This Golden Flame

***I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley (thank you Hodder & Stoughton!) in exchange for a honest review.***

This Golden Flame is a very well-needed fresh breath of air in the world of YA Fantasy and Sci-Fi. It´s been quite a while since a book affected me emotionally the way this book did. It was the book I didn’t knew I needed. Perfect for fans of The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer and Carry On by Rainbow Rowell.

Emily Victoria is a master when it comes to world building with a unique and brilliant magical system which I definitely crave more of. Despite TGF being her debut novel, the author has managed to compose an amazingly beautiful story with a fast paced and intriguing plot.

Although the description was very appealing, I was a little bit reluctant to read the book at first since it gave the impression to contain little to no romance. And I’m usually all in for some romance, sexual tension and such. However, I do not regret reading this book what so ever! The small pieces of romance it contains is just perfect for the story and the fact that this wasn’t focused on romance enhanced the story in my opinion.

Emily Victoria has managed to include several queer characters; an asexual and aromantic MC with a homosexual brother is just the tip of the ice berg. And although queer people is absolutely underrepresented in this genre imo, this doesn’t feel overdone or forced, not the slightest. Since I’m hetero (at least I think so atm) I don’t have any own experiences as an aro, ace or such. But for me, the relationships between all characters felt incredibly real and I just loved the dynamic between all characters (especially Karis and Alix) We definitely need more queer main characters within YA fantasy and I cannot wait for what Emily Victoria has for the future.

Writing this review was really really hard since I don’t feel like my words gives this book justice. It’s such a complex book with several subplots and wonderful and lovable characters. This is the book you won´t want to miss out on!

If you are looking for an original read then look no further than This Golden Flame. It's got a strong cast of diverse and relatable characters, a compelling and gripping plot that makes you want more and has everything you need in a book.

I was excited to get stuck into this book, especially when I realised that it might be a February book in one of the book boxes I am subscribed to. A big thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing the arc for me to read.

I found this book was good from the get go, it wasn't slow from the start at all which is kind of uncommon. It is a fun, action adventure filled YA fantasy novel which has the main character as an aromantic asexual girl. A big shout out for this book being inclusive to these topics and creating a book that I actually enjoyed that did not feature any romance. I was not disappointed with this book at all.

The world building for this novel was very well written, set in a fantasy world with a sort of magic called Script and automatons that are dormant and scattered across the realm. The worldbuilding seems to be inspired by Ancient Greece and I adore books with a greek theme even more.

It follows the story of Karis who is an acolyte that stumbles across Alix who is a human like automaton. Their adventure to find her brother and stop the Scriptorium (The governing body where Karis is an acolyte) begins. I feel that they both have a fair amount of character development between them throughout the novel. Karis ends up making mistakes but then learns from them and Alix learns what life is like over 200yrs later from when he can remember.

All in all it was a great read and I thoroughly enjoyed it, it got me out of my reading slump which was from a previous book I had read. I think this books includes a range of LGBTQ+ themes that are not really written about until of late which is really inclusive. I do think that there is going to be a lot of hype around this book when it is released and I am excited for it. For now it seems like a standalone novel but there is potential for secondary character stories to be written about.

https://readingwithtyler.wordpress.com/2021/01/18/this-golden-flame-emily-victoria/

"This Golden Flame" is a great read. It's a fantasy story aimed at young adults, without some of the things that can make YA books a bit annoying! The plot is a fantastic concept that is held together by solid characters and beautiful writing. About halfway through, I was disappointed to find out that this isn't part of a series, but there is another book by Emily Victoria due next year (2022), so it's all good!

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

I always get a bit nervous when starting highly anticipated release in case it doesn't live up to it, but THIS GOLDEN FLAME was an absolute delight to read. I had intended to read this over a few evenings, but I need a distraction one afternoon, and this book was the perfect thing for that.

The magic was what really captured me in this book. It's not a power people carry in them and can use as they wish. Instead, it's a very hard, psuedo-scientific magic based on runes that control the automatons. I loved the rules and the elegance of the gold runes - plus anything that feels vaguely science-y and doesn't blatantly contradict the law of physics is a win for my nerdy heart! It was a lot of fun, and made the world more egalitarian in terms of who could use magic - until the politics of the powerful Scriptorium came in.

The book is certainly fantasy, and it's not steampunk at all. Instead, the world is inspired by Ancient Greece. Maybe it's just the gorgeous UK cover, but the book did feel very turquoise and gold to be - coolly stylish, the world both very advanced but also old at the same time.

There was such a sense of history. With the strong mystery thread about why Alix's father acted as he did, the world of two hundred years ago was present throughout Alix's memories. It hung over them, filling out the world so it had some depth.

The main character is ace-sexual! It's not something focused on at all by the story, just part of Karis' character that's raised by a few lines. However, seeing a main character in YA who has no inclination towards finding a romantic partner was so nice. There always seems to be romance in YA, so to have a character be as completely uninterested in it, and not quite understanding the romantic attractions around her, felt like seeing teenage me in the pages.

I cannot wait to see what Emily Victoria writes next!

A wonderful YA novel, that is a true high fantasy but still with elements of sci-fi.

The story centres round an ace MC (yeyy for representation) and an android I really want to adopt!

There is no signed of the usual YA troupes in the this master piece, we've left behind the love triangle, the Insta love, and Mary Sue heroine. Instead we have something refreshing, fast paced with breath taking world building.

Get ready to find a new chosen family!