Book Review: FIRE by Kristin Cashore

Fire (The Seven Kingdoms #2)
Author: Kristin Cashore
Publication Date: September 24, 2009
Published By: Gollancz
Genre/Category: Young Adult, Fantasy

Summary on Goodreads:

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans.

Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story.

My Thoughts:

I intend to make this review short because I don't have much to say. I expected this one to be as good as Graceling, maybe even better, but it didn't live up to that expectations.

The premise is good but the plot dragged on. The pacing of the story is very slow especially in the beginning up to the middle part. There are times that I already wanted to give up and get another book to read but I kept on reading, hoping that it will get better. The characters are not so easy to connect with. The heroine is not very likable but I'm glad that she's not irritating. She's smart and strong and stunning, but I think there's something missing about her. There's also a bit of romance flavor you'll want to indulge with, but obviously, it's not the focus of the story. Halfway through the book, I finally found myself enjoying it. There are unexpected twists and gripping moments too. I'd say that this book is quite good. Not great but not a waste of time. It could have been better though.

I don't want to compare Graceling and Fire, but I can't help it since they're literally connected. Fire is the second book on Seven Kingdoms Trilogy, Graceling is the first one and it built an amazing foundation for the series. Sadly though, I don't think Fire will be able to support it.

Over all, this book is a good read. Not great but still good. Don't let my opinion stop you from reading it 'cos you may actually like it. You may want to read other reviews, there are people who actually loved this book. Maybe my timing was wrong, or maybe my mood was... nevertheless, I still enjoyed it, and I hope you can still give this book a try.

My Rating: