3.5⭐️
I was so excited to get this as a ARC for audio. The narrator did a great job!

I loved the concept of Phoenix Racing. But unfortunately, something was missing for me . Things felt a little rushed and slow all at the same time. I had a hard time getting into it and felt a little lost at first, but I will say I only listened to the audio and usually I will read along with fantasy books.so that could have been the problem.

I did enjoy the romance between Kel and Coup, the slow burn and banter was a plus just wish we would of seen a little more.

** Thank you Netgalley ,the author and publishaer for the ALC**

Thank you NetGalley and Mikayla Bridge for an ARC of, Of Flame And Fury.

The gorgeous cover and title are what first drew my attention to this book. I ate Fourth Wing up so when I saw in the description that this book was compared to that series I couldn’t wait to jump into the story. Before starting this book I wasn’t that familiar with the fantasy creature the phoenix so it was a cool change up since dragons have been done in fantasy time and time again. I loved the idea of these fierce, wild, bird creatures that they use to race. It kind of reminds me of modern day drag racing meets fantasy which was a creative concept that I haven’t seen in books yet. The writing was fast paced and action packed which was what kept me from DNFing. The corrupt political system and secrets in the storyline peaked my interest and added tension making the storyline all that more interesting. For the most part I enjoyed this story BUT the main thing that kept me from LOVING this story was the third person narration. I know… I know. That is a trivial reason to lower a rating but for whatever reason it really just did not work for me with this book. I am not a huge fan of third person narration but can usually look past it. I don’t know why but with this story it just grated on my nerves the entire time. I think it was because I went in comparing it to Fourth Wing. My mind instantly went to thinking I was about to get lost in a book with first person, fun, easy narration where the dialogue between found family flows so easily that you truly forget you’re reading. For this reason alone, right from the start it was a struggle for me to truly get lost in the story. It wasn’t until the ending that made me truly invested in the story and now of course if there is a second book I will be reading it because I need answers. 😅

What an exhilarating read!! I was already sold at Phoenix racing lol. + The bond they had? I mean, I can’t say it was the best LOL, but Kel’s love for Sav was so real & the chemistry w/ Coup & his 1000 WATT smile?
I was living for the BANTER.

“Do you know you have the personality of sandpaper?”
The way I damn near spit my drink out, I was not expecting Coup to come like that lmfao.

Their chemistry was just so fun though-
“Fighting is our love language” ☠️ real.

But the way they bonded though? I can’t 😭😭😭
“I mean it, Tamer. Stay safe.”
Just rip my heart out ‘cause that’s what this book did fr 😩 Especially when man’s be having you like-

“She wanted him to tear every wall down, to burn away her resolve, and remake her entirely.”
*SCREECHINGGG

I also love how it showcased Alzheimer’s. The real… The raw… To show the ends of what someone would go through for someone w/ it. I’m not gonna lie, that had me fr 😭😭😭😭 Such a sensitive topic for me.

Overall, this was a ride. I need a second book, esp w/ an epilogue like that- Ugh. Absolutely SAT.
I didn’t expect these emotions from this AT ALL.
Safiyya Ingar- Thank you for narrating this 🙏🏽🤍

This book is amazing and will easily be one of the standout reads of the summer. I already feel deeply connected to the characters, and the voice actor does an excellent job bringing the story to life; From the vivid world-building to the emotional depth, everything about this story has me completely immersed and pulled in.

I think I finally found a book that I wish I had read versus listened to in audio.

Of Flame And Fury was one of my most anticipated YA fantasy books of 2025. I mean how can anyone resist “for fans of Fourth Wing & Iron Widow”. The concept had so much potential. Phoenixes battling it out in brutal races, magic, and enemies to lovers romance. On paper it sounds like the perfect book. Regretfully, Of Flame And Fury didn’t measure up to my expectations. And to make matters worse for me I was not a fan of the narrator for the audiobook.

I will admit the beginning was amazing. The reader is immediately thrown right into the thick of it. Watching the phoenix race transpire reminded me of a more intense game of Quidditch. It was intense and interesting to watch take place. Now even though I love being immediately thrown in. I can definitely see some readers hating it. And to some extent they aren’t wrong we aren’t give many details on how the game works, the positions, or just the overall world in general.

