lthough the world building needed to be better curated , this book was an enjoyable read.

A banished princess that wants to be reunited with her 5 dragons while agreeing to work with her estranged kingdom’s enemy commander calls for a great story.
The tension between Cayden and Elowen is so good, it had me kicking my feet and giddying like a child.

This fantasy book has all of the elements that made it entertaining. . Please be aware that it’s a slow start, but once the journey begins it's an easy read.

Tropes:
-Enemies to lovers
-Dragons
-Found family
-A badass FMC x broody MMC
-Single POV

Thank You To NetGalley, Olivia Rose Darling, and Random House publishing for the eARC of this republished book. All opinions are my own.

I got about 20% of the way through and couldn't handle the writing style:( I like romantasy, but I think it struggles when the fantasy world has no development and the characters all feel the same. The more popular the genre becomes, the more I find myself being picky with books that are unique versus fanfiction of what I've read before. The dialogue and narration were cheesy; it read like a repeat of so many things I've read before yet it did nothing well enough to continue reading. I'd consider coming back to it in the future, but I just wasn't in the mood to make myself like it this time around.

I’m pleasantly surprised by how easily I fell into this book and the relationships between the characters. Elowen is fierce and can hold her own, so having someone as dangerous as Cayden by her side only amplified their strength together. I really adored the friendship between Elowen and Finnian, words can’t express how nice it was to see a completely platonic f/m friendship where they’re still affectionate and clearly love eachother. I was so invested in Elowen’s quest to be reunited with her dragons too. I also completely devoured the tension and steamy scenes between her and Cayden, the things that this man said had me obsessed. I can see that this book was clearly setting up the plot for the next ones in the series with the upcoming battle between Imirath and Vareveth. They just gave power couple vibes and I can’t wait to continue on in the series!

What a fun dragon read!

To be honest, I went into this novel with a pretty open mind. I didn't really know what to expect from it, and I was pleasantly surprised by it. Overall, I thought it was a fun fantasy read with spice and dragons.

This book was a different vibe from what I normally read, but it worked for this story. I thought the plot was intriguing, but the romance was the winner. Cayden was MVP! I enjoyed the relationship dynamic between Elowen and Cayden. They had some good banter and fun nicknames for each other. I thought the romance played a nice part. I also enjoyed the platonic relationship between Finnian and Elowen. That isn't something I feel like I see a lot of in fantasy books, and I appreciated it. The found family dynamic was also one of my favorite elements of the story.

One of the biggest downs for me is I wanted more dragons. They were such a huge crux of the plot, and in the end they felt very in the background. And I wish the "magic" in this world would've been explained a little more clearly because I did find myself puzzled at various points of the book. I also thought the ending felt a little rushed/lackluster. It wasn't a bad ending, but it felt like something was missing.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, and it was definitely a change of pace for me.

I would like to thank the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 4.2/5

3.5 - 4 ⭐️ (rated up)

As someone who (unfortunately or fortunately?) never read the Indie version of "Fear the Flames", I completely understand why this book was picked up for traditional publishing. It has all the romantasy elements that are like cat nip for readers right now but iI can also see how it could also potentially get lost in the already overly-saturated market. I think I was wanting either a little bit more or something different to make it really stand out but FTF just missed the mark. Even still, Olivia Rose Darling's storytelling was intriguing and I still had so much fun falling in love with her characters (Cayden and Finnian, specifically). The banter between Elowen and Cayden was excellent, though the transition from reluctant allies to bodyguard/princess to lovers was strangely paced/rushed. I don't quite buy their romantic chemistry YET but I'm very interested in continuing the series. Especially with that reveal at the end!!

What I hope for the next book(s):
- MORE DRAGONS.
- More world building? There's a magical element in this book that I couldn't quite grasp. Not sure if that was intentional or not. There's also mention of Gods, but no lore
- Absolutely nothing better happen to Finnian 🫵🏼 LOL

Thank you to Megan Whalen @ Random House & Delacorte Press for the advanced reader copy!

⁀➴ A fantasy romance featuring an exiled princess, the enemy commander, banter, heists, and a lot of spicy moments!

I usually take a lot of time reading fantasy. I don't know why lmao but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy them. This is the case with Fear the Flames which I think I took like 10 days to read. But I had so much fun reading it?!!?!? ♡ ︎Sometimes I only ended up reading three chapters a day (because I was tired of working or every day life you know), but those three chapters made me smile and I was lowkey enjoying the story and adventure so much.

I do want to say that maybe the fantasy part of the story could be a lil bit better? But overall, I loved everything. My favorite were the characters, the romance, the dialogue in this book. There are so many scenes that showcase the friendships. The core group - I simply couldn't help but love and love every time they were together in the same scene. I think that's what made this book a four star for me: the characters and the romance. The fantasy, like I got the main plot and objective of it all but I think the organization of the heist, the meeting, the royal court, I was kinda confused at one point. But you know what? I don't mind. All the other stuff in the book made up for that.

The romance though? That was insane. I absolutely adored it ♡ ︎I'm 100% a fan and I need a sequel RIGHT NOW. I just can't wait to see how this goes and continues. Elowen and Cayden are perfect - together and as characters by themselves. Together, they're a force to be reckoned with. Both bloodthirsty individuals who are there for each other 24/7. If one of them is danger, the other would go to war for them. It's insane to see how much they are each other's person ❤️‍🔥

Some things you can find in the book:
♡ exiled princess/queen
♡ he's only soft with her
♡ "angel" "love" "demon" THEIR LIL NICKNAMES >>
♡ when she's hurt, he is ready to destroy the world
♡ heists!!!
♡ dragons!!!!!
♡ oh and it's very spicy damn
♡ a hero who is so DOWN BAD for the heroine

3.5

I wish I could say I enjoyed this as much as when I read the indie version a year ago but it wasn’t a favorite this read around. Overall, the premise and idea is wonderful, it just felt like things were missing to really have me invested.

I had trouble feeling an actual connection between Elowen and Cayden. As much as I love them, we didn’t really get much with them forming a friendship/relationship that was believable. I love their banter and teasing but the flow of things felt off. The intimate scenes thrown in the middle of the book also seemed random. They kissed for the first time but then it was never really mentioned and they acted like nothing happened??

I liked that we got a little more of Cayden’s story in this version, but it still felt like only a small part of his story was told and I was still confused by some of the information we got and felt like it didn’t really explain much. So I’m hoping more will be shown in the next book of his background and how he got to where he is in this book.

I’m not sure if it’s because I read an ARC copy but there were at least 2-3 scenes that felt like important information was missing. Like all of a sudden they were doing something but I literally went back a few pages to see if I missed the why/reasoning. But again, this may just be because I didn’t read a finalized version.

Overall, the potential is definitely there, it just fell a little flat but I’ll probably still read book 2 to see where the story goes.

🤍 Thank you so much @dellromance and @randomhouse for the arc of Fear the Flames by @itslivdarling 🤍

This book consumed my reading life and I wasn’t even sorry about it! It was gritty, violent, sensual, and just plain addictive.

Elowen has been separated from her dragons, struggling to forge her way as the Queen of a secret kingdom. Enter Caden, the commander of her father’s enemy kingdom and now her ally.

Bound by vengeance, these two characters along with three friends embark on a journey of politics, war, and a heart-pounding heist!

For the reader who loves:
• action-packed fantasy
• series
• dragons
• reluctant allies
Then add this to your tbr for September 17th!

★ ★ ★ ★ ★/5
Steam: open door
TW: some graphic violence, language, mention of past torture

the trad published version was so much easier to get through. the first 30% or so is very slow, but if you keep going, you will be rewarded! we got more dragons, more cayden backstory, and more time to bond between us and elowen that i really appreciated. definitely worth the read!

Fear the Flames by Olivia Rose Darling 💚
Fear the Flames, Book 1
Series

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Adult • Fantasy Romance
ARC Review
373 pages
🗓️ September 17

•reluctant allies to lovers
•touch her and ☠️
•dragons
•prophecies
•heroine in hiding
•forbidden love
•morally gray MCs

📌”People are often threatened by love when they realize both the absence and power of it.”

