What do you do when you finally read a book that gives you 1: life, 2: a dire need to marry an assassin (which is not very safe but you gave up that lifestyle long ago), 3: an epic adventure that satiates the insatiable need for hate-to-love tropes, 4: laugh out loud one-liners that help you laugh through the pain, and 5: just overall so perfect that you can’t put it down for 5 SECONDS???? Yeah, I have no idea. Probably just stare at a blank word doc trying to put words to how real the afterglow of reading this book is. But here is my attempt at translating all of the scribbles and notes that happened throughout the journey that was We Hunt The Flame.

“Be as victorious as the name I have given you, and bring the desert to its knees.”

The story follows Zafira Iskandar, resident badass of the caliphate of Demenhur and otherwise known as the notorious “Hunter” that everyone reveres and fears at the same time. Disguising herself as a man, Zafira braves the cursed forest of the Arz to feed her people while running the risk of being exposed as a girl and her achievements being rejected. Nasir Ghameq identifies more as the Prince of Death than his born title of Prince of Sarasin. He assassinates those who defy his father, the king, and if his non-assassin-like compassion stands in the way of his duty, he awaits a much darker punishment from his father. “Both are legends in the kingdoms of Arawiya--but neither wants to be.”

“We hunt the flame, the light in the darkness, the good this world deserves.”

In the once magic-filled world of Arawiya, magic has disappeared, leaving the world as an empty husk in its wake. As days go on, war is brewing faster and the Arz is growing quicker, swallowing the land in darkness. Zafira is tasked to find an artifact that can bring magic back and defeat this darkness. Nasir has the same quest, in addition to killing the Hunter. They both believe they know what trials lay ahead of them, but little do they know that something much darker and more ancient awaits them.

“Sunlight was always faint in the caliphate of Demenhur, because the sun didn’t know what to do with the snow that should be sand.”

The first thing I fell in love with about this book is the writing. Hafsah’s writing style is so lyrical, so intriguing, that you can’t help but get sucked into the story. Filled with beautiful descriptions, heart-racing adventure, heart-pounding intensity, and sprinkles of the perfect amount of comedic relief, We Hunt The Flame was truly such a treasure to read. I found myself not being able to put the book down for too long at times because of how invested I was in the story and didn’t want to leave the intensity and excitement. Also, often times comedy can be added haphazardly and tastelessly to a story, which lends itself to distracting from the experience as a whole, especially with a story of this caliber and grandeur but that was not the case with this particular tale. If anything, it makes you fall in love with the story as a whole and with the characters even more.

“...you’re officially a murderer. Welcome to the club.”

Speaking of characters, the zumra (squad) were truly what brought the story to life. They all had qualities that were unique to each of them (Zafira’s tenacity, Nasir’s compassion, Altair’s mischief, Kifa’s bravery, Benyamin’s wisdom), yet they all balanced each other out by providing the strengths for the others’ weaknesses. They prove that it doesn’t matter who you are or what circumstances you are coming from, it’s your actions and what you have to offer that truly matters. They are literally the definition of having the ability to face and overcome your adversities becoming one of your greatest strengths.

We Hunt The Flame has definitely been my favorite read of 2019 thus far and I think it’s also safe to say that my all-time faves bookshelf has made room for another addition. I wholeheartedly believe that this story will enthrall readers with its charm, mystique, wonder, and plot twists to sate anyone’s need for the surprise element. Oh, and did I mention a villain that you will instantly love to hate? I truly hope that you will pick up We Hunt The Flame after its release on May 14th!

I have been waiting so long to read this. I had every intention of loving it to pieces. But that did not happen. I feel so heartbroken about it. I have known this author for years, and she is adorable. And her book sounded incredible. And look gorgeous too. While parts of it was amazing, not all of it was. At least not to me. Sigh.

I wanted to completely love We Hunt the Flame. But I did not. I enjoyed it so, but no love. Took me many days to finish it. And I just did not have the excitement for it that I wanted to have. But even so. I'm so glad I got to read it. And I will still be getting my stunning hardcover of it, to look at. Giving this book three stars.

