Follow Jahan as he tries to hide his magic while averting an invasion and attempting to save his old teacher. But when Elanna is captured he will have to risk all to save her.

* * * Apologies to the publisher / author for taking so long to submit my feedback through Netgalley! Original review was posted on my blog June 6, 2018 * * *

Last year I read and fell in love with The Waking Lands. When I learned there was a sequel coming (and a third book next year! SCORE!) I HAD to get my hands on it.

The Waking Lands was told from El’s POV and we were introduced to Jahan, who I quickly fell in love with. (He has a bit of an Adrian Ivashkov thing going on, if you’ve read the Vampire Academy and/or Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead you know what I’m talking about. Totally swoon-worth!)

So quick recap – this is a fantasy series in which magic is a crime and anyone caught practicing is sentenced to a fate worse than death. The magic of the land was awakened in the first book (get it? The Waking Land?). That’s basically what you need to know.

The Memory of Fire is Jahan’s story and picks up after the events of The Waking Lands. We learn so much about his past, especially his childhood. His memories were tampered with by the witch who trained him (against his will) and all he knows is that he has to get his brothers away from her. But when he returns to his adopted homeland in an attempt to act as emissary or ambassador on behalf of El’s land, nothing goes as he expects it to. Due to his alliance with El, he is no longer welcome in his former home. Now he must try to make peace between the two countries and keep himself alive.

I absolutely loved the characters and the entire storyline in this series. I plan to get a copy of the books in print for a permanent home on my shelf. Highly recommended for fans of fantasy! (Bonus: This series has GORGEOUS covers!)

Ah! I'm a little late to this series, but I loved both books! The writing, world-building, characters, everything about this series drew me in!

Elanna and Jahan are trying to calm things in the aftermath of their revolution in The Waking Land. When Queen Sophy gets word that the Emperor is readying the Black Ships to attack Eren, she asks Jahan to return to the Empire and negotiate for peace. Jahan also receives word that his younger brother has left the military academy and no one know where he is. With two missions he returns to find that all is not how he left it, his friendships are in shambles, there are witch hunters on every corner and a voice in his head that will not leave him alone.

I struggled a bit with this book. The beginning was slow. Jahan spends a lot of time running from place to place with no plan or idea. It drove me nuts. About half way when he has everything upended that's when I started to get invested. And then I couldn't put it down.

Jahan was good character in The Waking Land and I liked him, but I wasn't sure about a book from his perspective. Mostly because I really came to liked Elanna. Happily I was proven wrong. Jahan is complicated. He has spent his whole life not only hiding what he is but actively misdirecting just about every person in his life and it comes back to bite him rather badly. So he has to figure out what is worth fighting for and what type of person he wants to be.

I love the magic in this series. Jahan's magic is different for Elanna's which makes sense. But I loved learning how it worked. The idea that things remember the way they were or the potential of what it could be was awesome. Also the wells are neat too.

I really hope that there is another book because I need to know what happens next in Eren.

Callie Bates has begun to expand a beautiful, magical, fantastical world with book two in The Waking Land series, The Memory of Fire. As the final page of The Memory of Fire turns, readers will discover that they have only begun to scratch the surface of this world filled with a deep and rich magical history.

She’s done it again. The Memory of Fire is a continuation of this series. As rich and enticing as The Waking Land. Can’t wait to read the next book.

After loving The Waking Land, the first book in this series, I knew I had to read Memory of Fire. It was awesome to get to see what happened after the first story concluded. Elanna remains my favorite character even though Jahan narrates this book. I like Jahan, but I felt more connected to Elanna.
I thought it was interesting that the author touched on opiate addiction, especially considering the fact that it’s such a big issue right now in our country. Jahan remembers being addicted and some of the physical agony of withdrawal (which he experiences at different points in the story) but also the shame of having been an addict. It’s a minor point—this isn’t a tale about addiction or recovery. I just thought it was interesting that it plays a role in the book.
I also found it cool that even though this story is told from the perspective of a young man, it contains a LOT of strong women. Obviously there’s Elanna, the Caveadear who uses powerful magic connected to her land. But there’s also Jahan’s aunt, who sheltered him as a child and never shies away from protecting him, even if it might cost her life. The empress, who seeks to use her position to turn the political tide toward accepting sorcery. Queen Sophy who works tirelessly to unite her people and fend off enemies.
I’m pretty sure I noted this in my review of The Waking Land, but I think this is really more adult fantasy than young adult fantasy. Jahan deals with political issues in his role as ambassador, and while he spends some time sorting out trauma from his childhood, ultimately, the story focuses on him finding his place as an adult in a changing kingdom. I guess you could argue that he revises his childhood relationships (with his aunt, with a childhood friend, etc.) into adult ones, which falls under the YA umbrella. Fantasy seems to be the most flexible in terms of where YA crosses into adult fiction.
At any rate, Memory of Fire struck me with its strong story world and interesting political dynamics. Fans of Song of Blood and Stone by L. Penelope or The Great Library series by Rachel Caine should add this one to their reading lists.

