A review by aomernik
The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson
5.0
This is perhaps the most excellent high fantasy that has been published recently. Given, not many high fantasies have been published recently, but this book was absolutely splendid.
In the review to follow, there may be minor spoilers. I'll put spoiler tags around the major ones, but if you don't want anything to be ruined, don't read this. Simple.
Well, first off, I had high expectations for this novel. People I know who read it recommended it to me, and all of the acclaim on the back of the jacket came from authors I trust. Tamora Pierce, Veronica Roth, Paolo Bacigalupi, Cinda Williams Chima. They all had glowing praise for this book. I had begun reading The Girl of Fire and Thorns a few months ago, however, and hadn't been very interested (I'd only gotten a few pages in, granted). So while I was excited about it, I was also wary. FYI.
The plot is fairly intricate, so I won't go into detail here. Read about it on your own. *bursts into song*
Firstly, the characters:
~Elisa: A female protagonist who is absolutely amazing. She's also one of the only protags I've read about that is honestly overweight. Yes, she gets over this by the end of the book, but I applaud Ms. Carson for giving her this flaw. Most authors are too afraid to give their heroines such a flaw.
Elisa's character development is great. She begins the novel in the shadow of her older sister, Alodia. Having an older sister myself, I can understand Elisa's wish to be her own person, to not be constantly compared with her sister. Gradually, Elisa learns that she in fact is her own person, and that she has just as much worth as Alodia. In the beginning, Elisa is also more on the cowardly side, and is quite self-conscious. She doesn't believe she has much to contribute to a kingdom, and doesn't think she is worthy to be the bearer of the Godstone. As it turns out, she's a strategic mastermind, and is certainly worth a lot--not just because of her Godstone.
~King Alejandro: I'm so glad Ms. Carson didn't go with the boring, predictable romance between Elisa and Alejandro. When Elisa first meets Alejandro, she's overwhelmed by his rock star handsomeness, et cetera. She's ashamed of herself, and doesn't think herself worthy of such GREATNESS. But she starts learning that though Alejandro is quite pleasing to look at, he isn't the greatest person. She doesn't ignore that fact and love Alejandro anyways. She realizes that he, like everyone else, is human and has downfalls. And by the end of the book, she has come to realize that she is completely deserving of him. So there.
~Cosme: One of my favorite characters. Cosme starts as Elisa's spiteful maid, determined to embarrass Elisa. They pretty much despise each other. And when Cosme aids in Elisa's kidnapping, there's even more tension between the two. We, the readers, learn that Cosme has a pretty terrible past. I won't go into detail here, but she hasn't had the greatest childhood. She's in constant pain because of her losses, and when some...things...happen during the story, she's hurt even more. But she always puts on a mask of steel, guarding herself from everything that could hurt her, convincing herself she doesn't care. She absolutely fascinated me. When Elisa and Cosme finally become wary friends, I couldn't help but smile. They're both very independent women, and their skills complement each other. They're perfect comrades.
~Humberto: First off, I hate hate hate his name. Humberto. ICK. Ah, well. I did like Humberto quite a lot, and unlike some love interests I've read, I think I would like him in real life, too, not just in the context of the novel. But he didn't strike me as complete awesomeness.
~Ximena: The most kick-butt lady-in-waiting I've ever read about(excepting Cosme, of course. But they played different roles in the maid-verse, so there's that.). She freaking killed a dude with her hairpin! I mean, who even does that?! All in all, she was magnificent. Yeah.
~Lord Hector: Gah. Gah gah gah. I like him. I like him A LOT. He reminded me of Elmont in Jack the Giant Slayer, and I love Elmont, too. For one, he's the king's guard. For another, he was just...I don't know. I just was so attracted to him.
The worldbuilding was awesome. I really wish the book had come with a map like many fantasy novels do. It would have helped me to envision everything a little clearer. Ms. Carson developed the different cultures very well--the desert folk, the Inviernes, the royalty, the list goes on. Usually I don't care much about the world as a whole, but in The Girl of Fire and Thorns I really did. I liked the Spanish vibe that permeated the story, too. It gave it a cool feel.
The plot twists were amazing. I had heard that someone major would be killed off, and of course I was not disappointed. I LOVE it when authors kill major characters. And a good number of secondary characters died, too. Thank you, Rae Carson. THANK YOU.
All in all, I really loved The Girl of Fire and Thorns. I cannot wait to read Crown of Embers, and I would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone who loves a good fantasy novel.
In the review to follow, there may be minor spoilers. I'll put spoiler tags around the major ones, but if you don't want anything to be ruined, don't read this. Simple.
