Woah! You can read the synopsis and some spoilers elsewhere...all you need to know is this is the fantasy you have been waiting for. The relationship building and character driven story line is going to leave you NEEDING more!

Read this book if you love;
• South Asian Mythology
• Found Family
• Slow Burn Romance
• Badass FMC
• Grumpy x Sunshine Friendship
• Hidden Magic

The story starts with a strong opening, introducing out badass FMC - Zarya with a battle scene. Zarya’s journey starts when her guardian suddenly missing along with the magic that keep her from getting out of her small cottage.

It was exciting following Zarya in discovering the world outside of her cottage.
It was beautiful, enchanting, magical, alive but what she didn’t know it was also dark and dangerous.

Both main and secondary characters are well developed and very likeable.
I really like Zarya’s character and her curiosity in exploring something new. I absolutely love the friendship between Yasen and Zarya, I love seeing their never ending bickering.

The pacing takes a slow turn since the first half part was about introducing the world building and the people with different powers.
But, I pushed through and things finally started to get a lot more interesting as the monsters got more active in attacking the city and also when Rabin (the mysterious hot character) started to appear more often.

Even though the possible main love interest wasn't introduced until the last few chapters, there's still romance throughout the story.
But, I’m hoping to see more development between Zarya and the possible main love interest (Rabin) in the sequel. I can feel the tension between the two of them is gonna be off the charts!

Overall, this is a great opening for a new fantasy series. Very enjoyable, entertaining and well written as well.
I’m absolutely in love with the world building and the characters, I wish I have the 2nd book now.
I’m looking forward to read the next book to know what happens next and to know more about Rabin!

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: Violence, war, abandonment

I received an advanced review copy for free through Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Huge thank you to the author and publisher!

I really enjoyed reading this book! I read it in two days because I had trouble putting it down.

It is so refreshing to read a fantasy novel not set in the Western world. I really appreciated the lore of this new world and learning about the new creatures and characters. It was fun to discover new monsters and magic! It is fun not to have any preconceived notions about the beings and to just be along for the ride!

One thing that was super neat to read was the way magic is drawn upon. So many fantasy characters "reach" for their magic and simply use it. We get to discover how to find magic and how it is used.

The banter in the book is super fun and engaging. I love an FMC that can hold her own!

I don't want to get into the tropes because I don't want to spoil anything... but my advice is READ it!

I cannot wait for the next one!

This was such an amazing read! I flew through this book in one afternoon because I could not stop! The characters were so unique and gripping that I really adored them. The author did a great job with keeping the plot moving and avoiding any stale moments. I will be recommending this book to everyone I know!

Thank you so much to the publishers and NetGalley for this eARC.

Heart of Night and Fire is written exceptionally well, the lavish descriptions and the well carved characters bring this novel to life.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read and I love the journey it took me on.
I find Nisha J Tuli's way of telling a story so engaging, she keeps her readers gripped to the pages which makes the story go pass in a whirlwind.

I received a copy of Heart of Night and Fire via NetGalley to read and review.


Zarya’s whole life has been spent guarded in captivity by her guardian, Row, until he leaves one day and doesn’t return. After Row’s apprentice, Aarav, goes to find Row Zarya finds out the magic that kept her on the cottage grounds are gone.

Zarya has no idea why she wasn’t allowed to leave, only that it was for her own protection but now that she’s free she’s looking for answers and Row to help put the pieces together.

I enjoyed going to Zarya’s journey. We only know what she knows and while I was anxious to find out why she needed protecting I was glad that the story had a great pace that kept me interested while Zarya learns more about herself. It looks like there is plenty more story to come since right now the title says it’s part of a Quartet. There’s still a lot of story to go and I can’t wait to keep reading!

Oh this was so freaking amazing!!
I've loved Nisha's writing since the first time I read Trail of the Sun Queen, and this book was no different.
I've loved the magic world she created, loved the characters, but, let me tell you, Yasen has a special place in my heart already. Zarya is an incredible FMC, with all her doubts and insecurities and courage.
Now, the plot twist at the end of the book, I was like "WHAAAAAAA", amazing!!!
I can't wait to read the next one!! Loved it!!

Zarya is confined by magic to an isolated area with only Row, her overseer, and his apprentice Aarav. Zarya, Row and Aarav all have minimal magical abilities yet Zarya is constantly told to keep hers a secret. Everything in her life is a secret, including herself.

When Row goes missing one morning, Zarya finds the magic that had confined her has been broken, allowing her to leave the safety of her cottage.

She meets Commander Vikram Ravana and Lieutenant Yasen Varghese in the woods who take her and Aarav to the city of Dharati. This is her new beginning, a chance to live her own life and find out who she is.

But a blight is continuously growing throughout the lands, bringing hideous demons to life, and Zarya can’t help but notice they have been growing worse since she left her cottage.

