Author: Trisha Wolfe
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
Release Date: December 17, 2013
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Goodreads rating: 4.19 out of 5.00 (70+ ratings)
Goodreads | The Reading Room
When Zara Dane is chosen to marry Prince Sebastian Hart, son of the man who ordered her father’s capture, Zara knows she must fight to save everything she loves from ruin.
Being betrothed to the prince means a life trapped behind the towering stone walls of the Camelot-forged realm. Under the watchful eye of the prince's first knight, Sir Devlan Capra, changing her future becomes difficult.
When an unlikely rebel reveals the truth about the deadly secrets that fuel King Hart’s twisted world, Zara’s path to rescue her father becomes clouded by deception. The Rebels clear her path by forcing Zara’s hand with an ultimatum: sway Prince Sebastian to join the Rebels, convincing him of his father’s evil nature, or they will take him out.
But Zara is uncertain about a future under the Rebels’ command and where the prince’s heart truly lies. She must decide who to trust, what to believe, and what she’s truly fighting for before the king destroys all of Karm, including her heart.
Review by Nara
I have to say, Fireblood had a rather shaky start. I wouldn't necessarily say that it was shaky in the sense that it was bad, but there was a lot of confusion going through my mind in the first, say, twenty per cent. We are thrust into what almost seems to be the middle of the story, and while we certainly are off with a bang in terms of the action, in terms of the explanations we're sadly left empty handed. I honestly had no idea what was going on, but in retrospect maybe this was done on purpose, as our main character Zara also clearly had no idea what the heck was happening.
The world building seems pretty well done. The concept of the past in the future is one that isn't often explored, and while I suppose Wolfe didn't really go into it much in Fireblood, it was still interesting to see how the world of the future has regressed to Medieval times and is now based around the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. And all the information about the world was given at a reasonable pace, so it wasn't like a massive infodump.
The romance was okay. I suppose it wasn't really the focus of the story, so it was okay that it was both slightly lacking and slightly cliched. Before starting the book, I predicted that there was going to be the classic prince vs knight love triangle, but thankfully there wasn't really one. I guess at the start there were definitely hints that one might emerge, but that didn't really happen. Well, I suppose if we were seeing the story from the eyes of someone other than Zara, there might have appeared to have been a love triangle, but with the reader firmly seeing things from Zara's POV, we could tell that there wasn't a chance in hell for the love triangle to develop after this particular event. Which I can't say because spoilers.
I'd probably recommend reading Unveiled, which is a novella prequel, before reading Fireblood as there are a couple of characters introduced in that story that will aid your understanding of the characters in this book. Minor spoiler until the end of the paragraph. It's not that big a spoiler because I feel it's pretty obvious. You probably won't really know what I'm talking about unless you've read the book anyway. Oh the dramatic irony. Those who've read the novella will know the true roles of Xander and Larkin and now Devlan (he must have been the "other person" talked about in the novella...) I was pretty much yelling at my iPad for Zara to just stop fighting and listen. Sigh.
"Exactly what it implies; she has fire in her blood. She's clever and fearless, burns with determination." A crooked smile tugs at his lips. "And she's stubborn as hell."Overall, I'd say that this is quite an enjoyable story. While perhaps not the freshest ideas, it's certainly still well written, with an engaging plot and interesting characters.
Liked it
RatingsOverall: 8/10
Plot: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Characters: 3/5
Cover: 2/5
I keep looking at this book thinking "it looks like a fantasy, it sounds like a fantasy, WHY IS IT DYSTOPIAN?????" Regressing to medieval way of life seems like a strange way to go. Unless they kept all the medical advancements and plumbing, then I could potentially see the appeal :P
ReplyDeleteShame this didn't deliver as much as you wanted it to, but at least it was enjoyable. Sometimes reading a cliched/not-quite-original story can be comforting. And at least it had good writing and plot! I might try to check it out one day (especially since the novella sounds badass)
I know right! I seriously thought it was a high fantasy as well! Plus the name makes it seem all magical and mysterious haha. I can't actually remember exactly but I'm pretty sure they didn't have the technology for most of the book. Not sure about the medical stuff.
DeleteIt was a fun story! It's definitely worth at least borrowing from the library or something :)
I have yelled at characters too when they are being silly. I just wished that they would listen to us!
ReplyDeleteGah! It's always so frustrating when you know something that the characters don't know haha. But sometimes I guess it can be frustrating in a good way :P
DeleteBooks where you are just thrown into the story can be so confusing. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Seems like it's the last case here. This book sounds like it was okay. Nothing too bad and everything is there, but it's not complete yet.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'd say it's not a bad read. Everything was just kinda average, making for an average read haha. Probably the type of book you'd borrow at the library but not actually buy.
DeleteGood to know there's no triangle
ReplyDeleteSome people might say there's one, but I'd definitely say there isn't :)
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