Which brings me to my next issue. After that action packed start I expected that pacing to continue. And more importantly finally learn more about the world. But instead we get an overly complex and boring explanation into the riding world and politics. To make matters even worse the characters contradicted themselves multiple times to the point where I had to rewind to double check if I did indeed hear the narrator correctly. And yup I definitely heard that right 🤦‍♀️ the pacing is slow and choppy and made me want to DNF so many times. But I pushed through because I had heard so many good things. Thankfully the book did pickup once we got to the about the 50% mark.

Now my favorite part of the book was our romance between Kel & Coup. I loved the slow-burn dynamic between them. Watching them go from rivals to lovers was a joy to watch. They honestly reminded me of Draco & Hermione at times. The banter between them was top notched. And I only wish we had a longer epilogue.

Overall, this book had its moments but ultimately it needs some refinement. Even though this wasn’t my favorite fantasy I would still recommend it. I think fans will enjoy a stand-alone fantasy especially if they are in need of a good palette cleanser after all the big series we’ve been getting lately. Lastly Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the opportunity to review this title before its release on July 15, 2025.

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook arc. Not a huge fan of the narrator, but it could have been worse, I do feel like that was part of the reason o had such a hard time getting into the story.
I feel like the best way to describe this novel is Iron Widow but with phoenixs

Of Flames and Fury was such a good debut enemies to lovers YA fantasy. I love how Bridge wove in a little bit of everything into this story – magical creatures, action, surprising reveals, betrayals, and romance. The world building was incredible well done making it easy to picture exactly what we’re reading. I also love that this dealt with phoenixes which aren’t featured enough in fantasy stories. Not only that but Bridge went even farther with phoenixes to create different subspecies. I thought the characters were well developed and interesting including the side characters. The dynamic between Kel and Coup was so well done. The plot moved at a pretty fast pace making this an easy story to binge read all while feeling wholly original. I loved the racing scenes that were woven into the story. The audiobook narration was delightful to listen to. Safiyya Ingar did so well with capturing Kel’s essence, especially her struggles between doing what she feels is right vs what is necessary. The narration was also clear, easy to listen to, and immersive with the emotion and energy Ingar brings to her performance. Overall, this was highly enjoyable, and I’d recommend checking it out.

This was a very classic YA fantasy book. It felt very familiar for much of it but there was a twist that managed to surprise me. I will recommend my library purchase this and review it for our teen programming.

Of Flame and Fury is about world where phoenixes are being used in a racing arena, but that does not mean the job and sport doesn't come with the risk of being injured or burned alive. Kel Verra finds herself in a tough situation to figure what to do when the rider of her team and family farm literally go up in flames. She takes the most lucrative opportunity for her team and for her phoenix, which also comes along with the most charming enemies to lovers trope.

Mikayla Bridge does well with creating this world and environment. It's compared to Fourth Wing X Iron Widow. Now I've read FW and not Iron Widow, but I'm not feeling FW here. One could maybe argue its a comparison of the phoenixes to dragons and having riders, but that description does not paint this story in the correct light. The enemies to lovers does not involve shadows and humans having powers. This story involves humans being humans and dealing with training in proximity, and telling each other their vulnerabilities. Of Flame and Fury does have some gory parts (people being attacked by phoenixes and unaliving them), speaking that they are wild and mythical creatures, and how some people are wildly corrupt despite their outward appearances.

I am not sure that this review will convey how much I did enjoy Of Flame and Fury, but do believe I did. Of Flame and Fury gives me a little more of The Phoenix Keeper vibes with more action (no swords and fighting, but the phoenix racing does make it very interesting). I do highly recommend this book for more than its pretty cover!

Thank you Netgalley, Macmillan Audio | Macmillan Young Listeners for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.

I will be posting to socials

Thank you NetGalley for the ALC! I really enjoyed this audiobook. It was done very well and overall the story was so much fun. I loved learning about the Phoenix riders and tamers. There were many unexpected twists and very high action scenes. Enemies to lovers trope with fun banter. I hope there is a second book after that ending!

Need for Speed Meets Phoenixes? Because it's too techy for my brain to say this is very equestrian vibes. I couldn't stop imagining the phoenixes as some illegal street cars. I mean, either route is NOT my vibe.

This follows Kel and her team, the Crimson Howlers. The Howlers end up needing a new rider, enter Warren "Coup" Coupers, her rival. Kel is approached early on in the book, offering employment which Kel turns down until she has no choice but to accept when her home is burned down. That's not even the worst of it, the media is eating up the idea that Kel and Coup are intimately involved so they have to pretend there might be something between them.