Not two, because I truly did enjoy parts of this book a whole lot. But also not four, because I didn't love it. My mind feel conflicted right now. I am not sure how to put my feelings for this book into words. But I will try my best. What I really enjoyed about this one was the setting. I adored this world and all the characters living in it. I liked that this place was separated into five different places where everyone had their purpose. The people were all different and diverse. All exciting to read about. And I very much liked getting to know more about this world, about the magic that it once had. I liked reading about the different cultures. I very much enjoyed reading about all the different food. I don't know much about this culture, but I really want to know even more about it all.

But sadly, I did not like the writing in this book. It was not horrible, but it was not good either. It was sort of a mess for me. It made it harder for me to read this book, as I could not focus for long. But. What I loved about the writing was the Arabic words included. They were written so so well and I always loved learning the new words. I very much enjoyed that. I only had an issue with all the words put together, as I did not manage to connect the way I wanted to. I truly wanted it all to get better, but it never did, not for me. Sigh.

This book tells the story of Zafira and Nasir. It is told from their point of views. I enjoyed getting to know both of them. But gosh, how slow the beginning of this book was. It took ages before the adventure finally started. We got to know the characters a little before that, know all the things about their lives so far. And that's something that bothered me. The romance is supposed to be about Zafira and Nasir. But more than a hundred pages is focused on a boy in love with her, and her somewhat caring for him. It hurt my heart.

Okay, it was not really a love triangle at all. Since the two main characters did not know about each other yet. But I will admit that it hurt my heart to read so many pages about Zafira having an almost boyfriend from home. And then learning about Nasir and his past, about a girl in his life too. It was a little too much for me. Because for me, personally, I do not want to read about past relationships. I so don't want to read about an almost relationship either, when I know the real romance of the book is still to come. It just hurts.

But anyway. I have already written too much about that. I will not say too much about this book. Only that we get to know Zafira and Nasir a whole lot. She is the hunter of her village of snow. They have no food. Only she can get it for them. But almost no one knows this famous hunter is a woman, in this town of men with power. And Zafira is afraid of letting anyone know. She does not want to be forced into marriage. She only wants to save the town by feeding them, save her family and her friends. Zafira simply tries her best.

Nasir is the Prince of Death. The son of the sultan. His assassin. He is the person killing everyone that the sultan wants gone. Criminals, innocents, it does not matter. Nasir must kill them all. And because of this his heart is all kinds of dark and broken. I must admit that I was expecting him to be more dark and broken than he was, haha. After he met Zafira, he was not very dark at all, and I wanted more darkness from him. Instead he was more of a lovesick boy. Sigh. But I still liked him. A whole bunch. Just, no love.

This book also tells of Altair. The sultan's general, whom ends up travelling with Nasir. They are hunting the hunter, whom have been sent on a mission to save magic. They are all going to a dark island full of danger. It was sadly not as exciting as I wanted it to be. Sigh. I wanted more death and pain, haha. But it was still interesting and exciting at times. Anyway. Altair. He was a little bit dramatic and way too rude at times. Yet he was also the character that I liked the most, I think. He was the fun one, and I adored him.

There were a few other characters too, but I'm not mentioning them by name. But do know that they too were interesting to read about. Not perfect, not fully exciting, but still cute. This story is about a mission to save magic. While surviving a dangerous island filled with secrets. And that is all I will say about it. Parts of it were pretty good. But other parts were not. I wanted there to be more exciting secrets. I wanted way more danger. I felt like this book was a little too long with too little happening most times. I needed better.

Although I did not love We Hunt the Flame, it was still a stunning book. And I think many of you will love it the way I could not. Though I very much want to see others be unsure about it too, to know I'm not alone in feeling this way. I wish it had been perfect for me. I wish I could have loved it the way I wanted to. But I did like it a lot. And that the ending was all kinds of rude, which means I very much want to read the next book. Which I hope that I will like more. The biggest thank you to the publisher for my Netgalley approval.

This was great. I really loved the world building and magic systems. The plot moved quickly and had me eager to know how things would resolve. I definitely plan on reading later books in the series.

I hate to DNF a ARC, but this book is just not working for me. I’ve tried to get through this book for a couple weeks, and I’m only over halfway through. This was a highly anticipated read for me for 2019, and it was buzzed about everywhere. I’m sad to give up on it, but I’m just bored with the storyline and characters. I’m sure some will love this story, but it just didn’t work for me at all.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of the year and I was absolutely overjoyed to be able to read this title because it DID NOT DISAPPOINT. I love it when characters have such strong personalities and their synergy makes for entertaining interactions that makes me love their dynamic all the more. The action, imagery, and enthralling plot had me hooked from the first chapter, and I’m so excited to recommend this to my peers. Fantastic read, I can’t wait to see this on shelves at last.

