Book Review: The Torch Keepers by Hosanna Emily

The King's blue flame quivers as a new fire arises, and Kadira must hold fast to his torch. It's destiny; she's a torch keeper.

A fiery revolution sweeps across the kingdom of Erkeos, and each person must choose a side. Kadira, a girl set apart to serve the King, finds her city engulfed in the Liberation's emerald flames. Her blue eyes mark her as the enemy, and she flees from death. It stalks her anyway. When she meets Rekem, the Liberation warrior sent to kill her, she rebels against the King's ways. Two armies collide; indecision isn't an option. As hearts and lives hang in the balance, Kadira and Rekem could bring destruction or liberation to the entire kingdom.

My rating:

Wow. To say that this was unexpected would be an understatement.

So, the writing style was very good, though at times it kinda tried to pull me away from the story. Rekem seemed to have almost no personality. I was thoroughly confused through the first several chapters. (The whole concept of torch keepers and first names and such evaded me, so idk, maybe I'm just not super perceptive, haha!)

But while I went into the book expecting a normal fantasy . . . it wasn't. It was so much better.

This book is a completely clean (I'd recommend it for most any age!) allegory. And once I figured that out, I pretty much knew what would happen. The plot twists didn't surprise me. And that was okay in this instance. But y'all . . . oh my goodness. The allegorical elements just . . . they gripped me. They wouldn't let go.

And it made my heart ache in the best way possible.

God is going to use this book.

Maybe it's not quite as refined as others, but it's obvious that the author poured her heart and soul into the novel—and she wanted God's name to be glorified. I can't wait to see what comes next from this author.

Go read this book! It's a wonderful reminder for everyone.