melhara's Reviews > Iron Flame

Audiobook Comments:
As with the first book, this is one of the rare fantasy books that I don't mind listening to via audiobook (which I listened to at x1.4 speed). The more I think about it, the more I realize it must be because the writing style for this book is very easy to digest (unlike a lot of high-fantasy novels that have dense prose and detailed worldbuilding, which require that I take my time to read the physical novel to fully absorb the content). It also helps that the audiobook narrators were great. One of the downsides to the audiobook is that I did find it hard to keep track of all the characters (thankfully, most of the non-memorable ones were killed off, but still. Too many characters to follow, which also means a lot of side characters were left undeveloped).

What I didn't like:
As for the story itself, I didn't like this book nearly as much as the first book. I felt like the pacing was all over the place - certain parts dragged to the point where I was starting to feel bored, and other parts flew by so quickly, that I wasn't sure how we even got there in the first place.

Overall, though, the first half of the book was slow and repetitive with Violet constantly pining for Xaden while also trying to stay mad at him. I was also a tad disappointed that Xaden and Violet's relationship didn't seem to develop much in this novel - probably because Xaden wasn't present for the most part as they only saw each other once a week or so. It also bothered me that Xaden didn't seem to do much to win back Violet's trust aside from waiting for her to talk to him and ask him questions - he really should have just offered up information to her rather than wait for her to ask the right questions... For a couple who can read each other's minds, they sure don't know how to communicate and foster a healthy relationship.

What I did like:
Varrish was a great villain, Dain redeemed himself, the battle during the second half of the novel was intense, and the twist at the end has left me curious as to where this series is heading.

What I'm hoping for in the next book:
- Finding out if Violet will get a second signet and what it would be now that Andarna is grown.
- I'd love for Dain, Brennan, and Mira's characters to be more developed.
- I would also like for Violet's relationships with Andarna and Tairn to be more developed as well.
- I can't wait to see what will happen to Xaden and his relationship with Violet - I'd also love for more of Xaden's POV.