I’ve read my fair share of romantasy at this point, and while I’m still a fan of the genre, I’m also getting more picky. It’s not enough anymore for the book to be a quick and exciting read, hitting some of my favorite romantasy tropes along the way. I feel like I need something more now for the books to stick around for longer than the few days it takes me to read them, something to make them stand out from the rest.

A Fire in the Sky, while it had its moments, unfortunately, didn’t quite stand out for me. Everything ended up feeling quite shallow, from the world-building to the main character, to even the romance itself. While I can often ignore shallow plots or worlds in these types of stories, I need the romance to then truly stand out. It means I spend less time focusing on the things that are not as necessary for this main romance plot, like the functioning of the world or the depth of the main character’s motivations. The romance, while intriguing, just wasn’t developed enough for me, and I was frustrated by how little time the characters actually spent together in the latter half of the book. We had an interesting start, but we never really built from there. The feelings between the main characters still strengthened somehow despite this, which just ended up making things feel too quick on top of that.

However, I have to admit there were a few things I did like. I ended up enjoying how one of the reveals played out, even if the reveal itself was extremely obvious. It made for some interesting perspectives and moments, and I liked the dynamic it seemed to introduce between the two main characters, even if I’m not sure that’ll last after the ending. I can’t go into much more detail without spoiling though!

In the end, while I enjoyed the afternoon I spent with the book, I don’t see it sticking with me for long. I also looked into the synopsis of the second book, and I’m sad to say I probably won’t be continuing with the series. It seems like the things I had issues with won’t be further developed in the next book, and I’m not really a fan of where the series seems to be going after this. I might still change my mind though, only time will tell!