Quite possibly one of the best books I’ve read this whole year, We Hunt the Flame thrives on a plot constructed entirely around how the characters interact with one another. The relationship among the band of highly flawed heroes makes for a page-turner that requires a neurotic neglect of all household and job-related duties to get to the very last page, and quickly. For once, the blurb, and the hype, is actually spot-the-heck-on.

Additionally, in today’s glutted YA market full of banal gender-flipping, forbidden female tropes, and seething with the man-hating feminism of the modern culture, We Hunt the Flame manages to address, but not make the novel revolve around, a relevant topic of female inequality with a lens of truth and objectivity, even though the setting is fantastical. Some places restrict the roles and rights of women. Some men view women as inferior and cursed. Not all. Not even most. Just some.

Unfortunately, those some are the men in power, who, in this novel, have in a manner of sorts wrested power from the women in charge while they have disappeared, perhaps forever gone.

While I would love to just go on and on about all my favorite parts of the plot and my favorite character, I won’t because that stuff lends itself to spoilery-spoilerton mess, and I don’t like reading when others do that. I like going into a story with minimal knowledge.

My thanks to NetGalley for this wonderfully awesome ARC, for which I give my own opinion.

We Hunt the Flame was *seriously* hyped-up. People were bartering for ARCs, people were whining about having to wait to read it. You would think this book included the secret to immortality. Which is amazing for the author and for YA fantasy as a genre! Especially since Hafsah Faizal is a POC Muslim woman who absolutely deserves the publicity and attention. She specifically did not make her characters Muslim, because she said she didn't want to be pigeonholed into only being an 'ownvoices' writer, but the setting and characters are certainly heavily inspired by the Middle East.

Anyway, it took me a while to get into We Hunt the Flame. And by 'a while' I mean a couple of months, wherein I devoured a different book and moved to a new apartment and did a bunch of other things. The thing was, I wasn't terribly invested. When I wasn't reading about these characters, I could easily live without them and not wonder what they were up to. That's not ideal.

But as I kept reading, I understood why people loved WHtF. The writing was good, though I didn't find it too engrossing. The characters were actually realistic (for example, the main character gets pissed when a boy she isn't sure she has any feelings for professes his love and then follows her on what was supposed to be *her* life-changing mission, which is absolutely the reaction I'd have). The magic system is interesting, though I'm still a bit confused about some areas. That's pretty on-par or a YA fantasy, though.

Overall I'm giving We Hunt the Flame three stars, just because it took a lot of effort from me to really get into the story. I honestly wish I could give it more stars, but you should read for yourself and decide whether it lives up to the hype!

We Hunt the Flame was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. And I was not disappointed. Yes the book started off slow but after 1/4 way through non stop action. WHTF is told in dual POV's one is about Zafira a huntress who ventures into the dangerous magical forest Arz, to feed her people and family. Zafira encounters a witch who tells her she is the only person who can bring magic back to Arawiya. The other is Nasir a prince, who is known as the prince of death who assassinates people at his fathers bequests. Nasir is tasked with assassinating The Hunter and stealing the book the hunter carries. I really enjoyed Altair and his relationship with Nasir is hilarious. If you're a fan of slow burn romance you will also love this book. The worldbuilding I believe is one of the strong points of the whole book. The author definitely took her time and research to create a beautiful and intricate world. I felt like I was there and the map definitely added to the visualization. And that ending too cruel. I need book two now.

Overall We Hunt the Flame is an immersive Arabian inspired, quest adventure. Filled with action slow burn romance and amazing characters. Highly recommend.

We Hunt the Flame was a wonderful Arabic-inspired Fantasy with an exciting quest! I loved learning Arabic words and discovering more about the culture.
I'm officially renaming my "gang/crew" to "zumra"! Also, I think I've fallen for Nasir. :)
My only wish was that there was more during the quest, getting to know everyone in the zumra and how they all work/fight together, instead of the longer beginning.
Great book!

"We hunt the flame, the light in the darkness, the good this world deserves."


First of all, let me start by saying a massive thank you to Macmillan for sending me a free e-ARC on Netgalley in return for an honest review.


