Nothing about this book really story really stood out to me. I found that it just follows the same formula as all other YA fantasy novels: boy meets girl; boy and girl hate each other; boy and girl banter; boy and girl don't hate each other; boy and girl get together; one betrays the other; setup for second book. At some point along the way, there is probably only one bed or something like that. Just incredibly formulaic. I'm not saying this is a bad book or anything. If you know you like that fantasy formula, this book would be great. The environment was pretty cool, but other than, everything just felt like it had been done before, many times. I found this forgettable, but would not be surprised if it found an audience just due to the nature of what people are reading right now. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but this book just felt pretty cliché.

The story begins with the night of Seraphine's mother's murder, which forces Sera to flee for her life. She seeks refuge with the Cloaks, a thieves guild vying to control Fantome's underworld. Seraphine discovers her magic and sets on a mission to avenge her mother. She crosses with Ransom, the heir to the assassin's Order of Daggers; he is intrigued by Seraphine's magic, but she is soon his new target. They are entangled in a complicated relationship between the conflicting guilds and the mysterious magic. The tension draws them together in a deadly struggle for dominance with a dash of revenge.

Seraphine (Sera), as a character, develops from a simple farm girl to a formidable foe as part of the Cloak, the thieves' guild in the city of Fantome. As she discovers her magic, she becomes confident and resilient. She's filled with anger and revenge for the killing of her mother. Sera does doesn't fully grasp her mother's role in the monsters that endanger the city. Ransom is part of the Order of Daggers, the assassin's guild, who stays in the shadows. He is bound by duty and loyalties, which are the struggles of his morality once he meets Sera. He is drawn to her, and together, their sense of justice is challenged. Both characters are on a journey of self-discovery that will impact their identity and sense of power and control.

The city sets a gothic and yet opulent backdrop to the story. The secret catacombs enhance the aspect of the mystery and danger, creating a darker atmospheric quality. The rivaling characters and intricate plot keep me engaged until the last page. Sera and Ransom's intertwined fates have me eagerly anticipating what will happen next in Fantome.

I received an ARC ebook for my honest review. Thank you, NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Margaret K. McElderry Books

─ 3 stars
Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for freepass arc

This book definitely has an intriguing and promising plot, and it actually served its purpose. I would say the whole book contains 50% romance and 50% main plot. It has unique magic and some twists that caught me off guard. I enjoyed it until halfway through the book because it started relying too much on romance tropes. Despite how good this book was, I found some flaws here and there. Some of the writing felt too juvenile for YA; the world-building felt small despite mentioning the city's workings and the whole government. It seemed like an addition to make it more crowded because all I saw were these two rival places going back and forth. Some chapters felt too rushed and lacked depth in how events unfolded.

I didn't really enjoy the romance in most parts. It is an enemies-to-lovers trope, so as expected, the characters started as enemies wanting to get rid of each other and eventually fell in love. While it started with a good enemies-to-lovers dynamic, I didn't see much chemistry between the love interests. In some parts, they didn't even seem to trust each other, and the unnecessary "spice" thrown in for tension kind of ick me. The characters themselves were just okay in their own ways. I agreed with some of their choices in certain chapters, but in specific scenes, I was annoyed by the low level of trust and bravery they displayed.

I actually wanted to give this 4 stars, but some specific scenes made me lower my rating. I liked the first half, but the second half to the end of the book was not my favorite. I don't think I'm hooked enough to read the sequel; it didn't interest me enough, but who knows, I might change my mind.

For context, I've been reading Catherine's books since 2022 and I was sooo excited to pick this book up. I had such a fun time reading this book. The storytelling, the romance, the agnst, the betrayals, and the friendships that became found family is what made this book so great. Sera was such an enjoyable FMC to read. She is discovering so much about herself, and her family, and the powers within her. And there is so much more to explore with her story, and I cannot wait for future books to see what becomes of her. Also, can we get more Pippin moments PLEASEEE -he is a good boy! I think this series is going to be really promising, and I'm excited to buy a physical copy of this book when its out in stores (in the US) October 1st!

I ended up stopping after chapter 6 (19%). The pacing of the book felt weird to me and I just wasn’t getting into it. I felt like from the blurb this would be the perfect book for me, but it actually is very calm and feeling rather low-action. It’s overall well written.

I think this book will do well, especially since from my understanding it’s in some of the upcoming book boxes. I would definitely say it’s worth having a copy on hand in your library.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC.

The beginning set an excellent tone and made it quite easy to follow the story. Unfortunately, unlike the beginning, the latter portion could have been done so much better. The romance itself didn't quite appeal to me. It felt cringey. Also, Ransom and Sera did not strike me as having enough chemistry. Additionally, the spice scene feels forced and doesn't quite fit the plot. Reading this scene feels weird because the book is labeled as young adult rather than new adult. However, I appreciate the world-building. It's interesting and simple to grasp, especially for those new to the fantasy genre, but given how unique the magic system is, I believe there may have been more to be explored. Overall, I enjoy certain parts and might read the sequel.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing for providing the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Catherine Doyle's The Dagger and the Flame is a gripping fantasy novel filled with adventure, magic, and intrigue. Set in a richly imagined world, the story follows a young heroine caught in a struggle between rival factions, each with their own dark secrets and hidden agendas.

Doyle’s world-building is immersive, and her characters are vividly drawn, making the novel a thrilling and engaging read. The blend of political maneuvering and personal stakes keeps the plot dynamic and suspenseful. With its intricate narrative and captivating twists, The Dagger and the Flame is a standout entry in the fantasy genre, sure to delight fans of epic and character-driven stories.

When I finished this book and saw that Goodreads had it put as 528 pages I was genuinely surprised. The digital copy said 343 and that’s definitely what it felt like. Usually with books in the 500s I have to take a bit of a break in the middle but I flew through this one.

The beginning started off really strong and made it really easy to get into the story. The only thing that made it a little difficult was a bit of what felt like info-dumping in regards to the world-building. There was a point pretty early when we get about six or seven pages of history and I could feel myself zoning out a bit. The world-building was still very interesting though whilst being easy to understand and so as the book went on I was glad we got a detailed history. When the story got to the middle, there were a few moments that didn’t feel quite as strong but regardless I was still engaged and the ending made up for that bit by delivering a lot of great scenes.

In terms of the romance, I was glad to see the enemies to lovers done well. They genuinely started off as enemies and the progression of their relationship felt realistic and believable. Toward the end though there is a randomly placed “spice” scene, and when I say randomly I truly mean it because it was like in the middle of a fight about to go into a more serious one. I honestly have no idea why it was placed there other than possibly to cater to social media trends but it felt so forced and out of tune with the story. It either needed to be moved or altered because the way it was felt so awkwardly thrown at us as if to say “there’s some spice now people will eat this up”.

Overall, despite some minor flaws here the positives outweighed the negatives so I would recommend people give it a try. I’m definitely interested in seeing where the series is going to go - hopefully it will be a duology though because anything more would probably be a stretch.


Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

~🄾🅅🄴🅁🄰🄻🄻 🅁🄰🅃🄸🄽🄶: ★ ★ ★ ✰ ✰.75~

This book was beyond my wildest expectations! I loved it so much, I already purchased two separate editions of it! The world building was Victor Hugo meets Charles Dickens with a sprinkling of magic. This author is a master of enemies to lovers romance! I was living for the banter and heat between the main characters!!! The ending was full of twists and turns and heart rending suspense! I’m already dying to read the next book! I can’t recommend this book highly enough! A new favorite for sure!

