There comes a point towards the end of Act II and into the final Act that sucks you in. I loved watching the bonds between Rayan and Kai be tested. I felt that the ending was a little lacking. I wanted to know a little more about how the characters turned out after everything.

I recently attempted to read "The Burning Bandit" by Lauren Louise Hazel, but unfortunately, I ended up not finishing it. I made it a little less than halfway through the book before deciding to put it down. The story just did not captivate me the way I had hoped it would.
The characters felt flat and uninteresting, and I found it hard to connect with any of them. The plot seemed to drag on without much excitement, and I struggled to stay engaged with the storyline. Despite giving it a fair chance, I ultimately found myself losing interest and unable to continue.
The writing style also did not resonate with me. I found the prose to be lacking in depth and the dialogue to be stilted. It felt like I was reading a rough draft rather than a polished novel, which made it difficult to immerse myself in the world the author was trying to create. this was not a final copy so some things might be changed but im expecting not much.
Overall, "The Burning Bandit" was just not the book for me. While I can appreciate the effort that went into creating the story, I found it to be lacking in several key areas that I personally look for in a good book. I would never not not recommend a book to others because I acknowledge that everyone's reading preferences are different, so this review is based solely on my own experience with the book.
2.5/5 STARS!

"The Burning Bandit" weaves a tale of intrigue and betrayal in a world governed by elemental powers and spiritual arts. I like how the characters of Rayan and Kai are intricately linked by destiny, their contrasting personalities reflecting the elements they represent. Rayan's journey from a gentle soul to a formidable warrior and eventual General is compelling, while Kai's transformation from a prisoner of war to a feared High Priest adds depth to the story. The Empress's thirst for power and the mystery surrounding her husband's death set the stage for a thrilling magical adventure that promises twists and turns at every corner. With its rich world-building and dynamic characters, "The Burning Bandit" is sure to captivate fans of fantasy and intrigue alike.

The general plot idea was quite promising and I liked the setting but there's still a lot of potential to increase - especially in the emotional department. A lot of scenes were just kind of brushed off like the last scene with Shadow or Kai's loss of his family. Also the end fight when the Empress was so intend on killing them but then just went away to purify herself..?!

The Burning Bandit is fantasy coming age books take place at Chinesse inspire setting. The story following hero journey from a preteen name Kai after his village was destroyed and he lost family. The premise isnt something I never hear but intriguing enough to try.

I personally love the magic system and hero journey theme. The writing was okay and still open for more development. The repetition and descriptive narration isnt my favorit. The plot and pace are slower than my usually reads. The characters still feel less flesh out and the banter less natural. I need see more depth and personal growth to make Kai and Rayan standout among all fantasy characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and Lauren Louis Hazel Ltd for providing copy of this ebook. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Expecting Publication : 2 Oct 2023

The story itself is good. I really like the characters and their development throughout the book.

However, the writing detracts from the book. The prose isn't bad, but it isn't good either. It's quite repetitive throughout, and it often feels clunky and unnatural. Some things are not explained well and other things are overexplained. I feel like it just needs a really good editor.

I was hooked from the cover and so glad I was able to read this. It had a great overall feel in the genre, the story was what I hoped for and glad I was able to read this. It had great characters that felt like they belonged in this setting. Lauren Louise Hazel has a great style for this type of book.

Thanks, Netgalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review!
Stories centered around siblings are always on my must-read! Especially when life circumstances put siblings at odds with each other. The story truly was something special to me with both brothers being well written and developed on their own. I needed more chemistry in the scenes that centered on their relationship and dialogues. Some backstories segments felt repetitive as well. The story left something to be desired, but it was still intriguing and I truly felt the idea and the main characters close at heart.

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is a story of two boys, thrown together by war, each with their own talents. As years pass, their loyalty to their mentors, their country and their families put them into conflict with each other.

