Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early copy of this book! Below is my honest review.

I don't really have a ton to say about this book. It was a pretty solid read. I loved the concept of this girl (Elowen) who bonded with not just one, but five dragons as a child. Only for her to be separated from them as she's taken to another country (to escape being assassinated) while her dragons remain locked in a prison. She becomes allies with Cayden, who is technically her enemy in order to get her dragons back. In exchange, he wants her to use her dragons to end the war brewing between their two home kingdoms. Despite not knowing how her dragons will react, she agrees as all she wants is to free them.

I do wish there was a bit more world building. We know magic and dragons exist, but there isn't much lore about that. I also wish we got to see a "weaker" side of Elowen because it didn't feel like she had any flaws to her. Don't get me wrong, I love a strong, powerful, kick ass female lead. But I wanted to see a vulnerable side to her, some flaws, to make her more human and less "all mighty queen of the dragons", if that makes sense. Also, I wasn't a huge fan of the romance. Not to say it was bad or anything, but I wish there was more build up to the relationship. (And the baby names just bothered me so much for some odd reason...)

Overall, I'd recommend you to read this! I can't wait to see what happens in the next book.

Loved Fear The Flames! BUT… I feel like having read the endie version and absolutely loving and raving about it, set me up for a bit of a let down.
Loved the dynamics between the FMC and MMC. I felt like the romance was a little rushed and the banter was missing in most of the story which I was so disappointed in. I loved the morally grey strong fmc and an equally morally grey love interest who would burn the world down for Elowen. As well as the found family trope!
I cliff hanger at the end was removed and I left like that kind of took away from the “I need the next book now” I will always love Elowen not matter what I just felt like some of changes where pretty big but took away from snag I loved so much in the endie version. As always I
Couldn’t put this book down. Highly recommend and I'm looking forward to the next book(s) in the series!

950 page indie to 384 traditionally published and felt like I didn’t miss a single thing from before. I want to know more details about why / how Cayden was drawn to el, but man, do I really care? Because Cayden is life.

BUT when two morally grey people find themselves intertwined with one another >>>>>

☆ My thoughts:
I love a good romantasy and Fear the Flames brought all the romance!! Cayden (MMC) is known to be a demon but he is such a sweetheart for Elowen (FMC) and the way he took care of her whenever she needed him (even if she acted like she didn’t) was absolutely precious. I will say the romance was very insta-love and there was no tension or build up to it which isn’t my favorite thing in the world. Also this book is SPICY. Eventually I’d like to share spice page modifications, but currently I don’t have the page numbers, just the chapters.

The other relationship that was one of my favorite parts of the book was the platonic friendship between Elowen and her best friend who was more like a brother. I really loved the found family and the friend group that formed throughout the book. I actually wish there was more about the friend group because I loved it so much.

This is a four book series so I am hoping in the next ones, we get more world building and dragons. A lot of the time, I was questioning why something was happening and felt like I never got an answer. Like Elowen is bonded to dragons and has been the only person to bond to a dragon since the gods disappeared. But why is she bonded to them? What happened to the gods? I’m hoping we will get more answers in the next books. I just felt like over all I got left with a lot more questions than I started with. The dragons also weren’t a huge part of the book until about the last 20% which was a bit disappointing considering the book is marketed as a dragon book.

I do think this is a good start to a series and I really enjoyed my time reading it. I just hope I get some of my questions answered and we see more dragons in the next book!


☆ I’d recommend this book if you love:
✨ Romantasy
💕 Found Family
🎀 Girly girl/sassy FMC
🌶 Spicy scenes

☆ Spice: 🌶 🌶🌶
☆ Language: explicit language
☆ When to read: fall/winter 🍂❄️

Fear the Flames will be published on September 17, 2024!

Thank you to Olivia Rose Darling, Random House Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC!

This fantasy novel made me feel such a wide range of emotions that I am still processing. I laughed, I cried, and I very frequently wished that fictional men were real. For me, the balance of the friendships and found family within this story created such a beautiful tapestry that just made me want to live inside this story.

Elowen as a character has been through so much and while it clearly affected her and her life, it never stopped her from being empathetic, loyal, and caring to the ones she loved. The representation of anxiety through Elowen in this story was also so relatable that I actually had to put down the book a few times. Elowen’s best friend, Finnian, as well as Cayden helped Elowen deal with her anxiety in a calming and understanding way and it was amazing to read.