This book had all the things I love in a fantasy romance:
-great world building
-enemies to lovers (they try to unalive each other at every opportunity)
-slow burn
-spicy 🌶
-found family
-sad boy x fiesty girl
-angsty
-epistolary (they write notes to one another)

Okay so first of all, I picked up The Dagger and the Flame mainly because of the cover. Swooooon - the cover is absolutely gorgeous and embodies Seraphine + Ransom down to the last detail. So here's the breakdown of what's going on. There are two orders the Daggers and the Cloaks. Think of the Daggers as ruthless and they're out to get what they want at all costs. Cloaks are a bit more subtle in their machinations, but are still thieves. Both use a sort of magic known as Shade. When Seraphine's mother is assassinated, her last wish was for Seraphine to try and join the Cloaks as her mother despised The Daggers.

This is where Seraphine and Ransom first meet. Ransom's boss has ordered a mark on Seraphine and Ransom is the one who is ordered to complete the task. Except every time Ransom has a run in with Seraphine he becomes more and more enthralled with her. He tries his hardest to get rid of her, but she keeps evading him. And therefore this little cat and mouse game begins. Not only that but there is something lurking in the dark that is other - worldly. Will the Cloaks and the Daggers be able to work together to defeat and evil that is even greater than them?

I loved this book. I couldn't stop reading it and it's a thick book at almost 500 pages. The banter and tension between Sera and Ransom was SO GOOD! I loved every single interaction between these two. This book is a true true enemies to lovers romance. They don't pretend to hate each other and fall in love a quarter of the way through. NO. These two go to great lengths to hurt each other, but the payoff of them finally finding out how much they do not dislike each other was so worth it.

I'm so obsessed and will be shouting about The Dagger and the Flame until I can get my hands on the sequel. If you love an enemies to lovers, slow burn romance with a plot that will keep you on your toes I highly suggest you add this book to your tbr!

Big thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for access to an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

As soon as I saw The Dagger and the Flame as a rumored upcoming Fairyloot YA Fall Book pick I knew I had to read it. I found the premise of this book extremely intriguing. To have a 'Romeo & Juliet' style troupe set in a Parisian fantasy setting. Immediately sold.

The Dagger and the Flame follows our protagonist Seraphine as she claims sanctuary with the Cloaks after her mother is murdered. She agrees to join them and trained in their ways in order to protect herself from the Assassins guild the Daggers.

enjoyed the first book in this fantasy story and I will definitely be continuing on with this series. Even with that said, this book wasn’t perfect. I was immediately hooked, however I did find some parts that dragged.

I think my overall biggest complaint was the romance. The romance at times felt forced and instalovely and then at the end did a total 180. Hopefully in book 2 we get to see better growth in their relationship.

Now my favorite part of this book falls with the magic system. With the all of it coming from the use of a single source - Shade. The way that it was used and incorporated differently between the two houses. I found it to be extremely unique and I can’t wait for it to be flushed out more in book two.

Overall Verdict: Definitely check this book later this fall. And I can’t wait to see if the fairyloot rumor for this book is true!

This was a fun romp. It felt like a great start to a series and I’m interested to see where it goes. 


What I loved…
- Enemies but actual enemies, they’re from rival gangs, she stabs the crap out of him and leaves him for dead.
- to lovers - this felt genuine and built on something more than just insta-love
- shadow daddy - in a very unique way!
- villian/morally gray protagonists
- found family
- the cutest pup sidekick
- a very unique and fun world, although a little less fleshed out than I would have liked.
- dual POV

What I didn’t love
- the plot and pacing lagged a bit in the middle.
- the banter and chemistry felt very lacking for me.
- My biggest issue is the weird, out of place spice scene in the middle of a monster battle show down. Why the actual f was that included? There has barely been any kissing, but for some reason we need to stop in an alleyway to give each other a hand job while monsters lurk around the corner?! A stolen kiss during this scene would have been more than sufficient and felt more realistic and appropriate for a YOUNG ADULT NOVEL. Ps I enjoy spice in my adult books when they add to the overall story and plot line. I do not enjoy spice added for the sake of having spice in a book, and I really don’t love spice in books that are marketed for young adult. Just why?


Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for sending this book (eARC) for review consideration. All opinions are my own.