This book is an instant fave! This is a middle eastern inspired fantasy and the world immediately drew me in, not to mention the epic enemies-to-lovers romance featured between the two characters. the world building that Hafsah does throughout the nove is incredible and I find it very hard to believe that this is only a debut?? (!!) I loved this book and I eagerly await the sequel!

I would first like to point out that the glossary of names and pronunciations would have been better at the start of the book and not the end as I've now realised I've not pronounced half of the words right and I feel bad for butchering anothers language. I would like to give a heartfelt apology to the author.

This is the first book in a while that I've read which has had a middle Eastern setting and it has been rather refreshing. Although I did butcher the pronunciations I did like the infusion of some of the terms used.

The two main characters, Zafira and Nasir, are lovable but my favourite has to be Altair. He is the comic relief of the book. However, each and every one of them has a brush with darkness.

I enjoyed the writing and the twists and turns of the plot once we truly got into it. I was a little bit worried after the slow start but I was reeled in and was unable to put it down.

I cannot wait to find out what is going to happen next.

ARC provided free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great story with characters I couldn't help but love and many plot twists I didn't see coming. Zafira is a girl who has been hunting in a magical land only she doesn't get lost in to feed her village. Nasir is the son of the sultan, an assassin with the nickname Prince of Death. Sent on a quest to find a mysterious object, the two meet and our story really begins.

Zafira and Nasir both have point of view chapters in this book which I loved because it was really good to see inside both of their heads. Neither was weak, and I loved that the chapters were short so I didn't have to wait too long to find out what was happening when they were separated.

There are many other interesting characters - Altair was a really surprising character to me. I am very interested to see where his character arc goes in the next book.

Overall, a great book with cool world-building and magic. I am excited to read We Free the Stars.

This book is baaad, like really bad.

I was excited to read this because I had heard about it from a book tuber I watch, and since the second one will be coming out soon I thought I’d give it a go in time to read the next one, but I won’t be doing that now. Everything about this book was so bland I don’t think I will remember it after awhile.

The main appeal of this duology is the infusion of Middle Eastern setting and fantasy, but it was never focused on. The setting never felt focused on, and if it wasn’t for a sprinkling of a few Middle Eastern words and terminology, this story could’ve taken place anywhere and nothing would’ve changed. This is odd because this was something people made a big deal out of because of representation,

but I honestly can’t differentiate it
between any of the other fantasy series
that is on the market now.

Which is another problem: this book was generic.

The story,
the characters,
the fantasy —
I have seen them all before.

These tropes have been done to death. Nothing about this is new. You can get this story anywhere, and the fact that the marketing uses the Middle Eastern setting to hide this bland story is a bit shady. The plot is so slow, nothing happens for ages, and when it does I didn’t care for anything going on. The main cast are forgettable, only defined by their melodramatic and angsty drama that I did not care for. They were so one note, they complained all the time, and when they began to fall in love I checked out of the story completely. The only person I cared about was Altair, because he gave the angsty plot the levity it needed and had a semblance of a personality.

I was close to DNFing it entirely
but I was close to the end
so I carried on.


And the worst problem of all was the writing. It’s awful. It disguises itself as good, by implementing gimmicks to try and look stylish. Have you noticed the Staccato stanzas I’m doing? The author does that constantly. I absolutely hate gimmicks like these because it looks like the author is trying to compensate for something but doesn’t know how to make their writing better. These stanzas only work to slow the ridiculously slow pace of the novel even more, and draws more attention to it than it needs. Just look:

Can you see
how annoying
this is?

I’ve noticed other authors just dropping quotation marks in their novel (Memorial and Normal People), I’ve seen pages that have one word on one page (Survivor Song), I’ve seen authors drop grammar all together (Girl, Woman, Other) — can we stop? It’s so desperate and attention seeking, and it’s like they are trying to get critics to praise them for their creativity. It’s sad. And I hate it as a dyslexic because it makes reading harder.

I don’t recommend this. I wish it was better, but I hope it works for others.

This book is the first one I've picked up set with a middle Eastern setting and that in itself is refreshing. Away from a westernised YA fantasy setting this book introduces terms such as Caliph that I have never heard or used before which is another breath of fresh air, I enjoyed learning the new terms and thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.
The world building has had a lot of effort put into it and the character development is just as good.
Would recommend.

