The hype around this book is definitely deserved, for its high concept, representation, and exciting new voice! Definitely excited to read more of Emily's work!

This Golden Flame is a very solid debut novel from Emily Victoria, featuring asexual representation, automatons, magic and corrupt governments.
But as much as I enjoyed this overall, I think I’m on the more disappointed spectrum because I ultimately wanted more in what doesn’t feel to be a complete story.

Set in a world of automatons and magic, Karis has been living her life at the Scriptorium for years after being separated from her brother, where scribes seek to awaken the now dormant automaton army their country was once known for. All she wants is to find a way out of the place and be reunited with her brother, and she jumps at the opportunity when she accidentally wakes up an automaton named Alix, who was created by someone she’s been taught to be a traitor, and finds herself on the run from the Scriptorium with Alix and her best friend, Dane.

The Asexual Representation
Karis’ asexuality is briefly touched upon in This Golden Flame, and as someone who is on the spectrum, I felt myself understanding her a lot. She doesn’t have any feelings for her best friend, Dane, nor does she ever feel she will; while others find themselves attracted to him, she thinks of him as, “I think you’re attractive and nice to look at it.”

This extends to her relationship with Alix and the other characters as well, where she develops a platonic love for them, but in the more, “I will fight whoever hurts you” way. I personally felt the rep was well-written and flowed naturally with the story, but for others with different experiences, they might feel differently. I feel I should also mention there’s not much asexual representation in fantasy (or in general) where there’s platonic love among the characters that would normally be depicted in a love triangle. We love to see it.

The Characters
I especially loved Karis’s character development throughout This Golden Flame. When we first meet her, she sort of comes off as a moody jerk who pushes people away because she doesn’t want to develop relationships with the other acolytes since her goal is to leave and find her brother. This actually changes further on in the story once she, Dane and Alix start working with Zara and her crew as they continue to run from the Scriptorium.

I adored Alix the moment Karis stumbles upon and awakens him by accident, finding out that he’s very much not like the other automatons, and I loved how well Emily Victoria depicted his human-like feelings and thoughts on the page. He just has this huge golden heart and I honestly want to hug him. Also, it might not be for others, but I did enjoy reading from his POV.

On the other hand, I do feel some of the side characters could do with more depth (although not going to lie, Karis and Alix could’ve gotten more depth as well). We get surface level with Zara, her crew, Dane and there are obvious signs they’re more than what meets the eye on the page, but that unfortunately, doesn’t show. The same goes with Master Theodis and the Magistrate, who are even more surface level and at the very least, we could have gotten more action from the Magistrate rather than being told what he’s like and then like ten pages worth of book time.

The Pacing
The pacing for This Golden Flame was decent, but it also wasn’t the best. I personally think there’s quite a bit of time where everything is running smoothly for Karis, Dane and Alix when they’re being chased from the Scriptorium. It’s almost like the Scriptorium kind of just lurked behind them for a hot minute before they’re just there. But again, I think this is more a personal preference where I feel if you’re getting hunted, it’s not exactly going to be smooth sailing.

The Plot and World
There some issues with the logistics, some of which I’m not going to mention since it’s a spoiler for the end. The one I particularly had an issue with was just how easily Dane changed his mind and accepted Alix easily, especially since unlike Karis, he actually made a life with the Scriptorium and just seemed really in tune with their thoughts and ways of life. I could be completely wrong about this and maybe that’s his character personality, which kind of circles back to how I feel this would have been made even better as a series than a stand-alone. But I do feel that based on the information Emily Victoria gives to us, it was just easy acceptance and not exactly personality.

I enjoyed the world-building, but I feel like while there is enough information to move the story along and make sure readers aren’t confused, there just isn’t enough information. For me, character development is a must-have in a novel, so I’m normally not entirely concerned about the world-building as long as I’m on the same page as everything going on. And this is definitely the case with This Golden Flame – at no point did I find myself confused with what was going on.

But I feel like this was written like it’s the start of a series rather than a stand-alone, and honestly would not have minded an entire series because I really like the concept of this! I also feel that with multiple books, the story would’ve been even more fleshed out because there would be more room and opportunity to really develop the characters and provide more world-building than what’s on the page. But for a stand-alone, This Golden Flame has all the right elements and setup.

