Book Review: Firelight

Firelight (Firelight #1)

By: Sophie Jordan

Published By: HarperTeen

Publication Date: September 2010

Page Count: 323

Buy it at Amazon or IndieBound

Source: Purchased by Reviewer

Audience: Young Adult - Fantasy

This was AWESOME!! I read it in about 5 hours, and totally couldn't put it down! I loved the new spin on shifting (shapes) - dragons!!  So much has been written about werewolves etc, that this felt like something someone should have written a long time ago, and I really loved it. 

The story focuses on Jacinda, a draki shifter who is not content with her lot in life. Forced into hiding by the hunting activities of man, she is supposed to be happy about being forced to marry and have children to keep the race alive. Jacinda only feels truly free when she is able to fly, but flying time is seriously restricted and life as a dragon seems hardly worth living - so much so that she feels as if she is withering away. One day Jacinda sneaks out to fly and nearly gets caught by hunters... meeting Will, a young hunter, in the process of escaping. He does something entirely unexpected - he lets her go. 

The chemistry between Will and Jacinda was written in such a smouldering way that my heart thumped in my chest as they interacted; this is YA friendly, but it will make readers swoon and then some!! There were plenty of twists and turns in the plot as Jacinda struggles to escape her oppressive tribe and to live as a free girl, and I was reading almost so fast that my eyes tripped over some bits in my anticipation of the next part!! When Jacinda visits Will's home, she stumbles across a room which is nothing short of horrifying; it was just brilliantly written, and I felt Jacinda's horror every bit as strongly as she did.

I loved how Jacinda stayed true to herself, despite the horrific way that her mother and sister wanted her inner dragon to wither and die off. By the end of the book, it really seemed like she had backed herself into such a tight corner, I have no idea how it is going to work out, and I desperately need to know!!

Summary:

A hidden truth. 

Mortal enemies. 

Doomed love.

Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki—a descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.

Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away—if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.

Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.