Romantasy

Spark of the Everflame

Name: Spark of the Everflame
Rating: 3.92 (204 reviews)

Penn Cole · Kindred's Curse #1 · 2023

A healer drawn into a rebellion falls for the prince she's sworn to bring down — and for a power she was taught to hide.

Score: 78.1
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️Sweet
POV: first
Ending: HEA / HFN

Tropes

Enemies to Lovers Slow Burn Forbidden Love Rebellion

Content warnings

ViolenceDeathSexual assaultChild deathChild abuseBloodWarGrief & loss

Curated signals, not an exhaustive guarantee.

If you liked this, read

An Ember in the AshesSabaa Tahir81.0 Days of Blood and StarlightLaini Taylor80.8 The Jasmine ThroneTasha Suri79.3 The Night CircusErin Morgenstern78.5 The Winner's CrimeMarie Rutkoski77.9

What readers think

Readers consistently praise the enemies-to-lovers tension with Prince Luther — his intensity, protective instincts, and the agonising push-pull dynamic are frequent highlights. The political world-building, unique magic system tied to elemental bloodlines, and sharp banter also draw strong acclaim, and the series has amassed over 286,000 Goodreads ratings. The main criticism is Diem herself: detractors find her impulsive, naive, and prone to poor decisions in the second half, and several reviewers flag the pacing as slow to ignite. The first half in particular tests patience before the plot accelerates dramatically.

Read it if

· Readers who want ACOTAR-style court politics and enemies-to-lovers with almost no steam
· Fans of mortal-vs-magical-elite rebellion stories with a healer protagonist
· Those who enjoy a long, slow build of tension across a multi-book series

Skip it if

· You want spice in book 1 — it is essentially closed-door
· Impulsive heroines who make baffling decisions quickly drain your goodwill
· You prefer a fast-opening story — the first half has a slow ramp

If you liked this

· For fans of A Court of Thorns and Roses — mortal woman enters a dangerous magical court and falls for the brooding heir
· Like From Blood and Ash but with a class-war rebellion at its core and near-zero steam in book 1
· Gild vibes: oppressed mortal woman, powerful captor-protector, slow-burn tension and political intrigue
· For fans of The Serpent and the Wings of Night — enemies-to-lovers with a powerful, morally-grey love interest

How we read the room

In this series

Part of Kindred's Curse — read in order:

Full series profile & spice/trope breakdown →

Which dark romantasy heroine are you? Five choices in a forest that wants you dead.

Take the quiz →