Self-aware magic-AI-robot-person! A world inspired by ancient Greece! Pirates! Aro-ace protagonist! And so much more! This Golden Flame is a solid debut with adventure, diverse representation, and lots of wholesome character friendships, and running themes touching on the concept of personhood, the meaning of freedom, the corruption of power, and the power of friendship (that sounded cheesy, but hear me out: it’s good, okay?).

As many of you may know, I’m a big fan of books with ace rep, and even more so when those books are OwnVoices (as this one is). I’ve also made it a personal goal this year to read at least 5 more books with ace rep, and this one was a great way to check the first box on that self-imposed challenge. I’m going to try and keep this review brief, but we’ll see how that goes?

From a character standpoint, this one was pretty good. The story is told in two points of view: the feisty, aro-ace escaped acolyte Karis, and the anxious, newly-awakened ancient automaton Alix. Their narrative voices, while similar in some ways, convey two very different perspectives on the story–the two come from very different backgrounds, and while their goals are largely the same, they still bring different approaches to the problems they face. Karis is always ready to fight, even when she knows she’ll lose, and Alix is always desperate to avoid fighting wherever possible, even though he would almost always win. The side characters varied in their degree of likability. I was a huge fan of the badass pirate captain Zara. Karis’s best friend, Dane, came across as a little flat, but his loyalty was still nice to see. As a quick diversity note, there is also a nonbinary side character (uses they/them pronouns), a gay couple in the side characters, and Karis’s brother–who she spends a lot of the book searching for–is visually impaired.

The world of this book was rather standard fantasy–Greek-like nation of islands, relatively tiny, surrounded by much larger countries who really, really don’t like them, and ruled by a corrupt magistrate. The concept of Scriptwork is what really makes this world unique. All the islands are dotted by the bodies of ancient automatons, no longer animate, looming like menacing statues as a reminder of a more violent time. Daily activities–from simple locks to ship-sailing mechanisms and beyond–are powered by the magic of runes carved into elaborate scripts. Where Karis comes from, Scriptwork is monopolized only by the wealthy and educated, meaning it furthers a power-based class hierarchy system.

As to the plot, the story absolutely flies past. Not in a “there’s so much action I can’t stop turning the page” kind of way, but in an “every scene just flows naturally into the next” sort of way. Across multiple settings and missions, it managed to pack a surprising amount of complexity into the (relatively) low number of hours it took to finish. One drawback of this was that the ending felt pretty rushed, which was unfortunate. The "battle" I expected was over in basically a single chapter.

The ace rep in the story was handled well. I was a little uneasy when the ace character is told by someone else that she is “afraid of caring about people,” thinking this would somehow end up being tied into her asexuality as well (let’s be real, a lot of people have this misguided belief that asexual people are just traumatized or emotionally closed-off), but thankfully, that theme didn’t end up coming out at all.

As a whole, this was a great read! Perhaps not flawless, but for a debut, it was very well done, and I look forward to seeing more from this author in the future.

This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria
Publsiher: Inkyard Press
Genre: OwnVoices | Teens & YA
Release Date: Febraury 2, 2021

This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria is a standalone, young adult fantasy novel and I found it fascinating!

This book was more than I expected it to be from the description! It was filled with adventure, great characters, and an amazing storyline!

The book addressed important topics and focused on the importance of platonic friendships. I thought it provided a refreshing perspective from an aroace main character. (I enjoyed the romance free direction of the book!)

If you're looking for a great adventure, that will draw you in with rich characters, I recommend you check out this book!

