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Book Review: Firelight by Sophie Jordan

With her rare ability to breathe fire, Jacinda is special even among the draki—the descendants of dragons who can shift between human and dragon forms. But when Jacinda’s rebelliousness leads her family to flee into the human world, she struggles to adapt, even as her draki spirit fades. The one thing that revives it is Will, whose family hunts her kind. Jacinda can’t resist getting closer to him, even though she knows she’s risking not only her life but the draki’s most closely guarded secret. (From Goodreads)

I'm a huge paranormal YA fan. I think that's fairly obvious, based on the majority of books that I read/review on this blog. Still, lately I've had to take breaks from the genre because nothing has felt unique (that may be why I gravitated back toward regular fiction for a while). After reading some rave reviews, however, I decided I needed to buy a copy. I was pleasantly surprised with how fresh the book seemed. They are the descendants of dragons...it doesn't get much cooler than that.

I thought that the pacing of this book was perfect. I've had some issues with that in the last couple of books that I've read, and this one kept me captivated. I was so invested in these characters that I almost had an anxiety attack when Jacinda walked into the wrong room in Will's house. Without giving too much away, I'll say that a draki might not want to wander in there. I thought that the draki hunters were interesting, and I can't wait to learn more about them in book 2. I think that the fluidity of the writing was the reason why I couldn't set this one down. Considering all the work I have with school, reading it in two days was a feat in itself.

One of the few issues that I had was actually with Jacinda. I empathized with her sister, Tamra, and that's where my Jacinda issues arose. I really wanted Jacinda to imagine what it had been like for her sister to be stuck in the pride, and to understand her sister's motives for wanting to stay in their new home. After all, Tamra was the outsider when the family was still living with the pride, and Jacinda becomes the outsider after they move. I'm not saying that I agreed with their mom them to a place that would slowly kill Jacinda's draki, but I wanted Jacinda to mature and understand why her mom had made that decision.

Overall, I really enjoyed Firelight. I can't wait to read more about the draki hunters, and I'm hoping that we'll get to see more of the pride in the sequel. I'm particularly interested to know exactly what happened to Will when he was sick. Now, I just have to wait until the sequel is released.

Firelight
By Sophie Jordan
Published by HarperTeen
323 Pages
Rating: B

Waiting on Wednesday (October 27)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. This weekly meme shares the upcoming books that I'm most excited about.

Demonglass (Hex Hall 2) by Rachel Hawkins

Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

Published by Hyperion
Release Date: March 1, 2011 (too far away!)

In My Mailbox (October 24)

In My Mailbox was created by Kristi of The Story Siren, who was inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. All of the synopses you see below were found on Goodreads. Here are the books I got this week:

Christmas came early this week. I won two contests, and all the books had been on my wishlist for quite some time!

From Kristen at Bookworming in the 21st Century

Give Up the Ghost by Megan Crewe

Cass McKenna much prefers ghosts over "breathers". Ghosts are uncomplicated and dependable, and they know the dirt on everybody... and Cass loves dirt. She's on a mission to expose the dirty secrets of the poseurs in her school.
But when the vice president of the student council discovers her secret, Cass's whole scheme hangs in the balance. Tim wants her to help him contact his recently deceased mother, and Cass reluctantly agrees.
As Cass becomes increasingly entwined in Tim's life, she's surprised to realize he's not so bad — and he needs help more desperately than anyone else suspects. Maybe it’s time to give the living another chance...

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

Mackie Doyle seems like everyone else in the perfect little town of Gentry, but he is living with a fatal secret - he is a Replacement, left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now the creatures under the hill want him back, and Mackie must decide where he really belongs and what he really wants.

A month ago, Mackie might have told them to buzz off. But now, with a budding relationship with tough, wounded, beautiful Tate, Mackie has too much to lose. Will love finally make him worthy of the human world?


Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything--including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?


Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin

Avery Hood is reeling from the loss of her parents--and the fact that she can't remember what happened to them even though she was there.

She's struggling to adjust to life without them, and to living with her grandmother, when she meets Ben, who isn't like any guy she's ever met before.

It turns out there's a reason why, and Ben's secret may hold the key to Avery finding out what happened to her parents...

But what if that secret changes everything she knows about--and feels for--Ben


From Princess Bookie's Contest Craze -

The Rise of Renegade X by Chelsea Campbell

Sixteen-year-old Damien Locke has a plan: major in messing with people at the local supervillain university and become a professional evil genius, just like his supervillain mom. But when he discovers the shameful secret she's been hiding all these years, that the one-night stand that spawned him was actually with a superhero, everything gets messed up. His father's too mo ...moreSixteen-year-old Damien Locke has a plan: major in messing with people at the local supervillain university and become a professional evil genius, just like his supervillain mom. But when he discovers the shameful secret she's been hiding all these years, that the one-night stand that spawned him was actually with a superhero, everything gets messed up. His father's too moral for his own good, so when he finds out Damien exists, he actually wants him to come live with him and his goody-goody superhero family. Damien gets shipped off to stay with them in their suburban hellhole, and he has only six weeks to prove he's not a hero in any way, or else he's stuck living with them for the rest of his life, or until he turns eighteen, whichever comes first.

Book Review: Contagion by Joanne Dahme

This review contains some minor spoilers*

In her fourth novel Joanne Dahme creates another page-turning tale in which a young woman named Rose strives to rid Philadelphia’s water of the deadly typhoid bacteria. Set in the late 19th century, Rose Dugan is a young wife who is actively involved in her community. But when her best friend is killed while working at Philadelphia’s Water Works' gardens, the mystery around her death pulls Rose in. Will she save the city from a deadly typhoid outbreak that is threatening the city’s water system? Will Rose unravel the mystery behind her best friend’s murder—a fate that was actually meant for her? (From Goodreads)

I enjoyed reading about the environmental aspect to the story. In a way, it mirrors what's happening right now with climate change becoming a major issue for many people. Some of the characters in the story wanted to put in a filtration system, when other characters, like Luke, believe that the community needs to follow legislation that would curb pollution to begin with. Having this as part of the plot made this more than the typical teen romance, which added to my enjoyment. Plus, I always enjoy a book that I can connect to current events. I also thought that Dahme did a great job of making her characters believable. It was clear that Luke was passionate about stopping the pollution of Philedelphia's water, and his choices and behavior made sense to me. Rose was also believable, and while there were times when I was frustrated with her (her husband mistreating her, denial of his possible affair), her behavior was realistic.

I think that the major issue with this book is that it's probably only going to be enjoyed by a set group of readers. In my opinion, that group will be older teens/adults, historical fiction fans, and people who are willing to read a book for characters rather than action. Luckily, I fit in to that category, and have read Dahme's work previously. So, I knew what to expect in terms of her writing style. This one was a bit slow to start, though. Still, if you stick through the slow scenes, the tension begins to build. The final thing I had a hard time with was reading about Rose's marriage. Although, now that I think about it, it's supposed to be hard to read about. Nevertheless, it became abusive, and I wasn't really sure how Rose was going to be able to escape her increasingly horrible situation. She was a victim of the cycle of abuse, and didn't pursue any suspicions that she had about Patrick. He didn't beat her, but there was definitely some verbal abuse, and a scene where it was implied that they slept together and she wasn't fully consenting.

Contagion
by Joanne Dahme
Published by Running Press Teens
399 Pages
Rating: B-/C+