Friday, September 16, 2011

Review: The Girl of Fire and Thorns

The Girl of Fire and Thorns
(Fire and Thorns #1)
by Rae Carson
Publication Date: September 20th, 2011
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 432
ISBN: 9780062026484

Where to Buy:
B&N | Amazon | The Book Depository
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. She 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 the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.

And he’s not the only one who needs 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. (Goodreads)
The Girl of Fire and Thorns was a fascinating read for me. I didn’t really know what to expect going into the book, as the synopsis is a bit vague. The book was not what I expected, but I definitely enjoyed reading it!

I have to talk about the main character first. Elisa is such an amazing character. She’s a princess, but she’s definitely not your average princess. She’s overweight, a bit naïve, and very insecure about herself. She’s also the bearer of the Godstone, which she knows very little about. That all changes when she’s married away to the handsome King Alejandro, and moves away to live with him in his palace.

Elisa is such a great character. While I had my doubts about her in the beginning of the book, she managed to completely take me by surprise. Elisa becomes a completely different person as we follow her on an unimaginable journey throughout the book. I loved watching her grow, and become more confident with herself, seeing her survive all that she has been through, and also seeing her discover why she was chosen as the bearer of the Godstone.
There were a lot of secondary characters in the book, and I felt they were extremely well written. Quite a few of them grew on me more and more throughout the book.

The plot for this story was very unique. The story literally sucked me in, and I was completely engrossed in the story. The first half of the book is a bit slow; it was mainly just building up background for the story. There was a lot more action in the second half of the book than I actually expected. There were a couple of parts toward the end of the book that I was really surprised about, the author definitely didn’t hold back on this story.

Overall, this was a really great read. This is definitely going to be one of my favorite books of the year. I can’t wait to add it to my collection.

Happy Reading!

17 comments:

  1. Oooh a favorite of the year. I can't wait to read it!!!!

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  2. We've been hearing a lot of buzz about this book, so we're glad a real live reader thought it lived up. :) Thanks for the great review! Elisa sounds like a really good character, someone we can root for and enjoy reading about. :)

    Woot woot for high fantasy!

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  3. Another YA book I really want to read. More and More of the books I've been picking up lately is YA. This one is on my wishlist.

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  4. I'm looking forward to this one! There has been a lot of buzz around it. Great review!

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  5. I wasn't sure how I felt about Elisa in the beginning either, but she grew on me as the story went on and I adored her by the end. Fabulous review Christy, we had very similar thoughts on this one!

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  6. I have been hearing about this everywhere and have been waiting for someone to review that I actually "know" (If that makes sense). I am glad you enjoyed it! Sounds like the main character is someone you can really care about.

    Awesome review as always!

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  7. I've heard the second half of the book is much better than the first. Guess that means much to look forward to. :)

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  8. I really need to read this! I have it but haven't had the time!

    Your review got me excited and I don't have much time left so I better get reading!

    Fab review, Chica!

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  9. I'm so glad you hear you liked this! I haven't read it yet, but I'm looking forward to reading it. LOVE your review though.

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  10. Can't wait for this one! Heard lots of good things - glad you enjoyed it. The story sounds great and Elisa definitely seems like a character I'd like. Thanks for the review!

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  11. I JUST started this one and am feeling for Elisa. Poor girl, who just put her sweaty hand in her new king's and said, "I do." I can't wait to read more.
    Mary @ BookSwarm

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  12. I have read other reviews of this one and everyone else also says it's a slow beginning, but it ends up being a great read. I am glad I read these reviews because I am about to start it and I am bad about not sticking with a book that starts off slow! Glad for the heads up! :)

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  13. Nice review! I also read this book a while ago, and I totally agree that Elisa is such a great heroine :)

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  14. Great review! It isn't a favorite book of mine, but I did enjoy it!

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  15. Really excited about this one, so I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it! I love how the main character isn't perfect and shows a lot of growth throughout the novel. Great review, can't wait to get my hands on a copy!

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  16. This is the first review I've read for this book. Glad to hear it's good! I'm looking forward to reading it. Great review :)

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  17. I've seen so many positive reviews for this one and it makes me more excited to get to it every time! I love that you said Elena shows growth as a character, I love it when that happens! :D
    Thanks for the review!

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Thanks for stopping by! :)