The banter and tension between Cayden and Elowen was also so phenomenal, I absolutely loved every single scene between the two of them. They both understood each other’s complexities and histories and completely accepted one another, faults and all. The found family between the five main characters was also a beautiful thing to watch, adding another amazing layer to this story.

The magic within this novel was fairly minimal, but to me this only added to the character development and story as it was more about the individuals and less about the magic. However, the presence of dragons is never a bad thing and watching Elowen struggle to deal with her tenuous relationship with her dragons further showed the depth of her character.

I was so sad to leave these character and this story and I am just eagerly waiting for the next book to be released :).

Truthfully, I was looking VERY forward to this book. Unfortunately, it fell extremely short, and I'm still trying to find the words to explain it effectively. I DNF'd at 27% because I could not wrap my head around ANYTHING that was happening.

There is zero proper establishment of the world. The worldbuilding is extremely messy, and nothing is properly established. The first chapter was good, but it quickly devolved as nothing was given a proper time to unfold. We receive at least seven major changes even before we hit 15%. Typically, it shouldn't be a problem, but when we have events happening so quickly, it takes away the opportunity to learn about the current setting. We don't learn how she became queen of her current kingdom, Aestilian, nor do we get a properly established Aestilian. It feels massively clunky, and we move on from Aestilian extremely fast. Then, she's supposed to head to another kingdom, Vareveth, and the journey takes roughly two to three pages, including a fight scene had happens a page before they reach Vareveth. She has a brief panic attack which is shown to be a huge deal, but is just brushed off a page or so later, and we quickly move on from that, too. But we quite literally do NOT know why anything that's happened had happened. Why are the kingdoms warring? What's Aestilian supposed to be like? How has no one discovered them--that fog detail made no sense, nor did the mountain thing, because everything else is just too filled with plot holes.

There is also just a lot of mentions of coffee and her dependency on coffee than anything real, like her dragons or how she's going to rescue them. It also feels clunky with the worldbuilding because they could have established a drink relative to the world, but they chose coffee instead. The banter is also just very mid-level. Occasionally, it's good, but it doesn't leave a long lasting effect. She shoots a comment, he responds, she retorts, he smirks, rinse and repeat. And really, there isn't anything properly established with Cayden, too, because we're told he's a commander and he's very fearsome, but quite literally, all he's done is follow Elowen around shopping and smirking. They all read like children, too, despite being in their mid to early twenties.

Even my review is messy because I can't even describe my thought process being thrown from one thing to another with no warning, and not even in a good way. Sigh.

**4.5**
Thank you for allowing me to read this early!

I don't even know where to start.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend; reluctant allies to lovers, dragons, NA, found family, who hurt you. The writing felt good (language was not too simple nor too complex), the dialogue and characters and their relationships were *chefs kiss*. I was not expecting to love the platonic relationship or our MFC and her male best friend, but now I want it in more stories. Not too much banter where it isn't believable for them too fall in love- we actually have some healthy emotional discussions. I just love them.

The bad as*ery of Celaena Sardothien, the dragon mama of Daenerys, and the perfect amount of banter.

One of my new favorite romantasy's- a great balance of romance and fantasy. This book actually took me longer than normal to read because there wasn't fluff for me to skim. Being in a book slump, I was surprisingly hooked chapter one and the pacing kept me going. We had our spice or mush scene, then immediately something happens and we're back to the quest at hand.

Bonus points for not ending on a cliff hanger* although I am sad it's over and foaming at the mouth already for book two.

I have been meaning to read this for a long time so I was super excited to get this arc of the traditionally published version! I thought it was great! The FMC was badass and awesome while still east to relate too. I loved the chemistry between the main characters and the reluctant ally troupe worked so well. Plus who doesn’t love dragons! The world building was interesting and unique as well plus there was a perfect balance of plot and romance. I would highly recommend this and will be adding to our library!

This one is beyond better than the first.

We get the same spunk from our main characters and side characters, but more spice, angst and background on our MFC and MMC.

Some plot holes were patched up perfectly in this one.

THE PROLOGUE WAS AMAZING.

I love escaping into this world, cannot recommend this enough !