✨💫✨

This book was so much fun! It is rare for me to love a female main character in most fantasy books, but I LOVED Zarya.

The way I audibly gasped in the middle of my daughters gymnastics class while reading chapter 27. I knew I had to finish the rest of the book that day. I had assumed the reveal at the end, and was pumped when it finally happened. I AM SO EXCITED TO KEEP READING THIS SERIES! Hopefully I can get my hands on a physical copy of this for my home (I only purchase the books I really love so that’s saying something).

Thank you NetGalley and Second Sky for sending me this eARC!

I found the lore in this novel to be really interesting and I definitely wanted to learn more about these creatures/demons, which I’m hoping book 2 will focus more on. Whilst I LOVED the last quarter of the novel (and also Yasan! He was an amazing side character and a joy to read about.) I was struggling to get into it in the beginning (mainly as I wasn’t a fan of the main “lead” man and would’ve preferred to have learnt more about the evil creatures). In saying that, the ending made up for it and I can’t wait to see where this series goes.

Wow! I loved this world!

If I’m being totally honest, this story took a little while to get me invested, but the moment I was in… I was IN.

I fell in love with Zee, and felt myself reflected in her. Her unrelenting journey to uncover her truth was a ride right until the end.

Secondary characters are always a make or break for me, and the friends Zarya picked up along the way were just as interesting and I found myself invested in their stories too (I would like to request one order of Yasen please)

My only criticism is now I have to wait to know what happens next!

Literally had me staring at the wall multiple times! The only thing I don't like is that I can't immediately dive into book two. The story follows a girl named Zarya who has been held captive her entire life by men named Row and Aarav. One day, Row disappears without a word and Aarav leaves to search for him. Zarya eventually discovers the magic that bound her to the cottage was no longer limiting how far she went, she took the opportunity to escape and start a life of her own.

This is a story about self-discovery, love, finding a type of family when you have none, friendship, and magic. It was very well-written and has some twists towards the end. The author did a really amazing job describing scenes and capturing emotions/feelings. I loved the fact that this world had Indian influences in it. I've never read one that incorporated a specific culture in our own world and I thought she did an incredible job.

I cannot wait until book two!!

Nisha J. Tuli really hooked me in with her dedication page and the representation of South Asian mythology and culture within this book. "For every brown girl who wanted to be the chosen one too" as a brown girl, yes, and thank you.

This isn't my first book by Nisha, I have read Trials of the Sun Queen and To Wake a Kingdom, I am familiar with her writing style and enjoy her books. So seeing her continue with her diverse representation is always a great break from a lot of the traditional fantasy worlds. I appreciated having to look up definitions of Indian foods, clothing titles and titles in general for different levels of reigning hierarchy. It allowed me to learn while also enjoying the start of a new series.

Heart of Night and Fire is a slow burn fantasy romance book and the introduction to the Nightfire Quartet. This read as an introduction to a series and really didn't pick up its pace until the last quarter of the book. There was a lot of world building and introduction to the characters and the backstory at play as the FMC, Zarya, currently knows it and we learn along with her, much like her being naive to the world and what is truly going on. I would say that I got a bit lost in how much time had actually passed, I know that it comes down to months, but the time jumps didn't really push forward the building of the relationships and found family for me as much as I would have liked. It still took me a bit to get remotely attached to any of the side characters. The relationship between Yasen and Zarya so far is my favorite, the grumpy/sunshine bickering siblings was endearing and I absolutely ate up their banter.

Like I said already, this book read like an introduction to a world, it laid a lot of groundwork for the series moving forward. That being said the first half of the book moved slowly, picking up once we meet our love interest Rabin, and then doubled timed through the last quarter. I was able to predict and guess some of the foreshadowing within the book but not everything, so there is a little predictability within it, but I think this just lends itself to the genre.

That being said, this book left me so excited for the second book and I cannot wait to see where the series goes. That cliffhanger of information and reveal after reveal was amazing. The "WHAT?!" reaction I was left with, where every relationship hangs in the air. Nisha has found her niche in working within the morally grey area and forcing us to learn as our MC learns of the world. Where no character is wholly good or wholly evil, every character hangs in that middle grey. How dare you introduce the love interest at basically the very end and give us nothing?! JAIL.

Going forward I really would like to see the characters gain more depth. I felt like so much time passed in the background of the story that I didn't get a chance to grow with them and their found family dynamic that is meant to be there. I want to fall in love with them but at this moment I have not been able to do that yet. I actually found myself wishing this book was longer, craving more pages just so I had more information, more banter, more of that extra that gave me time to connect with the characters more. Like others have said I wish in future installments to allow scenes to develop and unfold over longer periods of time, not so edited down and jumping over time repeated.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, and can't wait for the second to see how this develops further. If you're fans of the romantasy genre I highly recommend this book and others by Nisha.