Will post on Goodreads and my blog. Thanks very much

A Prince of Death and a Hunter must pass through a land enveloped in darkness, a forest so bleak and treacherous that no other can pass through. They will not pass through together but they hunt the same treasure – an ancient book known as the Jawarat; the only artefact that can reverse the cursed forests plaguing the Caliphate of Demenhur. Unbeknownst to Zafira, The Hunter, the princely assassin has been tasked with not only collecting his prize, but murdering her too.

The world building in this novel is by far its greatest success; this is a richly detailed, beautifully imagined world with magic and intrigue at every turn – the forest feels very much alive, and every bit the threat the witches promise it to be. The magic of the world simmering under the Arabian surface was so compelling, albeit quite abstract, and a large part of why I continued reading was to see the eventual unfolding of this magic into the land. The writing was almost lyrical, developing elegantly into an entirely well imagined landscape.

However, the remaining content is largely comprised of talking. Lots and lots of inane talking and deliberate banter which falls quite flat; I’m not even sure how much of it passed through editing without being pulled up for being pointless and dull - it added nothing to the story aside from slowing it down. The pacing also became a real challenge for me. In fact, I put it aside for quite some time before returning to the story because of this. Whilst the descriptive approach really worked for the world building, it was far too heavy for the characters; even minor actions or choices were explained in excessive detail with unnecessary dialogue – it felt amateurish – and, despite the enormity of the detailing, the characters remained superficial and lacking in any obvious character traits to make them memorable.

I saw another reviewer call this book “lukewarm” and I absolutely agree. In fact, it very much stays at lukewarm for the majority of the book, the plot never really developing to another level until very late in the story. Even when the characters are having to put their respective missions slightly to the side in order to avoid darker perils along their path I found myself feeling completely ambivalent to it, with no interest whatsoever in what became of them. The huge hype surrounding this book only set me up for an even greater fall, particularly considering it had been plugged in many YA book boxes for being so fantastic - a disappointing and underwhelming addition to the genre.

ARC provided free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

Maybe if I hadn’t been less tired and hadn’t looking forward to it so much, and if I hadn’t heard so much praise, then I might have enjoyed it even more because my expectations were so high. I think I will re-read it in a few months, because I don’t feel like I got everything the book had on offer.

It’s an engaging start to a series, introducing the leads and conflict without feeling like its sole purpose is to set up a series. The world is rich, and I’d love to explore the different caliphates more – particularly the palace and Sarasin. I feel like there’s an interesting plot brewing there to be revealed in the next book (because of the official’s captive son).

The characters were the best bit. There was a lot of talk about the two main boys – POV Nasir and non-POV Altair. I far preferred the unpredictable Altair, who had so many layers that gradually peeled back. He’s also quippy, but it wasn’t an annoying quippy. There was a purpose to it, and it also provided levity when Zafira was eyeing Nasr suspicious and Nasir was brooding over having to kill people he likes.

I was rather confused why everyone was agreeing to go to the Sharr. All the descriptions and reactions were that it was a bad place. Then, once they’d discovered they’d all been sent with opposing missions but with some link the Silver Witch, they didn’t feel that suspicious. Instead, they teamed up. Zafira was more suspicious of them than of her actual mission.

I’m glad I read the glossary (at the back) first, because it really helped my comprehension to know things like daama was a cuss. I read the first chapter before the glossary and was a little confused by the above (I though daama snow was a type of snowfall!), but once I had the vocabulary, it was very easy to read.

This was a ride! It felt everything was happening all at once, we were getting plot twists, new characters being introduced and action galore! This is when I really started getting it fast. In my opinion once our disparate band of reluctant comrades had formed, the story then evolved rapidly and really started to become interesting.


Though it was ok following Zafira and Nasir separately, (and all the other characters for that matter)I found myself impatiently waiting for all the characters to meet. I wasn't disappointed, I feel the interactions between them and the group as a whole is when they became more likeable and relatable and vastly more interesting.


The writing style was a bit slow in some places where the description of certain scenes were not fully explained and as such it was confusing as to what had happened or how a certain character had gone from scene A to Scene B. But I think the internal monologues and thought processes were beautifully done and I enjoyed being inside the head of Nasir the most. I think though Altair, the Sultan's General was a great character, in the end Nasir won me over with his stoic, tortured soul. Zafira was a very interesting character.


