Title: Fire (Graceling Realm, #2) Author: Kristin Cashore Published by: Dial Books Published on: 5 October 2009 Pages: 461 pages
It's hard to wake from a nightmare when the nightmare is real.
The first book of this series, Graceling, was quite intriguing. Katsa is not your typical young adult heroine, and I say that as a good thing. There were some weak points, but as a whole it's a very promising story. Upon starting Fire, though, my good friend told me that this is the weakest of the whole series, but still important to understand who Leck was and what was his drive.
This time, we visit a different kingdom located just next to the mountain on the eastern part of Seven Kingdoms, Dells. There are no Gracelings here; there are Monsters. These Monsters could be anything, animals even humans. Their main characteristics are very attractive physical appearance and their hairs (or fur, in case of furry animals) are shades of shocking, different, beautiful colours. They could control and read others' thoughts -- sort of like a combination of Po's and Leck's Grace.
Years ago, Dells was led by a king named Nax, who was actually controlled and manipulated by a Monster named Cansrel -- Fire's father. To describe Nax and Cansrel in simple terms, I'd ask you to imagine adult Joffrey Lannister Baratheon having Ramsay Bolton as Hand of the King.
....Yeah.
Aanyway, Nax died later on due to overdose and Cansrel committed suicide. Nax's eldest son, Nash, then became king and his brother, Prince Brigan, became the Commander of the king's army. Both tried to undo the mistakes done by their predecessors, which was going to take a lot of effort as so many rebellions arose, thanks to Nax. Enter Fire.
When she had been little, Fire had always considered herself as having two sets of father: one who spoiled her (Cansrel) and one who disciplined her (Brocker). Brocker was Fire's neighbour who used to be the Commander until Nax sacked and tortured him. He was now paralysed and had no function of both of his legs. His son, Archer, had been Fire's best friend since little. Brocker was the one who instilled a sense of discipline and empathy in Fire when it came to her powers. Never to use it against other's wishes nor to take advantage of them. Over time, this was what separated Fire from Cansrel.
Due to the existence of mysterious intruders in the kingdom, even in the palace, and the uprising in so many different areas of Dells, the royal family requested for Fire's assistance. Which meant that she had to use her powers just like Cansrel did. Could Fire control herself well enough? And who were these mysterious intruders who came and went undetected, leaving behind foggy minds of those perchance meeting them?
EGGLYSIS
The world building is *chef's kiss*. Having a different location doesn't mean Dells isn't as realistic and intriguing as Seven Kingdoms. The concept of beautiful Monsters is as interesting as Gracelings. However plotwise, there isn't too much action. This part is rather tricky as I can see Kristin tried to convey the political intricates of the kingdom, but the execution felt like it missed the mark. In my opinion, it has something to do with Fire not being enough of an engaging character. She is basically Katsa 2.0 but without the awesome fighting skills. The way she cried once every 5 pages just made me roll my eyes.
If Graceling was controversial with its anti-feminine critics, Fire was too... free. Okay, let me explain and I hope you guys are still keeping an open mind: that this is a fantasy world, hence it is not tied down to our actual and very real medieval historical timeline. Kristin is free to shape her own medieval timeline. With that in mind, I would say that everyone seemed to be sleeping left and right in Dells. Not only that, but bastard childs kept popping up everytime. I'm sorry, how loose these people were? There were two characters who I adored at the beginning, but once Kristin revealed her twist, they both lost my respect. Infidelity isn't something light and the excuse isn't good enough.
Overall, Fire...
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