Fireblood

FIREBLOOD

Written by Elly Blake

Published by Little Brown, September 12, 2017

My star rating: 4.5 stars

THE SYNOPSIS:

Against all odds, Ruby has defeated the villainous Frost King and melted his throne of ice. But the bloodthirsty Minax that was trapped inside is now haunting her kingdom and everyone she loves. The answers to its demise may lie to the south in Sudesia, the land of the Firebloods, and a country that holds the secrets to Ruby’s powers and past….

Despite warnings from her beloved Arcus, Ruby accompanies a roguish Fireblood named Kai to Sudesia, where she must master her control of fire in a series of trials to gain the trust of the suspicious Fireblood queen. Only then can she hope to access the knowledge that could defeat the rampaging Minax–which grows closer every moment. But as sparks fly in her moments alone with Kai, how can Ruby decide whom to trust? The fate of both kingdoms is now in her hands. Find it on Goodreads

MY REVIEW:

WOW!!!! Did Elly Blake ever step up her game!!! This book was just incredible! If you’ve ever heard of the curse of the sequel, then this one will prove that the curse isn’t always real. Frostblood was a good read. I will admit that I had a hard time in the beginning because it felt like something I’ve read a million times before, but she was always able to put a unique spin on things. The second half of book one was just amazing, fast action, twists and turns, and a strong protagonist. Fireblood had the same feel of the last half all the way through.

In the beginning we follow Ruby and Arcus as things settle down after Ruby destroyed the frost throne and let the minax free. Arcus is trying to rebuild relationships his brother ruined, bring peace to the kingdom, and reassure the frostbloods that firebloods aren’t what his brother made them out to be. Naturally, some are able to adjust to this easily while others are not. Arcus is such a strong willed person he’s able to see past those hurdles and move toward his goal of building a better kingdom. But Ruby, a former peasant and now Lady, can’t see past the criticism and remarks like Arcus can. Not to mention their relationship is held at bay because of these nay sayers. So when the opportunity arrises for her to follow the mysterious man named Kai to Sudesia, she decides its for the best. She’s heard so much of it from her mother and grandmother, she just hoped to one day see it for herself. So she takes the chance, against Arcus’s opinion, and goes to Sudesia to train to be a Fireblood master.

That’s right ladies and gentleman… I said train to be a Fireblood master! That means that there’s a magic school! You’re desperate to read this now aren’t you? I know you are…. and you should be. In order for her to be accepted into the court of the Firebloods, as well as find something to destroy the minax, she needs to train and pass her testing to become a master. EEKK! This was so great! I could have used a lot more detail about her training though. Some scenes were written in detail (She can write such a clear and exciting action scene! I see the movements like a movie in my head and want to soak in every detail) but some scenes were passed over. I wanted a little more information as to how she trained, what she learned, and how her powers worked. But where this portion of the book lacked in detail, she made up for it when it comes to her tests! Soooooo good!!

In general, the character development in this book was fantastic. I felt invested and emotionally attached to all the characters, major and minor. She wrote the characters so fully, with intrigue and emotion, and I fell for all of them. Strangely enough I fell most for the Fireblood Price Eiko and Kai. Oh Kai. I know that there are so many people on team Arcus, but Kai!!! I can’t help but love him. Also, along with the character development, I really felt that all of their relationships and connections were spot on. In Frostblood, I felt that her connection to Arcus was a little too rushed and incomplete, but everything (and everyone) just seemed to fit.

HANDS DOWN MY FAVOURITE PART???? THE MYTHOLOGY!!!! Oh my good god, this was amazing! There was mention in Frostblood as to how things came to be but not a lot of detail. Almost right from the beginning we heard a tale telling how everything began – Frostbloods, Firebloods, the sun, the wind, the child of light/darkness, the minax – everything. And it was glorious! I live and breath for mythology. I felt like I was stuck in the pages of an ancient fairy tale. I won’t say anything more about this as you need to unravel it for yourself. But it was stunning to say the least!

The pace of this book was consistent. The problem I had with Frostblood starting slow and then picking up in the second half was fixed in Fireblood. Not only was the pace fast and steady, but there were a few plot twists that blindsided me! When I looked back I don’t know how I didn’t see it, but I think I was so engrossed in the story I wasn’t thinking about it and trying to unravel the story as I went along.

I REALLY wish that this was released!! I NEED someone to talk to about this!!! I am so excited to see Elly in September so I can fangirl over this with the author!! Remember, this one is being released on September 12th – read it so we can talk!! Thanks again to the  Hachette Book Group Canada and Little Brown for the chance to read and review this beauty! As always, this didn’t influence my enjoyment of the book and all thoughts are my own.

Until next time, happy reading!