Together We Burn Review

Author: Isabel Ibanez

Genre: Fantasy Mystery

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Release Date: May 31, 2022

Order Link: Amazon

5 Flaming Hearts

An ancient city plagued by dragons. A flamenco dancer determined to save her ancestral home. A dragon hunter refusing to teach her his ways. They don't want each other, but they need each other, and without him her world will burn.

Review:

Together We Burn is a magical, intimate dance beautifully orchestrated by the author as she directs characters, as well as readers, through the steps of this complex story.  Red capes and dresses swirl, feet prance and glide while dragons breathe fire in this age old dance between man and beast.  Like medieval Spain where matadors enticed the bulls and flamenco dancers enchanted audiences, Together We Burn is rich in Latin history, seeped in the culture and social beliefs of the times.  Readers will find themselves totally submerged in this exquisite world of scintillating colors, magical beings and larger than life characters in battles of life and death.  

Zarela Zalvidar and her father are carrying on a five hundred year old family tradition of entertaining audiences as she dances the flamenco with beauty and grace, and he faces down fire breathing dragons with courage and skill in their famous dragon fighting arena.  Things are looking up until part of their stable of dragons escape during the anniversary show, killing several audience members and gravely injuring her father.  When Zarela is summoned before the Dragon Guile to defend her family's honor and involvment, she understands just how dire their situation has become.  The Zalvidar family is being held accountable for all damages, and they stand to lose their ancestral home and livelihood unless Zarela can prove someone sabotaged their estate and dragon ring.  Who has reason to execute a dragon trainer and ruin their family name?  A rival ring owner?  One of the political groups protesting the killing of dragons in the ring?  Zarela is determined to find out who murdered their only remaining dragon trainer as well as the rest of their fighting dragons.  She will prove her family's innocence - even if it means she has to set aside her fear to become a Dragondor and fight in the ring herself.  To do so, she must solicit the help of the baddest, most skilled dragon hunter and trainer in the land, Arturo Diaz de Montserrat.

Together We Burn is a compelling story that will draw readers in and hold them in a trance until the end.  The setting is quite simply mesmerizing - it's picturesque, alive and humming with age old melodies and tradition - one of the most original fantasy worlds I've ever been privileged to  reside in even briefly as a reader.  The culture of medieval Spain is embraced and celebrated in brilliant, vivid color with no stone or detail left unturned.  Ibanez's control of dialogue and symbolism is quite simply brilliant as it serves to drive this story forward at a fast clip.  Character development is out-of-this-world amazing.  Sparks erupt into flames as Zarela and Arturo come together in a dance of forbidden love - bantering back and forth, teasing and antagonizing one another while hiding true feelings.  They're fire and ice with denied desire as Arturo trains Zarela for the ring in spite of his disgust at the killing of the dragons that he respects and secretly trains for other purposes.  Zarela stands in defense of her family traditions and culture just as Arturo counters with all the reasons it's time for change.  Their chemistry ignites the pages.  A menacing tone persists throughout, reemphasizing the danger Zarela and Artula face as they investigate a murder and prepare for judgment day at Zarela's first fight as a Dragondor.  A complex plot line overflowing with lies, secrets, betrayals and sabotage will keep readers burning through pages of twists and turns to the final death defying performance.  

One of the things I love most about Together We Burn is the overall balance the author achieves across the board.  While one can argue that this story is fantasy or a mystery or romance but also historical, it's such a perfect blending of genres sure to satisfy the palette of all readers.  No one part overshadows the other. This phenomenal story addresses conflicting ethical, political and cultural beliefs.  Zarela and Artura each represent opposite sides in an age old battle between tradition and the need for change with family, tradition and honor weighing heavily in both defenses.  The author has woven a magical tapestry with an abundance of  threads representing the many sides of social beliefs and traditions and a couple's journey to find a common ground.  Together We Burn truly has it all.  The fantasy is magnificent, the murder mystery dark and dangerous and the love affair scorching hot.  I will be singing the praises of this book for months to come . . . and who knows, one day I may also get the chance to dance with a dragon.  I highly recommend this book to everyone.  It's not to be missed.

Synopsis:

Eighteen-year-old Zarela Zalvidar is a talented flamenco dancer and daughter of the most famous Dragonador in Hispalia. People come for miles to see her father fight in their arena, which will one day be hers.

But disaster strikes during their five hundredth anniversary show, and in the carnage, Zarela’s father is horribly injured. Facing punishment from the Dragon Guild, Zarela must keep the arena—her ancestral home and inheritance —safe from their greedy hands. She has no choice but to take her father’s place as the next Dragonador. When the infuriatingly handsome dragon hunter, Arturo Díaz de Montserrat, withholds his help, she refuses to take no for an answer.

But even if he agrees, there’s someone out to ruin the Zalvidar family, and Zarela will have to do whatever it takes in order to prevent the Dragon Guild from taking away her birthright.