The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae CarsonMy rating: 4.5 of 5 genies
Genre: YA, Magic, Fantasy, Adventure, Romance
Published: September 20, 2011
Pages: 424
Publisher: Greenwillow
Source: Library Loan
Format: Hardcover
Purchase At: TheBookDepository.com or Amazon.com
Goodreads Summary
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 seeks 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.
My Thoughts
I actually enjoyed that. Like really, this book is the schiz official and a more detailed review will come in a few days. 4.5 genies and a total fave. OOOH, I LOVE THIS BOOK!
Update: Bear with me, I have the worst headache ever, the weather is absolutely the PITS and I just realized that I can't go see Hunger Games come out. In case you were wondering, yes, this does happen to amount to the worst possible scenario ever; my life sucks extremely. BUT I noticed that I'm a bit behind on reviews, as in it's been a while since I typed one out in sufficient detail. Well, better late than ever!
However, my current state of being aside, I actually liked this, the book was inspirational to me mainly because I know Elisa - she was me and I was she - that type of thing. And being unhappy with yourself as well as feeling like you're letting everyone else down by being the way you are is probably something most of us could identify with. Everyone's been there, unless you just don't care what anyone thinks and to that I say: "Hey, friend! Your life must have been a heck of a lot easier than mine!"
"To the bat mobile!"
Heh, I couldn't resist.
Yes? Oh, you know you giggled!
Haha, but without me going all Tyra Banks on y'all about self-esteem and its importance, I trust that you get my point? Good, because someone in this conversation has to! *Sigh* We were talking about characters, right?
Good...
The characters were all phenomenal, like really, most of my enjoyment throughout this read came from them, they were brilliant! Like they were flawed and I liked it :D Elisa had self-concept issues, body issues -
The plot was excellent in that it had a pace that carried the story through heartbreak and happiness without rushing over important aspects or dragging through on anything. My respect is for Carson's storytelling ability and her learned grasp of what it means to tell a story effectively; forgive my gushing, but I kind of love this woman! However, and to be fair, I should mention two things which bothered me, one of which happens to be a spoiler so take care:
1. SPOILER: Humberto died!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME, CARSON!?! Why kill that precious little boy, it makes no sense to me and I'm still grieving. Hector better be worth Humberto's death!
Yes I said it! I want my sequel and I want it now, darn it!
2. This book happens to be categorized as "Christian Fantasy/Fiction" and whilst I will agree that there are elements of religion and that the consistent mentioning of a "God" does occur, "His will" aside it is not made apparent what God Elisa and everyone else worships. Their God is embroiled in sorcery and a different kind of spiritualism, it cannot be immediately categorized as Christian!
Deep breath...
It didn't seem right. If the religion, so central to the story that multiple civil wars are triggered due to discrepancies in its interpretation, never is fully specified please do not automatically make the assumption that it must be Christianity implied. Christianity does not happen without Jesus and the Bible sans belief in eternal life, repentance of sins and the Holy Trinity; it doesn't get anymore simple than that.
That said, it wasn't so horribly inaccurate to the point where I felt dreadfully offended. Rather, I understood the mix-up and kind of just went with it. The setting is enthralling and there's this whole Eastern/Arabic feel to the time and places Elisa and her friends visit that ultimately left me with a sense of nostalgia. I felt a little like Princess Jasmine on Alladin's magical carpet...
A whole new world!!!
Haha, so there it is! Please, please, please forgive the jumbled fashion in which I covered this review! As I said, today hasn't been ideal but I hope I at least managed to convey a general feel of The Girl of Fire and Thorns. Ultimately Elisa's story is one of transformation. Not only does she go about a very unintentional change outwardly, but also one within. At the beginning she stole much of my sympathy because having been in similar position, I know it's hard to see yourself as worth something especially when everyone's betting on you to fail. She just proves that you can't give up on you, ever, and sometimes change happens without consent, that doesn't mean it wasn't for the better!
Notice how the romance aspect kind of takes second to Elisa's growth? Yeah, I think that should say something. I became more invested in the character rather than the romance (s) - yes there are multiple - and honestly she has my affection forever because of just how relateable she was. This book is very, very special and I want my sequel.
Hear that, Carson? Order up!!
(Pretty please...??)
One helluva a read, spectacular in the very most parts and tugs rightly at the heartstrings, this book will warm your heart as it did with mine.
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