Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Victoria, and Inkyard Press for the opportunity to not only read This Golden Flame in exchange for an honest review, but to be a part of the Blog Tour as well. 

My Review:
Karis lives on Tallis, an island where Scriptmasters study runes and aim to bring the automatons back to life. Two hundred years ago, the automatons went silent, and nobody is quite sure why. Orphaned at an early age, Karis and her brother Matthias were sent to Tallis as Scriptorium acolytes, but Matthias was a bit too much of a trouble-maker for the Scriptorium's liking. After being shipped away, it is Kari's ultimate goal to get into the Scriptmaster's records, find out where they sent her brother, and reunite with him once more.

Seven years have already passed and Karis has had no luck getting into the tightly locked records of the Scriptmasters. She goes her day-to-day life with her acolyte group, studying the various inanimate automatons scattered about Tallis. One day, she has a bit of a fall off a cliff and ends up wandering into a cave. There she finds an automaton unlike any she has seen before. Where others are mammoth in size, this one is more human in appearance...and in nature. When Karis writes the "wake" rune in the automaton's tome, he comes alive, and he certainly has a personality of his own.

Alix, the automaton, and Kari, along with their friend Dane, find themselves on the run from the Scriptorium guards on Tallis. They join together with a young pirate names Zara. What was once simply a quest to find Karis's brother turns into an adventure to find the Automaton Heart and stop the magistrate, the Scriptorium leader, from reanimating automatons once more for his own war-like and power gains.

There is a large representation of LGBTQ in this novel, and while there are plenty of examples of the diversity, it is important to note that Karis is asexual and her feelings toward seeing her friend and her brother when it comes to relationships is a great way to show the Ace perspective. This was a generally fun novel to read. It really had a Greek/Roman feel to the clothing, architecture, and atmosphere, and the quest was well-rounded. This was a nice wholesome one-off that was a thoroughly enjoyable read.

I received an advanced copy of This Golden Flame through NetGalley so I could share my review with you!

Karis has been searching for a way to escape the Scriptorium for years, ever since she was ripped away from her beloved older brother. Since then, she has been forced to serve the Scriptorium’s agenda, working to reanimate the long-dead automatons that once worked as the Scriptorium’s army. The automatons stopped working long before Karis’s birth, but the Scriptorium has remained obsessed with regaining their lost power by reactivating them. Karis believes this pursuit is futile until she stumbles across an automaton, unlike anything she’s seen before. Karis accidentally wakes him up and learns that he is a two-hundred-year-old automaton named Alix. If the Scriptorium were to capture Alix, there is no telling what would happen. Together, Karis and Alix must escape the Scriptorium, but are more dangers in the world than either of them ever could’ve imagined.

You can get your copy of This Golden Flame on February 2nd from Inkyard Press!

When I first heard that there was going to be a YA fantasy novel with an Aro/Ace protagonist (and automatons) coming out this year, I knew that it was going to be an absolute must read for me! This Golden Flame was an absolutely incredible read, full of lovable characters and thoughtful analysis of what defines each of us as people. This book had a beautifully crafted message about humanity and individuality. I was shocked to realize that this was Emily Victoria’s debut novel, as it was so well-developed and engaging! The two narrator perspectives were clearly defined, which added depth to the story. I will be eagerly watching to see what she does next!

If anything, This Golden Flame has convinced me even further that the world needs more novels (especially sci-fi and fantasy novels) with Aro/Ace representation!

My Recommendation-
If you love stories full of magic, found-family, and fighting against insurmountable odds, you have to read This Golden Flame! This book would be perfect for people who loved the high stakes of Six of Crows. Additionally, I would recommend this book for folks who are hunting for a story with Aro/Ace representation in a fantasy world!

This wasn’t what I expected, and while I was mostly enjoying it at first I had a few issues:
1. the way every prominent side character was paired off (this is mostly about Dane and Zara. I could tell it was going to happen but I wish it didn't. I feel like it brought this book down and drew attention from Karis).
2. I just didn't connect with Karis or Alix like I wish I did. This also probably wasn't helped by the way their povs were hard to distinguish (and it is in first person).
Alas.

Reminiscent of Breath of the Wild and The Day the Earth Stood Still, This Golden Flame started out amazing and fizzled into mediocre for me.

