by S.A. Bolich ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 6, 2019
A gripping fantasy full of magic and heart.
Awards & Accolades
Our Verdict
GET IT
Kirkus Reviews'
Best Books Of 2019
In this debut novel, a talented but anguished master of fire must overcome her past failures and rally the inhabitants of a beleaguered village.
Jetta is a Firedancer, the youngest ever Third Rank master. She can tame and vanquish fire with the power of dance—from infant flames to cunning hysths and even raging outbreaks of The Ancient itself. But Jetta’s reputation is tarnished. A year ago, fire claimed the village she was assigned to protect. Her life mate was killed and Jetta herself, injured. Although recovered physically, she has lost the unshakable confidence necessary to keep The Ancient at bay. Why then has the Circle of the Fire Clans sent her and her childhood friend Setti (a mere Second Rank journeyman) to investigate outbreaks of fire in Annam Vale? Annam is home not only to Stone Delvers—a clan of giants who mine the mountains for fire-dousing containment stone—but also now to Windriders, whose presence could easily fan the flames of The Ancient. Tensions run high. Many of the Delvers welcome Jetta, but others distrust her, believing her to be incompetent or even the cause of the conflagrations that she and Setti subdue. What’s worse, The Ancient grows shrewd. Fire has evolved and no longer bows to the traditional forms of the dance. If Jetta is to save Annam, she must unite its inhabitants and overturn an entire worldview. Bolich’s impressive novel captures the best elements of fantasy writing while avoiding most of the pitfalls. This series opener, though promising further development, is self-contained, its worldbuilding unobtrusive yet substantial. The characters are complex: Jetta with her impetuous, strong will; faithful, lovelorn Setti; the ethereal Windrider Sheshan (Jetta’s romantic interest); and down through the minor players. Their conversations, though stylized to an extent, are not stilted, and the conflicts and dangers at Annam arise naturally from the scenario, not from authorial trickery or incongruous decision-making. Readers will feel Jetta’s frustrations and uncertainty (“Those tunnels full of fire haunted her. The Delvers knew nothing of fire, had no concept of the danger in leaving The Ancient fretting behind a makeshift barrier of dirt. She pictured the Old Man patting at his prison with hands of fire…searching restlessly for a way out”) and her resolve. As the dance against The Ancient grows ever more perilous, the audience will gladly journey with her.
A gripping fantasy full of magic and heart.Pub Date: March 6, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-9989634-7-1
Page Count: 383
Publisher: B Cubed Press
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Share your opinion of this book
by J.D. Salinger ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 1951
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.
A violent surfacing of adolescence (which has little in common with Tarkington's earlier, broadly comic, Seventeen) has a compulsive impact.
"Nobody big except me" is the dream world of Holden Caulfield and his first person story is down to the basic, drab English of the pre-collegiate. For Holden is now being bounced from fancy prep, and, after a vicious evening with hall- and roommates, heads for New York to try to keep his latest failure from his parents. He tries to have a wild evening (all he does is pay the check), is terrorized by the hotel elevator man and his on-call whore, has a date with a girl he likes—and hates, sees his 10 year old sister, Phoebe. He also visits a sympathetic English teacher after trying on a drunken session, and when he keeps his date with Phoebe, who turns up with her suitcase to join him on his flight, he heads home to a hospital siege. This is tender and true, and impossible, in its picture of the old hells of young boys, the lonesomeness and tentative attempts to be mature and secure, the awful block between youth and being grown-up, the fright and sickness that humans and their behavior cause the challenging, the dramatization of the big bang. It is a sorry little worm's view of the off-beat of adult pressure, of contemporary strictures and conformity, of sentiment….
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.Pub Date: June 15, 1951
ISBN: 0316769177
Page Count: -
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1951
Share your opinion of this book
More by J.D. Salinger
BOOK REVIEW
More About This Book
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
APPRECIATIONS
by Kristin Hannah ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2006
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.
Sisters work together to solve a child-abandonment case.
Ellie and Julia Cates have never been close. Julia is shy and brainy; Ellie gets by on charm and looks. Their differences must be tossed aside when a traumatized young girl wanders in from the forest into their hometown in Washington. The sisters’ professional skills are put to the test. Julia is a world-renowned child psychologist who has lost her edge. She is reeling from a case that went publicly sour. Though she was cleared of all wrongdoing, Julia’s name was tarnished, forcing her to shutter her Beverly Hills practice. Ellie Barton is the local police chief in Rain Valley, who’s never faced a tougher case. This is her chance to prove she is more than just a fading homecoming queen, but a scarcity of clues and a reluctant victim make locating the girl’s parents nearly impossible. Ellie places an SOS call to her sister; she needs an expert to rehabilitate this wild-child who has been living outside of civilization for years. Confronted with her professional demons, Julia once again has the opportunity to display her talents and salvage her reputation. Hannah (The Things We Do for Love, 2004, etc.) is at her best when writing from the girl’s perspective. The feral wolf-child keeps the reader interested long after the other, transparent characters have grown tiresome. Hannah’s torturously over-written romance passages are stale, but there are surprises in store as the sisters set about unearthing Alice’s past and creating a home for her.
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.Pub Date: March 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-345-46752-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2005
Share your opinion of this book
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.