What to Expect:
📚YA
📚Fake Dating
📚Third Person, Single POV
📚Rivals to Lovers
📚Found Family
📚Sickness Reaping the Land
📚 Phoenix Racing

The beginning of this book did snag my attention, and I was wondering what direction the book was going to go. At some point, my interest dropped. It started feeling like street racing to me, and I could not get the imagery out of my head. This is a very sci-fi meets fantasy world with all the tech they have. Some things were confusing because bits weren't elaborated on like other magical creatures we were briefly introduced to. I don't know much about this world at all, except that there are phoenixes, sprites, and some kind of sickness. My interest wasn't brought back again until part three of the book, but it's not enough for me to want to continue this series. I also wish books would stop being compared to books like Fourth Wing when the only similarity really is that they ride magical creatures.

Wow just wow.
Ok this is definitely an adventure and damn I love that about this book. I love the themes that it touch and how it addresses it whiting a magical world. Now the main character Kel I enjoyed immensely. And her bickering with Coup even more. Definitely one of the parts I enjoy the most.
Now the audio is superb. Love how the narrator did the voices. How well I know who is talking each time. Easy to follow and understand. Loved it

I enjoyed this story! I will say, I did NOT realize it was YA when I went into it - however it's definitely written to appease that age group.

With that said, I still enjoyed it! This was very different. The enemies-to-(lovers??) relationship had fun banter. Think Fourth Wing... but giant birds...

This author is new to me, and I will look to more of their writing!

Thanks Net Galley for both the audio/kindle version of this book - it was fun to read/listen together.

This was an interesting read. I enjoy Dragon books, like the ever popular Fourth Wing, but hadn’t even read one about phoenixes. Narrator did a great job!

This was another fun fantasy book. It had F1 and So Let Them Burn vibes but with phoenixes (it's also dealing with a corporation instead of a government).

The book was text dense, so it make some of the more intricate information a little more tricky to follow along with the audiobook (I requested the ARC to go along with the ALC, and it helped with those types of scenes). On the flip side there weren't too many named characters to track so it balanced out.

Also really appreciated that this was written as a complete stand alone while leaving room for a possible-somewhere-in-the-world future spin-off.

... but also WTF is going on with her mom?

🎧 Narration was good, but the audio quality was not as crisp and clean to listen to at a higher speed (as my brain usually prefers).

The only CON that stuck in my head was that some of the kissing+ scenes were a little too detailed for a book with under age romance - had they been 18+ it would have been fine, but something was just off listening to it all be described knowing they were kids. That's the only reason this wasn't a 5⭐️ read.

Of Flame and Fury started slowly for me, but I was hooked by the middle of the book. I don’t quite see the comparison to Fourth Wing or Iron Widow and ultimately that’s to the story’s benefit. This was refreshingly YA and felt like a fresh take on a fairly saturated genre of mythical beings.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Phoenix racing?!

I really liked Kel and Coup and their relationship and I am anxiously waiting the next book. I didn't particularly care for the audio narration for this one, but the story was fantastic.

This was such an enjoyable experience for me!

We follow FMC Kel, a phoenix tamer for the CAPR- as she navigates the brutal world of Phoenix racing.

After her rider dies traumatically in a race, she’s forced to pair with bad boy, Coup. Coup plays by his own rules, and reckless is an understatement. But to gain a coveted sponsorship, they must team up. Only, the glitz and glam isn’t what it really seems- and there’s a dangerous secret that puts the very world they’re a part of in jeopardy.

This is a story of found family, secrets and doing what is right when the easy option is to go along with the masses. But do the masses really know what’s happening?

The narration took a little bit to grab me, but once I settled in, I had such an enjoyable time!

Good lord I loved this book! Phoenixes who race and the lives of their riders, plus a deadly disease that affects some people but isn't contagious made this story un-putdownable. The characters are well developed, and I cared for them. Some were quirky and some were endearing. There is a little bit of romance between the FMC, Kel, and the MMC, Coup. I enjoy a fantasy with very little romance, so this was one reason I gave it a 5-star rating. Another reason was the magic. I pray we have not seen the last of these characters, however, I believe everything was wrapped up at the end. I also enjoyed the use of Phoenixes and their various species because, so far, I have not read a book with the main magical creature as a Phoenix, let alone using them for a potentially deadly racing sport. Phenomenal read!!!

I am glad I got this on audio because the narrator did a phenomenal job. My favorite character is, of course, Savita. The plot is really unique and adds a sports like element to fantasy that I cant recall ever reading before.