I'm so grateful to Emily Victoria, Inkyard Press, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

This book was received from the Author, and Publisher, in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
This is a non spoiler review, because you as reader need to read this book. Also, I feel sometimes I have in the past gave away to much of the plot line. This has diminished the pleasure for would be readers.
This Golden Flame, is a debut novel by the by the author Emily Victoria.
This is a fast paced moving magical adventure, with engaging characters and a stunning magical system.
The author seamless narration flows perfectly as the book is told by to POV’s. This tale starts with Karis and Alix, kidnapped off the streets of their home island. Karis finds herself forcibly separated from her brother when they were brought to Tallis island.
Karis’s ultimate goal is to find her brother once arriving at the Scriptorium. Seven long years of separation, and during this time she steals books and teaches non-binary character, to a m/m relationship, all of which is openly accepted without problem. But we also get an asexual main character in Karis. Adding more depth to the characters made for a memorable book. This is one book that shrugs off the normal suffering of some books have with their romantic entanglements.
I really enjoyed reading this book and I and am looking forward to reading future work from this author

An odd combination of sci fi, fantasy, and history. In terms of setting, it feels like ancient Greece or Rome and those associations are certainly heavily implied. We just have the addition of automata running on a sort of magic. And as we often see with magic plots, the approach to magic by the ruling class is cruel and toxic. There's a vague environmental/humanist message.

Loved this queer fantasy by Emily Victoria!

YES for ace rep! And in a fantasy!

So I loved the magic system in this book so much! I have also like rune based magic, but I especially enjoyed the focus on your intentions as you make the rune. It was an interesting part of her world building and helped flesh things out.

Karis is an engaging lead, and reading from her perspective was really enjoyable. We also get half the story from Alix, the automaton that Karis finds, and while his struggles were intense and helped to move the story forward it wasn't my favorite, and I think I would have enjoyed the whole book to be from Karis' POV. But that's just my preference.

Overall, this was an engaging fantasy with a well developed magic system and memorable characters.

Thank you Netgalley for this ebook arc in exchange for an honest review.

This Golden Flame has a unique magic system, strong characters and an amazing setting. My only issue (and this is a compliment) is that there are many parts of the story that I wanted to know about.

There are backstories that could have been explored for a deeper historical understanding. The magic system was enthralling and I found myself wanting to know much more about how each piece interlocks, a deeper understanding of how it came to be.

However, we mostly get surface knowledge of these pieces because it is a stand alone. I wish it has been a duology.

Knowing this is a debut, I am looking forward to what comes next from Emily Victoria.

“People aren’t meant to have commands written into their skin.”

Aaah this book was such a pleasure to read! I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it and loved to see an aroace (aromantic and asexual) main character in a YA scifi! It was much needed in the industry so I think we can all thank Emily Victoria for giving it to us.

While I really, really enjoyed this book, I also really, really don’t have any strong feelings towards it. It was good, don’t get me wrong, and I’d still recommend it, but at some moments I just craved more. This golden flame is an action packed book and the characters are great, but I did want to see some more depth in this standalone.

It has a lot of other things going for it, though! It’s quick and addicting, has great representation and is definitely well-written too, which is why I think Emily Victoria’s next book(s) are something to look forward to! She has a promising voice, I’d just love to see her use it to create more depth!

I really loved the friendships between these characters and following their journey! Though this book didn’t blow me away, I'd still recommend it if you're not looking to be too invested! Emily Victoria’s debut gets a very positive 3/5 from me! I hope to see her grow even more in the future!

Content warnings include: slavery, violence, homelessness, loss of bodily autonomy, imprisonment; mentions of: death of parents.

I was drawn to this YA fantasy novel by the promise of an aroace protagonist and plot around automatons. It delivered on both counts.

The fantasy setting reminded me vaguely of ancient Greece, but instead of philosophy and democracy this setting was marked by it’s magical runes, the Scriptwork, the once mighty automatons that are now motionless ruins in the landscape, and the authoritative Scriptorium that rules over the country.

Karis is the first protagonist, an orphan who got separated from her brother when the Scriptorium collected her to make her work for them. She is very obviously aroace, which is revealed very early on, and she’s very comfortable with that.
The second protagonist is Alix, a small, sentient automaton who Karis accidentally awakens. He is sensitive and doesn’t have all his memories.

Both protagonist have their own closed character arcs, while working together on the bigger plot. There’s also several major side characters, like Dane, a warrior and Karis’s best friend, Zara, a pirate queen, Matthias, Karis’s brother, and more. The cast is diverse, various skin colours are present as well as different fantasy cultures, Matthias is visually impaired, there’s one nonbinary character, and more queer characters.

