We Hunt the Flame: A Magical Fantasy Inspired by Ancient Arabia: 1 (Sands of Arawiya, 1)

Trigger warnings: trauma, death of a loved one, near death experience, violence, blood, misogyny, war, abuse, scarsZafira is the only one brave enough to face the Arz and come back out whole. She hunts in the forest that is slowly enveloping her home, her country, that sends you either mad or never to be seen again. Once you enter the Arz, it consumes you. Zafira is known as the Hunter, that know one knows is a woman. A woman that feeds the western villages of her calphite, ruled by men and where women are allowed no freedom. If her achievements were revealed she’d shunned and rejected.Nasir is his father tool, made into the emotionless assassin he is today. The sultan has ordered his son to kill countless innocents for the smallest slights or disobedience. Nasir cannot defy his father, for his compassion comes with a price, and he will be punished in the most brutal of ways.Both are known throughout the kingdom of Arawiya, legends in the own rights and neither of them wants to be.The Arz is creeping over Arawiya further with each passing day, engulfing the land in shadow and soon it will swallow it whole. Magic has been lost to Arawiya for ninety years, and Zafira has been tasked with a quest to restore it. To bring back magic, destroy the Arz and avenge her father’s death at it’s hands. But Zafira isn’t the only one searching for the lost artifact that will restore magic. Nasir is sent by the sultan on a similar mission: retrieve the artifact and kill the Hunter and anyone else that might get in his way. But an ancient evil stirs as their journey unfolds—and the prize they seek may pose a threat greater than either can imagine.______________________________________This book was absolutely, utterly, brilliant and amazing. I loved this book from beginning to end. As soon as I finished reading We Hunt the Flame I lied on my bed chanting “I need the next book, I need it, I need it, I need it,” because it utterly destroyed me and I need to know what happens next.I was instantly hooked into this story. I was instantly intrigued by what was happening and I had difficulty putting it down. I loved that the chapters and perspective switched between Zafira and Nasir. Giving two, sometimes opposite and conflicting, insights into the story. I loved that their two points of views started off so very different and showing two different parts of the world. Which slowly began to align as the story progressed and they realised that they needed the other to find the book on Sharr.The journeys and growth that the characters go through over the course of this novel were heartbreaking at times. So much happened to Zafira and Nasir, to them separately and them together that I don’t know how to put into words the roller coaster this book was.So many of the characters were dark and conflicted, hiding secrets from others and sometimes themselves. The main group of characters, the zumra, don’t all truly trust each other. Well, Zafira and Nasir don’t seem to trust anyone really. But they all have to work together in order to reach the same goal. As Sharr plays on their fears and loneliness, Sharr (the prision island) is alive in a way and can play them against each other. The beings that had once been trapped during the rein of the Six Sisters have been left unchecked and allowed to roam wild since magic and the Sisters vanished. Many of them are bloodthirsty and want to get their hands on the zumra. So even though they don’t want to work together they have to survive this island.I loved that they were forced together to stay alive. Going from enemies, begrudging friends/allies, friends but-I’m-not-going-to-admit-it, and potential even more in the sequel (mainly between Zafira and Nasir). Think that there’s also some potential for the found family trope that might work with the groups dynamic.This book has really stayed with me since I read it and I think that it is one of the best books that has come out in 2019. It is an amazing debut that is rich with magic, love, family, friendship, and so much more. I highly recommend this to anyone that loves fantasy. I would say that this is one of the must read books of 2019.The only downside of this book is that I don’t have the sequel already.

The book has a slow and almost boring start but of you stick with it, the world it builds and the story it tells is well worth the while.

"We hunt the flame, the light in the darkness, the good this world deserves."We Hunt the Flame is a rich, gorgeous, tale, filled with middle eastern mythology. Upon starting, I did not have high hopes; the book had been on my Kindle since last October, and yet I hadn't been moved to read it. I was delighted to be proven wrong!I knew I was in for a treat immediately, upon reading 'A note from the author,' at the beginning of the book. Faizal begins by telling us that this story holds pieces of her soul. Having now finished the tale, I can attest to the fact that it reads as such. This book contains persecution, pain, rejection and - more importantly - found family, self-belief and love. It is a maelstrom of emotions, such as our souls contain.She goes on to say that, 'Zafira Iskander, like me, will do anything for her family. Even don a cloak that obscures her identity, shrouding her victories in mystery. If revealed, her every accomplishment could be derided, all because she's a woman. I wrote this without realizing that in that moment, Zafira was me. I built my platform online with a graphic as my profile image, because I knew that as myself - a veiled, very visibly Muslim girl - people would judge me before getting to know me. Zafira and I are both perfectly content with who we are. It's the external, unfounded perceptions that scare us." Such a small paragraph contains such big connotations. I felt educated, ashamed and unified, all at once, upon reading this. I cannot relate to being a Muslim woman, but I can be educated. However, I certainly can relate to being a woman, in a patriarchal world.I have nothing left to say except: read this book. And, if you come across words and beings you don't recognise; do as I did and look them up (There's a handy glossary at the back that I didn't know of until after I'd finished reading). Learn of the Bahamut, the Dandan, the Kaftar, and the Rukh. Immerse yourself in middle eastern culture, of which they teach us so little of in Western society.

I loved this. I found the first half slow, and it took me longer than usual to read, but I was still enjoying it and wanted to see where it would go. The second half was fantastic and I was glad of the slow character build at the beginning because it made the characters decisions make sense, made the reveals more dramatic. I loved the dialogue between characters.I read a lot of fantasy and whilst there are always similarities between stories I found the writing style of this book made it feel different, I loved the mixing of language and words only being explained where context didn't define it. Thoroughly enjoyed it and cant wait to get stuck in to the second book

This was a really great story and I love that its only a duology

El libro llegó en buen estado, buena calidad. No lo he leído, pero lo tengo próximo a leer.

I really love this books (hardcover), they are so beautiful and there was no damage (rare case) and I really hope to have a great read cause I will really be disappointed if that will not be the case but anyways, hope this helps 😊

Me llegó en buen estado. Aún no lo he podido leer pero será una de mis próximas lecturas seguro!

Very good book! Came 2 days after I ordered it too