THE BURNING SKY was one of my most anticipated reads of the year, and unlike BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA, this one did not disappoint. Although this one took me awhile to finish, I savored every second of it and can not wait for the sequel. 
 THE BURNING SKY has everything I enjoy in a novel, slow-burning romance, good pacing, excellent characters, fantasy, amazing world-building, and some truly great villains (which I am always a sucker for.) Prince Titus's life goal is to train and protect Iolanthe Seabourne, an elemental mage of great power, to defeat the Bane, the most powerful and sinister mage of all. 
 This one starts out a bit slow, but it is worth exercising your patience for. Things pick up relatively quickly after that, and the story never slows down again. 
 That. World. Building. A great fantasy novel is nothing without great world building, and that can make or break the genre. The setting of THE BURNING SKY was gorgeous and very well written. It was easy to imagine and understand everything, including the unique magic system and the difference between elemental mages and those who could do regular magic. 
 Finally, the romance. If you can give me a fantasy novel that has romance in it and perfectly balance the two, you have made me a fan for eternity. THE BURNING SKY did just that, not only did it tell a incredible story, but it depicted the growing bond between Titus and Iolanthe perfectly. It had a slow build, and connections between the characters were established over time and through their experiences.