This review may contain some spoilers for Flame In The Mist, read at your own risk!
“As swift as the wind. As silent as the forest. As fierce as the fire. As unshakable as the mountain.”
Hello book readers!
A week or so ago I had the wonderful opportunity to go to a meet and greet for not only Renee Ahdieh, but Sabaa Tahir and let me tell you it was GLORIOUS! They are both such role models for my own writing and books! Their characters have inspired some of my very own and I still can’t believe I got to meet both of them!
Renee is truly a remarkable human being!
She knew every single name to all her very favorite poets and writers, that it blew my mind! Only because the names of these people were SO HARD TO PRONOUNCE. I’m definitely one of those people that need help with pronouncing names! Renee tends to have characters that have names that are pretty difficult for me to say sometimes, but I still love them!
“But ingenuity could be a weapon, in all its forms. Her mind could be a sword. Her voice an axe. Her fury could ignite a fire.”
Haritto Mariko is truly a bright shining star in the heavens! Her character is exactly hero I strive to be like. Mariko is not just kind, but willing to do anything for those she loves. She is the true hero of this story, and I can only wish I was as smart, and full of so much wisdom!
The women power in this novel is INCREDIBLE.
“But for now? They would be two girls racing across the rooftops of Inako, with freedom coiling their hair and their shadows fading into the dusk. Together.”
One of the most divine qualities in a book is reading about powerful women who change the world, and there are MANY in this book! Renee knows how to write a story full of women you can’t help, but want to be like! Mariko, Yumi, Suke, Isa, and even Raiden’s mother, Kanako. Each and every single one of them play a part in this story, and it’s amazing to watch their stories play out!
Don’t worry, I have not forgotten about the men!
Okami (aka Takeda Ranmaru, I know it’s confusing!) is not my favorite in this book. Only because Renee wrote him as such a physically powerful character in the first book, and intimidating, that wasn’t quite there in this book! But that might have to do with the fact that he’s getting beaten to death most of the book, so….I still really enjoyed this character, even though to me, there were a few flaws here and there!
Ranmaru (aka Tsuneoki, again confusing!) appears again and I wish that Renee had done a tad bit more with his character! I did love his loyalty to Okami and the bond that he shares with him, and also his sister, and with the Black Clan! Tsuneoki is a natural leader and it was cool to see that play out more in this book!
Kenshin, the Dragon of Kai, is back and more idiotic than ever. Like, COME ON MAN. You are a freaking samurai, how is it possible for you to be manipulated so easily?! You do kind of feel bad for the guy, because he loses the only person he has ever loved, minus his sister, and I can’t even imagine how that would feel. But still, it’s no excuse for some of the things he does in this book.
Okay, now I gotta talk about the character that was probably my favorite out of this whole book, and that was Raiden! I know, I KNOW! I shouldn’t even be saying that because of all the terrible things he has done for his brother, who is a sickly twisted emperor, but I fell hard for his character.
I loved how he treated Mariko, and how he genuinely cared about what happened to his people, even though he isn’t the rightful heir to the throne. Everything about him just tore at my heart, and I looked forward to his chapter’s the most along side Mariko’s!
“A thing of beauty. A love stronger than fear and deeper than the sea.”
This romance isn’t my absolutely favorite, and it wasn’t even my favorite in the first book, Flame In The Mist. I don’t know what it is, but I just couldn’t quite picture Mariko and Okami together! Mariko is such a heroic character, that I found Okami lacking. I don’t think that Okami quite deserved Mariko, but towards the end of this book I started to warm up to him, and he earned my approval!
“The adage must be true. Even in war, flowers will bloom.”
This line automatically makes me think of Mulan and I LOVE IT!
Renee’s world building and descriptiveness always blows my mind! She does a wonderful job describing something to the reader, and you instantly picture it in your mind. The tastes, the smells, the colors. Renee’s books are truly poetic, and I always get sucked right into it!
If you have yet to read this duology, you should! Especially if you enjoy heart stopping moments, thieves stealing in the night, powerful women downed in fine silks, and demons created by moonlight.
I gave this book a 4/5 rating!
The Infernal Queen 