I've held off on reading SAPPHIRE FLAMES for such a long time and was finally ready to get back to reading one of my favorite author's book, but I'm so sad I didn't love this book! I really wanted to love this because I fucking adored Nevada's Trilogy in the Hidden Legacy Series, but I kinda think we took a step back compared to the many other Ilona Andrew's books.

Now I know this is Catalina's Trilogy and that Nevada was gonna take a back seat, I know that! But I just was NOT happy that Nevada is not the head and isn't not apart of House Baylor now. Like WTF?! And I didn't like the explanation given either. A part of me gets it because she is married to Connor now and can't really be apart of two houses, but at the same time Nevada decided to form the house (if I remember correctly, sorry if I don't) so I feel like there is some responsibility there on her part especially with that three year grace period coming up. I just personally didn't like this decision here, more believable if she stayed for at least 5 years.

Now let's get to Catalina. I found her to be so boring and tame. She's shy and sweet, hates confrontation and being seen and I don't think those are bad qualities to have, but I just wanted more from her. It's also like we're leaning with Catalina and I want to skip to the part where she's experienced and badass. And Alessandro? I don't really have a full opinion on him and I don't know what to say. I mean I liked him enough, but he didn't impress me or anything and he has absolutely nothing on Mad Rogan. Catalina and Alessandro's relationship just came off very young adult-ish to me. I mean, Nevada and Connor and even Kate and Curran were explosive! Off the charts sexual tension and witty banter between those couples! Catalina and Alessandro? Not so much.

It's like we took two giant steps back from the things I love about Andrew's books. I wanted that sexual tension, great dialogue and witty banter that Andrew's series are known for and I feel like I just didn't get that from SAPPHIRE FLAMES. Now I enjoyed being back in the Hidden Legacy World and I love so many of these characters. And I fucking loved that conversation between Victoria Tremaine and Catalina! I feel like it just set up something big and I'm hoping to get more Victoria is the future! Granted I was a bit disappointed by the book, but with a few of the reveals in the last third of the book I'm hoping the sequel will be much better.

Okay, why did it take me so long to read this series?! This is the kind of urban fantasy I love and now I need to go find the rest of them. I already knew I enjoyed Ilona Andrews titles, but I think this might be my favorite?

The Hidden Legacy series has such a fun take on a magic system that I did not want to give up this world with the end of Nevada’s main story. Thankfully, Ilona Andrews was not willing to give up this exciting world either. Sapphire Fames follows Nevada’s younger sister, Catalina who is now the head of her household. And of course, we knew that Italian hunk had to make another appearance.

At first I missed Nevada’s gumption and strong will, but Catalina quickly grew on me. Readers will easily be swept up in her story and hints of future character development and plot lines will keep us wanting more.

I was so nervous going into this one with the POV switch. I love Nevada Baylor, and "Burn for Me" is my all-time comfort book. However, "Sapphire Flames" provided a beautiful introduction to Catalina and family dynamics. Suffice it to say, I was hooked.

This book was so much fun to read. This was my first book in the series, but I wasn't confused at all. It's clear that there is a back story that I'm missing, but I don't think it affected my feelings about this book as I still really enjoyed it. I couldn't get enough of the back and forth between Catalina and Alessandro. It was witty and fun every time. I definitely want to check out the rest of the series now!

Catalina Baylor is the Head of House Baylor and a powerful Prime with unique and dangerous powers she’s always had to carefully keep in check. But, when her friend’s mother and sister are murdered, she seems to be the only one willing to take on the case. Apart from Alessandro Sagredo. Alessandro is every girl’s, including Catalina’s, teenage crush, but his careless playboy image is just a façade hiding a lethal and powerful man with motives that Catalina can’t fathom. However, even Alessandro and Catalina’s combined power don’t seem to be enough; they have uncovered something far more dangerous with repercussions that could impact not just her friends and family, but the whole world.

When thinking about Sapphire Flames it took a prestigious effort to hold back from just squealing I love it I love it IloveitIloveit over and over again. And that was before I had even picked up the book. Now that I have read it my fangirling is impossible to contain. So, if you are after an objective and clear eyed review not written by a super fan of Ilona Andrews…walk on by. I came into reading Sapphire Flames already fully prepared to adore it, and adore it I did.

