Fate of Flames (1) (The Effigies)

Before they can save the world from the monstrous phantoms, four girls who have the power to control the classical elements: earth, air, fire, and water must first try to figure out how to work together.

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384 pages

Average rating: 7

2 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Noell
Jan 26, 2025
6/10 stars
I received this free digital ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Dark YA
Here we go again! Just like the last book I reviewed, The Diabolic by S. J. Kincaid, this is a dark YA novel. And I love it! There is death. There is destruction. There are cowards. There are villains. There are broken characters. This book really gets into the darkness within people and the way it changes them and even corrupts them. It’s very realistic in that manner and very dark because of it. For that, I enjoyed this book.

Unique Concept
I quite enjoyed the concept behind the book: magically gifted fighters sent to protect the world from black shadowy monsters. It’s a very dark concept with a dash of advanced scifi tech thrown in. And I liked the basis behind the magic and the way the world was built around it. Though, me with my sciencey brain would have liked more explanation as to how everything worked. :p But that’s the difference between fantasy and scifi. Magic is just magic sometimes. Haha!

Nothing from the MC
I’m sure that the MC, Maia, is relatable to many readers. She’s young, excitable, nervous, and has gone through some serious trauma in her lifetime. However, I never connected with her. I never truly cared about her. To be honest, I would have preferred one of the other characters to have been the MC because they were more dynamic. And maybe that’s why: Maia was a very bland character and it put a bit of a damper on the story.

Lack of Answers
This story was very intricate. There was a lot going on in regards to Maia and within the world around her. That much was obvious throughout the story and kept me wanting the answers. I wanted to know what the villain’s motive was. I wanted to know what everyone’s dark secrets were. Aaaand nothing. -.- There are so few answers provided that it didn’t really feel like there was a conclusion at all. And I understand that this will be a trilogy, and the answers are likely given in the next books, but when so many questions are left unanswered, I find myself wondering if I even want to read the next books. :/

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