The plot itself once it picked up speed, kept me interested, though Im good at solving plot twists, the author has managed to weave in a few that actually left me shocked and I enjoyed that a lot.


Overall I really enjoyed the type of magic that's talked about in this book and look forward to finding out more about it in book two and all the implications of it that (I hope) will be explored in future books. I also enjoyed the slow burn (still on going) romance, which was a nice surprise. There are also some secondary characters that I feel will have more prominence in the second book. There are also a few conflicts brewing that I want to see play out and I am excited to see where the story takes the gang.

Aside from vividly gorgeous food descriptions, this book had a brilliant premise. I loved the world-building, the intricately woven friendships, the angst. Oh the angst. Nasir was such a broken boy with a heart waiting to be loved. While I really thought it was going to be Zafira that I would love the most, it ended up being Altair. ⁣
⁣
I could give you a whole essay on Altair. His humour, his wit, just everything about him made him an incredibly loveable character. I think a spin-off series of his own would be hilarious and so fun. Altair has the great combination of angst and intelligence that makes him a character you’re rooting for. Also, his relationship with Nasir is fantastic. I have so many lines between the two of them highlighted on my kindle because of funny and sweet their relationship is. ⁣

“Be as victorious as the name I have given you, and bring the desert to its knees.”

WHAT A MASTERPIECE. It honestly shocks me that more people aren’t talking about We Hunt The Flame or that people don’t enjoy it. This beautifully diverse book is pure brilliance that I think everyone should try.

We follow the story of two misguided souls. One is Zafira who goes out into the death trap that is the Arz - a cursed wood - to hunt for food to keep those around her alive. However, because of her gender, no one knows it is her as she won’t be taken seriously. Instead, she is simply known as The Hunter. Second is Nasir, son of the sultan and known as the Prince of Death. Ordered by his father to do his dirty work, Nasir’s life is a gloomy one. He must kill those the sultan names or suffer the consequences - or, rather, have others suffer in his place.

Both of these wayward souls are thrust together on a journey to recover a lost artefact - the Jawarat - that has the potential to restore magic to the kingdom of Arawiya. Their worlds are turned upside down with truths that reveal themselves along the way and they must learn to work together if they have any hope of returning home alive.

First, it would be remiss of me if I don’t quickly gush over one person: Altair Al-badawi. My lil cinnamon roll who just cannot help but crack a few jokes, slip in a few innuendos and be a general pain in the ass. Oh, I love him. 😍 His character is perfection - needed considering there is such a strong level of darkness and brooding in this story. He adds a sense of levity that’s required to keep a reader interested and to also stop the story being all “one note.”

Nasir and Zafira as characters are like polar opposites and I love both of them! Zafira does her best to make her deceased Baba proud, falling back on his lessons to guide her through life. Nasir is similar, falling back - albeit reluctantly - on his memories with his mother and remembering the love she held for him. Both have darkness lingering inside them, both have pain they wish to tuck away. WHICH MAKES THEM ALL THE MORE PERFECT FOR EACH OTHER. Both are broody, both get into their own heads and both get annoyed by dear, sweet Altair. Match made in Heaven!

The side characters - Benyamin and Kifah forming the rest of the zumra, Yasmine and Deen - never feel like a passing though. Yasmine isn’t in the story much but she easily becomes a friend and you don’t feel like it’s a swift introduction and she’s quickly forgotten - which I love. It’s a pet peeve of mine to be introduced to a character who is referenced across the story but we never actually get to know them. The Silver Witch is a character I would’ve liked to have gone more in depth with. However with the reveal we had in WHTF, I’m hoping we’ll see more of her and her backstory in WFTS.

The book is slow initially, introducing the characters steadily but I didn’t mind it too much because we soon find ourselves getting into the action. And a lot of action there is!

I would have to say my only real issue with this book is the ending. How is any reader meant to stay sane with a cliffhanger like that? 😂

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

**We Free The Stars releases on 19th January 2021. Don’t forget to pre-order a copy (a campaign is on the horizon!) and support Hafsah! #JoinTheZumra