The plot progresses very fast and easily, and doesn’t linger much on anything. It mostly runs along one line, with the sideplots all being very close to the main plotline. I can definitely see this book being accessible and suited to younger readers among the YA spectrum, which is great! Despite it being fast paced, there were moments to breathe.

Character development wise, there are lessons about responsibility, self-worth, sacrafice, and owning up to your mistakes, as well as identity. The latter specifically revolved around Alix being an automaton – created instead of born.
In line with that, I wish his gender had been discussed. On the one hand I do like that it’s never questioned and there’s no weird comments about genitals, but at the same time, I wish there had been at least one line where he himself definitely talks about his gender, or simply shares his pronouns. As is, he/him/his pronouns are used for him from all sides from the start, without anyone asking him or him telling others about them. Alix is a unique automaton in design and sentience, so this is more a personal preferrence than anything else, but it’s worth mentioning that all other automatons lack gender markers and are reffered to as it/it/its.

Overall, this is a lovely standalone fantasy debut about a group of teens overthrowing an unjust and corrupt authority!

I have been really excited about this book. I will say I really love this LGBTQ+ novel and I am so happy that I read it. That being said, I do wish things were a little more fleshed out. I would love to see the story stretched into a sequel in the future. Sometimes I felt the book was a little too rushed trying to make a clean ending. That being said, I think it is a solid debut novel and I look forward to reading more from this author.

This is a wonderful YA fantasy LGBTQ book, with nice world-building and a focus on the action, rather than the romance. I think a bit more could have been fleshed out by having at least one sequel.

To put it simply, I’m pretty sure that this is a new favourite book of mine.

I really loved both main characters, and the friendship that develops between them! Karis and Alix were both really interesting and likable characters, and I enjoyed reading from both of their perspectives equally. Karis is one of those protagonists who just wants something relatively simple, in this case to find her brother, but in trying to do so she ends up stumbling upon something much larger, and unfortunately for her she’s too good of a person to be okay with walking away from it all. This is such a fun trope and Victoria executed it wonderfully! Alix has a much more personal connection to the Scriptorium than Karis does, but he doesn’t remember most of it at first. Karis and Alix’s initial decision to team up was one borne of pragmatism, and neither of them expected to end up meaning as much to each other they ended up doing. Their deep, wholly platonic relationship is the emotional core of the novel, and it means so much to me!

Queer characters are able to simply exist in this book without it being a huge deal. When the non-binary side character is introduced, they and their sister give their pronouns along with their names, and the exact way that scene plays out prompted me to send the quote to my partner in excitement because I loved it so much. Karis’ own aromanticism and asexuality is never questioned by anyone and is always respected. Terminology such as ‘non-binary’ or ‘asexual’ isn’t used within the text, likely due to such terminology not existing in the book’s setting, but there’s no ambiguity here. Finn is non-binary. Karis is aroace. And it makes me really happy to get to see queer characters in stories that aren’t about the fact that they’re queer.

A lot of this book is dedicated to discussions of free will, what makes someone a person, bodily autonomy, and consent in non-sexual situations. Alix isn’t human. He’s an automaton. And due to how automatons work in this book’s world, that means that he can be controlled by others. He can be given orders that he’s forced to obey no matter how much he doesn’t want to obey them. This is horrifying! And it would’ve been so easy for this to be glossed over, and for the implications and what this means for Alix as his own person to be ignored, but it isn’t! It being horrifying is fully acknowledged and explored, and I really appreciated that.

Another thing that I liked was that Alix wasn’t Karis’ only friend! Her friendship with Dane is also really important to her, they care a lot about each other, and they’re secure in their friendship with each other. As Dane is introduced at the start of the book it’s said to be popular among the girls on Tallis, but at no point does he give any indication that he’s interested in Karis like that. They’re best friends! They’re practically siblings! They love, support, and respect each other, and it brought me so much joy!

Also they end up joining a kick-ass pirate crew, which I’m so hyped about!! If that doesn’t convince you to read this book then I honestly don’t know what will.