Sapphire Flames is book 4 in the Hidden Legacy series. However, if you haven’t read this series before then you could start from here. It’s the start of a brand new plot line with a familiar character as our heroine. But, although you could start here. Don’t. To really fully appreciate the world and the characters you should read from book 1 Burn for Me.

Sapphire Flames is the start of the second ‘phase’ of this series. In books 1-3 where Neveda – Catalina’s older sister- was the heroine, we had the story of a scrappy, smart heroine who was on the outside of power, but through sheer competence and her gigantic lady balls proved herself and her family as a power. No matter how reluctant that ascent to power was. Now in ‘phase 2′ of the series House Baylor has been established and are part of the magical elite…now they just have to stay that way. For that, we have Catalina, the Head of House Baylor who has the same razor sharp intelligence and insight as Nevada but with a better grasp of the House politics and how to navigate those treacherous waters.

I loved this switch in perspectives it opens a whole new world to us readers that Andrews built magnificently as we get more involved in House politics. But, that didn’t mean that there was no action in this book. The world of the magical elite is a dangerous and violent place and this book was a fast paced and exciting read. But for me, what always draws me back to an Ilona Andrews book, apart from the great world building and interesting plot lines, is the characters.

I loved the Baylor family in the first 3 books of this series they added warmth and humour as well as being interesting in their own right. I love the decision to switch from Neveda – whose story arc and development is essentially done – to Catalina. There is so much scope for character development for Catalina as she grows into her role as the Head of House Baylor and overcomes the obstacles that her powers can raise. There is also the introduction of Alessandro, our new Mad Rogan hero character, whose carefully curated persona as a playboy masks someone with lethal skills and secrets. Secrets I can’t wait to discover alongside Catalina.

This has been my favourite read so far in 2019 and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Once again Team Andrews has reached inside my head and my heart and served up exactly what I was hoping for. Bring on the next book!

A great start to the series! I've been waiting for this book since we were first introduced to the characters!

Pulling off a protagonist shift in a series can be difficult, but in the fourth Hidden Legacy novel, Sapphire Flames, Andrews pulls it off with aplomb. Set in an alternate present, the Hidden Legacy novels follow the travails of the Baylor family, an unruly collection of cousins, siblings, and women of the older generations. Some time in the 1800s, scientists developed a serum, the Osiris serum, which conferred on its takers either magical powers or death (most likely death.) The serum was outlawed, but by that point, anyone who survived the serum could confer their magical abilities upon their children. In the interim, magical Houses, beholden to their own laws, developed, complete with fairly gross eugenics-style feudalism.

The first trilogy followed Nevada Baylor, the eldest daughter responsible for an extended family which had fallen on hard times. Through the course of the trilogy, Nevada built up a ragtag group of siblings and cousins into a magical House. The Hidden Legacy of the series name was the Baylor’s magical abilities. Nevada’s father had been a squib (this is not the term, but I can’t remember the real one), a non-magical child of a magical parents. He had been excised from the family and disowned by his terrifying and horrible mother.

Through the first three books, we got to know the family pretty well, even if the focus was more on Nevada. But now Nevada is married and increasing, focused on the needs of her more immediate family. She’s left the family in the hands of her younger sister, Catalina. While Nevada’s gift could be unpleasant — she’s a living truth detector, so she sees all the social deception that goes on out there — Catalina’s is much worse. She is a siren, able to induce potentially homicidal devotion to anyone who hears her voice when her magic is on. People who already love her — like her family — are immune, but her relationships with other people always have the potential to be coerced, even unintentionally.

Catalina’s voice isn’t particularly distinct from Nevada’s — she doesn’t feel so different under the skin — but she does have different enough motivations and allegiances to give the reader a new spin on the world. She’s developing a sort of mentorship with her evil grandmother, for one, something Nevada would never, ever do. The ostensible love interest is of a type for Andrews: smooth and lethal, often described as having distinctly different personalities depending on context, well dressed, mannered. He doesn’t have the rough edges of Connor Rogan, but I’m willing to bet he’s got some tragic backstory. Catalina doesn’t trust his motivations at all, not that I blame her.