Well, first off, I had high expectations for this novel. People I know who read it recommended it to me, and all of the acclaim on the back of the jacket came from authors I trust. Tamora Pierce, Veronica Roth, Paolo Bacigalupi, Cinda Williams Chima. They all had glowing praise for this book. I had begun reading The Girl of Fire and Thorns a few months ago, however, and hadn't been very interested (I'd only gotten a few pages in, granted). So while I was excited about it, I was also wary. FYI.
The plot is fairly intricate, so I won't go into detail here. Read about it on your own. *bursts into song*
Firstly, the characters:
~Elisa: A female protagonist who is absolutely amazing. She's also one of the only protags I've read about that is honestly overweight. Yes, she gets over this by the end of the book, but I applaud Ms. Carson for giving her this flaw. Most authors are too afraid to give their heroines such a flaw.
Elisa's character development is great. She begins the novel in the shadow of her older sister, Alodia. Having an older sister myself, I can understand Elisa's wish to be her own person, to not be constantly compared with her sister. Gradually, Elisa learns that she in fact is her own person, and that she has just as much worth as Alodia. In the beginning, Elisa is also more on the cowardly side, and is quite self-conscious. She doesn't believe she has much to contribute to a kingdom, and doesn't think she is worthy to be the bearer of the Godstone. As it turns out, she's a strategic mastermind, and is certainly worth a lot--not just because of her Godstone.
~King Alejandro: I'm so glad Ms. Carson didn't go with the boring, predictable romance between Elisa and Alejandro. When Elisa first meets Alejandro, she's overwhelmed by his rock star handsomeness, et cetera. She's ashamed of herself, and doesn't think herself worthy of such GREATNESS. But she starts learning that though Alejandro is quite pleasing to look at, he isn't the greatest person. She doesn't ignore that fact and love Alejandro anyways. She realizes that he, like everyone else, is human and has downfalls. And by the end of the book, she has come to realize that she is completely deserving of him. So there.
~Cosme: One of my favorite characters. Cosme starts as Elisa's spiteful maid, determined to embarrass Elisa. They pretty much despise each other. And when Cosme aids in Elisa's kidnapping, there's even more tension between the two. We, the readers, learn that Cosme has a pretty terrible past. I won't go into detail here, but she hasn't had the greatest childhood. She's in constant pain because of her losses, and when some...things...happen during the story, she's hurt even more. But she always puts on a mask of steel, guarding herself from everything that could hurt her, convincing herself she doesn't care. She absolutely fascinated me. When Elisa and Cosme finally become wary friends, I couldn't help but smile. They're both very independent women, and their skills complement each other. They're perfect comrades.
~Humberto: First off, I hate hate hate his name. Humberto. ICK. Ah, well. I did like Humberto quite a lot, and unlike some love interests I've read, I think I would like him in real life, too, not just in the context of the novel. But he didn't strike me as complete awesomeness.
Spoiler
Needless to say, I was kind of glad when he bit it. Not to be morbid or anything, but...I didn't think Elisa should end up with him. So I was glad.~Ximena: The most kick-butt lady-in-waiting I've ever read about(excepting Cosme, of course. But they played different roles in the maid-verse, so there's that.). She freaking killed a dude with her hairpin! I mean, who even does that?! All in all, she was magnificent. Yeah.
~Lord Hector: Gah. Gah gah gah. I like him. I like him A LOT. He reminded me of Elmont in Jack the Giant Slayer, and I love Elmont, too. For one, he's the king's guard. For another, he was just...I don't know. I just was so attracted to him.
Spoiler
And so you see, I was glad when Humberto died, because Elisa must end up with Lord Hector! From the moment they first interacted, I knew they were going to fall in love. This plot was momentarily foiled when Humberto entered the scene, but once he died...Oh, yes, they are going to end up together. If they don't I will do things.The worldbuilding was awesome. I really wish the book had come with a map like many fantasy novels do. It would have helped me to envision everything a little clearer. Ms. Carson developed the different cultures very well--the desert folk, the Inviernes, the royalty, the list goes on. Usually I don't care much about the world as a whole, but in The Girl of Fire and Thorns I really did. I liked the Spanish vibe that permeated the story, too. It gave it a cool feel.
The plot twists were amazing. I had heard that someone major would be killed off, and of course I was not disappointed. I LOVE it when authors kill major characters. And a good number of secondary characters died, too. Thank you, Rae Carson. THANK YOU.
All in all, I really loved The Girl of Fire and Thorns. I cannot wait to read Crown of Embers, and I would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone who loves a good fantasy novel.