WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

Some of the main discussions in the club were around:

• The start of the book was a great hook for most us – the world building is amazing and there is just so much expectation from the story to come;
• There was a bit of a struggle to understand non-English text (which was predominantly Arabic words) however there is a glossary at the back explaining each word in detail;
• Zafira and Nasir motivations and character development is done well as well as the reasons for a quest;
• That’s when things fall apart slightly – Zafiras friends death though predictable was not done well;
• the journey through the island was tedious and repetitive; this is a problem that starts much before they enter the Arz forest – the pacing of the plot is inconsistent, making it challenging for readers to fully immerse themselves in the unfolding events. The narrative tends to meander at times, diluting the sense of urgency that should accompany an epic quest. We found ourselves debating the effectiveness of the pacing and whether the story’s slower moments enhance or detract from the overall experience.
• The world-building in “We Hunt the Flame” is undeniably ambitious, yet it occasionally feels overwhelming and then we realised it was a bit meh as nothing was going on in this greatly crafted world;
• Hafsa introduces a multitude of cultures, mythologies, and political intrigues, which can be difficult to keep track of. This complexity did lead to some interesting discussions amongst the book club about the balance between world-building and reader accessibility, as well as the role of cultural diversity in fantasy literature.
• We all liked Zafiras new found friends – who were they?
• The ending was just completely disjointed and it felt like the story was just being made up on the cuff – normally with stories there are clues and foreshadowing whereby endings can be predicted by more discerning readers – here nothing. All parts of the end (including the hearts under trees, silver witch being mum) all came out of the blue.

In summary, “We Hunt the Flame” elicited both admiration and critique. Its captivating premise and intriguing characters drew us in, but execution left room for improvement. Still, the book sparked rich discussions—from character dynamics to world-building intricacies.

As we dissected this fantasy adventure, we settled on an overall rating of 4/10.

As for my personal perspective, it started with incredible promise but quickly lost momentum, ultimately leaving me yearning for greatness. I really wanted to like this story: unfortunately, I was among the group that assigned a low score.

What do you think of the book? Do share your thoughts with me by commenting below.

Thanks for reading!