📌“Good night, angel.”
“Good night, demon.”

📌”There is no antidote for the poison of my past other than my future.”

📌 “I didn’t realize you paid such close attention to me.”
“What makes you think I’ve ever looked away?”

📌 “El. I need you to walk away from me.”
“Why?”
“Because I won’t walk away from you, and I need you to be stronger than me.”

📌 “Careful, angel. You give a man a taste of salvation, and he might keep coming back for more.”
“Is that what I am to you? Your salvation?”
“If you are to be my damnation, it’s an end I’ll happily meet.”

📌 “Don’t look at me like you wish you could regret me.”

📌”Happiness is my favorite thing he’s ever worn.”

📌 “I didn’t know I had a soul until you stole it from me.”

If I didn’t just convince you to read this book with those quotes up there… then you’re truly a lost cause and there’s nothing I can do for you.

What a debut. What a f debut.
*I stand. I applaud*

I. Need. More. 🥹😭

First and foremost, thank you to Delacorte Press for this arc. My opinions are my own.

I was so excited when I received this arc. I had heard that it was better than Fourth Wing so I signed up the second I could for the arc. Although I can see some comparisons between the two, they are completely different stories/vibes.
I have mixed feelings about this one, and I’m still trying to figure out my feelings for it.

I liked Elowen and Cayden. It took some time for them to grow on me, but by the end, I was rooting for them. I love the found family in this book too. At one point in the book, they reminded me slightly of Six of Crows, but I say that with a massive grain of salt. Although the MMC has the trait “touch her and you die”, he was never threatened by her best male friend which I loved.

The biggest problem I had with this book was the overall plot. When I started reading this, I generally thought I was missing a good 30 pages in my arc copy. We are dropped into this world without information or any world-building. The beginning was so rushed that I asked a friend who had just finished this arc herself if she found it rushed for her as well.

Overall, I liked it but didn’t love it. I think a lot of readers will end up enjoying this one.
3.75 stars

While the concept of this book was incredibly intriguing, the execution fell quite flat for me. I think it had a great deal of potential, but unfortunately ended up having several glaring issues throughout. First the pacing was off; the fist part of the book felt like it was dragging on for far too long, but then when the pacing started to pick up, it felt like whiplash. Everything happened suddenly and all at once.

I liked the concept of the characters, especially our two romantic interests, but again everything happened in such a way that it seemed forced and unbelievable. Again I think this has tremendous potential, but I do think a great deal of plot and character elements could have been more well thought out than they were. Hopefully these elements are addressed and improved upon in the next book.

STORY LOVES
♥️♥️♥️♥️.25
(rounded)
•
SPICE
🌶️ mild
•
RECOMMEND
💳 yes
•
“Fear the Flames” by Olivia Rose Darling is an exciting (new-to-me) fantasy romance. Darling previously released “Fear the Flames” independently in 2022.

The story follows Elowen Atarah, a princess with a bond to five dragons she was gifted as a baby, who escapes her father’s imprisonment. Elowen teams up with Commander Cayden Veles to find and release her dragons, who were also imprisoned at the same time. Elowen and Cayden embark on a journey filled with danger, passion, and a desire for vengeance.

Darling’s world-building is exceptional, creating a vivid and immersive setting that’s magical (pun intended). The characters are well-developed, with Elowen’s strength and resilience shining through as she transforms throughout “Fear the Flames.” The chemistry between Elowen and Cayden is strong, making their romance satisfying. Even though their romance is supposed to be “enemies-to-lovers,” I believe it’s more a collaboration of convenience with a ton of banter, which Cayden’s character excelled at. There were moments when I felt Elowen was a bit petulant, but her behavior didn’t distract from the storyline—even if I could do without it.

The plot is fast-paced and towards the end, full of twists, keeping me engaged. If you’re a fan of romantasies with dragons, seers, magic, and kingdoms at war, “Fear the Flames” is a definite read—even if you’ve read the independently published version. I’m looking forward to seeing what Olivia Rose Darling has in store next with the second installment of this series.

Thank you, NetGalley and Delacorte Press/Penguin Random House, for an opportunity to read “Fear the Flames” in advance.

“I don’t think love is always about letting someone walk away; sometimes it’s about chasing after them to the ends of the earth, even if the journey is treacherous.” . ݁₊🗡️ ⊹ . ݁˖🖤 . ݁

oh Fear the Flames, how I absolutely loved our time together <333 I’m already missing my lost princess and demon commander, so I guess that just means a reread is in order! 🫶🏼

This story follows Elowen Atarah, the exiled princess of Imirath and Queen of the secretly established kingdom of Aestilian. As a child, Elowen is ripped away from her dragons and imprisoned by her father due to a bond with them that cannot be broken. She wishes to get her dragons back no matter what, even if that means reluctantly agreeing to an alliance with the Commander of Vareveth, Cayden Veles. The two of them have a common enemy with different motives.

This was everything I could ask for in a romantasy! The world building was transportive and heavily detailed, the characters are diverse, the romance had me giggling and kicking my feet, the spice was HOT, and there are dragons! 🐉💞

I ended up tabbing, highlighting, and annotating my copy because I really wanted to take my time and get lost in this world, but if I hadn’t, I absolutely would have finished this over a weekend. I was hooked!

There are so many things I love about this book, but the two that stand out most are the found family and Elowen’s connection to her dragons. So much time has passed and she has gone so long without physically being around them, yet her love for them is unbreakable 🥺 This story had depth in terms of how it showcases love in different ways; found family, dragon bonds, romance, her people, and even smaller things like her love for pastries, fashion, reading 💌

You’ll love Fear the Flames if you love:
☁️ heists
☁️ found family
☁️ reluctant allies to lovers
☁️ dragon bonds

Thank you so much Dell Romance, Penguin Random House, Delacorte Press, and Olivia Rose Darling for sending me an arc! Fear the Flames is out on September 17th 🐉⚔️🖤🔥

📚ᎪᏒᏟ ᏒᎬᏉᎥᎬᎳ📚
4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

Fear the Flames is a fast-paced, slow-burn Romantasy with both a stabby FMC & MMC. It has a beautiful combination of world-building, plot, and character driven scenes that leave every chapter intriguing. The betrayals and plot twists throughout were utterly surprising - leaving me gasping with anticipation and tapping my kindle so aggressively, I thought it might break.

The angsty tension and flirty banter MAKES this book though. The slow burn romance is always swirling between the FMC Elowen & the MMC Cayden, so every interaction between these two is a surprise on whether it'll be sweet & understanding, possessive & steamy or dark & fierce. The family comradery between both Cayden's & Elowen’s party, leaves you giggling and I loved seeing the loyalty bond they form.

Elowen Atarah is every bit the fierce, stabby princess we want. She’s sassy, flirty, determined and can hold her own. But more than that, her growth throughout shows her vulnerabilities- the trauma she endured being locked up and pain and quilt from being separated by her dragons - which only makes her strength & development throughout that more powerful, fierce and every bit the Dragon Queen.

Cayden Veles is the next book boyfriend you need. He’s a stabby, morally grey commander with a flirty, cinnamon roll ONLY FOR HER edge!! I loved his POV chapters and getting to know more of his background. This man had me highlighting SO MANY SECTIONS of this book from his sweet, alluring promises to his dirty, sultry words with Elowen. Their characters are a perfect match for each other - pushing each other when needed, driving their needs, their desires and being the comfort they may need when others can’t be. Cayden’s personality brings out a familiar vibe for Elowen making the connection and comfortably these two form through trauma and understanding melt your heart and left me teary-eyed with every scene.

The transition between scenes at the end of the chapters were a little fast for me and left me a little puzzled on the timeline or scene jumps, but once I wrapped my head around what was going on, the characters & plot immediately drew me back in. You only get to see a little bit of Elowen’s 5 dragons but THEY. WILL. RISE and after leaving you in awe at the ending, I can't wait to see more of Elowen & her dragons in the next book!!

