We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**3.5-stars rounded up**
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We Hunt the Flame, like many novels before her, has been living, unopened, on my shelves since 2019. Recently, I decided to pick this up for a Buddy Read and I’m so glad that I finally made time for it.
I really enjoyed the complexity of this story, but admittedly, did get confused some trying to keep track of all the characters, and their motivations, but overall, a solid read.
I loved the setting, the quest of finding a powerful lost artifact, and getting to know our two main characters: Zafira, the Hunter, and Nasir, the Prince of Death.
This is an adventure story first-and-foremost, featuring a quest for both of our mains. We alternate back and forth between their two perspectives; a great way to build out the world in a way that felt natural.
The chapters were short as well, which made this move along quickly. I was surprised how fast I made it through, as one of the things that kept me from picking it up for so long was that I found it intimidating due to its size.
Sometimes larger fantasy books can be a daunting task to undertake, but I never felt that once I started this. While I wouldn’t say I understood all the nuance to the story, I still have a fun time with it.
The aspect of this story I connected with the least was actually the romance. I thought it was going to be one thing, then it didn’t seem to be headed in that direction, then we were there and I was like, what just happened?
It’s fine though. I’m never picking up this genre strictly for the romance. I’m much more invested in the quest, the dark magic, the relationship groups, but good romance can be a bonus when done well.
I also never really felt like I truly understood the magic system, but I did get the gist enough to at least recognize what was happening.
With all of this being said, Hafsah Faizal did her thing with this. It’s quite a detailed story, and she’s definitely intrigued me enough to pick up the sequel, which I hope to do soon.
I have a feeling the magic system will continue to develop throughout the 2nd-book, and I’m interested to see what the conclusion will be for these characters!