Book Review for Into the Darkest Fire by Juliana Haygert
Into The Darkest Fire, by Juliana Haygert, is a tragic short story about how far persecution would go, with innocence burning away in the midst of death.
Arianna is being chased by a group of witch hunters known as the Brotherhood. Led by a soldier named Hugo, she endeavors to escape them, all the while pondering on the nightmares she will have to flee from. As they flee into the forest, an unspeakable evil finds her. She is then reminded of the insanity that had taken hold of her enemies, before finally breathing her last breath. Haygert introduces a gruesome tale where happy endings don’t exist, and the only heroes in this story are the ones broken by the dark.
As anyone may know, I am a sucker for fairytales. So when I read about this story, I fell in love with it. Arianna’s story was hauntingly beautiful. She depends on Prince Thales for help, and with the help of a soldier, she attempts to make it out alive. She was fierce, as well as intelligent, considering everything she’s done for her age. She wasn’t like the other fairytale heroines I read about when I was little; she was brave, but because she was a witch, she was put to death. Perhaps the only thing that her prince could give to her in the end was a promise to bring her back. It was like watching a black rose growing in the midst of weeds, its petals truly stunning.
I also enjoyed the dark, gothic atmosphere the story flourishes in. It’s disturbing as it is enchanting. It was a haunting recall to the European Witch Trials, in which the Catholic Church chased after innocent “witches”, many of whom confessed just so they wouldn’t have to go through the torture. Burned alive at the stake, hanged, quartered, and all for the sake of a higher cause that might not have been there to begin with; the centuries then truly were terrifying. The Brotherhood reminded me of the Inquisition, a group of hunters tasked with finding and killing the witches. Arianna was just one of the many unfortunate victims in this horrific nightmare, though in the end, there is still hope for her, albeit a very bittersweet one.
As such, I would give this book an overall rating of a 4.8 out of 5 stars. The chilling fairytale-like air, as well as the references to the European Witch Trials, was what I loved most about this story. Because of this, I would recommend it to those who enjoy A Madness So Discrete by Mindy McGinnis and The Witches of Ravencrest by Thorne and Cross.
