Title: Fire (Graceling Realm #2)
Author: Kristin Cashore
Release date: October 5, 2009
Publisher: Dial
Pages: 461
Source: Giveaway

She is the last of her kind…

It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. In King City, the young King Nash is clinging to the throne, while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. War is coming. And the mountains and forest are filled with spies and thieves. This is where Fire lives, a girl whose beauty is impossibly irresistible and who can control the minds of everyone around her.

Fire is honestly one of the best books I have ever read.  I liked Graceling but I definitely didn’t like it as much as some people.  I was the opposite with Fire.  I think I liked it a lot more than most people.  To me, it just had everything I wanted and it got me so excited for Bitterblue!

Fire may be totally gorgeous and kind and smart and powerful but she certainly does not have an easy life.  She is hunted, spat at, hated, and sometimes overly adored.  It’s hard to know who actually likes her and who is just infatuated with her.  She never lets it go to her head though.  She tries to hide her beauty and only uses her powers for self-defense.  That changes when she is called upon to help the royal family but she doesn’t let it turn her into a monster.  She is ultimately a good person and that never changes.

There were quite a few characters in this book yet Cashore made each one unique and totally lovable (even Archer in his stupidity.)  Each character was fleshed out and so easy to understand (at least most of the time.)  My favorites were Brigan, Hanna, and Nash.  Brigan was such a wonderful guy.  He starts as a bit of a bully but that doesn’t last long.  Deep down he is a total sweetheart and I loved him (more than Po.)  Hanna was so brave and smart and funny.  Nash was also funny but usually when he wasn’t trying to be.  I loved watching him grow and the changing nature of his relationship with Fire.

Admittedly there isn’t a ton of action in this book but it didn’t slow things down at all.  Normally it takes time for me to get into a book but that was so not the case with Fire.  I was hooked from the beginning and I read the whole 450 page book in a day.

Also, Kristin Cashore’s writing may be some of the best I have read.  I have never read such beautiful writing and I’m pretty sure I will read whatever she writes in the future.

Overall, Fire is an unputdownable read with romance, mystery, intrigue, assassins, and one kick-ass heroine.  If you haven’t read it do so now!