Karis is an orphan who is learning to be a scribe in the Scriptorium, a group who are searching for the secret to unlock the magic of the automatons. When she was sent to that island after being orphaned, she was separated from her older brother. Now, seven years later, she will do anything to find him. One day, she finds a cave with an automaton inside, and she accidentally awakens it. The automaton is an intelligent creature named Alix. His final memories are from two hundred years in the past, and his father is now remembered as a traitor. Karis now has something the Scriptorium wants: Alix. She runs away with Alix, and her friend Dane, to find her brother and learn the secrets of Alix’s existence.

This story was set in a unique world. Many aspects seemed ancient, with the scribes and the old buildings with columns. At the same time, there were some futuristic aspects, such as the automatons. The automatons, that could come to life, were powered by runes, so even they seemed like a mix of ancient and future.

This was an own voices story with an asexual main character. This wasn’t a major part of the story, but Karis mentioned it a couple of times. Karis felt different from everyone else, and she had never even seen anyone kiss until the end of the book. I liked that this was part of her character but it wasn’t treated as an entire plot point in the story. I also liked that this was a fantasy story that didn’t have a romance for the main character. She had other important, meaningful relationships that didn’t involve a romantic partner. It’s important to have all kinds of representation in all genres of stories.

This was a great fantasy story!

Thank you Inkyard Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

'This Golden Flame,' the debut novel from Emily Victoria, is a tale of rebellion amongst the almost single-minded determination of the Scriptorium.

Eager to unlock the magic of an ancient automaton army littered throughout the land of Eratia, they're quick to send away those who may get in their way. For Karis, that means her brother is long gone.. and she'll do anything to find him.

While seeking her brother.. Matthias' whereabouts, she awakens a hidden automaton. Seeming to have sentient intelligence, Alix seems to have a moral compass.. but no idea why he was created or why his father once tried to destroy them all.

Suddenly, control isn't enough for the Scriptorium. They're on the hunt. Leaving Karis and Alix to find her brother and the secret surrounding the automatons.

I found it interesting that though the lead is just trying to find her brother, for the most part.. she's kind of outcast.. even by the others like her. Though, Dane is actually really lovely. Karis is a bit of a screw-up, but her heart is in the right place and I love that sense of loyalty within her and it's nice to see the Aroace rep in a fantasy MC. It feels like little by little our stories are becoming a bit more diverse.. too slowly.. yes.. but I'll take the forward progress.

Alix has a lot of inner-conflict to deal with, largely due a lack of coherent memories and it doesn't help that those in power want to leverage him. He's a darling though.. despite having a lot of baggage and I found myself forgetting that he was really different in the first place, as automaton or not.. he felt so vulnerably human in some ways.

Like many, the magic system was rune based and I always enjoy magic that requires some kind of tangible focal point. What I found interesting was that it wasn't just about the result either, the process of making the rune mattered.

Though the Scriptorium thing very reminiscent of the Magisterium for me, they were similar.. but still different. The general feeling of oppression was there, though the scribes weren't just members benefitting from their participation.

Emily does a great job of letting the reader experience the world around them, rather than just telling them everything.. which is something I appreciate. There's nothing that can ruin immersion faster for me than being given a tour like the story is more of a verbal open house.

It is a fairly simple story that's easy to read and maybe lacking a little in the complexity department, but not every book has to be an epic 800 page story either. It's very enjoyable and a good first showing for an author with a promising future.

Initial Thoughts

I was super excited to read this book. It’s been on my radar for a while now and I was excited to read something that had a mix of sci-fi and fantasy elements.

Some Things I Liked

Greek references. While this book had automatons and technology, it still felt very reminiscent of ancient Greece. I loved the names and places described and would definitely be curious to know more about this world.
Pirates. I was not expecting this book to become a pirate or ship story and was very pleasantly surprised when Zara and crew were introduced.
Representations. I loved the diversity in representation in this world. I also loved the way the other characters and the society in general were so accepting.
Dual POVs. I also really enjoyed the contrast between Alix and Karis’s POVs. Both were naive in their own ways and they made the story that much more interesting. The reader learned along with both of them and that made the mysteries that much richer.
Pinocchio retelling. I haven’t really seen this book tagged as a retelling but Alix’s story reminded me so much of a Pinocchio retelling and I thought that was super unique.