The world-building in TGF is simple and complicated at the same time; tons of disabled automatons litter the entire world, no longer alive or powered, and an organization of scholars from the Scriptorium seek to reactivate them in order to gain…world domination? Much like the deactivated Guardians in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, they once served a purpose of benignity but were twisted by sinister people and used as weapons.

Enter a humanoid automaton: Alix. After being stuck in a cave for 200 years, he is discovered by our heroine, Karis, when she is performing work as a slave for the Scriptorium. She then uses him to escape slavery from the Scriptorium and find her brother, whom the Scriptorium separated from her when she was a small child.

Enter the reasons this is a 3-star book for me: pirates. Sailors on a ship. Whatever. Hate pirate/ship stuff. Hate it. Additionally, the general unlikelihood of the encounter adds a bit of too convenient to the narrative. I also cannot believe how the gang of protagonists manages to solve something in the span of 2-3 weeks in the story that 200 years’ of scholars could not. It’s a bit far-fetched, even for a fantasy novel.

The redeeming quality of this book was Alix. Anything about him was fascinating. I really wish the book focused more on him and the aspects of humanity involved with artificial intelligence. Unfortunately, despite this aspect, it was a genuine slog of a read to get through for me and made me avoid reading altogether for as long as I was reading it.

My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, for which I give my own opinion.

This book! So unique and intriguing! I was pleasantly surprised by the character development and story arc. I think the representation woven into the narrative is important and would lead to good discussions in the classroom. If I was able to teach just a fantasy class, I would for sure include this in my curriculum.

Thank you to the publisher, Inkyard Press, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Karis, an orphan, was separated from the last of her family, her brother Matthias when she was brought to the island of Tallis to serve the Scriptorium. After all automatons mysteriously stopped working 200 years ago, the Scriptorium has been working to unlock the secret to awakening the army of machines again. Karis has been on Tallis for years, but has never felt at home or wanted to connect with any of the other orphans with the exception of her best friend Dane. Her main goal has always been to discover where her brother was sent and find out what happened to him. When she stumbles upon an automaton hidden in a cave, she manages to wake it and realizes that Alix, as he introduces himself, is capable of speech, thought, and feeling, something that has always been deemed impossible. With Alix’s help, she is able to obtain information about her brother, but with the Scriptorium now hunting them, both of them must find a way to flee Tallis.

For such a fast paced book, and a standalone at that, the slightly Ancient Greek inspired world-building was surprisingly good. We start off on the small island of Tallis, but as Karis, Alix and Dane’s journey begins, we get hints and glimpses of the world beyond through the crew of the pirate ship. The magic system in this book is a fascinating one, based on runes that need to be activated through a specific ledger, and though I’m still not completely clear on the specifics, it’s a very unique one.

While this book has two perspectives, Karis’ and Alix’s, it was definitely Alix’s journey and arc that held my attention. After a while, it honestly felt like Karis wasn’t doing much and her purpose mainly centered around finding her brother and it got boring quickly. Alix, on the other hand, was such an intriguing POV. I’ve read books before where one of the characters is a robot or an AI, but never one where they had their own POV, and it was very interesting to see Alix’s arc as he questioned his purpose, wondering if he was ever meant to be anything more than a tool or weapon. The secondary characters in this book were really good, Zara, the pirate captain, in particular. It’s obvious pretty early on that there’s more to her story than we’re told, and it would have been great if she had her own POV.

I’m very fond of standalones, and when it comes to the fantasy genre, there aren’t nearly enough nowadays. But this book is one that might have been better as a series. The world is a wonderful one, and quite complex, and a standalone didn’t do complete justice to it. The other reason Karis, who is supposed to be a main character, is largely overshadowed. She is also described as being aroace early on, but the book never really takes the time to explore that further, which is a shame considering that I’ve seen very few aroace characters before in YA fantasy. A sequel might have had the chance to improve Karis’ arc and give us a better idea of her character, while also explaining the magic system a little more clearly.

The ending felt a little forced, in my opinion, and it did leave a few unanswered questions. Overall, This Golden Flame was a fun read and a fast-paced adventure that I enjoyed and I would definitely recommend it for fantasy fans.