Thank you to NetGalley, Second Sky and Nisha for providing me with an ARC to read and review. All opinions are my own.

I wish this book was longer. This first book sets up the start to the story. There was some drag on some of the dialogue as some characters were explaining things to Zarya which I understand, but I felt the multiple paragraphs of continued speaking was a bit much. There was a lot of telling at some points and not showing.

The world building itself was great. I really liked Zarya. The relationships were interesting. I'm not sure how I feel about them. I called who the guy was that Zarya was seeing in her dreams. Slightly predictable but maybe only if you were paying attention to what was said.

I look forward to seeing where Nisha goes with this story. And I will be checking out her other books too.

The magical, Indian and South Asian world created by Tuli in this book was incredible! Thank gods for my Kindle and the ability to look up words in an instant, because Tuli didn’t hold back on really immersing you into different parts of Indian culture and myth.

Zarya has been magically locked up in a remote cottage and small surrounding area on the sea with no one but her pseudo-father and asshole, older brother-figure for her entire life. When she wakes up one day and realizes that she is not being held within her magical boundaries, Zarya doesn’t waste any time before escaping. She doesn’t get far before encountering two handsome Rakshasa (vampire-esque creatures of Hindu mythology) who cart her back to the palace. Zarya isn't just some damsel in distress though, she is a badass, warrior who just may have powerful magic.

Heart of Night and Fire is a story of a girl finding herself in the midst of secrets, raging demons, and a crumbling kingdom. But within that, Tuli gives you strong friendships, a taste of a love triangle (but not really), and a dark, mysterious, maybe love-interest. It is a SLOOOOOOOOOOOOW BURN but has so much action and excitement that I was only slightly disappointed that there wasn’t more romance. The final 10% of this book is so action-packed that once you get to it, you cannot stop until it's over.

Am I dying for the next book when this one hasnt even been released yet? Absolutely. I don’t know why I do this to myself. I think I will read anything Nisha J Tuli writes because I know the world she creates is going to be sensational.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
0.5🌶️

I enjoyed the world-building and the description of magic system. The part of the plot that involved magic and fighting the "darkness" was right up my alley. The characters and the relationships they developed, were not. They seemed very 2d and I really did not find myself connecting with them or the struggles that they had faced during the book and in their backstories. The characters became repetitive and boring to me.

I really enjoyed the cultural elements that were brought into this story and I was definitely googling a few terms and words to work out what they were talking about and help me with the visuals. There was plenty of action with all of the creatures constantly trying to break through the city wards.

This is the first book in a series of four (I’m guessing from the series name) and you could tell that there was going to be a lot more story to come. There was a lot of world building, for those who like that, and lots of information to take in. For me, those bits seemed to drag on a bit but my brain doesn’t do well with the info dumps.
The romance was a small side plot in this book and it feels like it was a build up for future books. I wish there was a bit more meat to the Zarya/Rabin story because it felt a bit like insta-love because they hardly even talked and she was into him just because of a vibe.

Thanks to #NetGallery and the publisher. I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Genre: Fantasy/Romance
Format: Digital
POV: Single
Spice: 🌶️ /5
Age suggestion: 18+

I really liked this book. The MC was very well rounded and interesting. Wasn't much of a fan of Z and V but I'm excited to see where her and R go in the next novel. The magic system and world building was great. Highly recommend this book for anyone who loves a dash of romance in their fantasy.

I need the next book now! This was my first ARC and I pray that they’re all this good. Heart of Night and Fire has cemented Nisha Tuli as an automatic buy author.

If you love found family, slow burn, enemies to lovers, stubborn and independent female lead who is finding her way in a new world, and let’s not forget the Indian Asian mythology, well I have a book for you. Nisha has built a world rich with detail. I felt like I was right there in Dharati.

I really enjoyed the character development and watching these guarded strangers open up and turn in to more.

3.75 stars. Well I did enjoy this book the plot felt slow moving and the main FMC did bother me a little bit with her whining, I mean I get where she’s coming from but I’m tired of whiny mad female characters in Fantasy. I did love the found family and the world building and the atmosphere of the world was really well done. I am excited to explore the romance more in the next few books there wasn’t enough romance in this one for me😂.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Firstly I absolutely loved learning about this new world inspired by Indian mythology. The world building was incredibly vivid and descriptive. I also loved the slow burn aspect of the romance and I think it really fits well with the storyline. However I did struggle a lot with knowing, who was who and their parts in the story and actually what was happening, especially in the first half of the plot. This might just be my opinion but I did find parts very confusing and hard to understand which took away from the overall experience of the book sadly. Saying this though, I do recommend as this is a interesting and unique fantasy.