The Candle and the Flame

I rarely pre-order books, so I simply woke up with The Candle and the Flame on my kindle.Since I had no book to keep my attention, I decided to start it. It's a pretty long book, yet I read it in two days because I couldn't - wouldn't - put it down.Magic in the Middle East - Djinns of all kind and mysterious powers and fires.Fatima was an orphan adopted by a simple family. After an attack by a type of Djinn, her and her sister were the only ones left alive - this made them sort of famous, in the city. We witness a sort of rebirth of the main female lead, after the death of a person very close to her. This death is actually what unleashes everything; it's the starting point of the action. Up until then, the author was simply getting us acquainted with her characters, building up the world where everything will happen.This is the moment my newest beau, Zulfikar, makes his appearance. I loved that it wasn't love at first sight. Even though certain things had to happen, the connection between the two main characters formed at a regular pace.So many things happen and I'm so happy the author wrote it as a standalone, instead of a duology/trilogy/series because it would have taken away from the story.I can't recommend it enough and this is a definite reread for me! 5+++ stars, new favorite of 2019!

I loved this book! So much female empowerment happening! So much women supporting women and growing and discovering themselves, oh, it was wonderful. The culture was beautiful and I loved learning so many new Urdu and Hindi and Arabic words. And the food! Do NOT read this book on an empty stomach!Let's discuss how great it was that the djinn world is a matriarchal society! And the families that were so accepting and loving, no matter what! Yes, there were villains, and they were clearly marked because they were anti-anything-different. I loved the support between certain members of the raj family. The maharani was a true queen, despite her lower upbringing. Everything was just so advanced and where the real world needs to be even though it isn't. It was a fantasy world to dream of.There were only a couple of complaints. First, the romance was a little forced, and even though Fatima Ghazala acknowledges the fact that their relationship seems built on nothing, it still wasn't enough for me. Maybe because I'm not djinn. I dunno.Second, certain key elements were only alluded to, and in such a subtle way that it was too subtle? And I wanted more explanation? Like, everything to do with the maharajah's and Emir's reports and spy system. That all could've been explained more. Especially when you get to the end and things unravel before the reader, I felt like "Oh, hey, wish I had known some of this sooner, it would've made more sense"But overall? STUNNING debut!

Wonderful, imaginative worldbuilding that brings the Silk Road town of Noor to life, with its people, architecture and food (my word, this book made me HUNGRY!)The magic and story are inspired by Middle Eastern culture and folk tales, a refreshing change that expands the reader's imagination beyond the majority of largely Euro-centric fantasy novels.Azad's voice is a welcome addition to the genre! I can wait to read what she writes next!

I ordered this expecting a (hopefully) pleasant fantasy novel in a Middle-Eastern setting, a change of pace from the usual European-dominated fantasy tropes. What I got far exceeded my expectations. It was full of clever dialogue, complex people, and wonderfully warm relationships but also very real and sometimes fractious ones. The broad outlines of the plot had some predictable elements, but the people had fairly few and I really enjoyed their richness. I also really enjoyed the multicultural aspects of the setting, centering in Islamic faith and mythology but deliberately drawing from a wide swath of eastern cultures. It was an unexpectedly delightful read, and I'm going to be recommending it to my friends and giving it as gifts to a bunch of them.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t speak a word of another language. The world that Nafiza has spun for us is so wondrous that it draws you in, as you stumble over desserts that drip with sweetness, into a world built so much like our world, but slightly not. The Silk Road united many people and the town of Noor sits on it.Fatima Ghazala is an amazing heroine and nothing feels forced in this adventure story, with the hint of love and romance in it. There is court intrigue. There is friendship. And there is food. Lots of food.Great debut novel and I hope to see many more.

Best thing about the book? World building/culture detail etc.Worst thing about the book? Character development and story telling.This could have been a great story instead of just a good one with some glaring editorial issues. This book wasn't sure what it wanted to be, I think. The main protagonist's character development is boring, predictable, perfect. This could have been a MarySue djinn centered romance fanfiction, and read like one. I wouldn't have spent $12 for it.Started out so strong too. Fell apart halfway. Ended like fanfiction.Not great. Not bad. I wish I had waited for it to go on sale though

I've read a lot of books and honesty, I don't think I've ever read anything quite like this. It feels modern, full of women who draw strength from within, but with the air of an old tale told by grandmothers to their granddaughters. Because of this, it can be a little difficult to read mindlessly, but it makes the audiobook AMAZING! Fantastic and I cannot recommend enough.

So surprised people aren't talking about this yet. Featuring an amazingly strong female lead, Fatima Ghazala is a warrior! The writing style draws you intimately into the story and you're so caught up in what's happening; the true marks of a great story. Yeah...I fangirled a bit. <3 Can't wait for more from this author!

This was such an evocative read, Azad brought the world to life with the sound of the Azaan, the scents of the marketplaces and the colours of the flowing dupattas. The world building was outstanding, with every paragraph I could see the city of Noor emerging like an oasis in the desert. From the opening line I was drawn in. It was such an interesting premise that I as intrigued enough to forget the slight shiver I always get down my back every time Djinns are mentioned (curtesy of scary bedtime stories from childhood sleepovers at my cousin's house!)The exploration of the importance of names was fascinating, as the story progresses the significance of names becomes more and more apparent.As the story unfolded I got more and more invested in Fatima's story and the mystery of her past. The characters were fantastically well written and I loved that Fatima was blunt in her honesty, she was always making those around her uncomfortable, embarrassed or confused. Often that was Zulfikar!Pacing of a book is so important in any book and even more so if it is a standalone, as there isn’t often enough time left to fix it further along a storyline. So if pacing is off in a standalone it is very noticeable. Thankfully the pacing in this book was spot on. This is a book of characters more so than plot, the characters thoughts, feeling and beliefs is what we focus on. Yet it does not feel stagnant at all, the plot flows beautifully and there is in fact plenty of things happening. I never felt the urge to skim to get to the next part. The characters and the plot kept me engaged from start to finish.I feel the writing style helped in this as it is in 3rd person so we got to observe more than one character and were able to get a better understanding of the whole. The writing was really apt for the setting. It's a strange thing to say but it felt like the writing was almost poetic, and that in turn enriched the story.At the heart of this story is a story of love; a love between a mother and child, love between two sisters, even if that bond is forged by circumstance instead of blood. The love between friends and soulmates, but most of all it is the love for a place that can only be felt by a weary traveller who has finally found his home. And it is a story of what we will sacrifice for this love.I absolutely adored this book and would highly recommend this book to everyone and especially to those who love their fantasy to be rich and evocative.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"Each moment is a universe, infinite in it's possibilities''"...but not just any light. Noor means heavenly light. The kind of light you see in a mother's face the first time she sees her child"insta: @nelthewhichcraftsbooks

Beautiful book, the writing was amazing.I've loved the story, the descriptions were good, but it seemed to me like the author wrote the story thinking the reader would already know about the middle East culture, which made it sometime a bit more difficult to understand.Even tho, it did not made the story any less enjoyable or beautiful. I didn't relate much to the characters, but again I think the biggest problem here was again the cultural difference between myself and the characters.I liked that difference even if it sometimes made the story harder to understand/relate to.I definitely recommend the book !

Ich liebe es!!