Between Two Fires

Between Two Fires is a book I wanted to like more than I did. A disgraced knight and a mysterious orphan girl journeying together during the Black Death was a premise that sounded compelling and full of potential, but it never quite landed for me.

While marketed as horror, I found the atmosphere and violence more repetitive than frightening. The brutality felt flat and like it lacked stakes, making it hard to stay emotionally invested. I found my attention drifting and it was hard to stay engaged which caused scenes to blur together, and I struggled to understand the purpose behind much of the journey, or the bond between the main characters. I never found the deep character development or emotional tension I was waiting for.

Overall, this book simply wasn’t for me. I went in hoping for a haunting, character-driven story during a terrifying period in history, and came away feeling mostly unmoved. But, if you’re a fan of dark historical fantasy with apocalyptic religious themes, it might strike differently.