Nasir is the Prince of Death, assassinating those foolish enough to defy his autocratic father, the sultan. Zafira is the Hunter, disguising herself as a man when she braves the cursed forest of the Arz to feed her people.
The climactic action will confuse readers again with some last-minute realizations about what they're looking for and how to acquire it, but the setup for the sequel is exactly what's needed to tease up a new fan base.A New York Times bestseller TIME Magazine’s 100 best fantasy of all time So do the shapeshifting ifrit that dredge up the characters' struggles with loss and longing. The chilling landscape draws both the main characters in for very different reasons and all its shadowy features add to the tension. The island and the forest can think and feel, which is cool- they're possibly malevolent, but not entirely. When it's clear they'll be on the same quest, you'll be anxious for them to meet and for the arrows and knives - and, eventually, sparks - to fly. So will the main characters, Zafira and Nasir. Magical elements, immortal beings, places, and the folklore of the Arawiya aren't always presented clearly for the reader - you'll consult the map at the front of the book to center yourself far more than you normally would - but this world will still draw you in. There are so many cool flourishes to this debut author's ancient Arabia-inspired fantasy world that you can forgive the parts of the story that confuse or could use more polish. Nasir begins to open his heart and see himself as something other than a monster. Zafira grows from someone who hides who she is to someone who embraces her power and her identity.
Other mature content involves a brief bout of passionate kissing and innuendo. There are also repeated mentions of a tongue cut out, of a mother's death, a father's madness that led to his family killing him in self-defense, and talk of a village burned down and many dying from chemical weapons. There's a scene of torture with a hot poker with talk of a character enduring a childhood of the same thing.
There are many fights with arrows, knives, and scimitars with the death of two people close to the main characters and throats slit. The main characters - one, a huntress named Zafira and the other, a trained assassin and prince named Nasir - head for a cursed island where they meet lots of ifrits and worse. It takes place in a fictitious land, but incorporates some fantasy elements from the ancient Arabian tradition - like the shape-shifting, evil ifrits. Parents need to know that We Hunt the Flame is the start of a fantasy-romance series by first-time author and Muslim American woman Hafsah Faizal.
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