Taming Flame by Therisa Peimer - 3/5
Romance - Sci Fi & Fantasy

Taming Flame Book One: The Arkhnuet Series caught my attention for the stunning cover; however the book fell short for me. The FMC starts off amazing and strong, which I loved, I don't like to see a FMC who is weak minded and can't seem to take control of her role. The book does have some spice between the FMC and her betrothed, it's sprinkled in just enough to not overpower the entire storyline, so this is not that kind of book.
I didn't particularly enjoy the language throughout; it was a weird mix of combinations and felt more forced at times. I may need to give this story another run through, but as of right now I wouldn't recommend this story right now.

Thank you NetGalley and FriesenPress for the eARC.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy of taming flame. this was a pretty good sci-fi but read like it was that worlds historical fiction.

Taming Flame was a well-written sci-fi romance. It's the first in a series, which ended rather abruptly. I was expecting a bit more of a conclusion. But the relationship was well-developed and engaging. Overall, it was a good read.

This was a NetGalley review.

Sci-fi and fantasy is a weird combination. I really wanted to love this book, but I struggled with it.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

2.75 stars

This was a weird one. The combination of sci-fi technology and language combined with sort of medieval fantasy themes and really modern slang, i.e., fucktard, leads to this book feeling really anachronistic and just kind of off or wrong.

The FMC, Aurelia, starts off as a headstrong girl who knows what she wants and what she doesn't and has no qualms about letting you know. Then she sees her betrothed, and her pussy takes over her brain. She loves him immediately. He loves her immediately.. until she gives him some attitude in the carriage, and then because he is somehow hundreds of years old yet possesses 0 wisdom, he decides to judge her character entirely by this one interaction and pulls back from her. She notices and wants to make things right, and so she becomes a little wussy bitch, and her personality dies a horrible death. For the rest of the book, she is essentially personified doe eyes looking up at her love, blinking slowly, and trembling. I'm really not into simpering bitches, so the book pretty much shit itself for me at that point.

They do bang a bit, but it's pretty limited, toward the middle of the book, and it wasn't done amazingly, so if you're looking for sexy bits, the fishing is better in other ponds.

Flaminius is a stupid name. Sorry if that's your name, but you should change it. Maybe slap your mother or whoever named you. Personified trembling lower lip decides to shorten it to Flame, which is a cool name if you're an american gladiator or exist in the marvel universe. It just sounds dorky and ridiculous here.

EXCLAMANTION POINTS!

LOTS OF TELLING, SHE SAID AS SHE TOLD US IN A TELLING MANNER.

The story.. I was expecting a standard romance with essentially the entirety of the book revolving around them getting together and so forth, but that's only the first half, then we go into the royal conspiracy intergalactic travel direction, and that fell flat. Because we're hearing from both sides, there isn't really any surprise, so there's no suspense. It ends on a cliffhanger. I have no desire to read the next one. I almost DNFd it several times.

I wanted to like this book so much more than I did. Science fiction is a genre I've loved since childhood, and while romance can often overpower a lot of scifi, Taming Flame had a decent balance between the two. However, the book is split into two parts with the first part of the book being the more intriguing portion. The second half just fell short, and I can't even really explain why except to say it felt as though one book should've been two. Perhaps if the author had divide the story into more than a single book, I would've like it more.

The relationship between Flame and Aurelia is interesting. On the planet Arkhnuet, people are genetically matched with their perfect mate. When Flame and Aurelia are matched, a whole lot of political ramifications come into play. Flame is the heir to the throne, even though he's not keen on the idea of taking over as ruler, and Aurelia is "low born," meaning she's not from any of the aristocratic families Flame's mother had hoped (planned) for her future successor's origins. Even though the chemistry between Flame and Aurelia is undeniable, they have issues. Oh, man, do they have Issues. But, that's par for the course with any romance: the push and pull of attraction versus forces that seek to tear them apart.

Then there is the political and religious matters. Arkhnuetians use Keys, women with the power to ascertain who is genetically compatible through the use of psychic abilities, and when they start mysteriously dying, all of Arkhnuetian society is in jeopardy. Throw in a zealous supremacist cult and Flame's mother's scheming then you get a broadly arcing narrative that at times detracts from the central point: The deaths of the Keys. Or is it Flame and Aurelia's relationship? Or is it really the cult's resurgence? Maybe the mother's desire to remain in power? Honestly, I'm no longer certain what the central plot was anymore.

The book is well-written and the world building is great. If only the author hadn't tried to pack quite so much into a single book, then, as I said, I might have liked this a lot more.

Finally! It took me forever to read this book, I had to force myself tonight to finish it. It was decent until "100 years later' after that I hated the book, after 100 years it was 2 weeks or 9 months or any other random amount of time to skip, I didn't like how much time was skipped and I didn't like all of this book but some of it was good. The beginning started strong. Ending was ehh. Lots of whining 🙄. I am not sure if I would continue this series or not, maybe if it didn't skip time constantly who knows but most likely not. Edit to Add: I didn't like the random shit that didn't really need to be written in it, thrown in half assed for no reason. Like fire balls, teleportation? It was in there during a brief "training" wasn't even used in the real fights at the end.

