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bookbuyer's review against another edition
5.0
I hate it when characters you like turn out to be evil. Poor Daja. Ben was her friend! :(
robotnik's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I'm still here with my nostalgia glasses on; don't mind me.
Book three of the Circle Opens follows Daja this time, as her and her teacher Frostpine hang out in the northern country of Namorn. This means we get a fun northern snowy setting in which Daja face plants it into snow banks while trying to learn how to snow.
Cold Fire follows the format that Magic Steps and Street Magic did before it. Daja's getting involved with the locals using her specific type of magic (smith magic in this case) while discovering young mages who are in need of teachers. Unlike Sandry and Briar, Daja gets saddled with a pair of twins (Nia and Jory) who have differing styles of magic that she needs to figure out how to deal with.
Also like the previous two books, there's another plot line that strings the rest of the story together. In this case, there's someone who's setting fires around the mostly wooden city, and it's up to Daja to try and stop them.
As a whole, while I don't like Nia and Jory as much as I like Evvy (she's my favourite of all the student mages, really), I still enjoy them as characters. The supporting cast remains strong to me in this one, though it also feels larger overall (don't quote me on that) so some of them don't get as much time as the other characters in the previous books. I enjoy Daja in the teaching element as well, as she's very different from Sandry and Briar, and it's always interesting to see how they take to having to teach.
There's a bit of a shady relationship going on between Daja and Ben, one of the other characters. It just gives creeper vibes even it nothing really comes of it. Pierce has a bit of a track record with younger girls/older men relationships, so on a first read, it's definitely not a good look. This is probably the only thing that I could side eye about this book at all.
Even so, I still really enjoy Cold Fire. This isn't going to be the last time a Circle book takes place in Namorn either, which is nice. One more book for the Circle Opens to go, nice.
Book three of the Circle Opens follows Daja this time, as her and her teacher Frostpine hang out in the northern country of Namorn. This means we get a fun northern snowy setting in which Daja face plants it into snow banks while trying to learn how to snow.
Cold Fire follows the format that Magic Steps and Street Magic did before it. Daja's getting involved with the locals using her specific type of magic (smith magic in this case) while discovering young mages who are in need of teachers. Unlike Sandry and Briar, Daja gets saddled with a pair of twins (Nia and Jory) who have differing styles of magic that she needs to figure out how to deal with.
Also like the previous two books, there's another plot line that strings the rest of the story together. In this case, there's someone who's setting fires around the mostly wooden city, and it's up to Daja to try and stop them.
As a whole, while I don't like Nia and Jory as much as I like Evvy (she's my favourite of all the student mages, really), I still enjoy them as characters. The supporting cast remains strong to me in this one, though it also feels larger overall (don't quote me on that) so some of them don't get as much time as the other characters in the previous books. I enjoy Daja in the teaching element as well, as she's very different from Sandry and Briar, and it's always interesting to see how they take to having to teach.
There's a bit of a shady relationship going on between Daja and Ben, one of the other characters. It just gives creeper vibes even it nothing really comes of it. Pierce has a bit of a track record with younger girls/older men relationships, so on a first read, it's definitely not a good look. This is probably the only thing that I could side eye about this book at all.
Even so, I still really enjoy Cold Fire. This isn't going to be the last time a Circle book takes place in Namorn either, which is nice. One more book for the Circle Opens to go, nice.
liroa15's review against another edition
3.0
This was a little bit of a weird one, and I don't think I'd ever read it before since I gave up on this series. This was probably one reason why because it's a longer book, but very little actually happens. Also, it was somewhat strange to have periods where you were in the mind of the villain of the piece, and I wasn't entirely comfortable with it.
I'm sure Pierce is just trying to add depth to her characters as they grow, but this seemed like an odd way to do it.
I'm sure Pierce is just trying to add depth to her characters as they grow, but this seemed like an odd way to do it.
burningupasun's review against another edition
4.0
(Re-read 8/2022) I think this one is so tough for me because it's so depressing and Ben is so AWFUL. But it was a better read than 3 stars so I upped it to 4.
(Yearly re-read 4/2018) Honestly though I love Daja this book is one of my least faves in the Circle series.
(Yearly re-read 4/2018) Honestly though I love Daja this book is one of my least faves in the Circle series.
maliaogawa's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
devrose's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
I don't reread this book as often as I should because there's no audio version, so I forget how much I like it. I need to reread it more often.
jenwool's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
libcolleen's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail