the Primal of Life,” Nyktos rasped” and BOWS TO HER 😍
she likely won’t survive her Culling so she’ll be dead in like 5~ mos before she turns 21yo
“I won’t let him lay a finger on you,” Nyktos swore, his eyes flashing.
Oh damn, Nyktos can’t love (and therefore save Sera from dying soon) bc he literally had Maia remove his kardia, the piece of the soul — the spark — that all living creatures are born and die with. Allows them to love another not of their blood irrevocably, selflessly
Ezra is officially Queen Ezmeria of Lasania😍
Penellaphe puts a charm on Sera to prevent someone from taking her
A man, a vikter, is writing the symbols on her arm
His name is Viktor and shit he is the very FIRST viktor!
Oh shit, Holland is like: everything you were trained for was NOT a waste. You are *his* weakness
Not Nyktos’s
But Kolis
Omg random draken are attacking + trying to free the ENTOMBED GODS so they will swarm the Shadowlands!?
The entombed gods are swarming the Rise
one is on top of her and she’s like ok I guess this is how I die BUT NO SHE KILLS IT HA!
Nyktos is there, he just fucks up the rest of the fallen gods hallelujah
Runs to Sera, he’s like wtf you’re hurt
Gives her his blood… so you know what that means 🫑🌶️😍
“I can sense your need. Feel it. Taste it. You’re drowning in it… I’m fucking drowning in it.”
A sharp dart of desire sliced through me. “Then drown with me.” …
“What you’re feeling is my blood, Sera.”
“I don’t think so.” I breathed in deeply, taking in his scent. “What I’m feeling is how I always feel when you touch me. Like there is a fire in my blood.”
Now they’re all debriefing abt what happened
Trying to figure out where the fuck these draken came from / who sent them (Veses)
I had a purpose, and there was no delaying it — no matter how distasteful it was, and no matter how much I wanted it all to be different.
She sneaks out of the palace, going to find Kolis!?
yep, going to get on a ship to Dalos, the City of the Gods, where K holds court
And I was one obstacle closer to fulfilling my duty — my true destiny
she’s planning on making K fall in love with her!?
Shades attack her in the Dying Wood
A silver hawk helps her!
N is here oh shit he’s PISSED
She turns and just straight up runs away lol
He tackles her and he’s like why were you running FROM me!?
He realizes what she planned, he’s like omg sera no
CALLS HER LIESSA AGAIN OMG THANK GOS 😍
He is so fucking furious w her that she would even THINK abt going after K aka walking into a death trap
“Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me!” he shouted…Tell me you were not going after Kolis!”
She screams, accidentally shoots a massive amount of eather at him
She’s like omg I didn’t mean to do that I swear
It’s bc of the Culling, it’s activated by high emotions
She’s like btw I touched a shade and it started coming back to life lol
Eythos could also “raise the bones of the dead.”
It’s *not* the same as restoring life to the recently dead, which is why nobody felt it
Slowly, I met his stare as bone-deep exhaustion set in… “You’re not going to let me go, are you?”
“Never,” he swore.
N tells Ector & Orphine like yeah she was trying to go kill Kolis and they’re like damn
“Do not order me about as if I’m a child.”
“I wouldn’t if you didn’t behave like one.”
I saw red. “You sure as hell didn’t think I was behaving like one when you had me in your bed and your fangs in my throat!”
“Whoa,” Ector mumured.
Fiery, silver eyes locked with mine. Sera.”
He’s like listen if I’m sleeping, you’re sleeping WITHIN ARMS REACH YES GIVE ME THAT FORCED PROXIMITY
Omg throws her over his shoulder, marches into his room, throws her on the bed YES
Takes off her boots, she’s like if you want my clothes off you have to do it yourself, thinking that he won’t BUT THEN HE DOES OMG
The tensionn 🫑
Falls asleep with his arm around her
She suddenly wakes up - notices how tightly N is holding her
He had his arm clamped down on my waist... His chest rose and fell sharply, and his breath came in rapid, short bursts against the curve of my neck and shoulder.
Was he dreaming?
I tried to turn my head to look back at him, but his arm clenched, drawing me deeper against the curve of his body. “Nyktos?” I whispered.
There was no answer.
Concern rose. I reached down, touching the tense, corded muscle of his arm.
A tremor ran through his entire body. “Promise me,” he rasped. “Promise me you’ll never go after Kolis again.”
My heart stuttered as I sucked in a shallow breath.
“Promise me, Sera. Never again.”
He’s gone when she wakes up, but he put her robe at the end of the bed for her 🥹
Orphine takes her to N, O is like, yeah what you tried to do would’ve been a disaster but “your willingness to take such a risk speaks to your integrity. And that is to be respected and honored.”
Basically everyone is hating her less now which is progress
O takes her to the throne room where there are literally hundreds of guards + Saion, Rhahar, Rhain, Ector, Lailah, Theon, and draken Reaver!
N on the dais, the crowd parts as O leads S up to him
“It’s okay,” Nyktos said in a voice barely above a whisper… as he extended his hand to me. “Take my hand.”
N tells everyone gathered the risk / sacrifice she was willing to take to protect all of them and the Shadowlands
“Seraphena will be a Consort more than worthy of the swords and shields each of you will wield to guard her. One the Shadowlands will be honored to have.”🥹
They all kneel to her, shout their support omg
Nektas & N think there’s a way to prevent her death from the Culling? Removing the embers and ascending her?
Delfai: a very old and powerful God of Divination able to see what was hidden to others — their truths, both past and future
Omg Halayna, Nektas’ mate, was summoned to Dalos and MURDERED by Kolis JFC
K HATES Nektas apparently bc he was loyal to N’s father
Once embers are transferred to N the Rot should vanish from the mortal realm
“We all need someone to watch over us.”
Heat crawled up my throat. “Do you?”
“Desperately,” he whispered.
The Cimmerian are here: Gods born fully formed as warriors, came from Hanan’s Court
Gd it, using eather not only doesn’t work on Cinmerians but it fuels their power
There’s like 100 of them and like 12 of us
Hanan wants Bele oh fuck
they’re attacking the Rise
Sera is shooting arrows trying to slow them down
Ok thank gos Nektas is here fucking them up
N is of course, PISSED that she didn’t listen to him and stay inside
The next day, he’s like I have stuff to do (dismissing her?)
“Well, you said anywhere. And I choose here.” I paused by the chair. “With you.”
“I can take care of my desires, but that only goes so far.”
“You’d better make it stretch as far as it can go,” he ordered softly.
“And if I don’t?”
“What I did to those gods in the throne room will pale in comparison to what I do to whoever satisfies your needs.”
A jolt of surprise shot through me, quickly followed by a really twisted dose of pleasure at his jealousy-fueled anger.
Then he’s like hold that thought, a Primal is here and I’m sorry in advance for the way I’m going to act
Attes: Primal of Accord and War
N has her on his lap and he’s all over her
Everything he was doing was in plain sight of Attes. Nyktos was making it very clear that I was his.
The problem was, I didn’t entirely mind it.
N is like wtf do you want Attes
“Kolis is aware that you’ve taken a Consort… And His Majesty has decided to deny your right to a coronation… It means that Nyktos must gain Kolis’s permission to crown a Consort.”
His gaze flicked to Nyktos.
My lips parted. “Son of a bitch.”
Lolol sera
But also
Omg wtf
“Distract me.”
🫑😍
N has convinced K that he is loyal to him and that he hated his father
Bc otherwise K would kill him and the entire Shadowlands court
More forced proximity
“Come to bed, Sera.”
She wants to start training again
Flirty training banter lol
She’s like listen, I want to train daily but I also want
To go to Court each day
Be part of planning the meeting w Kolis
Go to the Vale now instead of waiting
See Ezra
Doesn’t want to eat dinner alone anymore
Wants to “help” (??)
Ugh I love this scene so much I read it all twice! So cute and flirty and fun
Sets up the bubble bath in his bathtub bc he realizes she’s afraid to take a bath in hers, where she was attacked
“And I sat here, looking at you and all your loveliness — wanting you so fucking badly.”
Omg 40% in and FINALLY
🌶️🌶️
Liessa.😍
Ash. 🥹
OMG he made sure to have dinner with her since she mentioned it earlier
Why am I literally squealing and kicking my feet!?
And he said they’ll go visit Ezra tomorrow 🎉
“All you’ve proven is what I’ve told you before. That one decent and kind bone I have in me belongs to you.”
Omg BELONGS to her omg I’m crying🥹
I LOVE how he unravels her braid each night before they go to sleep, always puts the hair band on his wrist
He’s like does the offer for being fuck buddies still stand? But then also counts and worships her freckles so basically he’s in love
🌶️🌶️
All of this felt different.
It was that change from earlier. That intangible shift between us. What was occurring was fundamentally different than before.
YA BC U 2 R IN LUV
He’s gone again when she wakes up, as always
BUT! HE COMES BACK AS SOON AS SHES AWAKE
MAKES SURE SHE HAS A COZY BATH
AND HAD BREAKFAST WAITING FOR HER AFTER
Crossing back into the mortal realm to see Ezra
Tells E the truth abt the Rot
N brings her to a pool since she can’t be at her lake omg
“Why did you visit my lake if you had this?”
