We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal
“Be as victorious as the name I have given you, and bring the desert to its knees.”
– Hafsah Faizal
Specifics:
Book: We Hunt the Flame
Author: Hafsah Faizal
Published: 14th May, 2019
Genre: YA Fiction, Fantasy Fiction
LGBTQIA literature: No
Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
Series: Sands of Arawiya #1
Pages: 483
My rating: 4/5
Blurb:
People left because she killed.
Zafira is the Hunter. Forced to disguise herself as a man, she braves the cursed Forest to feed her people.
People died because he lived.
Nasir is the infamous Prince of Death, assassinating those foolish enough to his autocratic father, the sultan.
Both are legends in the kingdom of Arawiya – but neither wants to be. Both are embarking on a quest to return magic to their Kingdom. But as their journey unfolds, an ancient Evil begins to stir…
“Darkness is my destiny.”
– Hafsah Faizal
Review:
A thrilling adventure to rescue magic and save the land of Arawiya charged with new companionships, blind trust, fight for survival, love and more.
Set in a fictional world of Arawiya, the book is divided into three acts. It alternates between 2 POV’s – Zafira and Nasir and initially begins with their individual lives. They eventually cross paths as they set out on a quest to find the same artefact – a book called ‘Jawarat’ which can restore Arawiya to it’s magnificent past.
With each chapter, the book gets better. With each Act, the story and the characters grow on you. The writing is brilliant and the characters are intense.
It took me a few chapters to get in but I once I did, there was no looking back. I had to read it over a span of three weeks since I was hosting a readalong for @bibliophilereadingclub but it was a task to wait.
This has an enemies to lovers trope even though things haven’t gone completely aflame yet. This is something to look forward to in the coming book. The book has a beautiful map.
The best part of the book is act III. There are so many things we find out and it blew my mind. I cannot wait for We Free the Stars.
One good thing about the cliffhanger was that even though it leaves us with a lot of shock and questions, they did end up finishing the task they set out for.
The book did remind of the Shadow and Bone series with Arz being comparable to the shadow fold. It also reminded me of Padmavath with Altair and I can totally see him being played by Jim Sarbh.
I am a little confused as to the motives of the protagonists when they first set out individually. May be book 2 will clear that up for me.
I rate the book 4/5 stars.
Spoiler alert
It was jam packed with twists especially towards the end. I really liked the magical world created and the characters in them.
Some amazing twists were:
Zafira is a compass and that is why she always found her way
Altair and Nasir are half brothers
The silver witch, the sixth sister turns out to be their mother who kills and takes the Califah’s place and ultimately fakes her death.
Benyamin sacrifices himself to protect them from the lion of the night
Altair is a friend of Misk, Jasmine’s husband
The lion of the night is Altair’s father
They have found the hearts of the other 5 sisters stored in trees even though one of it is with Altair who’s in captivity of the Lion and Zafira has bound herself to the Jawarat. Now, we have to see how they save Arawiya from the lion of the night even though they have restored magic.
“Love is for children, said the girl.
Death is for fools, said the shadow.
Darkness is my destiny, said the boy.
Allegiance is my undoing, said the eagle.
Suffering is our fate, said the beauty.
And they were all horribly wrong.”
– Hafsah Faizal
Coming to the characters:
Zafira bint Iskandar: Our Huntress is a wholesome teenager of 17 years who has seen more life than many adults. She has lost her father to death and mother to insanity and takes on the burden of feeding her town by venturing into cursed darkness to hunt and bring food. There’s one catch, she has to fake her gender as they will not accept a female fending food for them. She shows her brave and determined soul throughout and manages to find the Jawarat. She apparently has an innate ability to be a compass.
Nasir Ghameq: The Prince of Death, hated by his father, loved by none is a hashashin. He kills but with dignity. He is also half human and half safin. He sets out to find the Jawarat and kill everyone under the command of his father but ends up loving, atleast liking everyone. He is overshadowed by his cruel father and I can’t wait for him to destroy him the way he was destroyed. I mean, he has scars on his back as punishment, that is insane.
Deen: He was madly in love with Zafira and is highly supportive. He sets out to go with her to Shar without flinching. His death hurt me too. He would have made a brilliant partner to Zafira.
Altair Al-Badawi: Our dose of sarcasm and humour, Altair, a half-brother to Nasir and the son of the lion of the night, knows a lot but speaks little of his knowledge. He is very witty and clever. He is also a man of heart and even though he puts on a very carefree front, he’s always been calculative and protective. He’s stuck with the lion and I really need him to escape.
Benyamin Haadi: The Califah’s brother and uncle to Nasir and Altair is an immortal Safin who lost his little boy. He is righteous and leads with his intelligence that has developed over his immortal life. He sacrifices himself giving the others a chance to leave the Sharr and try and save Arawiya from the lion of the night. Everyone mourns him.
Kifah: Our beloved, one of nine is so instinctive and has a brilliant presence of mind. She uses her power to bewitch a book of Benyamin to look like the Jawarat and switches it with the original one before the lion could snatch it up. I feel in love with her at that moment.
“Malevolence spilled from the woman like morning mist.”
– Hafsah Faizal
What I liked about it:
- Fast read
- Strong and intense characters
- Brilliant writing
- Has a map
- Has a mixture of magic and adventure
“But eyes couldn’t stay closed forever, unless one was dead. And the dead never dreamed.”
– Hafsah Faizal
What I did not fancy:
- A little confusion in the beginning
- A series so, cliffhanger
- I did not emotionally connect with the characters
“He was a mess of scars like the sky was a mess of stars.”
– Hafsah Faizal
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