The story took off shortly after the last book had ended. Although Elena was successful in leading her people of Caeris and Eren, sorcery is still against the law across the lands. Most especially in Paladis where she hopes to have a peace treaty with. But it has been decided that it will be Jahan who will attempt at being the peacemaker. The biggest hurdle is that sorcery is still outlawed and harsh punishments are given out to those who practice magic.

I automatically picked up this book without reading the blurb simply because I enjoyed the last instalment. So, I was surprised to find out that The Memory of Fire is in Jahan’s POV. Not necessarily a bad thing. It was actually a pleasant surprise. Truth be told, I enjoyed Jahan’s POV more than Elanna’s. I enjoyed hearing his points of view, his past, and his hidden powers. He truly took the spotlight and won my heart over.

Bates did a good job making this book even more interesting than the last instalment. It was full of betrayals, secret powers, and finding long lost families. I especially enjoyed the rebellion against the emperor and witch hunters. There’s something about defeating evil and seeing what they deserve.

My only complaint is that the first 20% was slow for me and it took me a bit to remember this world but that could’ve been on me. I also wish the romance was a bit stronger. Overall, it was a good read. I’m excited to see what Ms Bates has installed for her readers.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Walking Land, Callie Bates debut novel, so I didn’t hesitate to read Memory of Fire.

Memory of Fire is told in first person by Jahan. The prologue begins with Jahan think about his childhood. He can only remember bits and pieces because parts of his memory had been erased by Madiya in the attempt to make him an ideal sorcerer. She kept him drugged, trying to get him to master the necessary skills. He is remembering a particular memory of seeing his mother with a man. A witch hunter. His father thrusting his baby brothers, Lathiel and Rayka, at him and urging him to go hide.

The book begins where The Walking Land left off. While this book could be read as a stand alone, and she does a very good job of filling in the back pieces, I encourage you to read The Walking Land first. Jahan and Elanna are trying to keep Eren, the land they rescued from the empire of Paladis., strong and prospering. Trying to keep the people from starving during the cruel winter.

Unfortunately the Kingdom of Paladis is planning another invasion. Jahan must return to Paladis to try and broker for peace. The problem is that witchcraft is a crime and Jahan has to hide his powers. Madiya making him immune to the witch hunter’s bells helps, but it is not enough.

The story starts a little slow and I had to acclimate myself back to the lands of the story. I find that true though with any fantasy or science fiction book. Once I was settled in, the book flowed quickly. Lots of adventures. I couldn’t put it down, especially during some of the more intriguing parts.

I enjoyed the book and will continue to read any other books the author writes in the series.

I received an arc of the book.

I thought that The Memory Of Fire was better than The Waking Land, the first book in the series. I totally fell in love with Jahan in this one, he was such a wonderfully flawed protagonist.

This one continues where The Waking Land left off so definitely read that one before this one. I liked the switch of narrators because it allowed for a greater exploration of the world. It was so interesting to learn more about the political situations. I also loved that Jahan struggled so much with his magic before finding his own path. Even though the romance wasn’t the focus of the book, I was still rooting for them!

There is pretty much non-stop action in this one, which kept me glued to the pages far past my bedtime. However, Bates does an excellent job of maintaining the pace while still developing the characters and political situation fully. I also liked how Jahan came to terms with the traumas in his past. There was one scene at the end that gave me chills because it showed how much he’d grown as a character.

I’d recommend this one for fantasy fans looking for a book with treacherous politics, magic, and likable characters.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I received a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley for review purposes.

I did read the first book in this series, The Waking Land, and enjoyed that so was excited to read this one. This book was also pretty great, although I admit I wanted to know what the heck was going on with Elanna and Sophie while Jahan was doing his thing. Jahan's voice was refreshing, although he was pretty traumatized by his upbringing and has a lot of emotional issues. His problems trusting people and letting them in caused him a lot of trouble in this book, much of which probably could have been avoided if he'd only thought things through before acting.

Some of the characters' motives were extremely unclear through the entire book. It was difficult to tell who the reader could trust. This can be a great thing, especially for mysteries, but in fantasy I feel like there needs to be some solid ground that the main character can rely on. The only person I felt was true the entire way was Jahan's old friend from school. Even Leontius was a bit of a dishrag for much of the story.

Admittedly I didn't remember much about the relationships from the first book, so this was like starting over for me. I felt like some of the relationships weren't written the same way, like I don't remember Jahan being so insecure with Elanna (although he very well may have been), and I don't remember reference to Leontius being so angry at Jahan (but I'm sure it was there).

Overall this was pretty well-written. I thought there were way too many angles for me to keep track of, and character motives were a bit muddled, but I'm looking forward to book 3 and seeing how Jahan and Elanna manage to defeat the threat to Sophie's kingdom.

he Memory of Fire by Callie Bates is The Waking Lands book 2. The story starts out as a flashback to give some additional back story and is written from Jahan Korakides perspective rather than Elanna Valtai's from book 1. I think a lot of liking this book is your opinion of the character whose head you are in. If you like Jahan then this book gives you more of him and really fleshes out the character and the world Ms. Bates creates.

Overall The Memory of Fire by Callie Bates is a good continuation of the series and adds details to the story, continuing to build and creates an alternate POV to develop and see things from

(I voluntarily reviewed an advance review copy of this book I received for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)

Callie Bates’s debut novel, The Waking Land, built the foundation for this second novel in her epic fantasy series. Layered with the responsibilities of power, betrayal, freedom and interwoven relationships, The Memory of Fire, will be perfect for those looking to that one novel to escape with this summer.

I was a little bit skeptical when I found out that that second book was told from another character’s point of view. I have a tendency to get attached to characters and I like to continue the story from their point. This book was a pleasant surprise though because I really enjoyed Jahan’s point of view. He is a fascinating character and Bates did a wonderful job developing him in this story. There is a brewing revolution and enough political intrigue to keep the characters hopping. While I enjoyed the story this book was plagued by the same thing that plagued the first book, an overfull plot and cast of characters. While the first book felt rushed to me because to much was shoved in at the end, this one was no different. I think that had the author told her books with alternating points of view instead of trying to do books with completely different characters the might have flowed a little bit better. That being said though, this was still a great book and I highly recommend the series to anyone who likes YA fantasy novels.

*4.5 stars* We first met Jahan Korakides in The Waking Land, when he helped Elanna Valtai unlock her powers as steward of the land and save her people. In The Memory of Fire, the story picks up where the first book left off, but from Jahan's perspective rather than Elanna's. We learn more about his childhood and the events that led him to Elanna, and we are with him as he fights to discover his new place in the world and who he truly is. I enjoyed the first book, but this follow-up is better. It was fun meeting a new cast of characters as well as learning more about existing ones. Additionally, it was more settled into the complex world created in the first book, so it wasn't as confusing to keep track of everything. I am interested to see where the third book goes from here!

Political intrigue is heart of THE MEMORY OF FIRE. Jahan has spent his life concealing his magic and laughing off consequences. Once he returns home Jahan learns that his homeland, Ida, is prepping for its own revolution and his friends aren’t interested in his help. As he re-enters Ida’s politics, Jahan moves from the King’s Court, to the student underground, and finally to the Witch Hunter’s jails.

THE MEMORY OF FIRE does suffer from the same faults in the first book. The novel is overstuffed with characters and plot. Although many minor characters have some form of character development, it’s hard to become attached to them. Another issue is that, for all the warfare and revolutionary acts, the author has become trigger shy with her own characters. The death of Finn in the first novel was affecting and its consequences have reached into THE MEMORY OF FIRE. For all the violence in the novel, none of it felt permanent. I also would have loved more information about the Witch Hunters, since so much of the final plot relies on their history.

The relationship between Jahan and Elanna also carries into THE MEMORY OF FIRE. The relationship is long-distance but there’s never a hint that the love between the two waivers. In Eren, Elanna is the powerful steward of the land. Even just the mention of her, sets fear into the Idaen’s that fear magic. Jahan may want to protect Elanna, but he’s always willing to let her stand on her own.

THE MEMORY OF FIRE is an amazing follow-up to The Waking Land and proves that revolution cannot be localized. Just as magic awoke in the first novel, so has political change. It was interesting to have a novel from Jahan’s perspective, especially since Elanna’s story wrapped up so neatly in the first novel. I can’t wait to see how The Waking Land series will continue to address the spread of magic and how it disrupts the status quo.

The Memory of Fire is the sequel to The Walking Land – which absolutely bowled me over with it's excellence! I waited with so much excitement and anticipation for the book 2.

Again, as with The Walking Land , I love the book cover the author has chosen. Creative, imaginative and mysterious – perfect cover art for the story contained within.

The Memory of Fire was fast paced, exciting and an excellent fantasy book. We were introduced to Jahan Korakides (the Korakos) in The Walking Land book 1, yet his character remained somewhat aloof. The Memory of Fire is Jahan's story, told from his point of view. The Memory of Fire builds Jahan's character. He says he is different from the few present local sorcerers because “he was born to it from birth”. We learn of the evil witch/sorcerer , Madiya, who taught Jahan and his 2 younger brothers from birth, albeit through somewhat traumatic and torturous “experiments”.

The “Legend and Mythology” of Jahan's ancestors:

Mantius > Kyros Korakides was a Britemnosi Lord who fought and claimed the Britemnois Aisles alongside Paladius the 1st. He was murdered by treachery and betrayal (likely by an agent of Paladius?) along with most of the sorcerers. Kyros received none of the riches and titles Paladius promised – neither did his children, (heirs). Paladius then made all magic against the law.

“Mantius was my comfort. My ancestor, the greatest sorcerer of his age, who wore a cloak of black feathers. He had been able to transform himself into a raven.”

Mantius made whole cities disappear and reappear, crossed endless deserts in a day, defeated enemy armies with their own nightmares come to life …..

. . . . THAT is how we've come to be what we are. . . . A shame to Mantius's glorious legacy.

Jahan returns to his homelands of Ida and Paladis to seek a treaty with the Emperor on behalf of the lands of Eren and Caeris. Things have changed greatly in the 6 months he has been gone. Jahan is forced to join in a rebellion, an uprising of his people, against the Emperor and his army. [ no more spoilers, read the book]

Through the course of this book, Jahan's story, we see Jahan Korakides grow, learn, and transform into a much more powerful sorcerer. Grow to be more of an equal to his chosen mate, Elanna Valtai, the Caveadear of Eren and Caeris.

I DO think readers need to read The Walking Land, Book 1, first to fully understand the characters, the significance of things that occur in The Memory of Fire. The world building, legend, mythology and character building was SO immense and powerful in The Walking Land that it set my expectations perhaps too high for any sequel.

While there was a lot of world building and development of new, fascinating characters in The Memory of Fire, it seemed a bit rushed and the new characters, the new lands, myths and legends lack the depth we saw in The Walking Land. I kept waiting for more “legend and mythology” to be built up and explored.
I was left somewhat disappointed in that aspect of the book. IE: I would love for Tirisero The God of Lost Battles to be developed further! The Secret Flame, unified with the deep water. The heart of Tirisero.

Rumor has it there is a 3rd book in this series..... perhaps the author can delve deep and bring forth these mysterious legends and myths in the 3rd book!?
….. anxiously awaiting book 3........

I thank the author for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book throws a lot at you without a lot of rehashing the plot of the first book, so if you don't remember much from the first book you might be a little lost. Once I started remembering the characters and plot threads from The Waking Land following along with this book became easier. Callie Bates packs a lot of story into this book! During climactic scenes I found myself skipping ahead a few pages to make sure certain characters stayed alive. This book will definitely pull you into its unique world and is very hard to put down.

This review was originally published for Fictionist Magazine.

Note: This review is for the second book in a series. It does not contain spoilers for this book, but it may contain major plot points from book one.

