Ignite

By: Kara Swanson

Narrated by: Emily Lawrence

Can Mara survive in a world where the fire in her veins is worth killing for?

In a frozen wasteland suffocating beneath a dying sun, Mara is a young phoenix raised by her father to explode at his command. He’s the only one who can help her control her fire, and Mara desperately follows his orders to protect their phoenix family from relentless human hunters.

Her sheltered existence is shattered when her family mysteriously vanishes, thrusting Mara into a perilous quest to find them. Along the way, she unravels a devastating truth: her people may not be the innocent victims she's been taught to believe.

When she comes face-to-face with the kindhearted Eli, she begins to wonder if the humans aren’t the monsters she's always feared. What if the greatest danger doesn’t lie in the icy world outside—but in the truth of who Mara really is?

Fire and ice collide in this thrilling tale of a phoenix girl born with the power of a dying sun.

Critic reviews

"A fiery protagonist shines a resilient light in the darkness of complex family trauma."

"Kara Swanson’s fantasy novel Ignite sparks and soars with its coming-of-age storyline."

If this is your first read of Kara Swanson, please don’t let it be your last

To be honest, this is going to be a book that I DNF, I made it to chapter 8. The very beginning was hard to follow and I’m not sure if it was the way the narrator read in the beginning or if it was just me, but it was hard to follow. I really wanted to love this book, I really liked her Dust & Shadow series, but sadly this one missed the mark for me. It had potential, but to me personally I saw a lot of contradictions in the story and it just made it hard to keep going. If this is your first book by Kara Swanson, please don’t give up on her, please read her Dust & Shadow series and she will prove that she’s a writer and great story teller, it’s just that this book was a little tough. I did see that a lot of people 5 ⭐️ this book which I’m glad it was great for some, but if you feel like your in the same boat as me, I just wanted to advise reading her other book before giving up on her.

Finding who you are!

This was a very intriguing story. I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect but love the character development, the creation of such a vividly real realm, and the plot of the story is uniquely portrayed. It’s beautiful and painful. I am looking forward to a sequel.

Unique

This book exceeded my expectations in a very good way. I was already extremely interested in it based on the description and cover, but the story did not go in any shape or form the way I expected. And that could not have been better for the story. Kara Swanson took this mythical creature and enhanced it in truly brilliant ways. I cannot imagine how someone reimagine an already amazing creature in such a unique way. The story was very unexpected, and no one will ever be able to predict it. This is the first five star read I have had in a long time. Thank you for creating such a perfectly clean read! Looking forward to the conclusion to this duology.

relationship

I love that the author is Christan she is a amzing writer. If you do not like drama or mushy stuff I do not recommend but this is probably one of my favorites.

Fascinating world

This is a haunting, unforgettable journey through a daunting landscape of people groups fighting to survive in a hostile world. Written in a way that lets the reader discover the truth with Mara, a young phoenix tasked with protecting her flock, but destined for so much more. Forced to face the lies she’s been fed since she was a child, she’s confronted with the truth of herself. But how she reacts could tear the world apart -or save it. Grab this one now and discover it all for yourself!