I enjoyed seeing this world through the eyes of another protagonist. Andrews can construct the hell out of a twisty, magical plot, and knows how to write a fight scene with excellent blocking. All told, well done.

This was an excellent start to Catalina's story. This is the start if a new series,, but also a continuation of an old one. Fans will not be disappointed!

This book both shocked and saddened me. I am shocked and saddened that I did not know about this author sooner and that this is the first book I read by her. If Mrs. Andrew’s other books are anything like this one, I feel bad for both my wallet and my social life because I will need to buy and read them all. I absolutely loved this story. I literally could not put it down; it was a one sit read for me. Catalina was the perfect blend of strength and vulnerability, from doing everything in her power to take care of her family to the guilt she felt for each kill she had to make for their safety. Alessandro gave the story humor and add to its suspense of wondering what lead him to the life he leads. I also loved the look into the wide variety of mage types and the suspense the author was able to build with them and what our characters would have to face now. All of this added to the possibility of a romance between Catalina and Alessandro kept the pages turning. I highly recommend this book, series and author to all readers.

Well, damn. Watch out world, Catalina Baylor is here! I love the Hidden Legacies series with Nevada at the helm, but in this story arc, Catalina, second-born daughter of the Baylor family, shines! We first meet Catalina in Nevada's story arc as a "shy" and timid wallflower. This could not be further from the truth. The nature of Catalina's power causes those around her to fall under compulsion and vulnerable to suggestion; but as the compulsion builds, their obsession with her grows to the point of madness. Then they would physically tear Catalina apart just to get a piece of her. *shudders* For those who read Diamond Fire, the novella, you can see the start of Catalina's transformation into the Head of House Baylor. Three years have passed since the events of Diamond Fire and "shy" Catalina is no more. As the Head of her House, Catalina has her polished Prime veneer, courtesy of Arrosa Rogan's training and mentor ship. Sapphire Flames starts with a dangerous case involving the fiery deaths of two Primes from House Etterson. With their three-year grace period ending in a few days, Catalina decides to take on the Etterson case. During the course of the investigation, nothing is as it seems. Of course, things become even more complicated when Alessandro Sagredo, an Antistati Prime and Catalina's teenage crush, gets involved in the investigation.

Working together, the duo discovers that the case of dead Primes is more complicated than either of them can fathom. Secret murder plots and old foes make an appearance. Forced into a position where her family's well-being hangs in the balance, Catalina holds her own and does everything necessary to keep her family safe. I liked her character development. She was a teenager in the first three Hidden Legacies book, but now she's grown and seen as a Prime and Head of House Baylor. Catalina is more comfortable in her skin and she wears it well. House Baylor is a small and relatively new House, but with the new connections Catalina forges, things are looking up. I just love the banter and tension between Catalina and Alessandro. Their relationship is heavy with sexual tension and playful jabs. The ending left me frustrated, but in a "give me more" way. During the events of the book, both Catalina and Alessandro are in their early 20s so I understand that there needs to be more character development before anything changes in their relationship. The attraction is mutual, but there's this unnamed issue in their way. Hopefully, Emerald Blaze, gives us more Alessandro goodness. 4.5 Stars.

I love the Hidden Legacy series and am thrilled to see it continue. The family characters and exciting magic are a standout. Best urban fantasy series I've read.

I was so excited to read Sapphire Flames after getting inside Catalina’s head in Diamond Fire and of course, Ilona Andrews did not disappoint! I loved Catalina even more, I thoroughly enjoyed her banter with Alessandro, and I can’t wait to see even more of them. Sapphire Flames was absolutely wonderful and I loved it!

It never occurred to me that one of Nevada’s sisters would take her place as my favorite, but Catalina really snuck up on me. She’s quiet and lowkey, but she’s so strong and determined to protect and do and be the best for her family. She’s really coming into her own and I really looking forward to seeing how much more she’ll grow before all is said and done.

Sapphire Flames gave me all the feels. It angered me, made me cry and caused me heartache, but I also had so much fun reading it. It was highly amusing and entertaining and that was mostly all due to Catalina and Alessandro’s dynamic — I never wanted them to be apart, I just loved them so much. They’re so great and I’m very excited to watch their relationship progress even more in the next book!