Nyktos was quiet for so long that I looked at him. He was still staring at the pool. “Because it was your lake.”
She’s like but if you had this pool why did you go through all the work of going to the mortal realm to my lake?
“I don’t know. The lake is different, and I…” He frowned, scratching his jaw. “I just felt drawn to it. Drawn to you.”
“Because of the ember?”
“Maybe.” He cleared his throat.
NO ITS BC U GUYS R HEART MATES I JUST KNOW IT
Lol now she’s flipping him off
“In case you don’t know what that means, go fuck yourself.”
Nyktos chuckled. “If you behave, maybe I’ll fuck you instead.”
Lolol omg
Omg obsessed 🌶️🌶️
But with him, with this?
I could let go and be taken if I wanted because I knew I was safe with him. Because I trusted him.”
Harder.
Take me.
Fuck me.
“You are always safe with me, liessa.”
Bele + Aios!? 😍
She’s thinking about N and how he’s cared for her
And because of that, all of that…
I wanted more.
I wanted to be his wife.
His partner.
His Queen.
I wanted to be Nyktos’s Consort.
Damn it turns out all the draken used to have blue eyes! They all turned red after Kolis took the embers of life from N’s father
She briefly saw Nektas’ eyes change to blue, It means she’s super close to her ascension
The next day they are riding to the Vale to meet Nektas
HE KISSES HER IN THE STABLES IN FRONT OF EVERYONE OMG IM LOSING IT 😭😍
Omg Gala, her new horse 🥹
“She’s beautiful,” I said, slowly lifting my hand to her…
“I’m glad you like her… She’s yours, after all.”
They’re almost to the Vale, N can’t go any further for some reason I can’t remember
Dark silver eyes locked onto mine, and I felt that same sweeping motion in my chest and stomach as he said, “She’s very important to me, Nektas.”
“I know,” the draken responded…
And maybe that was why I blurted out what I did.
“I want to be your Consort, Nyktos.”
Because the way he stared at me… it felt like more. Which I knew was impossible, yet…
He lifted the hand he held to his mouth and pressed a kiss against my knuckles. Then, slowly, he turned it over and pressed another kiss to my palm. He never took those now-heated, quicksilver eyes off me.
“I’ll be waiting for you, liessa.”
I AM UNWELL OMG 😍
Her and Nektas cross the Vale and arrive at the Pools of Divanash
It shows her where Delfai is! In Irelone with Kayleigh BALFOUR! The Princess Tavius was supposed to marry
HOW DID I MISS THAT DETAIL OFF HER LAST NAME OMG
They make it safely out of the Vale? But why isn’t Nyktos waiting for them when they exit..?
They’re being attacked by nymphs, can’t be killed w eather except she literally kills them w eather — only a Primal can do that
They make it back safely and she goes to find N but sees VESES ON HIS LAP FEEDING FROM HIM!? IM SO CONFUSED
But he seems like out of it and sluggish?
She runs down to the lake, so beyond furious the entire cavern starts shaking? The ground is cracking open?!
N and Rhain are here, she’s about to bring the whole place down on them so N is forced to use compulsion on her to stop and sleep
She wakes up and Bele is there w Rhain
Omg she was out for THREE DAYS — not sleeping, but in stasis
She had basically been forcing herself into Ascending omg
Bele says, I know Veses was here but I don’t get it bc N doesn’t like her or trust her
Oh shit, first time seeing N since she went into stasis…
He’s apologizing, denies ever having sex w Veses, but won’t/can’t explain what she saw?
She says: no more pleasure agreement. Once we are done w Kolis then I’m out of here — I want to be free
🚨Oh shit, Kolis just summoned them
Oh FUCK YA WE GETTING SOME FORCED PROXIMITY BABYYYYY
He’s like remember how I was when Attes was here? We gotta do that again in Dalos
Okay, lfg
Attes & a guy named Dyses
N rips D’s heart out of his chest bc he’s being mouthy abt S
What a lovely start to this trip
Fuck okay, Kolis just arrived
He’s about to try to touch S’s hair and Nyktos grabs K’s wrist and is like nope
“I do not wish for her to be touched.” Nyktos’s voice deepened. “She is mine.”
K doesn’t recognize S as Sortoria THANK GOS
Dyses isn’t dead? A revenant?
Fuck, Sera has to kill one of Kyn’s beloved draken to get K’s permission JFC this is so fucked
She feels Sotoria in her being like WE ARE GOING TO FUCK KOLIS UP JUST WAIT
She’s in a haze now, they get K’s permission
She tells N take me to Vathi, I can revive the draken
IT WORKS ATTES IS LIKE HOLY SHIT
He KNEELS before her “I swear I will not betray what you’ve done today, meyaah Liessa.”
