Thursday 28 February 2013

Fire by Kristin Cashore

Fire (Graceling Realm, #2)Fire by Kristin Cashore

Add to: Goodreads
Source: Library
Publisher: Dial Books
Format: Hardcover, 461 pages
Release Date: October 5, 2009

It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. The young King Nash clings to his throne while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. The mountains and forests are filled with spies and thieves and lawless men.
This is where Fire lives. With a wild, irresistible appearance and hair the color of flame, Fire is the last remaining human monster. Equally hated and adored, she had the unique ability to control minds, but she guards her power, unwilling to steal the secrets of innocent people. Especially when she has so many of her own.
Then Prince Brigan comes to bring her to King City, The royal family needs her help to uncover the plot against the king. Far away from home, Fire begins to realize there's more to her power than she ever dreamed. Her power could save the kingdom.
If only she weren't afraid of becoming the monster her father was.
With the same excellent plotting and concrete characters as her debut novel Graceling, Kristin Cashore has completely won me over with Fire.

I'm just going to come right out and say it: I loved Fire more than I did Graceling. And if you remember at all my feelings for the latter, that's saying quite a bit. Fire was a novel that I wanted to simultaneously stretch out for as long as possible and devour as quick as I could. It pulled emotions out of me for its characters and set my heart racing with the plot. Just... amazing.

Fire was a beautifully-done character. There was a palpable vulnerability to her that highlighted so many points of her character and I just genuinely liked her. She was an essentially good person fighting so many outside factors outside of her control and watching her journey as she comes to accept herself and her situation is gratifying.

Prince Brigan... ahh. I thought from the beginning of the novel that I knew exactly how the relationship between him and Fire would pan out but as the book carried on, I realized I had no idea the depth it would have. The things they said to each other and the way they treated each other was anything but superficial and I gladly cheered them on!

I've said it before and I'll say it again: fantasy is my favourite genre. The way that Cashore crafts her world is well thought-out and a pleasure to read. Fire is a lengthy read but I didn't feel bored or disinterested at any point. Whether through more physical adventures or just emotional journeys, Kristin Cashore keeps the plot moving at a steady pace.

Highly recommended.

5 Golden Crowns!

Cover Comments: I LOVE this cover! A bow and arrow gets me every time and the cover scheme is great for the story.

10 comments:

  1. I need to re-read this book! Someone told me I would like it better in the context of Bitterblue. I liked it okay but I wasn't like, IN LOVE with it. I did like Fire as a character though and Cashore can write romance! <3 fantasy.

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  2. I have heard so much about this author and her books. I am not sure which one I would read first though. Do you know?
    I enjoyed your review a lot. Would you consider this a strong fantasy story or fantasy-lite?

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  3. Oh, I really need to get started in this series! It sounds so good :) I love fantasy!

    Mel@thedailyprophecy.

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  4. I liked but didn't love Graceling, so I'm glad to hear Fire is better. I'll probably give it a try. Great review!

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  5. I really like Fire... Bitterblue was good too but not like Graceling and Fire!!

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  6. This book has been sitting on my shelf for a while now. I better get started :)

    BTW, I'm currently having a giveaway on my blog. You can check it out and join :) FOllower APpreciation GIVEAWAY!

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  7. I've heard such mixed things about this book, some people love it more, others less. I do own a copy, even though I haven't read book 1, but now you've reminded me that I NEED to read this series!

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  8. Fire was my favorite book out of the three. Bitterblue and Graceling were good, but, hands down, Fire had the best romance and characters!

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  9. Sonia, I'm really glad you liked this book so much, though I must admit I liked Graceling more. But I love how TRULY EVIL Leck is. When reading Harry Potter I actually really liked Voldemort and he was one of my favourite characters and knowing he was going to die in the end was always a bit saddening. But Leck is the true embodiment of evil and I felt physically sick reading about him. Even now I just want to write his name on a piece of paper so I can rip it up, set fire to it, drop it in some acid and possible use it to scoop up cat diarrhea.

    ...

    On a more normal note, I'll be really interested to see what you think of Fire. :)

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