I just wanted to preface this by saying that I’m so grateful to the publisher for receiving the traditional version of this Indie book! I was lucky enough to read it and this, as always, will be my unbiased review!
____________________________________________

Rating: 4/5
Spice: 2.5
Characters: 3/5
World building 2.5/5

Before I get to what I thought about the content of the book I wanted to say — I won’t lie, the first 27-30% of the story had me on the fence. There were some instances of the MMC piling on the banter THICK before we even really get to know him which is something I don’t particularly like in my books (for me it was bordering on insta love which..I don’t like as a slow burn girlie lol) HOWEVER, I will say that after that mark the story did a complete 180 and had me HOOOOOOKED.

Elowen, our FMC, is by far one of the most badass women I’ve read in fantasy. She doesn’t suffer what most FMCs do, which is a case of lots of telling and no showing. Nope. Elowen will slice, dice, and burn. She takes no shit and she wields her weapons well and I LOVE HER for it. She may be the lost princess but she is no pampered one. She is such a loyal and fierce sister and friend. Even deadlier enemy. All she wants is her dragons back (after she was ripped from them and stolen from her) and she’ll do ANYTHING to get them back. Her journey is exciting and fun and SEXY

Which brings me to my next point: Cayden Veles, Commander of Vareveth 🤭 and by far one of the deadliest MMCs I’ve read. He will kill you just for breathing in his general area the wrong way and it will be torturous. He didn’t become commander other than him earning it and he gladly gives that deadly version of himself to Elowen in a contract that benefits them both. Getting her dragons, and him using them and her as an ally in the war that’s brewing.

Their banter starts off from the very beginning, and it is worth it!! I loved their tension banter, the stolen glances, the hate but not hate in their eyes, the way they cared for one another..it was truly delicious!! From their banter to the way they both have the tortured souls and no trust to give but give it to one another anyway was done so beautifully.

Overall I absolutely loved the book and recommend to those who adore dragons, forbidden romance, found family, SOME magic, and prophecies!

If you're reading this; Please know this is pretty much my love letter to FtF <33 This is my soulbook. I will never stop recommending this to everyone I know and screaming it from the rooftops. I think this is branded on my heart. This story feels like home to me. This story feels safe.

I have read Fear the Flames 4 times this year. FOUR!! And I have absolutely no regrets. (I read the indie version 3 times; crazy I know. And a eARC of the new traditionally published version. Also crazy, I am forever grateful.)

The new version included so much more SPICE (thank you, Olivia) and featured a lot more of the dragons! I thought the new dragon information sprinkled in made the plot have way more substance and was intriguing. I love both that both of the MC were morally grey and the BANTER! My gosh! *chefs kiss*

I am happy the new version kept the bones of the original story but basically beefed it up some. I am very very happy with the changes and cannot wait for book two!

Thank you Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the e-arc of Fear the Flames

thank you NetGalley and Ballantine for the Arc <3

This is my second read of FtF, my first being the indie version. While the indie version was good, decisions to polish the writing and add new content in this trad version brought much more depth to the story. The new prologue and dragon content fleshed out Elowen’s character better, and learning, at least in part, about Cayden’s past gave him more dimension. It felt like experiencing a whole new book in the best way possible.

Side note: (this was in both versions) after seeing what she did to Robick, I know Elowen is very capable of dark things and Olivia is very capable of writing it. I expect nothing less in the following books.

Side side note: I love how it’s “reluctant allies to lovers” but Cayden constantly makes it clear how willing he is 🥰

⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌶🌶🌶

An endearing romantasy with a pinch of magic, all the vibes and even more banter! It's a high tension, but low stakes adventure with dragons on the line.

The found family in this one is one of my favorites because it's a blend of both of our main characters which I found refreshing.

It was pretty medium paced, mainly character driven versus plot driven. I loved the interactions between Elowen and Cayden, it definitely drove the story for me and the spice was SPICING. I had a great time reading it.

I would highly recommend, it definitely caters to all of our fave tropes, so don't pass this one up!