Ector is guarding her room, all of a sudden he comes FLYING back through the door and fucking VESES is here!? What!?
V kicks Reaver, he’s seriously injured omg
S straight up STABS V IN THE EYE LOL WUT
Shit it was V who sent that draken earlier in the book who released all the entombed gods, Not K
V knows that S is a Primal in the Culling oh shit
Bele is here!
Reaver is close to death omg so S uses her embers to bring him back and V sees it all omg
V is like I’m definitely going to kill you now bc you’re an “abomination” ?
N is here! 😍
Blasts V into unconsciousness
S is super injured from fighting against Veses
Has to drink his blood 😏
🌶️🌶️
He felt… gods, my head fell back. He felt like we were made for each other…
“Fates,” he groaned harshly. “Nothing — nothing — feels like this… Nothing feels like you.”
She asks (gently demands?) Rhain to finally tell her what N sacrificed for her
Omg, V found out abt S years ago. N made a deal that V could feed from him as long as she didn’t tell K abt S
Omg that’s so fucked
S realizes omg I’m IN love with N and have been for awhile
And I knew right then, as I stood there trembling, who he was to me. He wasn’t Nyktos. He never had been. He was Ash, and I…
I was in love with him.
It’s coronation time baby 👑
Omg N gets on his knee and BOWS TO HER and everyone gasps
Crowns her and then announces her title finally
“Rise for the One who is born of Blood and Ash, the Light and the Fire, and the Brightest Moon. Rise for the Consort of the Shadowlands.”
OMG THE ARAE GIVE THEIR BLESSING SO THEY BOTH HAVE THE GOLD MARKS ON THEIR PALMS LIKE POPPY & CAS
“…and I looked at Ash…
My husband.
Wait it wasn’t the Arae… Ash just said that so people wouldn’t be sus. A thinks it’s the Primal of Life’s blessing? So the embers? Or Sera? Idk
Keella The Primal of Rebirth (who helped Eythos re: Sotoria’s soul)
She inclined her head and then looked at Ash. “Your father would be so proud of you.”
Omg 🥹
Everyone in the room keeps cheering for her so cute
Time to go home now
Carriage fuck 🌶️🌶️
She’s looking at him and literally overwhelmed with her love for him
He’s like what are you feeling? It tastes like CHOCOLATE AND BERRIES [BAA!!]
She tells him she knows abt Veses, and he’s PISSED. Not at her, just that she knows abt it at all
🫑
🌶️🌶️ feeding + fucking
“I wish…”
WHAT ASH TELL US
Irelone
Princess Kayleigh
Delfai
To transfer the embers, Ash will have to completely drain her blood aka kill her omg
Holland referenced this in Bk 1
Ash is devastated, furious
Almost kills Delfai, S stops him
🌶️🌶️ Forest fuck
“I wish…” he whispered hoarsely, dragging his fingers across the freckles sweeping over my cheek. “I wish I’d never had my kardia removed.”
My eyes fluttered open.
His eyes glinted with a sheen of red. Primal tears of grief. “I never wanted to love. Not until you, liessa.”
Kyn attacks the Shadowlands: fire & dead people everywhere omg
Omg Ector & Aios are DEAD!?
S IS TRYING TO BRING AIOS BACK TO LIFE
IT FUCKING WORKS OMG
THE DAKKAI ARE SWARMING EVRYONE WHAT IS HAPPENING
Ash lures the dakkai away from them so they can run?
She hears his voice. In her thoughts? “Run, liessa. Run.”
OMG ATTES BETRAYS THEM — HAS BEEN WORKING W K
A is DESPERATELY trying to get to her through all the fighting
Attes says remove the charm so I can take u + no more lives will be lost
OMG TAKES S TO K
K HAS HER IN A GOLD CAGE, WITH A CHAIN AROUND HER NECK
Fucking CALLUM [BAA] is here wtf!?
Kolis has always known abt the embers in S
Her father summoned the (fake) Primal of Life when she was born to make another deal to free S from the *original* deal
But K DOESNT know abt Sotoria’s soul within hers
K says there’s more to the Blood and Ash Prophecy (see highlights) “Blood. The strength of life. Ash. The bravery of death. Life and death, if taken literally.”
K IS GOING TO DRAIN HER to take the embers of life
Then he realizes she is Sotoria and stops!
S looks over and sees A wolf more silver than white.
A silver beast.
Bathed in the brightest moonlight.
Ash.
HOLY FUCKING SHIT