One of the boys, now a grown man and a powerful warrior, seemingly turns his back on the Empress they have both sworn to serve, and has become the Burning Bandit, wreaking vengeance. Will his friend, skilled in chi magic, now the High Priest, be loyal to his former friend, or to his Empress and country?

The Burning Bandit is the story of two boys, whose past and present are entwined by destiny and shattered by betrayal. The world is governed by Chi, the use of the spiritual arts, and the manipulation of the four Water, Earth, Fire, and Air.

An ambitious attempt that falls a little flat. There are better books out there that cover similar topics.

My thanks to NetGalley and Lauren Louise Hazel for this free ARC of "The Burning Bandit".
While I did not finished the book due to the writing style I think the author can improve so the contents of her books can match the gorgeous covers.
Besides the writing style the points that need some improvement are the pacing, the ploting and the characters.
I enjoyed the Chi based magic system, but that was not enough to motivate me to continue with the book.
I wish all the best to the author and I belive that with some work and dedication she can improve her craft.

This book is a decent, it slow to start, novel with many things to recommend it. Unfortunately I think that it was just not for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book with no obligation to review.

There is a good story at the heart of this book but I think the narrative would benefit from some revision. The plot is good, the characters are all well drawn and Kai, Rayan, Mei and Doon are sympathetic and realistic. The story (once it gets going) is quite exciting and the Chinese setting is something different.

On the negative side though, it is slow to get going, there are a good few spelling/word errors and a lot of repetition - each character's backstory is repeated the first two or three times they appear, sometimes even within just a few pages. The characters develop inasmuch as they change in each part but I would have liked some more information about why they changed. It is also a bit choppy, some incidents start but never finish and in Act 2 we jump forward a number of years and then learn what has happened through flashbacks - i think this would have been less confusing if it had just been told straight. I did almost give up on the book a couple of times but I am glad I persevered because, as I say, there is good stuff among the chaff.

I really wanted to love this one because I like the friends-to-enemies trope, but no matter what I just couldn't love the book.

The two main characters are great and compelling on their own, and they're central to the story so the book has got that right at least. But their dynamics with each other often feel a bit weird and unnatural.

The writing and the worldbuilding were okay, certainly not bad, but they made it a bit difficult for me to get immersed in the story. The prose feels a bit repetitive at times, and the world and magic feel generic and underdeveloped.

Overall, I thought it's an okay read but one that I likely won't revisit in the future.

I had to DNF this one.

The writing was so dry and repetitive, it seemed like everything was described to much and not enough at the same time. Even if the story makes up for it further (something I wasn't able to see), the writing will make it impossible to get to this point. Kai felt like your typical anime protagonist you don't care about.

Overall, I really think the writer needs to work on their craft, the idea behind this was interesting but the execution was not.

This is a YA fantasy that reminded me a lot of Avatar because the magic system involves the 4 elements. It’s following 2 boys, Kai and Rayan who live very different lives, Kai’s family was unfortunately ambushed by the military and he's taken to the capital city as a prisoner of war and Rayan is part of a powerful family and they become friends and help out one another. So we have themes of friendship, politics, survival. It was an enjoyable story and am still sold by this cover.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lauren Louise Hazel for giving me a free copy of this book in return for an honest review! I DNFd this book and stopped reading at the end of Act I, 30% of the way in. As such, the review only covers the first 30% of the book.

The Burning Bandit by Lauren Louise Hazel follows Kai, a young teen in a Chinese-inspired fantasy setting. After his village is massacred by the Emperor's General, he is taken captive for displaying unusual amounts of Chi, to be trained in the way of priests so he can be used in war.

He tries his best to come to terms with his new situation by leaning heavily on Rayan, the son of a Clan Leader and apprentice of the General. However, the two of them quickly get caught in an old fight between the General, the Emperor, and the High Priestess, who trains Kai. Kai finds political intrigue, spying, and bad blood wherever he goes.