Thank you Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the e-arc of Fear the Flames. My honest review is below:

I felt drawn into the story immediately. I loved that we met the MMC early on. I enjoyed the banter between the FMC and MMC, the found family between both, and the court intrigue and prophecy aspect. Both Elowen and Cayden are morally grey. I liked that they were on equal footing with this but their difference in station contributed to the feeling of a forbidden romance. The romance between them was somewhat of a slow burn given their forced proximity but the pay off is there and satisfying. We are left with more to learn about the prophecy, relationship with the dragons, and how they will navigate the future. I was engrossed in the book and it included many tropes that I enjoy. I will most definitely read the next books in the series when they are released. I highlighted several quotes from the book and had a good time reading it. One thing I noticed while reading was sometimes things were told more than shown. On a few occasions I felt the need to re-read a sentence to make sure I had not missed anything.

I was finally able to get my gritty little claws on an eARC!!!!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, DellRomance, and Penguin Random House for giving me an eARC....y'all made a girl scream at her day job receiving this email. This is legit my Super Bowl of receiving my MOST anticipated read of 2024 (and my favorite read of 2023) as an eArc.

Where. Do. I. Start?????? first of all.....5⭐...period honey

a lil sum sum: Elowen Atarah, an exiled princess, yearns for vengeance against her tyrannical father. Separated from her five bonded dragons and forging a kingdom of her own, she seizes a perilous chance at redemption. Teaming up with her father's most formidable enemy, the ruthless Commander Cayden Veles, Elowen embarks on a high-stakes heist to reclaim her dragons and release revenge on her father who put her in chains. With her "Band of Thieves" turned family, she'll risk everything to rewrite her fate.

:༝༚༝༚જ⁀➴𓇢𓆸You know that book that took a piece of your soul and ran away with it? That is what this book is to me. It ripped me open and plucked a piece of me and will hold onto it forever and I am not even the slightest bit kidding. I picked this book up last summer when Olivia self-published and before finishing it on my Kindle I bought the physical copy on Amazon. Some books make you feel something after reading and you rate it 4+ stars and go on with your day, and then some books will have you staring at the wall with the smallest words etched into paper.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥I hold the self-published copy close to my heart because it feels like that first hug after not seeing your best friend for years, the traditional copy feels like your long-distance best friend telling you they're moving home and you get to see them as much as you want. There are so many small details that Olivia included this time around that are so touching and so much more meaningful.

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧This book does not shy away from tropes and microtropes and honestly the biggest stan. Purr Queen
💚Found Family (at its mf core)
💚Touch Her, You Die/ Touch Him, You Die (and i cri)
💚This aint just fantasy and romance, we have Political Plotlines
💚Humor and Banter to the gods
🌶️🌶️🌶️Nah she's spicy...books don't usually make me blush bc I can read an RH plot and not bat an eye, but the spice had me giggling and red like h-...in church

This re-release was everything I wished and hoped for and I can't wait for anyone and everyone to get their hands on it!!! She's out to the world on September 17th!

I will give you the tiniest pass (with the BIGGEST side eye) by saying the self-published copy wasn't your cup of tea. I will not give you ANY MERCY on any criticism of the trad copy... I will indeed send Elowen and her stabby tendencies after you.

friend me on GoodReads for a funnier review with gifs!!!

debut WHERE????? this was positively scrumptious. dragons and romance and danger oh my! what a perfectly perfect combination of all my favorite things in a fantasy, i cant wait to get my hands on the physical copy and the sequel needs to be here asap rocky

This story really did it for me .
I am a fantasy girly through and through , and this made me feel all the things !
I felt like I was on drugs because of how addicted and hooked I was ! I could NOT PUT THIS DOWN !

SUMMARY :
This story follows Elowen Atarah, Princess Of Imirath who is linked to five dragons 🐉. She was a princess who was turned prisoner , who becomes a runway princess forced to leave her dragons behind . She becomes queen to a kingdom she forged , but she must leave to seek revenge. She meets the commander of the strongest army, Cayden Veles , who she forges an alliance with to seek out her vengeance. They become allies with a common enemy at mind , going along to pull the biggest heist . Along the way she meets friends who turn into family .

REVIEW:

This is my soul book ! It crept into me , and completely devoured, and took over me ! I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I finished .. The characters, THE PLOT !
The character developments and found family in this was my favorite. To be someone who feels like she has no home and was alone , to finding a family and a place of her own warmed my HEART ! Elowen is such a strong character , and I love her ! Cayden is brudy and dark , but when it came to her , he completely dropped this persona and opened up FOR HER ! THE BANTER WAS EVERYTHING! I was blushing and giggling and kicking my feet unable to handle there interactions !
Can’t forget the word building , it was nice to feel like I was not in the same place for long , and I imagine myself there with them ! I was completely immersed!
Ugh please go read this , it’s literally one of my new favorites. I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy !

Can’t wait for book 2 !

TROPES :
• Found Family
• Reluctant allies to lovers
•Vengeance
•Touch her and die
• ONE BED !

ARC Review-

WOW! I had the privilege of reading and ARC of the re-releasing debut novel by Olivia Rose Darling, and I am absolutely floored by the wonder of this book. Originally self published in 2022, Fear the Flames will be traditionally published Fall of this year. 5 dragons, a lost princess, a bond that can’t be broken, a rakish commander, heist hijinks, what more could you ask for in a romantasy?

The story revolves around lost/exiled Princess Elowen Atarah determined to take back what is rightfully hers while also seeking severe vengeance against those who thought they could control her. In a world where trust comes few and far between, Elowen finds herself balancing court etiquette to appease the masses while plotting with her new inner circle to restore her Bond and unleash her fury.
What starts out as a reluctant alliance with the Commander Cayden Veles, soon begins to evolve into a passionate romance that cannot be denied, no matter how much Elowen may initially resist their connection. Will their feelings for one another be enough to stand the trials they face, or will they succumb to the challenges that continue to barrel towards them?

I LOVED this book! I am absolutely dying for the next in the series already, and this one hasn’t even hit the shelves yet. This book is perfect for fans of SJM, Raven Kennedy, and Charissa Weaks. This will be the next big Dragon fantasy book of 2024/2025, of that I have no doubt. I dreaded coming to the end of book 1, knowing we have no information for book 2 yet. I did not want to leave the world Darling has created within these pages. If you want to rage, cry, gasp, swoon, laugh, this is 100% the book for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

There were some elements of this book that I enjoyed and some elements that weren’t for me. I thought the plot itself was very intriguing. I liked the added element of the main character’s dragon bond and her connection to her dragons. I also enjoyed the found family aspect and getting to see how the characters interacted with one another.

Although I enjoyed the overall plot, I was hoping for a little more showing, rather than telling, when it came to each of the character’s personalities. I felt like there were different facts stated throughout the story about each character, but I would’ve liked to see more examples of them behaving as such. There were times when a character’s personality or closeness with another character was only described in words rather than exemplifying their actions or bond, and as a result I didn’t connect with the characters as much as I wanted to.

I was also hoping for a bit more ground to be laid for the fmc and mmc’s relationship. It felt like they were both pretty untrusting of one another but then they very quickly flipped and begin to trust and feel comfortable with one another. I didn’t personally feel the chemistry between them because there wasn’t much build up to their relationship at all. Knowing the limited details of Elowen’s past, it was difficult for me to get on board with the fact that she right away felt so comfortable and trusting of Cayden. I thought he would have to work a little more to show her that she can trust and rely on him. Overall I think this book has some potential, it just wasn’t for me.

indie version (april 2024):

this was such a cute and fun read omg these characters will have a sanctuary in my heart! i can’t wait to read the traditionally published edition coming out in september!

UPDATE: YALL I GOT AN ARC I GOT AN ARC AHH!!

traditional version (july 2024):

at first i was kinda bummed about the announcement of changes to the universe in the new edition because i loved the indie version so much < /3 but i'm happy to report that liv DID NOT disappoint!! and the edits and new content definitely made it an even more captivating read. i was absolutely thrilled that we got to dive into the mmc's backstory, explore the fmc's dragons further, and truly feel the tension of their forbidden love. there was definitely more romance and spice, which i noticed right away. honestly, i'm getting kinda over spice in my fantasy books because it's often lackluster compared to fanfic, but the spice here was spot on. cayden the man you areee

and the FLUFF? it was adorable and made me smile throughout. the small, tender moments between characters, the little acts of kindness, and the playful banter added a lightness to the story that balanced out the more intense scenes perfectly.

so definitely pick this up if you’re looking for a cute partners in crime romance with heartfelt friendships set in a magical world with dragon sidekicks and badass heists !!