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aseel_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I was going to dnf this, but then interesting plot twists happened, so I kept going and then it got bad again, and I just powered through
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Torture, Violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, War, Murder, Drug use, Grief, Death, Gaslighting, Confinement, and Kidnapping
hollyk's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The sequel to Onyx & Ivory is much, much darker. And while I love a good, dark fantasy, this one missed the mark for me. The prologue starts about 6 months after the end of Onyx & Ivory, but the book itself takes place a year after the prologue (therefore, 18 months since the end of Onyx & Ivory). So much has changed: locations, people, allegiances, but we don't see any of that really happen, we just see the effects with an occasional flashback thrown in for a treat. This is what caused me to feel a disconnect to the characters, I think. Kate was so likable and easy to root for in the previous book, but here, she's a lot harder to care about. If everything that preceded the main book were to have been fleshed out, it would've been a lot easier to understand and empathize with Kate. As it is, we have to take her word for what happened and the words of those around her.
Kate is now much more comfortable with her powers (some may say too comfortable) and I feel like we missed that journey, dark as it may have been. The romance between Corwin and Kate is barely established in Onyx & Ivory beforestraight up being yeeted into the void in the prologue--we are told they were inseparable, but we barely saw true evidence/examples of them being a couple to warrant much more than the barest wisps of sympathy at Corwin's supposed death . There were a lot of new characters shoddily introduced, including one who I swear was never introduced and just popped up to replace Raith or someone else who died. There's a lot of death here. .
Also Dal's death was so weak. I don't know why they didn't just have Nadira bring him back and Corwin barely talks about detoxing from an addiction?? The timeline of this book is messy, so it's possibly weeks passed with a mere sentence, but it wasn't clear. He was dependent on nenath just for it to go away?? .
A disappointing sequel to a very promising first book. Shadow & Flamejust did not have the heart and soul that Onyx & Ivory had, making it lose its luster.
Kate is now much more comfortable with her powers (some may say too comfortable) and I feel like we missed that journey, dark as it may have been. The romance between Corwin and Kate is barely established in Onyx & Ivory before
Also
A disappointing sequel to a very promising first book. Shadow & Flamejust did not have the heart and soul that Onyx & Ivory had, making it lose its luster.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Child death, Slavery, Blood, Animal death, and Death
kassielovestoread's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
The conclusion to the Rime Chronicles duology was a thrilling and tense adventure that had me nervous as hell to finish. I wanted so badly for the band of unlikely misfits to prevail against the dark evils looming over Rime. And prevail they did!
TBH, Shadow and Flame feels like a completely different book than Onyx and Ivory, in all of the best ways. For starters, the plot was sooooooo much more compelling this time around. The various twists and turns this book takes were genuinely surprising. I spent so much time debating the moralities of our main characters that I often went back and forth as to whether I should root for their ambitions. Ultimately, my love runs deep for both Corwin and Kate and so I concluded very early on into reading this book that they simply can do no wrong for me.The deaths of Master Raith, Dal and Kiran will stick with me for a long time. They didn't deserve it! :(
If you loved the Ember in the Ashes quartet, then you will also love this duology. I feel both of these series has the same brutal, dark elements of war and magic with a forbidding foe to boot. I do think this duology (as well as AEITA) can be classified as YA, but I wouldn't feel comfortable recommending to any person under 18 to read. Some of the aspects featured in Shadow and Flame got way too dark for my comfort. As always, check trigger warnings!!
TBH, Shadow and Flame feels like a completely different book than Onyx and Ivory, in all of the best ways. For starters, the plot was sooooooo much more compelling this time around. The various twists and turns this book takes were genuinely surprising. I spent so much time debating the moralities of our main characters that I often went back and forth as to whether I should root for their ambitions. Ultimately, my love runs deep for both Corwin and Kate and so I concluded very early on into reading this book that they simply can do no wrong for me.
If you loved the Ember in the Ashes quartet, then you will also love this duology. I feel both of these series has the same brutal, dark elements of war and magic with a forbidding foe to boot. I do think this duology (as well as AEITA) can be classified as YA, but I wouldn't feel comfortable recommending to any person under 18 to read. Some of the aspects featured in Shadow and Flame got way too dark for my comfort. As always, check trigger warnings!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery and Death
Moderate: Rape
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