The Flame Never Dies
〰️
The Flame Never Dies 〰️
This is my second read of this book. I've read both this one and the first book back when they first came out—loved them then. But somehow, I think I love them even more now. Vincent is my favourite author for a reason. Her books age like fine wine; they only get better with each re-read. And though I loved this book when I first read it, it's been a while, so it was basically like reading it for the first time. I was hooked. And I think I'm even more enamoured with this book than I was during my first read.
While the first book did read like the setup for this one (and it kind of was, but that didn't matter because Vincent's storytelling was compelling), this book was its payoff—the story Vincent really wanted to tell.
That being said, I never thought I'd be so invested in a side character's pregnancy. We don't see much of Nina's sister in both books, but in this one, she's about to pop and I completely forgot that Mellie never made it out alive. I thought she survived somehow, but nope. She dies off-screen being posses by a demon, and no one notices, including me, who read this book before. I wasn't saddened by her loss since we don't get much screentime with her, but I did enjoy the brief time we had with Meshara, the demon who passed her. I thought it was interesting having a demon who was pregnant but also infected. Vincent really knew how to draw out the tension on whether the baby would even be born, let alone live. I will say, however, we never really do get an explanation on how Adam survives without a soul being donated unless I missed it. Did the well of souls suddenly fill up again? Did the world go back to the days before we knew we had to die and donate our souls so newborns could live?
Besides that, the only true nitpick about these two books (besides Finn and Nina's insta-love, which I forgive because they're cute together) is the title of this series. I personally don't get the titles of either of the books other than they both sound really cool and have gorgeous covers to go with them. Besides that? I'm not sure what the titles mean in relation to the books. Well, I guess the title of this one, The Flame Never Dies, could relate to the white light "flame" the exorcist has when exorcising demons. But the title of the first book? No clue.
That being said, I don't think I will ever tire of Vincent's works. Perhaps not every book of hers will appeal to everyone, but she has enough that one of her books is bound to hook you. I personally believe that if you like Vincent's works, you'll love these two books as well.
