We Hunt the Flame
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4.4 • 186 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
An Ignyte Award Winner 2020
A TIME Magazine Top 100 Fantasy Book of All Time
A Paste Magazine Best YA Book of 2019
A PopSugar Best YA Book of 2019
A TeenVogue Book Club Pick for 2019
A Barnes & Noble Teen Book Club Pick for 2019
"Lyrical and spellbinding" —Marieke Njikamp, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author
Set in a richly detailed world inspired by ancient Arabia, Hafsah Faizal's We Hunt the Flame—first in the Sands of Arawiya duology—is a gripping debut of discovery, conquering fear, and taking identity into your own hands.
People lived because she killed. People died because he lived.
Zafira is the Hunter, disguising herself as a man when she braves the cursed forest of the Arz to feed her people. Nasir is the Prince of Death, assassinating those foolish enough to defy his autocratic father, the sultan. If Zafira was exposed as a girl, all of her achievements would be rejected; if Nasir displayed his compassion, his father would punish him in the most brutal of ways. Both Zafira and Nasir are legends in the kingdom of Arawiya—but neither wants to be.
War is brewing, and the Arz sweeps closer with each passing day, engulfing the land in shadow. When Zafira embarks on a quest to uncover a lost artifact that can restore magic to her suffering world and stop the Arz, Nasir is sent by the sultan on a similar mission: retrieve the artifact and kill the Hunter. But an ancient evil stirs as their journey unfolds—and the prize they seek may pose a threat greater than either can imagine.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this series opener inspired by ancient Arabian culture and myth, a young woman embarks on a perilous quest to return magic to the forest of the Arz. Zafira is a talented hunter, but because of her caliphate's social prejudice against women in positions of power, she fends for her village while disguised as a man. When the mysterious Silver Witch tasks her with traveling to a forbidden island to retrieve an artifact that could save civilization, Zafira takes the chance to prove herself. Along the way, she gains unexpected companions, including Nasir, a prince and assassin who is plotting to kill her on behalf of his wicked father. As the two brave constant threats, they develop a surprising connection as well as a mutual attraction. After a slow start, Faizal's strong debut develops its engaging premise with evocative worldbuilding and memorable characters. While the numerous plot threads create a somewhat overcrowded whole, lush descriptions of setting and food offer a vivid atmosphere, and the slow-brewing romance is an engaging contrast to the harrowing emotional and physical journey at the heart of the story. Ages 14 up.
Customer Reviews
Amazing!
Coming from an Arab background I really enjoyed reading the Arabic dialect! Very intriguing story .
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5
honestly this was a tough read. I wasn’t interested in the start or even throughout the entire book. the plot twists however made up for the rest because it just spiced things up in the book. but i gotta give it to the writing style because it was really good and the relationship between Nasir and Zafira and the other characters was perfection. i also think the middle eastern vibes were portrayed amazingly. fairly good for a debut novel so i’m gonna read the second book 😊
Good writing style
i don’t want to give this book a terrible rating, because simply the way it was written. it truly was beautiful, i think the author did a fabulous job with the use of words and descriptions and such. everything was just described so prettily. now with that said, i think with the way she described it. she might have ruined it a bit, i don’t know exactly how she did it.
but she made it very very confusing.
maybe i’m just stupid? but half the time i was lost, i had to keep retracing my steps. also i had difficulty getting into it, my attention just kept wandering. to be completely honest i had higher expectations for this book, and it simply did not deliver through. it was slow, lacking in many departments, especially with the world building and such.
now i will say what i loved as well, the setting being one of them. it is set in arabia, and it’s just unique for that very reason, i absolutely loved the setting. and the use of arabic words, while confusing was splendid as well. really added to the magic of it! and i liked the characters as well, they were very well thought out! the two main characters are simply splendid, and i loved the background they had as well!!
ooh not to mention the romance, it was not the best. but definitely not bad, didn’t overtake the book and was just very perfect. one of my favorite aspects here! it was a bit slow but not too slow, and not too fast. it was perfect hehe. and that’s it, that’s where it ends on the goods.
ooh other than altair lol, he was funny. and also side note deen deserved better! i just think what this story lacked was the development of the plot, it came much too late, and it was rushed and confusing and just odd in general. also it kept trying to throw curves and surprises at you, and i was just here like huh ik not surprised.
i don’t think i’ll read the next one? i might, we’ll see when it comes out. it is a duology so i might just. but other than that, the authors writing style is just so pretty. i wish she could just put it to better use, so much potential!