Yet another hit by the husband/wife duo. This definitely lived up to the excellence of the previous books in the series. Catalina and Alessandro are just as fantastic as Nevada and Rogan. It was amazing to be back in the world again and reunite with the beloved characters that I missed. I am eagerly awaiting the second one!

I love this series, and these characters. I'm so invested in the Baylor family and their lives that it almost didn't matter if there was even a plot in this story. Of course, there was one! And this time we are following Catalina Baylor, Nevada's younger sister who is also a Prime, but her siren powers are so dangerous that she's had to guard herself from others her entire life. But between the novella (you should definitely read that) and the start of this series, she has become the head of House Baylor and has been coming into more confidence and strength and I adored watching her take charge and start to shine in this story. I've also been so intrigued by Alessandro since we met him in Nevada's books, and after this one I'm even more intrigued and very very curious. That boy has some explaining to do, is all I have to say! But these authors are the master of romance - and magic, and I cannot wait to follow more of their story as it continues.

Love Triangle Factor: None
Cliffhanger Scale: Love for danger - Medium/high for unanswered questions and what the heck is going to happen next!

Where do I even begin with a review? I have loved this series since it started with Catalina's older sister. I was stoked to see Andrews branch off into a new trilogy featuring the rest of the Baylor siblings. Love Cataline and can't wait to see what comes next.

YES, yes, it's everything I expected from the Andrews! Fast-paced, anxiety inducing action, fantastic dialogue, searing chemistry between the two leads, humor, and so much more!

This is only like my fourth 5 star read this year & for good reason. Sapphire Flames ticked all the boxes for me. It has a strong heroine, dreamy hero, heartstopping action, intrigue, and a slow burn romance to boot!

While this book can technically be reard as a standalone, I would highly suggest that you guys would read the first 3 books. It's about Catalina's older sister Nevada but you'll get Catalina at 18 and it'll give you a more in depth understanding and feel for the characters and their back stories.

Ilona Andrews outdid themselves once again with this book and I can only imagine what other fun crazy adventure they have in store for us in the upcoming books!

Catalina has always had to hold back her power, ever conscious that one slip could steal the will of those around her and make her vulnerable to their obsessive love. Now, with the future of House Baylor and Baylor Investigations squarely on her shoulders, she has to shake out her wings and do what needs to be done to find answers for herself and her clients. The last person she expects to derail her investigation however is Alessandro Sagredo, international playboy and the only man who has ever been able to even attempt to resist her. His skill at killing and disappearing are yet another mystery for Catalina to detangle.

In Sapphire Flames, this writing team reintroduces us to the fabulously bickering Baylor clan and launches the reader right into the deep end of magical house intrigues. Secrets, dangerous allies, reluctant partnerships and an engrossing mystery will please long-time fans of the series while making them desperate for future volumes. If you have not read any of the Hidden Legacy books before, you can start here as the Andrews are careful to seed enough exposition about the complex magical world they have built to invite new readers in but the new readers will surely miss the significance of many of the secrets Catalina is trying to untangle.

Like the previous Hidden Legacy books, Sapphire Flames is full of longing and tense attraction paired well with intense action scenes and emotional complications. Although many elements will feel familiar, the story takes surprising turns that are sure to delight new and long-time fans alike while hinting to the bigger themes they plan to tackle in this second series.

I can’t wait obsessively re-read them!



Content Warnings: Suicide Attempt, Murder, Violence, guns

Please note that this is rated R for violence, but is PG-13 for sexual content.

Ilona Andrews, pseudonym for the husband/wife writing team, is instant-buy for me. Yes, the Hidden Legacy world was marketed as romance, but the fantasy world-building is superb and the writing gets better with every book.

Yes, they use the same archetypes, and sometimes the protagonists across series simply blend together into "kickass female lead" and "alpha control freak love interest." But they do such a good job with the stories and nuances, that I still enjoy everything.

The first trilogy followed Nevada. This one follows her younger sister who is now head of the house, and running the family business because Nevada has her own (semi-related) life. The magic system is cool, the politics interesting, and characters entertaining. I enjoyed that I built on what was left unresolved in the first series, and for the evolution of Catalina Baylor's character and powers.

The Hidden Legacy series is so entertaining and a bit of a comfort read. Sapphire Flames continues that theme for me and I cannot wait for the next release.