"I take a step back. This isn't right. Automatons aren't supposed to look like that. They were built to be monstrous, because automatons were built to be monsters. An automaton shouldn't be lying in a cave, looking strangely troubled even in sleep, and appearing so unnervingly... human. As if at any moment it might open its eyes and see me.
I'm being ridiculous. This thing isn't human. It won't open its eyes because it isn't alive. It's a weapon. A tool."

Karis has been an acolyte at Tallis Scriptorium for seven years, and has been searching for information on her brother whenever possible. She and Matthias were both picked up by the Scriptorium from their home in Heretis and brought, like many other orphans, to work at the Scriptorium. But Matthias was deemed too troublesome and sent somewhere else. The information on what happened to him is kept in the Hall of Records, inaccessible to all but the Scriptmasters, as the door is bound by a lock rune. But Karis has been sneaking knowledge of runes and thinks that now she may be able to open that door... but it doesn't work. No entry. Until...

The next day, Karis is sent to attach a pulley system to an automaton hanging over a cliff edge. The Scriptmasters have been obsessed for the last 200 years with discovering how to reanimate the automatons scattered over the land of Eratia, which all stopped functioning after the traitor, Master Theodis, triggered the Great Lapse. What exactly he did and how it turned off all the automatons is a mystery, so the studies continue. While climbing, Karis tumbles from the cliff edge and finds a cave with a glow. She returns that night to discover the cave contains an automaton - smaller than most, even more humanoid, with a glow that none of the others have. And - its tome, where one may write runes to control it. Karis wakens the automaton to discover it is unlike any other. This is Alix, a thinking, speaking automaton, not just a destructive machine. He says his father is Master Theodis, and he's shocked to find that he's been dead for hundreds of years, and that everyone thinks of him as a traitor.

Alix also lets slip that he can undo lock runes, and Karis drags him to the Hall of Records. They discover that Matthias was sent to the Magistrate's Library on the island of Valitia - but Karis and Alix leave evidence of their presence. And there's no way the Scriptorium is going to let off searching now that there's proof of an awakened automaton. Together with Karis' best friend, Dane, also brought to the Scriptorium as an orphan and now a soldier, they escape from Tallis and head off to find Matthias and discover the truth about Master Theodis and Alix.

This was a fun romp - automatons, pirates, rebellion! Great LGBTQIA+ rep - Karis is aro/ace, among others. Her brother has low vision, which isn't representation I think I've seen in any other book. This book has a lot of instances of friends really encouraging each other, building one another up and emphasizing their strengths. It really emphasizes that everyone is different, and everyone has worth in those differences. Was the plot anything new? Meh? Chapters are narrated by Karis and Alix, and sometimes I forgot whose chapter I was reading as the voices are very similar. I'd recommend this for fans of younger YA fantasy adventure - Monstrous Devices by Damien Love comes to mind for other automaton stories, and I could see fans of Tamora Pierce liking this one.

Thank you to Inkyard Press and NetGalley for the eARC. This Golden Flame will be published February 2 2021.

This Golden Flame is a unique look at what it means to be free and how important it is to sentient beings.

What I Liked

The novel is written in a beautiful flowing language that was easy for me to lose myself in. This is also encouraged by the world-building, which is complex and based on an ancient civilization, like Greece or Rome. It’s a land of many islands that work strategically to move the conflict and build suspense as the main characters flee for their freedom.

Though the main characters are compelling and intricately layered, my favorite character is Captain Zara. She is a pirate captain who is young but leaves no doubt that she is in charge. She is not as developed as the main characters, but this is the fact that intrigues me the most about her and her story. She has one, and I can’t help but want to know what it is.

I loved the pirate and the rune magic aspects of the novel. They are both fun and kept me captivated as I read. Pirates always capture my romantic heart, and I adored the Crimson Streak and its crew. Also, the particular rune magic found in the novel is unique and fascinating. It is reminiscent of many different magical worlds, but the compilation of the bits and pieces is uniquely its own.

What I Wish

I wish that the pace remained at a fast clip throughout the whole story. The story lagged at specific points, especially in the middle, and I found it suddenly difficult to read and focus on the story. The dual narrators were also confusing as I could not easily distinguish between their distinct voices and would have to refer back to the chapter beginning to see which mind I was in.