I selected The Burning Bandit to read as ARC because of the cover. The illustration is incredible, clearly showing the setting (China-inspired) while making use of some nice mirror imagery (one half in flames, one half frozen). I haven't read too much China-inspired fiction, so the premise intrigued me as well. The way the Chi magic system works is actually one of my few favourite parts of the book.

The system is very much innate - you either have the predisposition to wield Chi, or you don't. Most beginning priests or casters actually use their magic without meaning to, activating it by intent and strong emotions alone. However, with rigorous training to get a feel for how the energies within and without work and respond to your call, casters can do a lot of incredible things.


That is where my good experiences with the book end, though. I was already not enjoying it three chapters in, but I made myself keep reading until at least a third of the way to see if it was just a rough start. Sadly, it wasn't, and I really just couldn't get into the writing, the characters, and the plot.

There were three main issues that I had with the book that made it difficult to enjoy for me, the first being the plot. By the end of Act I, both Kai and Rayan are still thirteen-year-old boys, still barely capable of their respective skills (magic and fighting). There is no mention yet of the Burning Bandit, the Emperor is still alive and well, and neither of them is the High Priest or the General. Over 100 pages into the novel and the plot described in the blurb still hasn't happened. Rayan isn't the narrator of the story so far either, despite being mentioned first in the blurb.

As part of this, I found the story too slow-paced for my liking, especially since it promised two of such powerful main characters caught in a conflict. While the beginning scene in chapter one (not the prologue) was quite interesting, showing Kai getting picked from the rubble of his home and taken prisoner, things slowed down quite quickly after that to almost slice-of-life pace. There's a while of just training and hanging out in the training camp, followed by a brief war scene, followed by a much longer segment of going to the imperial palace and settling down there for training. There wasn't a lot of action, tension, or ongoing plotlines to keep me hooked.


The second thing that made it hard for me to get into the story was the narrative and writing style. It leaned heavily towards telling instead of showing. Scenes were short and important scenes were regularly told in brief recaps, making it difficult to feel invested in the story. The narrative also had a tendency to repeat the same information multiple times within several pages, often with almost the exact same wording. That was frustrating to me as a reader -- I understood it just fine the first time. We're repeatedly told that Kai has an affinity for Earth, that Chi has four elements, that Rayan was called weak and full of water, and that Kai is a poor young farmer boy. Especially the last one is repeated far too many times.

Then there's the characters themselves. Kai is supposedly stubborn, but I don't see it -- he does more or less anything that is asked of him and more. In fact, about a month after his family and everyone he ever knew was brutally slaughtered, he knowingly helped with the slaughter of another village by destroying the magic seal protecting them -- just because Rayan asked. His relationship with Rayan and the army is weird in general.

It's like most of the time, he doesn't even remember they're the ones who killed everyone he knows, took him prisoner, hauled him across the country, and are forcing him to become a weapon in their wars. He has this weird obsession with Rayan, doing everything he can to please the other boy and avoid angering him, seeing him as a strange kind of saviour or saint simply because Rayan pulled him from the burning wreckage of his home. An act that Rayan certainly played a part in.

Besides a few nightmares and feeling lonely a bit at the beginning, it's like this incredibly traumatic event barely bothers Kai, while survivor's guilt would be much more fitting -- as well as a fierce hatred for the Eleventh Emperor and everything that's his, like the army, the General, and the High Priestess.


Personally, I didn't enjoy this book and I wouldn't recommend it to others. While I think it's brave and commendable that the author is self-publishing her work, this book could benefit a lot from multiple rounds of editing, beta reading, and a professional editor to make the characters more enjoyable and the narrative more compelling. However, if you'd like to support an indie fantasy author, this is a fine option.

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Content warnings and brownie points
As I didn't finish the book, I don't feel equipped to give content warnings or brownie points as usual. The content of the book up until Act II was fine in terms of triggers to me. I'd give brownie points for the author being self-published and donating 20% of all proceeds to charity, but the author doesn't say which charity, so it could be a harmful one as well.

An interesting a well plotted story that I enjoyed. The character arc was well done and it's well written
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine