Firelight

By: Sophie Jordan

Narrated by: Therese Plummer

Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

A hidden truth. Mortal enemies. Doomed love.

Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a drakia descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.

Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy. Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.

©2010 Sophie Jordan (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

GREAT STORY! READ THE ABRIDGED VERSION THOUGH

I've never reviewed a book before, but I've decided to review this one because while I LOVED the story and the characters, the writer repeated herself sooooo much that halfway through the book I had to skip to the end because it started to grate on my nerves listening to the same situations and feelings repeated over and over and over again. It seemed as though with each new event I had to listen to the protagonist re-tell every feeling and event from the previous pages. It was as if the author thought that I was stupid so she had to repeat everything all the time just in case I couldn’t remember. I think that the writer could take out about a fourth of the book and that would make it better. I'm surprised that her editor didn't help her cut some or a lot of the rehashing just to help the story move along. This is the first book that I believe the 'abridged' version would be an improvement on the ‘unabridged’. BTW, I LOVED the Narrarator Therese Plummer!

Took my breath away

Firelight has been the most captivating and refreshing YA novel I've read for a long time. It is a splendid mixture of fantasy, supernatural and romance. Especially the romance part. I was intrigued by how intense and intoxicating the romance was in this book. I've read hundreds of YA paranormal romance, and many of them I quickly dismissed because they sounded so cheesy, shallow and empty, so.....plz, not this again!!! You won't find that in Firelight. I have rarely felt so connected with a character before. Jacinda is a distinctive individual, a heroine you will come to like. Her emotions, her desires, her fears.....they were still so vivid in my mind that it's hard to get over. All the unique characters, the fluid and beautiful writings, the intense details made this book addictive and irresistible! I was completely and helplessly sucked in.

Original idea with some weak parts

Dragons! Well, not exactly dragons but dragon/human shapeshifters called draki! Firelight is a new paranormal series that’s a refreshing break from the typical werewolves and vampires.

Jacinda’s rare fire breathing ability is prized and highly protected by her pride. Unfortunately, this special ability means a strict and suffocating lifestyle for Jacinda. To save her daughter from the oppressive life in the pride, Jacinda’s mother sneaks her daughter out of the pride’s village hidden in the mountains and into a human town in the desert.

Although far away from the overbearing rules of the pride, Jacinda is no longer in the cool and wet climate which enables the draki to thrive. Their new and dry desert home threatens the survival of the form that brings Jacinda the most freedom. To keep her draki from withering away, Jacinda is driven into the arms of the alluring and dangerous draki hunter, Will. In the presence of a hunter, draki instinctively manifest to protect themselves. Jacinda knows that her connection to Will is the only way to keep her inner dragon alive but her relationship may put her and the entire draki world at risk.

Although this is Sophie Jordan’s first Young Adult novel, she has written many adult novels and her experience is evident in her writing. She uses beautiful descriptive language and her sett and she clearly is a pro at writing romance. When describing Jacinda’s moments with Will, I could feel the electric connection between them. Their forbidden attraction is intriguing and keeps you reading.

I thought the author’s concept of human/dragon shapeshifters was really very original. The draki evolved from dragons and have many varying traits and abilities within the species. Jacinda’s best friend, Azure, is a water draki with the ability to form gills and stay under water for long periods of time. Some have invisiblity while others are onyx black and can fly at high speeds. The whole draki concept is refreshing and creative. I want to learn more about the many different types.

My only complaint about the book is that it was difficult to visualize the draki. When describing them, the author interchanges descriptions of human features with dragon features. They have dragon-like skin, eyes, wings, but the author also describes Jacinda as having hair in draki form. This was confusing to me as I really didn’t like the idea of reptile having human hair. Also while in draki form, Jacinda huddles and rubs her calves for warmth. To me this is a very human movement and struck me as odd.

I wanted to envision a dragon but the author kept interjecting these images that didn’t go with the dragon image I had in my head. This didn’t ruin the book for me but it was a little distracting. I looked passed the this, envisioned the draki the way I wanted to, and still had fun reading it.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Firelight and I am very eager to find out what happens next in Vanish (Firelight #2). I have a tiny inkling of what the title could mean and I’m anxiously awaiting it’s release in September 2011.

Overwrought. Overwritten. Vapid.

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I think a younger audience might like this book, but I don't want to recommend it to tweens or teens because it holds up the terrible Twilight fantasy that the ONE MAGICAL BOY is what makes life worth living.

The book suffers from inconsistent and incomplete world-building (does she have hands or talons? do all dragons have hair?) and frequent repetition of Jacinda's angst about returning to her people, her romantic interest, her love of her mother and her sister. The simply cycles through these feelings until it reaches the moment when all is revealed (a twist that can be guessed halfway through the novel).

What do you think your next listen will be?

Look, I'm a fan of YA. But this is terrible YA. Worse than Twilight by a factor of 10. Please, please, please delve into another series.

He lights her fire

Firelight is a type of Romeo and Juliet tale where Will, who is a hunter, meets Jacinda who happens to be a drakia, an intelligent being evolved from dragons; Wills family hunts drakia.
The Drakia keep a closely guarded secret that no one, not even the hunters know; they can transform into human form.
As circumstances bring these two together there is an immediate attraction. Will lights her fire in more ways than one; which is not a good thing if Jacinda wants to keep the drakia secret.
This book is written for a YA audience and, as is typically for this genre, heavily emphasizes teenage infatuation; but still is a good story even for an older listener.
Know that this is book one of a series and does not have a concise ending, but sets up interest for the next book.

Very teen angsty story

This was okay if you are a teenager. I was definitely affected by not knowing this was part of a series. Let's just say that the ending would be atrocious for a standalone book! I like the culture and description of the draci. The family dynamics are decent. This reminds me a bit too much of Twilight, and not necessarily in a good way. I would recommend this for young listeners, but for adults, do yourself a favor and choose something else.

Discription overkill!

Would you be willing to try another book from Sophie Jordan? Why or why not?

Maybe, but not in this series. The bones of the story are interesting enough, but the author discribes the same scene over and over, in 15 different ways. I found it irritating and ending up FF most of the 2nd download.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

I actually liked the narration. She did a bang up job of keeping the threads of the story going.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

no, probably not.

A good read even for adults

I was worried that a high school book would be too young for me but it's dark enough to not feel like a little kid's book. The world created by Jordan is fascinating and the characters are very round.

Fly with Dragons (almost)

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would highly recommend this book to all of my fantasy and dragon lovers alike.

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite character was defiantly Will, he was kind and caring while still being firm and authoritative.

What does Therese Plummer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The exasperation in the character's voice. I would say this brings you into the book and makes the character seem real, as if you were her, feeling her real struggles.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Not extremely, though I couldn't turn off my headset, so I hope that says something. No one thing stands out, I've been captivated by the entire book.

Any additional comments?

I just love this book and can't wait to read more by this author with performances by this performer.

Totally Surprised

I know this is a teen story, however I thoroughly enjoyed it and immediately downloaded the next book. I love the direction of the story, and the idea of dragons/drakkie. I would recommend this story for anyone who loves dragons.