To Read or Not to Read

If you are looking for a fresh new YA fantasy story that is diverse and entertaining, This Golden Flame fits the bill.

Thank you to the publisher, Inkyard Press, for providing me with an ARC of This Golden Flame in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Gist
I have been looking forward to reading a good YA fantasy book for a while. I patiently worked my way through my to-read list until I got to This Golden Flame. And I really very much enjoyed it.

The story had a few surprises up its sleeve that added a lot to the fantasy/adventure aspect.
Without further ado, let me jump right in.

The Details
I want to get the one point of critique out of the way before focusing solely on the good stuff.

I thought the characters could have benefitted from a little more depth and character development.

Some fleshing out of the protagonist and secondary characters would have made This Golden Flame absolutely and undeniably addictive.

A few times I caught myself thinking that it was strange how the story was told from both Karis and Alix’s perspectives, yet I still couldn’t fully grasp their personalities.

Aside from that, This Golden Flame is a very solid fantasy/adventure read with great world building. They author takes their time with each setting. Enough detail is given to provide a clear picture in the reader’s mind without being overwhelming.

I appreciated the distinct stages of this story, so to speak. Especially because this is a rather fast-paced read. It would have been easy to get lost in the whirlwind of the narration hadn’t it been for the careful construction of the different settings.

The writing is excellent. It is simple in the sense that it doesn’t get lost in flowery language in order to describe a particular scene. Yet, I can still almost feel the rain, Karis’ cuts and bruises or the ship rocking. It worked beautifully.

The Verdict
Overall, This Golden Flame was just what I needed: an adventure filled fantasy that took me along on the journey.

I have to point out that this story is void of any romantic love, love triangles etc, but contains characters from all walks of life and various sexual orientations. A refreshing change.

I would definitely recommend it.

Thank you Inkyard Press for inviting me to the blog tour of This Golden Flame. All opinions in this review are my own.

This Golden Flame follows Karis who just wants to find her brother ever since they were separated seven years ago. She is trying to escape the island she has been held captive on when she stumbles onto Alix, an automaton. Only automatons have stopped working 200 years ago. Together with the help of Dane, Alix and Karis escape Tallis.

I found This Golden Flame to have a bit of a slow start. However, during the last 100 pages, the paces sped up and I really got into the story. The setting of a sort of steampunk Ancient Greece/Rome was really interesting and I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, the slow pacing at the beginning did not draw me in as much and sometimes I got a bit frustrated with Karis and had to put to book down for a bit. But on the other hand, it fits with her character and I understand why she did the things she did.

I loved Zara and her pirate crew. Furthermore, Karis is asexual and aromantic and I really appreciate the representation of this in a fantasy book since I have not yet come across that. The author Emily Victoria is ace/aro herself and I really hope a lot of people will enjoy Karis' and Alix's story!

Set in Eratia, a fantasy country inspired by ancient Greece, This Golden Flame is a secondary world fantasy novel from debut author Emily Victoria. The book is quite fast paced, and Victoria’s simple and unadorned writing style lets you effortlessly breeze through the story.

This Golden Flame is centred around Karis, an orphan girl made to serve the Scriptorium - the country’s ruling group of scholars. The scribes of the Scriptorium have only one goal in mind: unlocking the magic to reawaken the ancient automaton army deactivated two hundred years before. However, despite being forced to work for the Scriptorium, Karis wants nothing more than to look for her older brother Matthias, separated from her seven years ago.

One day, Karis accidentally discovers a cave where she comes across a hidden automaton, and somehow manages to reanimate it. Sentient and intelligent, Alix wakes to find himself in a world entirely new to him, and the only family he remembers, his father, long gone. As he talks to Karis, Alix realises he has no idea why he was made, why he is more human-like than any of his fellow automatons, and why exactly his father tried to destroy all automatons two hundred years prior.

In search of Karis’s brother, as Alix and Karis break out of the Scriptorium and confront a pirate crew, the Scriptorium sends soldiers after them both. Meanwhile, the search for Matthias leads the duo to some troubling discoveries about Alix’s past.