2.5/3 stars
I had such high hopes for this book, but the writing just felt so juvenile. The "lost" dragons seem to be a HUGE motivator for the FMC but are mentioned sparingly in visions and short descriptions. We don't even get a visual description until a third of the way into the book. I also personally didn't like the relationship between Elowen and Cayden. I typically love bantering between characters and an enemy-to-lovers trope, but it felt forced and made me dislike both characters; Cayden rarely let up on sexual innuendos in the first third of the book and Elowen was a brat just because she could be.

Beyond the characters, the writing made me stop fully reading at 40%. I skimmed the rest after that and I don't have regrets about DNFing Fear the Flames. There is very little world-building, which is unfortunate as it sounds like there are a number of cool beasties and locations that could have further tethered me to the world itself. What I got instead of world- and character-building was flowery crud that was trying to masquerade as romantic or poetic prose. These were statements that were added in by Darling to make an impact, talking about pain and the burdens the characters must bear, but they often didn't make sense or detracted from the actual sentiment, making me grimace each time they popped up (and they show up often). In addition, there were dialogues that just weren't needed - about bubbles in their cider drinks, or how much Elowen likes smutty books. They felt like filler that slowed the pacing of the book drastically.

I think this book has so much potential, and it needs some serious shaping in the world-building, character dialogue, and forced prose to be a book I would want to finish. A sincere thank you to NetGalley. Random House, and Olivia Rose Darling for giving me access to an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Princess Elowen is bonded to five dragons, but when that becomes too intimidating to her father, the King, he locks her up and chains her dragons elsewhere, attempting to break the bond between them. Her uncle helps her escape the castle and they have been in hiding for years, creating her own hidden kingdom where other mistreated people can come. She teams up with General Cayden to rescue her dragons and get revenge on the kingdom who kept her as a prisoner.

What I liked:
The banter and world building were top tier. The world was easy to understand and it had quite a bit of politics. It was a lost princess story where we didn't spend the first book or two guessing if the main character was the lost princess. We just went right into it! I liked that switch up.

The found family was amazing! Finnian is so supportive and treated her so well. Saskia and Ryder were such fun additions as well.

This is definitely a romance book and Elowen and Cayden's interactions were the focus. The banter was fun and their reluctant allies situationship is one of my favorite tropes. A lot of their dialogue is super quotable. Even though you are in Elowen's head (single POV) you always know what Cayden is thinking.

What I didn't like:
It was so long.
Not enough page time with dragons.
The book is open door, which is fine with me! But the romance got a little drug out because the book is so long.
Elowen really wants revenge. Totally understandable. And she got it, so we read a lot of violence with no remorse. That felt like a little much to me.
Triggers: child abuse

Overall, I went into this book thinking it would be a 5 star, but I think it was a 4 because there were enough things I would change. I loved the beginning so much! Pick this up if you love a kick-butt female main character!

So I felt like the book had potential. I really enjoyed the concept but felt like the deliverance was slow and nothing really happened until the very end of the book. The FMC was a pretty likable character. She was tough and I loved the fact that she was determined to be Queen. I feel like a lot of books nowadays have fmcs who have been thrust into Queenship but really don't want it and are timid or insecure. However, I could not get attached to the MMC. There was not a lot of depth to him and the only thing that he seemed interested in was having sex throughout the whole book. So if you're into that sort of thing then great but I guess this book just wasn't really for me.

I enjoyed the characters and banter a lot! However, the world building felt lack luster and the pacing was all over the place. It has really good potential and to the right audience this will be a hit.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of Fear the Flames. I appreciate the opportunity to have read it in advance to review. I wanted to love this one, I really did, but it was not for me. While I found some aspects I liked (the found family trope, FMC’s backstory and motivation) the character development was lacking and the connections between characters seemed so superficial, which took me out of the book almost completely. I had a hard time relating to most of the characters and felt like I didn’t really know them after spending nearly 400 pages with them.

I had a hard time wanting to pick this one up and continue reading. Just wasn’t invested. I urge readers to give it a try and form their own opinion, but I know there are other similar books out there that promise more and deliver.