rainbow_grace's review
5.0
I loved this book. I devoured the pages like the Ancient fire devours all in its path. When I finished reading, I immediately bought the sequel [b:Windrider|13637196|Windrider (Masters of the Elements, #2)|S.A. Bolich|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1336354076s/13637196.jpg|19249317].
My only gripe, and it’s a small one, is that Jetta gets startled a lot and she “jumps” or “freezes” every time. I think those two words were overused a tad.
The world is rich and layered, and every character feels real. I laughed and cried over their joys and sorrows. Character names follow patterns depending on whether the person is a Firedancer(Jetta, Settak), a Windrider(Sheshan, Ayesh), or a Delver(Rununn, Anual), but no two names are so similar that I ever got confused.
In this world, fire is an enemy that needs to be tightly controlled or it will destroy everything in its path. Firedancers are trained to fight fire that has broken free, and they do this by dancing. I have always been fascinated by the idea of dancing to create magic, especially since I have seen so few stories that use this idea. It is done very well here. [a:S.A. Bolich|5162506|S.A. Bolich|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1336359332p2/5162506.jpg] is a master at describing just enough that we get a picture of the dance without giving us every detail and boring us to tears.
If you like fantasy, and you’re up for something different, you’ve got to give this book a try.
My only gripe, and it’s a small one, is that Jetta gets startled a lot and she “jumps” or “freezes” every time. I think those two words were overused a tad.
The world is rich and layered, and every character feels real. I laughed and cried over their joys and sorrows. Character names follow patterns depending on whether the person is a Firedancer(Jetta, Settak), a Windrider(Sheshan, Ayesh), or a Delver(Rununn, Anual), but no two names are so similar that I ever got confused.
In this world, fire is an enemy that needs to be tightly controlled or it will destroy everything in its path. Firedancers are trained to fight fire that has broken free, and they do this by dancing. I have always been fascinated by the idea of dancing to create magic, especially since I have seen so few stories that use this idea. It is done very well here. [a:S.A. Bolich|5162506|S.A. Bolich|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1336359332p2/5162506.jpg] is a master at describing just enough that we get a picture of the dance without giving us every detail and boring us to tears.
If you like fantasy, and you’re up for something different, you’ve got to give this book a try.
andrewfontenelle's review
5.0
This book was a pleasure to read with its imaginative story set in a fascinating world where the clan elemental masters control fire, water, earth and air. This is the tale of Jetta, a Firedancer trained to fight the elemental fire through dance. Having been assigned to protect a remote community she finds that the dance forms, used since earliest times, no longer have any effect and must learn new lessons and make new allies where she least expects.
A great fantasy tale and I can't wait to read the other books in the series.
A great fantasy tale and I can't wait to read the other books in the series.
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