The ancient Greece influenced setup of the story felt quite fresh and unique. Victoria’s worldbuilding is pretty straightforward and detailed, and yet never at any point does her writing feel info-dumpy, which was a relief to me. The magic system involving runes was also pretty fascinating, and I had so much fun seeing it in action! Alix and Karis are the two POV characters in This Golden Flame, and the narrative ping pongs between them as the brisk pace keeps the story flowing smoothly right up to an ending that, while not exactly being as strong as I’d expected from a standalone novel - was satisfying nonetheless.

At the heart of the story is the deep friendship Alix and Karis develop throughout their journey, and it remains the most remarkable and beautiful thing about The Golden Flame. To me, Karis as a protagonist was not as well developed as I’d have liked to see, and she felt very bland and one-dimensional especially next to Alix. However, with her heroine, Victoria brings some much needed aroace rep to YA fantasy, and I absolutely loved that particular aspect of the story!

As for Alix, he is questioning whether he really is as human as he feels, or if he is just a tool made to serve someone else’s purpose, and his journey to find his place in a world entirely new to him was simultaneously aching and sweet to witness. Zara, the captain of the pirate crew, was an absolute badass, and aside from Alix, she was probably my favourite character in this book. There’s also a lot of causal LGBTQ+ representation in this book with most of the secondary characters being queer, and that felt more validating to me than anything.

With all that being said, This Golden Flame did leave a lot to be desired in terms of characterisation, and if you’re a seasoned YA fantasy reader, the plotline is something you might find familiar to the point of being lacklustre. Moreover, the book leaves you with quite a few unanswered questions, and I couldn’t help feeling like the writing style was too simplistic at times.

To sum it up, This Golden Flame is a not-too-complex, fun YA fantasy that I feel would resonate particularly well with younger teens and truly make a lot of them feel seen, especially with an aromatic and asexual protagonist like Karis, and Alix’s relentless effort to truly belong in a world where most of the people seem to be intent on denying his very existence. If you are a fan of books like Nina Varela’s Crier’s War and like your fantasy with a dash of science fiction, you’d definitely want to give This Golden Flame a read!

3.5 stars

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

There’s a lot to like in This Golden Flame, namely the fact that it’s a book that proudly features aroace rep, something that we don’t see enough of in similar YA fantasy books.

Given that romance isn’t the driving force of the story (it does crop up in the background here and there, and I felt it was done in a fairly natural way), I liked the focus on other types of relationships between characters, like Karis’ with her long-lost brother, and the platonic bond between her and the other main character, the automaton Alix.

The world building is also fairly solid. Inspired by Greek mythology, I found the Scriptorum an interesting place and one I’d like to explore more in another book, even if it follows new characters.

I did find the writing style choices a bit off-putting, and this is very much one of those first person dual books where you quickly forget whose head you’re in and quickly hunt for the name of the other main character for a reminder as to whose perspective it is.

This book has a lot going for it, and the main issues appear to be more technical, although I realize even that is subjective. It is a unique book and one I enjoyed for the most part, and think anyone looking for a different take on YA fantasy might like this.

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: This Golden Flame

Author: Emily Victoria

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 4/5

Recommended For...: sci-fi readers, fantasy readers, ya readers

Publication Date: February 2, 2021

Genre: YA Fantasy

Recommended Age: 15+ (slight violence and gore, death)

Publisher: Inkyard Press

Pages: 384

Synopsis: Orphaned and forced to serve her country’s ruling group of scribes, Karis wants nothing more than to find her brother, long ago shipped away. But family bonds don’t matter to the Scriptorium, whose sole focus is unlocking the magic of an ancient automaton army.

In her search for her brother, Karis does the seemingly impossible—she awakens a hidden automaton. Intelligent, with a conscience of his own, Alix has no idea why he was made. Or why his father—their nation’s greatest traitor—once tried to destroy the automatons.

Suddenly, the Scriptorium isn’t just trying to control Karis; it’s hunting her. Together with Alix, Karis must find her brother…and the secret that’s held her country in its power for centuries.

Review: Overall, I really liked this book. I do want to remark that the book was really good. The book is diverse, having aro/ace characters, gay, and other lgbt+ characters and also showing and writing disabled characters. I really liked how the story flowed and for a debut novel this was really well done. The characters were well developed and, from what I could tell, wrote with care in who they are. The world building was also well done.