One Thing I Wasn’t Crazy About

Pacing. For a stand alone story, I didn’t think this was paced all that well. The story was slow to built initially and then zoomed to the finish line in the last 30%. I wished the story had flowed better or had been extended into multiple books.

Series Value

I liked this world a lot. I’d definitely read another book set in this world. I think I’d most want to see a prequel about the world with Master Theodis.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed this book. I connected with a lot of the characters, was engaged by the mysteries, and read it all in one sitting. I think it was a solid debut and I’d keep reading this author.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Recommendations for Further Reading

Crown of Bones by A.K. Wilder – if you enjoyed the pirate vibes, writing or script based magic and society, and multiple POVs, try this new release.
Rogue Princess by B.R. Myers – if you enjoyed the pirate vibes and the idea of Alix’s character learning to feel or learning how his feelings work, definitely try this stand alone – Alix is a lot like Aiden.

I think this book was pretty good. I struggled with a few things, but it’s hard to tell if they’re personal issues or problems with the story. I’ll explain, but I want to talk about the good stuff first.

So first, I enjoyed the setting. Something about it felt vaguely Roman to me. I loved the pirate crew and especially Zara, with her no-nonsense, never-give-up sensibilities. I liked the friendship between Karis and Alix, and the way she identified with him and his past as well as her love for her brother.

All that said, I struggled a bit with Alix’s character. In the story, there are giant machines called automatons that have been lying dormant for a long time, and the people holding Karis captive have been studying them, trying to figure out how to get them working again. In general, it seems like they have kind of an interactive book that can be used to control them. Write a command, and the automaton will execute that command. So they’re kind of like robots operated with magic??

Except then, enter Alix, who is similar to an automaton, but not?? Because he has a personality and LOTS of emotions and the ability to think for himself and choose his own actions. He still has a book that can be used to control him, though.

I guess, I felt like I didn’t really get what he was supposed to be. I kept expecting him to be more like a high level android, with internal calculations and limits and maybe emotions layered on top of that? But it seemed like, no, he was really supposed to be exactly like a person, but also an automaton.

It felt confusing to me. I don’t know if my expectations got in the way of the story or if more explanation would have been helpful? I’m not really sure. But it definitely became an obstacle to me enjoying the story.

Other than that, I enjoyed the story, though, and I thought it was great to see a book focus on a friendship relationship rather than a romance and to center an aromantic asexual character. I thought that was very nicely done.

Free copy provided in exchange for an honest review. This in no way affects my rating or review.

4 adorable stars!

Literally everyone in this book was a little cinnamon roll. EVERYONE. It was actually astounding, and I loved it!

The novel begins with our dear Karis as she tries – and fails, for the nth time – to break into the only place where she can find info on her brother. After this plot is thwarted, a variety of events lead to Karis awakening the only living automaton in the world – our darling Alix.
Alix is an absolute sweetheart, and I hope to god that he never changes. He’s brave but sweet and oh-so soft, and I love it!

“Your light is stunning. It’s brave and beautiful. So just be you, because that’s enough. It’s always been enough.”
Karis to Alix.

Yes yes yes, here is where I completely and totally agree with Karis! Alix is pure sunshine, and he deserves to be protected.
But more about our MAIN main character. Karis is brutal and tough and fierce and fiery, but she’s really just a loving sister under all that, determined to find her brother. She may act like she doesn’t care, but she has a big heart, and she’ll show it to those closest to her, which I loved. Another thing I loved was the way she accepted and rarely looked down upon herself for being asexual. She knew she’d never have a romantic relationship with anyone, but that was ok with her! Karis accepted herself, and that’s what matters most.

“I might not have what Dane and Zara do, but that doesn’t mean what I have is weaker.”
Karis thinking about her asexuality.

You go girl! Own it!

Apart from the characters, I also really liked the worldbuilding and fantasy elements! The idea of scriptwork and automatons and everything was a nice combination between technology and magic, and I found it really interesting. Some concepts were a little difficult to grasp in the beginning, but I soon worked everything out, and loved all the interesting elements of the world that Victoria created.