Full disclosure: I was granted early access to a digital copy of Taming Flame through NetGalley, and I am pretty pumped about ARC status.

I'll start with overall feelings: Good. Different. Engaging. A little disjointed.

Genre:
As a sci-fi/fantasy fan, this book was conceptually original and interestingly constructed. (I have not read Ice Planet Barbarians, though, so can I even call myself a sci-fi fan or comment on originality?) As advertised, this is definitely a romance with a sci-fi backdrop. Much of the intricacies in world-building were left out. This was a stylistic/genric choice, so I feel mostly indifferent about that except I am left with some questions: Keys - who and how?, hormone suppressants - what and how and when and...what?

I somehow missed the inscription about "Earth Years" at the beginning of Part One, so it wasn't until Earth was an integral part of the strategy for saving Arkhnuet that I actually realized that this book also has historical fantasy/time-travel vibes. Don't get me wrong, I am here for time travel, but it felt like too much plot for such mediocre manipulation of it.

Actually, I want a spin-off series on protecting and integrating Arkhnuetian technology in each district on Earth in the 1100s. That's where the literary magic is -- see what I did there?

Timeline:
The pacing of this book was incredibly bizarre for me. The leap forward in time from Part One to Part Two seemed unnecessary except to reinforce the fact that Arkhnuetians can, indeed, live for much longer than a human. While it is meant to bolster Tiberius's animosity toward Flaminius, I think this could have been much more easily accomplished in a more linear plot. The leap also attempts to excuse some sloppy/lazy writing inconsistencies -- convenient additions to characters (ie. Tiberius's affairs) and of characters (Gaia and so many kids) that were not included in Part One. There were also "two weeks later" mini-leaps that left the beginning of the subsequent chapter reading like a Sparknotes re-cap of important missing action. ie. We're are DETERMINED to understand an attempted murder, faux-interrogate our clearly evil mother, and then just hop forward in time by two weeks inexplicably? The gap haphazardly signals to the reader that we are supposed to drop that piece of the plot and refocus on a different piece of the plot. What is meant to redirect the reader just steamrolls all momentum and character motivation; it's simply clumsy transitioning. In spite of that, the end sequence (climax) was really quite good -- the "wish I could read faster," anxiety-riddled action we all know and love.

Characters:
The villains were a little underdeveloped in my opinion -- too obvious, maybe, or one-dimensional. Like, okay, you're a classist douche. Got it. But like, your poverty-phobia doesn't warrant filicide. Also, overhearing your dad share a less-than-glowing comment about your competency to rule a nation/planet is literally just, like, a Thursday, NOT join a cult, plan a political coup, and murder everyone-worthy. Call me a millennial, but easy villains are stale. On the other hand, these side characters are awesome. Mother Guardian, Lily, Matilda, Gaia, Marcus, Sue: yes. Even Gladys: tell me everything.

General Thoughts:
Writing -- only okay for me. Rampant inclusion of contemporary collequialisms ("fuckballs") is jarring in fantasy texts. It always feels like an inauthentic bid for laughs, and Taming Flame is especially guilty of this. Considering the setting: futuristic (but also 1k years in the past), other-planet-ly, I have such a hard time buying this language in this world.

This book is "spicy," as the kids say, but I didn't find that to overcrowd a rich (too rich?) and creative plot. This is definitely one of the more explicitly descriptive spicy reads I've encountered in my (admittedly tame) romance purview, but that was neither here nor there for me.

Personally, I have such a love-hate relationship with "mating bonds" (probably because of my disturbing introduction through the Twilight series, its all-too-frequent invocation of toxic masculinity, and ties to a lack of agency in characters); however, I think Perfecta Nobis (the Arkhnuetian version of the mate trope) was mostly well-handled. Although nauseatingly heavy-handed in the love interests' introduction, I genuinely think this was the author's attempt at humor, maybe even satire. But, honestly, "Flame" was TOO. MUCH. Too much.

Anyway.
Was this read a waste of my time? No.
Will I read the inevitable sequel? Yes.
Will I reread this book in preparation for the release of a sequel? No.

I think this was a good story there was just a lot going on, and it took a while for me to get into it. I can see from some reviews on good reads some people preferred the beginning, and some preferred the end, I'm not sure where I stand. Because this isn't a bad book, and I think in a few months or next year I will reread it and maybe have a different viewpoint. I'm not actually sure what to say about the book as I just feel pretty neutral towards it.

This was a great start to the Arkhnuet series, it had what I was looking for in a scifi novel. I was hooked from the first page and it didn't let go from the end. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and thought they were well written. Therisa Peimer has a great writing style that works with the story, and it left me wanting to read more in this series.

"Following her instructions, they shuffled to the back of the room. As soon as Mother Guardian turned her back, Aurelia pulled her hand away and stubbornly averted her eyes to discourage conversation. But eventually, Aurelia's temper got the better of her. "I see your girlfriend is still here. If this king gig doesn't work out for you, consider a career in acting."

This book felt hard to get into and the romance is very rushed. The plot is fascinating, but it doesn't feel as smooth as it could. I liked a lot of the base points, but the execution didn't work for me. I think this book will find it's niche of ideal readers. Unfortunately, I'm not part of that group.