However, I did have issues connecting to some of the characters, specifically Zara, and the pacing in some places was really too slow for my liking.

Verdict: It’s pretty good!

This book caught my attention and held it throughout. That is something that is becoming harder and harder as many books start to seem like they all have the same plot lines. The author does a good job of keeping the reader riveted to the story until its completion.

This Golden Flame is a brilliantly written standalone YA Fantasy, with vivid world building and a fast paced story that has you flying through the pages. Karis is a servant to the Scriptorium, though if you asked her it would be more like a slave. She has no friends except for Dane, a fellow street rat who now serves as a Scriptorium soldier. Karis has never wanted to leave roots knowing that one day she would leave and find her brother who was taken from her years ago. After a near fatal accident Karis finds herself in a strange cave with what looks to be a human like Automaton. She wakes him to find he is more human than she could imagine, and sets off a chain of events there is no coming back from. Karis and Alix will be chased from Island to Island by the Scriptorium, picking up friends and enemies along the way, but both with clear purposes in mind: Karis to find her brother and Alix to finally finish his fathers work from all those years ago.

There is so much to love about this book, the first of which being the characters. Karis is determined and relentless in her pursuit to find her brother. She has isolated herself on the Island, knowing that if the opportunity arises she would drop everything and leave to find him. She finds it incredibly hard to trust and is almost unwilling to let people into her bubble, but her journey with Alix will show her there is a strength in people having your back, and Karis would never have found her brother without other people's help. Alix was by far my favourite character, he is unbelievably naive and constantly reminded me of a young child with constant wonder and fear in his eyes. He fears someone getting their hands on his Tome and being able to control him. But when he meets Karis, he realises that not all people are bad, there are those who are willing to fight for him, help him get his memories back and to complete the task his father set him centuries ago.

We are also gifted with a full cast of well built side characters the main two being Dane, Karis' one friend on the Island. He inadvertently gets roped into Karis and Alix's adventure. He is almost a stand in big brother to Karis, constantly looking after her and it's his inability to watch her get hurt that sets him on a path away from the one he has been working so hard for. Zara is a pirate who finds our unlikely trio hiding out on an Island and offers them a chance, let her study Alix's runes and she will take them to the Capitol and Karis' brother. But she has a few secrets of her own, ones that could potentially put Alix's destiny in peril, or Kara and her crew could be just the thing he needs to make it happen.

You can easily see where this story gets it's Ancient Greek like setting, and the Author uses it to her advantage having the characters travel from island to island giving us a wide breadth of world building. The Rune like magic is something quite unique, especially in how she uses it. They were used to control the Automatons but a since they lost the power to do that only have the ability to lock doors etc. If I had one teeny tiny issue with the book it was that the magic system just wasn't developed enough. There was plenty of story, more than enough for a duology, and I would have loved to be able to dive a little deeper into the Rune magic and why the Automatons stopped working. However, the fact that it was a standalone meant the story proceeds at a breakneck pace, without any lulls, so this would be perfect for lovers of a quick and easy read.

Filled with Queer rep from a 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. It was so brilliant having a main character with no romantic interest, there were no angst filled scenes, no awkward love triangles. Instead we get to focus more on familial relationship; how Karis was unwilling to give up on her brother, the almost brother/sister relationship between her and Dane and the budding friendship and almost found family between her and Alix. Don't get me wrong, there are hints at romance in this book, but they are minor parts of the plot and only between the side characters.

If you're looking for a fun and fast paced story filled with deception, found families, brilliant world building and a fresh magic system then look no further. I would love to return to this world in some way, be it a sequel or companion story, and will certainly be keeping my eye out for the authors next works. An easy 4/5 stars!

Karis is aromantic and asexual. She's eighteen and an orphan. Her mission: to find her brother who went missing seven years before. Eratia is a fantasy world most closely inspired by ancient Greece.

The Scriptorium was an interesting place and Emily Victoria makes this and the whole world in the book atmospheric which I liked as it drew me in. The book is full of action although some of the landscape descriptions at the beginning seemed repetitive.

Nevertheless, I wanted to find out where Karis would go. I was intrigued how she met Alix, an automaton. Alix really has such a good heart and is immedately likeable. There's an extensive cast of secondary characters.

This Golden Flame has the mystery and worldbuilding of Harry Potter and the journey was one I wantd to be on. I was curious about the platonic relationship between Alix and Karis.

Karis's brother is visually impaired and I was very concerned for him as I am visually impaired too. I was constantly wondering what would happen next.

My first novel by Emily Victoria and one I enjoyed. The writing style was simple but really evolved an interesting, original world. It will appeal to younger and older adults.

A lesson in discovery, acceptance trust and friendship. Great for fans of the movies Artificial. Intelligence, I Robot and Chappie. If you like well-thought-out worldbuilding, this is for you. There is different gender representation in this book.

Thanks to Emily Victoria and Algonquin for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

4 stars.

This Golden Flame was such an interesting and inventive book. I really wasn't sure what to expect and was curious about the premise, so I'm really glad with how much I ended up enjoying this book. The two main character POVs that we followed felt very well done and distinct from one another, which I always appreciate whenever multiple POVs are brought into the equation. The magic system is equally involving and I felt that Emily Victoria had a really great way of incorporation everything together into a well-paced story. Definitely recommended to any fans of YA fantasy!

This Golden Flame is a beautifully written adventurous delight.

With the characters, I found myself much more interested in Alix, Zara, and Dane than I did Karis. I’m not sure when it exactly it occurred, but her character just lost me a little once we start really getting into the story. Karis continually stays strong to herself and what she believes, I just found myself more invested in others.

I totally adored Alix and his story. His character is so interesting. You want to unlock (in all ways of the word) every piece of his story with him. Then there’s Zara who is fierce, loyal, and every bit strong. I thoroughly enjoyed her character and would love to see another spin-off book with her as the lead.

There’s a way that Emily Victoria makes you love each character you meet. I know technically Karis is advertised as “asexual” but I admit I did keep hoping for some type of romance. I adored Alix and Dane too! Even though Alix is a hunk of metal… I was still shipping for something sexy, HA!

Another thing to mention is that Emily Victoria writes absolutely beautifully. The world-building and each bit of description she packs into the pages makes you love it so much more. It’s essentially a dystopian, Greece-esque era, magic, and machines all wrapped up into one.

Overall, This Golden Flame is a fabulous debut and I’m very excited to see what she can come up with next!

Review going live on Feb 1st: https://jottedbyjena.com/2021/02/01/review-this-golden-flame-by-emily-victoria/

This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria is a promising standalone YA LGBTQ+ Fantasy debut. The world-building is truly outstanding and the world comes across as quite vivid and atmospheric. The magic system regarding the Scriptorium and the automatons is also really cool and unique as well. I really enjoyed getting to know both Kara and Alix, but as far as I'm concerned Alix held my attention the most. I think I would have preferred the novel not to be told in dual perspectives, but to focus specifically on one character or the other. I think the story could have benefited from the streamlining that could have provided regardless whether Kara or Alix would have become the main focus. Either way, I greatly appreciated Kara as our aroace lead. I don't often get to see the A of LGBTQIAP represented at all, so this was refreshingly delightful especially in this fantasy setting. Overall, This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria lives up to the hype and I can't recommend it enough. There's so much potential for this author to become a favorite of mine just based on her debut release. I'm really looking forward to her next #OwnVoices YA Fantasy book, Silver in the Mist, which is due to be released in the Fall of 2022.

This book follows Karis (a slave of the Scriptorium) and Alix (an ancient automaton) who are both trying to fulfill a purpose. Karis wants to find her brother and Alix wants to remember his father and what he was created for.

I think there was a lot of good in this book. The characters felt real in a way that doesn't always happen in fiction. I really appreciated the diversity; this book featured a non-binary character, characters of multiple races, and a character with visibility issues. I think the diversity helped make this feel like a more realized book.

I did enjoy the runes, although it did seem a bit convenient that so much information was "lost." I recognize the irony of saying that when we live in a world where the Library of Alexandria was razed. But in a book like this I would have preferred a little more information about how/why everything was lost (i.e. an example like the Library of Alexandria rather than "a war").

My only other major complaint about the book was that it tidied up a little bit too cleanly. There were no deaths of major characters, no life-changing injuries, it sounds a bit trite, but with the battle that happened towards the end, I feel like there should have been some level of damage done regardless of success.