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Title: Fireborn
Author: Aisling Fowler
Published: 30th September 2021 – Harper Collins
Format: Digital (NetGalley eARC) – 384 pages
Hello Hello! How are you?
It’s been a while since I’ve been able to sit down and write a post, or even to properly read, to be honest, but I’m now on holiday until university starts again in September, so can devote more time to my reading and blogging!
Today’s post is my review of Fireborn by Aisling Fowler, which is currently on #UltimateBlogTour, organised by Dave from @The_WriteReads, a fun and unique middle-grade fantasy.
Thank you so much to Dave for letting me be on this tour, and thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
GOODREADS SYNOPSIS
Lyra. Lucy. Percy. Once in a generation, a hero emerges whose story enthralls readers worldwide.
Fireborn is an epic quest, perfect for fans of the His Dark Materials and The School for Good and Evil series, that will spin readers into a magical world like no other–and introduce them to an unforgettable new heroine named Twelve.
Ember is full of monsters.
Twelve gave up her name and identity to train in the art of hunting them–so she says. The truth is much more deadly: she trains to take revenge on those who took her family from her.
But when Twelve’s new home is attacked, she’ll find herself on an unexpected journey, where her hidden past is inescapably intertwined with her destiny–and the very fate of her world.
MY REVIEW
Trigger warnings: grief, dead parents, dead siblings, violence, mention of war, kidnap, blood, injuries, death, poison, nightmares, fire.
Fireborn by Aisling Fowler is a middle-grade fantasy story that has an epic quest, a ragtag group of youngsters, and some great twists and turns.
It took me quite a while to read this book because I’ve been so busy and tired in the last week or so, but I finally finished and I’m so glad because it was a really enjoyable story.
I can’t go into too much detail because I’m worried that I’ll spoil you, as some spoilery things happen quite soon into the book, but I have to say that I was no expecting a lot of things that happened in this book, so it definitely kept me reading to find out more!
Because it took me a while to read it, I wasn’t fully immersed in the story for very long amounts of time, but that is all on me and how tired I have been, and I’m sure had I had more time, I would have finished it much quicker!
I loved the world that was created for this book, and I feel like there is still so much to discover, I can see this becoming a really expansive series, which I’m very glad of. I could completely imagine the world, the places, the feelings and the atmosphere, so I think it was really well-plotted and imagined.
Twelve was a character I liked from the start of this book, and while I wasn’t a fan of Five to start off with, or Seven for some reason, as the story went on, I got a better insight into them, and other characters and liked them more. At the end, I found that all the characters had come a long way, so I liked seeing their development. My favourite character, besides Twelve, was Dog because he was so intriguing, and I just liked him from the get-go, don’t really know why though ahah.
MY THOUGHTS AND RATING
Overall, I think this whole world, the magic system and the characters were really great, and it was definitely a great start to a new middle-grade fantasy series that I will be reading the next book of!
The pacing was good, a bit slow at some points, and a bit too fast at others, but it is the first book in a series (well, I think it is… right?), so it doesn’t bother me as I think it will even out in the next book! I did like the writing style though, I thought it flowed nicely, and I definitely enjoyed my time reading this book.
I gave Fireborn 4 stars (full ASPECTS rating below), and I enjoyed reading this one. I found it really unique, but I definitely need more information about so many things, which I’m hoping to get in the next instalment in this series.
If you like middle-grade fantasy with a unique setting and plot, characters that develop and grow, magic, magical creatures and lots of plot twists and the trigger warnings don’t bother you, then I highly recommend, and I think you would love it!
That’s all for now, I hope you enjoyed reading this post, see you soon, stay safe,
Ellie xx
ABOUT THE AUTHOR – AISLING FOWLER
Aisling was born in 1985 and wishes that she had grown up in a magical, mountainous kingdom, but was actually raised in Surrey on a diet of books and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Her early ‘adventure’ stories involved surprisingly little action and her first novel (3 pages long) was politely declined by publishers at age 11.
After earning a BSc in Biology and working as a support worker and then a nurse, the idea for her debut novel, Fireborn, came to her as she moved back and forth between London and the US. Now based in Hackney, when she is not reading or writing, Aisling loves cooking and plotting adventures (for herself as well as her fictional characters). Fireborn will be published by HarperCollins in 2021.
Aisling’s Links: Harper Collins – Twitter
ASPECTS RATING
Atmosphere – 5
Start – 6
Pacing – 6
Ending – 7.5
Characters – 6.5
Theme – 7.5
Style – 8
Total = 46.5
This list includes some affiliate links. If you decide to purchase a book from one of my links, I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you.
If you would like to purchase this book, you can find it here: Amazon UK – Amazon FR – Amazon US – AbeBooks – The Book Depository – Audible FR – Waterstones – Barnes and Noble – Audible UK – Blackwell’s – Wordery
Great review, Ellie! I agree the pacing was a bit uneven throughout the book and the world need expanding. I’m glad you enjoyed it!