"To be forgiven, one must be burned."

They said "Dune meets The Poppy War" and I said "let me see if I can get an eARC from Netgalley" and I'm so glad I managed to get it!

This book was told from the POVs of three characters with polar opposite personalities; Yassen, an ex-assassin on the run with nothing but a burnt arm and a tormented and anguished soul, Elena, a princess merely weeks away from her coronation and troubled by a crucial ability she still lacks, and Leo, the king willing to give up his humanity to get rid of the nightmares that threaten to plague his kingdom.
The words and sentences were really smooth and flowed by easily that I managed to finish the book in less than a day (the interesting plot helped with this too). I was curious to see if Elena will be able to learn how to hold Fire, and if the process will perhaps help her mature more, and the results were surprising but didn't disappoint. I wanted more of Yassen, he is my favorite yet I felt like his character deserved more exploration- similar to what Elena got in the last quarter of the book in particular- but all in all he was a genuinely interesting character that I can't wait to get more of. Leo's POV possessed so much emotion and depth that I feel bad for not being very interested in him as a character, but hey that’s just me. However, I have to confess that his pages and character might’ve even made the other two POVs pale in comparison. Also, Ferma is the loml.
The author's exploration of how Yassen, Eelna, Leo, Samson, and even the other side characters defined morality was intriguing. And the stark difference of the perspectives was refreshing.
The way some characters are referred to in the books was strange. In Elena's POV, her king and father is simply referred to as Leo. While Yassen also refers to the king and princess as Leo and Elena respectively in his POV. This language made the chasm that supposedly existed between the headstrong princess and the withdrawn ex-assassin seem shallow and fake. Imagine the angst if they refer to each other as "the princess" and "Knight" at the beginning (even inwardly) and then we see the transition in their language as they get closer and more intimate? That would’ve made it perfect. My biggest disappointment in this book was how Samson didn’t get his own POV, I understand why the author didn’t do it though. I really hope that we get an epic POV of a scheming Samson in the next book!
The title of the book confused me to say the least, and after finishing the book I understood the meaning but not why it was the last choice.
Overall, it was a story about Yassen's tentative hope, Elena's strong burning heart, and Leo's (perhaps justifiable) madness. And the plot-twist at the end?? So good. I hope that the next book will explore our characters and the relationships they have with one another with even more depth and I can't wait to see how the story progresses!

This book will make your heart bleed and burn, and want you to have it done all over again. A must-read.

Talk about an EPIC fantasy debut. The world of Sayon is so captivating and beautiful. I want to run in the dunes of Ravence and take the holotrains through the brass cities of Jantar. Also, the cloud cookies! I want one!

The book is written in 3 distinct, character POVs: Yassen Knight, Elena Ravence, and Leo Ravence. Yassen breaks your heart, Elena inspires you to burn your enemies, and Leo just scares you. I have to say that my favorite is (surprisingly) Leo. He's such a dynamic character. You know that what he's doing is WRONG (like hello!!), but you understand WHY he goes batshit crazy.

The author said on her Twitter that her book deals with themes of historical trauma and Indian mythology and damn, it REALLY does. The book can be dark and violent at times, but so is history. Every character is drowning in a sea of grief and unbridled rage. Sometimes, I just want to give them a hug, but I'm afraid I'll get burned.

All in all, I LOVED this book. I can't wait for the rest of the trilogy. I'm going to call it now - Aparna Verma will be one of the best fantasy writers of our generation.

Disclaimer: As a a beta reader, I've read an early copy of the book. I was not asked to write a review. This is my honest opinion.

Hi everyone!

Since this is my book, I'm a bit biased towards the 5-star review, but I wanted to take this chance to talk more about THE BOY WITH FIRE.

I started writing this book back in 2017. It was just a spark of an idea that didn't grow into a fire until the pandemic of 2020. The world was crumbling around me. People were dying. I was stuck at home, despairing about how our leaders had failed us. And then something inside me said, the world needs your novel now. Write it.

THE BOY WITH FIRE is, at its heart, a story about madness. It shows a world teetering on the edge of war, and the people who push it over. The book gets DARK. It's written in 3 character POVs, and each character must make brutally cruel decisions that put other lives at stake. There's genocide, terrorism, vengeful gods, and man's battle against fate. For the book politics, I was largely inspired by the geopolitical tensions in India, as well as the rise of nationalistic leaders in both America and India.

In short, the book is not for the faint of heart.

But, there are lighter moments! think: a subtle romance subplot. There are also badass female warriors inspired by the Hindu goddess Kali, a BIPOC cast, and, my favorite, cloud cookies. If you're a baker and you're reading this, please make cloud cookies an actual thing!

When writing, I drew inspiration from my own heritage. I was born in India, in the desert of Rajasthan. My mom raised me on the epic tales of the Mahabharat and the Ramayana. While THE BOY WITH FIRE is not an adaptation or retelling of Hindu myths, these stories certainly influenced my world-building.

I was also inspired by so many amazing books, so THE BOY WITH FIRE is a magical conglomeration of Dune, The Poppy War, Game of Thrones, and ATLA. If you love these comps, hopefully you'll enjoy THE BOY WITH FIRE.

Thank you for reading this. I really, really hope you fall in love with THE BOY WITH FIRE as much as I have. The characters have taken my heart. Hopefully, they'll take yours too. <3