Second... WOW!! I absolutely loved this book!!


Those of you who follow me on Instagram and Twitter will know that I've been hyped about this book for a very, very long time. Now that I've finally read it, I'm over the moon that We Hunt The Flame has lived up to, and indeed exceeded my expectations!


Hafsah Faizal has woven an intricate and magical story that completely enthrals you from the first pages. The writing is beautiful and truly helps to transport you to the world of Arawiya. The cast of characters are fun, interesting, heartbroken, strong and determined and they all bring something unique to the story.


This book honestly has everything I love in a YA Fantasy. A brave and beautiful heroine, tortured by her past. A brooding hero, tortured by his present. A beautifully detailed and immersive world. Politics, intrigue, magic and romance.


And, oh, the romance!! Let's just say I may have a new fictional boyfriend to add to the list, in all his hashashin glory..

You do not want to miss out on this book! Hafsah's debut is an absolutely wonderful read, and a fantastic beginning to the Sands of Arawiya series. Make sure to get this book on your preorder list!

We follow a mysterious hunter and a royal assassin as they're sent on a mission to find a book that could restore magic to the kingdom, destroy the encroaching magical forest, and bring sunlight and warmth back to the villages.

I expected this book to be a 5 star read for me, but sadly it wasn't. I didn't get really excited or invested until I was at 70%. What I was looking for was adventure, cool creatures, and badass characters. It delivered on those, except adventure didn't happen until late. Yes, they are on the journey for most of the book, but really the characters are just walking and feeling. I felt like the focus was on building the romance and showing how damaged people can become better and find love too. That's great, but it wasn't what I was looking for.

If you're looking for slow-burn plot and romance or a novel that focuses almost solely on character development, you will absolutely love this book.

If you want fast-paced adventure and action, this story may not be for you either. I will say that reading it in one or two sittings rather than several reading sessions, which is what I did, would probably create a much better experience for readers like me.

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<p><strong>I'm on the street team for this book BUT THAT DOESN'T CHANGE ANYTHING BECAUSE THE HYPE IS REAL.</strong></p>
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<p>When I get really hyped for a book, I'm always terrified that I've hyped it up so much that I'm about to be really disappointed but this one? THIS DID NOT! HOORAY! </p>
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<p>First of all I just want to say that I've never wanted to re-read a book immediately after finishing it so THERE'S THAT. </p>
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<p>Have you ever been so excited about a book that you don't even know where to begin when you talk about how much you loved it? This is going to be one of THOSE reviews (sorry not sorry?)</p>
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<p>From the very beginning, I just loved the writing! I've been obsessing over all the quotes that are on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/58206540-we-hunt-the-flame">Goodreads</a> for a while and they're all just so poetic and pretty! The whole book is just so PRETTY. The words are lyrical, if that makes sense! I felt like I was transported into Arawiya and it was such a rollercoaster! All five senses were on alert throughout this book because the little details made the world come to life!</p>
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<p>I also just loved the incorporation of Arabic! I don't speak Arabic (though I know a few words now hehe), but it was easy to understand the words and it was so well done and I know those that do speak Arabic are most definitely freaking out because of it!</p>
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<p style="text-align:center"><strong>NOW FOR THE STORY ITSELF: Like??? WORDS??? HOW???? </strong></p>
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<p>It's an amazing killer quest with magic and mystery and twists and turns! I didn't expect to be shocked throughout the book but I was gasping and freaking out ALL THE DAAMA TIME. It's filled with backstories (I have a thing for really well done backstories that are incorporated into a plot without taking away from the action in the main plot, okay?), emotionsssss, and more emotionssss!!!! I seriously am in love with the character development in this book and I'm a big fan of character based stories so THIS IS MY JAM, OKAY?</p>
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<p>I can't even say any more because I'm scared I'm going to freak out and spoil something and ruin the adventure!</p>
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<p style="text-align:center"><strong>SO LET'S JUST FREAK OUT OVER THE AMAZING CHARACTERS INSTEAD?!</strong></p>
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<p>The story is told in dual POV's: <strong>Zafira</strong> (the Huntress sent on a quest to restore magic to her land) and <strong>Nasir</strong> (the Prince of Death who is sent to... you know, kill Zafira). </p>
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<p>Each of their chapters is unique and it wasn't difficult to tell which character we were following at the time (some books have that problem but this wasn't one of them!). Their voices are unique and their stories are just so beautifully told (HEELLLLPPPP)!</p>
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<p>On top of having two amazing leads (*sings* ENEMIES TO LOVERSSSSS) we also have zumra (squad) goals with <strong>Altair </strong>(fan favorite for obvious reasons), <strong>Kifah </strong>(I can't wait to see more about her because she's so awesome and I want to see more of her for sure!), and <strong>Benyamin</strong> (honestly he was one of my favorites, but I'm also saying that about everyone so????)!</p>
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<p>On top of that, there's a mysterious silver witch, the Sultan (ugh, he makes me MAAADDD EVIL MAN), and Deen and Yasmine (I'm reeaaaallllly excited for what's in store in the future!)!</p>
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<h2 style="text-align:center">SO LIKE... HAVE I MADE IT CLEAR HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS BOOK YET? IF NOT, LET ME MAKE IT EVEN CLEARER. I'M STILL BASICALLY IN A BOOK HANGOVER FROM THIS BOOK.</h2>
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will not be reviewing this book. I would only suggest it if a customer asked specifically for a book written by a muslim woman.

