This is the conclusion to the Sands of Arawiya Duology, the first book being We Hunt the Flame.
I loved the first book and book 2 didn't disappoint. In fact it was a wild ride, ups and downs, slow moving scenes full of emotion in-between action and battle. It was a rollercoaster ride in the best possible way.
At one point I felt like my heart had been shredded in my chest, not sure if I could go on. From the beginning when Zafira left her home on the epic journey to Sharr until the end of the story, the growth of the characters has been incredible, I loved it.
In this installment we get more of Zafira's sister Lana and she is so much!! I love her. She is so much older than her 14 years. The bond between the members of the zumra is threatened but rather than fracture it grows. The family you choose is one of my favorite tropes.
I don't want to spoil anything but if you liked Nasir before you will love him here, he is so much deeper than I could have imagined and I already felt there was more to him than the Prince of Death...and Altair, he is even better than he was in WHTF, even at the worst of times he keeps that sense of humor and spark that made him a favorite, and then there is Kifah, a warrior and a friend and so brilliant, and a little terrifying, I wouldn't want to be on the other end of her spear. But the eyes we see through the most, Zafira, is the most interesting because of the light her POV sheds on the imperfection of people even when they have the best of intentions.
Hafsah writes in a way I love, she makes the story a full sensory experience. You can see the sights, the colors, the darkness, the blood...you can smell the world she creates, the spices and meats in the market place, the smoke, the stink of battle, and you can feel...everything.
One more thing I want to make mention of, I truly love imperfect characters, complicated characters. Perfection is boring and unattainable. But characters that are complex are much more interesting. When they are not all evil, not all good, when they are flawed and make mistakes, when they choose to not make things right after messing up or take the road to redemption, that is much more interesting, much more exciting. And we have that here. Hafsah does it so deftly and it is glorious!! I mean, really, life experiences change us. What we do with that, how we act, how we react if we mess up, the choices we make, it is never all clean and easy, it is messy, life is messy. While I am not imposed to a happy ending, I don't mind a sad ending when it feels appropriate and I don't mind an ending that a mixed bag. I just hate when things are too neatly cleaned up and tied together and there is no realistic fallout or consequences to everything that happened before...which makes the time and emotional investment feel like a waste...
This was a win, a true 5⭐ read!
(Finished April 21, 2021)
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