Review: The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson
“One of the most amazing YA fantasy novels I have ever read.”
Your verdict:
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/rating_half.gif "5 Stars")
(4 votes, average: 4.75 out of 5)
Loading ...| Title: | The Girl of Fire and Thorns (Fire and Thorns #1) |
|---|---|
| Author: | Carson, Rae |
| Publisher: | HarperTeen |
| Pages: | 299 |
Hicklebee’s Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.
Elisa is the chosen one.
But she is also the younger of two princesses. The one who has never done anything remarkable, and can’t see how she ever will.
Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs her to be the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.
And he’s not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies, seething with dark magic, are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior, and he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.
Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.
Most of the chosen do.
One of the most amazing YA fantasy novels I have ever read. Carson busts out of the debut gate guns a’blazin’. Elisa is incredibly relatable for the teenage sect because instead of being perfect always, she is in fact perfectly flawed. She is the black sheep of her family. She will never rule, be as pretty as, as smart as, or as cunning as her sister. Elisa is heartbreakingly aware of her flaws and seeks to be a better princess for her realm. This same need to perfect her imperfections leads her to be a good princess and marry a mysterious stranger, she hopes this stranger is ugly because then she won’t have to love him, and if she doesn’t love him it will not hurt her when he finds it impossible to love her back.
Elisa is one of the chosen, she bears the god stone which means she is destined to fulfill a great act on behalf of her god. Elisa knows nothing of the history of the god stone and as she sets off with her husband to her new land that she will rule as queen she begins to learn more about the strange cold stone lodged in her belly button and her destiny as the chosen.
The Girl of Fire and Thorns is a no holds barred fantasy. Things are not easy and there is a lot of soul searching to be done. Is her religion the right one or could the army she is facing and trying to destroy doing god’s will?
The world building is fantastical, the side characters fully fleshed out with immense personality and the plot is beautifully woven in and out of intricate sub plot patterns all the way to the conclusion, and yes there is a real conclusion. I am head over heels in love with this book and I cannot wait for the sequel entitled Crown of Embers coming in October 2012 (way before the mayan calendar ends).
By: Allison (@inconceivably)
I’m glad you loved this one too! I just loved the story’s honesty – from the imperfect heroine to the fact that not everyone gets a happy ending. I’m definitely excited for the sequel too!
By: Lydia/The Lost Entwife (@lrpresley)
So excited to read this! I cannot wait now!!
By: Katie- Mundie Moms
Wow! What an awesome review. Now you’ve got me even more excited about this book! I can not wait to get my hands on it.
By: TheBookGenie (@TheBookGenie)
That is a fantastic review! It makes me really excited to read this book! Great job :)
By: Jaime (@arnoldjaime13)
Brilliant review! I’ll be posting mine tomorrow. I really loved this book :D
By: Candace
Oh I WANT! I wanted to read this before but I hadn’t seen any reviews yet. Hearing that it really is good has me SO excited! And def a bonus that the 2nd one comes out before the Mayan calendar ends. ;)
By: Sophie (@sophieriggsby)
It’s queued up on my TBR. Moving it up now. ;)
By: Jodi Meadows (@JodiMeadows)
I loooove this book beyond words. It’s simply amazing!
By: Rebekah L Purdy (@RebekahLPurdy)
I was lucky enough to win an arc for this story. And I devoured the book. Absolutely can’t recommend it enough. It’s probably one of my favorite reads this year. I love the fantasy element and the fact that Elisa isn’t “perfect”. She’s got insecurities and flaws that make her so relatable. You want to root for her.
I loved seeing her growth as the story progressed, especially the scenes when she was captive.
And I have to say, I hope we see more Hector in book 2 (LOL).
Great review. So glad to see other people falling in love with the story/characters the way I did.
By: kaye (@papereader)
Fabulous review. I’ve a copy of this that I haven’t started yet but it is one that I’m very, very much looking forward to.
By: Nikki-ann (@nikkiann)
Sounds like a great read. I might have to check this one out, thanks :)
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By: Veronica Rossi
Now THAT is a glowing review! This sounds wonderful!
By: Cialina (@cialina)
I’ve read so many great reviews of this one! I think I might just have to read it myself, even if I’m not a huge fan of fantasy.
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