In The Waking Land, we followed Elanna as she became acquainted with her vast power, learned some new truths about her homeland, and helped to overthrow the government for her people. I was sucked in immediately, and the introduction of several secondary characters (like Jahan Korakides, her love interest) made me love the world even more.

The Memory of Fire is entirely from Jahan's perspective and starts off slightly after book one ended. I'm not going to lie to you. The reason I gave this book four stars is because the beginning is boring. I could only read about a chapter at a time, honestly, without wanting to give up on the book altogether. It doesn't help that Jahan is whiny as hell. But, after Jahan is forced to return to Ida to try to broker peace with the Emperor and find his brothers, it gets way more interesting. Jahan gets distracted from his consistently depressing inner monologue, and things start to happen.

But seriously, the part where Elanna says she loves him and he's like, 'I guess I love her too, whatever' made me want to punch him.

I wasn't particularly interested in Jahan during book one, honestly. I loved Elanna and her natural magic, and Jahan seemed a little out of place. I didn't read up on book two before I started, so I was a little surprised it was entirely in Jahan's perspective (and not in split POVs, as many authors do with sequels). I ended up liking it, though, and it made me understand Jahan as a character. He gets a huge amount of backstory, and once I could look past his angsty, secretive persona I enjoyed his perspective.

Though I had my issues with Jahan's character, I have to say, Callie Bates has somehow avoided the usual sophomore slump of series writing. This book was interesting, well-written and immersive -- just like book one. Usually, I find myself questioning the author a lot during the second book in a series, but I think the lack of split POVs and the focus on Jahan's separate storyline helped Bates a lot here.

The Memory of Fire follows directly on the heels of The Waking Land. When the first book in this exciting fantasy ended, the newly freed people of Eren feared the great empire of Paladis would retaliate and sure enough, they are preparing to send their Black Ships to pacify the rebellion and drive magic back out of the land. Jahan is from their, a friend of the Crown Prince, and decides to return as a diplomatic envoy in order to negotiate peace in hopes of avoiding a war.

He has a private mission as well, rescuing his youngest brother from Madiya, the cruel tutor who taught him magic at the cost of many of his memories. He thinks something is amiss with his middle brother as well. However, returning home is a disappointment. His middle brother has fled the military academy and is missing and his youngest brother seems terribly wounded even though Madiya has left.

His return to the court is unsuccessful, the Crown Prince has no time for him and everyone is against him except some rebel friends and his aunt. He is suspected of being a sorcerer, a crime which could lead to life in prison or death. It’s really a mess and to top it all off, there’s an incipient rebellion seeking his leadership, strange allies within the Court that may have ulterior motives, and so much inner conflict, he is half-paralyzed by indecision.

As a second in a series, The Memory of Fire avoids the usual trap of retelling too much of the first book. Bates trusts readers to remember, and if they forget, to just accept the world as it comes along. The liberation of Eren is not reprised. There’s far too much to accomplish in Paradis. It’s fast-paced and exciting. The duplicitous characters are presented with the complexity that means their duplicity is suspected and not out of the blue.

I was frustrated by Jahan at times. He was needlessly indecisive and inconsistent. Clearly, he has great magic but fails to use it to its best effect thanks to bad self-talk. That was the problem with Elanna as well. I hope whoever is the focus in Book Three will not be someone whose paralyzed by doubt. That’s a bit unfair to Jahan, he did not have time to be paralyzed, but he was as much driven by events as driving them. He was acted upon more than taking action on his own unless in extremis.

An interesting complication is Jahan’s particular magic. It consists of reminding materials of their other states. For example, reminding a fire what it was when it was out or vice versa. It is also the antithesis of Elanna’s power and I wonder if that might lead to problems down the road as his power drains life and hers wakes life. There is more than a hint that his power offends her which would be a great development in Book Three, figuring out how his power can function without damage. There are power sources he can employ in Paradis, but what about if and when they return to Eren?

I am eager to read the next in the series. I already have questions and expectations, which goes to show what a successful series Bates has written.

I received a copy of The Memory of Fire from the publisher through NetGalley.

The Memory of Fire at Del Rey | Penguin Random House
Callie Bates author site
Tonstant Weader Reviews The Waking Land.