It took me ages to finish this because I believe I had read another ARC during it, and then I’ve been so busy with work I haven’t felt like doing much reading or writing. Without further ado:
I highly, highly recommend this book. It’s SUCH a unique fantasy, the magic and land and government and history are all so interesting. And the characters, oh the characters! I love them ALL. There’s a found family type of relationship with the group and they all interact and click so well. The quest and conflict were marvelous and I’m so excited to see the story continue in the next book.

Grat story with a fantastic heroine, although she got annoying at times. i liked the dialogue and interactions between the various characters. Looking forward to the next book.

I'm sorry to say that this book just did not work out for me and I set it down around the 30% mark. Therefore, I will not be rating it in my review. Only for the purpose of this feedback have I given a star rating.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital copy of this book. This book is stunning and imaginative. The setting drew me in and I wanted to stay much longer than the book lasted. I will be purchasing this book for the library.

This year I've been making a real effort to find books that are diverse and this lovely story delivered. It is set in an Arabian landscape where a young woman must hide her identity in order to help protect her home. It is a very good book, the story is fascinating as are the characters. Zafira is a brave and determined woman who manages to enter the cursed forest and keep her sanity but who can never reveal who she is, there is the prince of Death Nasir who cannot show any compassion near his brutal father.

The book has a strong premise and the writing, prose, and world building is wonderful however it does fall prey to a few trops. Such as enemies to lovers which felt unnecessary. I loved the use of Arabic words and the fact that the author made a point not to include any specific religion for her characters as a way to show that the Arab world is made up of more diversity than most people are aware. Its a book well worth a read!

This was a solid debut novel. I thoroughly enjoyed the setting and feel of ancient Arabia. I loved the descriptions, the inclusion of Arabic words, the world Faizal created, and the prose used to describe everything. I'm also desperate to try that emaa iced cream now.

Sadly, I thought the characters lacked more depth. Zafira was fantastic. I loved her and I got her. But the others? Not so much. Nasir was a terrible character. I felt like he was a shell of a character. He was filled with traits, but it was like labels across his skin, and he had no personality. Kifah also had no personality. She was just there. Honestly, if you removed her from the story, I would not have noticed. I felt like Benyamin and Altair were the same guy, just Altair cracked jokes. They were both "guy with secrets about plot that will unfold later at opportune moment but reader knows this whole time and is not impressed".

I'm hoping that we'll get more into the character development in the next book, which despite my complaints, I am still excited to read. The world Faizal built was that addicting, I need to go back for another visit.

I was so excited for this book, I was worried my expectations were too high, that my anticipation eclipsed the reality of this book. I have never been more glad to be wrong. Despite my ridiculously high hopes for this book to be the single greatest piece of writing I have ever consumed, We Hunt the Flame manged to exceed my expectations. The life of these characters, the depth of their emotions, it is near unmatched to anything I've read before. This book is an instant favorite, and I can't even wrap my brain around all the reasons I loved it. Do yourself a favor and pre-order it now so you don't have to wait any longer come it's official release in May. Hafsah Faizal has already mastered the craft of making you feel the exact emotion she wants to draw from you with her debut, and you won't be disappointed.