All in all, this was an interesting and creative book, and I really enjoyed reading about the characters and the bonds of friendship that they developed! Lots of fun and really cute. Thank you so much to the author and TBR & Beyond Book Tours for the free review copy!

I really enjoyed this book! I didn't know too much going into it (I knew a very basic plot summary where Karis wakes an automaton and is looking to find her brother, but that was about it) but I did know that the main character identifies as aroace and it's a standalone fantasy, both of which made me very interested in reading this. I am always looking for more ace rep, especially since most books these days are always so romance focused, that it's harder to find books without a focus on romance. So it was really nice to have this rep, and to really get to explore some other types of relationships. That being said, I do think the relationship development could have been stronger overall, but we did get a nice view of Karis and Alix's growing friendship, and them learning to trust one another.

I thought the world building was also nicely done - I feel like I had a pretty good understanding of the world, without it feeling like an infodump. I wonder if the finished copy has a map though, because that was one thing that I struggled with - I had a bit of a challenge figuring out where things were in relation to each other, which is probably mostly because I rely on maps too often for that sort of thing.

As for the characters' themselves, I really liked all of them. I think Karis had the most development throughout the book, especially as she is introduced as someone who only really has one friend because she never wanted to lay down roots, knowing she'd one day leave to find her brother, but I really felt for Alix as well. I also loved the side characters, especially Zara, and I loved them coming together and figuring out how they all fit together. It was a great found family story, and I am really glad I read it.

Thank you so much, Netgalley and Inkyard Press, for the chance to read and review this book!

Karis is an orphan and she's forced to serve her country's ruling group of scribes, but she wants to find her brother, who was taken away from her years ago. But the Scriptorium doesn't care about bonds and family, its only goal is to discover the magic of the automaton army. When Karis manages to awake a hidden automaton, intelligent and conscious of himself, Alix, both of them are forced to flee, because the Scriptorium is hunting them. Helped by Dane, Karis' best friend, pirates and rebels, Karis and Alix fight to find her brother, uncover the truth and for freedom.

This Golden Flame is a thrilling and brilliant standalone fantasy. The worldbuilding is intriguing and captivating and the story is told by two POVs, Karis' and Alix's and it was really interesting reading about their journey, both physical, from their little island through oceans and psychological.
Karis is a stubborn and brilliant character, made cynical by the brutal world she was forced to grow in and she's determined to find her brother and to be free with him. It was amazing reading about her journey, both physical and psychological and her growth.
She was taken by the Scriptorium and forced to work for them, but managed to defy their rules, teaching herself the language of runes, curious about the world and fighting to find her lost brother.
Alix, on the other hand, is a peculiar automaton, woken up after centuries, finding everything he's ever known dead or lost, like his home and memories. Sensitive, intelligent and stubborn, he's a great character. His relationship with Karis is complex and truly beautiful, if wary at the very beginning.
Karis and Alix grow so much in The Golden Flame, through their experience and their relationships with other characters.
Karis' relationship with her best friend Dane is intricate and I love how much they help, support and rely on one other, growing up in the Scriptorium and then, when they are forced to flee and make choices, choosing to fight for the freedom and their future and for the truth about their country. It was interesting realizing, through Alix and his memories and the present, how much the story was written by winners and how much the ruling group is hurting people.

I really loved reading this book, not only for the amazing worldbuilding, but also for the characterization. The characters are complex and well written, relatable in their fears, desires and mistakes. Karis, Alix, Dane and Zara are such brilliant characters, it's impossible not to love them. Like Zara. I love her so much. She's a great character, sassy and brave and I love reading about her ship, her crew and their fight and rebellion.
I loved that Karis was aromantic and asexual (it's so rare reading books with aro characters) and I love her growth and her relationship with Alix, Dane and the others. I've also loved the cute and romantic moments between side characters. I've also loved Matthias with his low vision and cane, his disability never a hinder to his stubborness, bravery and fight.

It's a story about freedom and the fight for it, about the strength in be oneself and the importance of family and relationships.