Friday, January 16, 2015

Royal Reread: Thoughts on The Fire and Thorns Trilogy

I've already read the first two books, hence the royal reread, but now that I own all three I wanted to do a complete reread of the first two before diving into a third...thoroughly immerse myself, you know? So here are my thoughts as I finished each book [mostly lots of gushing] with a bonus wrap-up at the very end. 

The Girl of Fire and Thorns (Fire and Thorns, #1) 

Thoughts:
 I love the characters, I love the world, I love the story, I love Rae Carson's writing. The Girl of Fire and Thorns is an amazing beginning to a trilogy; it hooks the readers on the characters, makes them feel for them, feel as if they are real people and therefore care about what becomes of them while presenting a world that is incredibly real. One of my other favorite aspects of this beginning to the trilogy is that while there is room for development, and you want to know what becomes of the characters, it does not end in one of those god-awful cliff-hangers that so many books have nowadays. You don't want to leave the world, so for that reason you want to marathon the trilogy, yet the book itself is complete within itself.
4/5

 The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

 Thoughts:
I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this trilogy both times I read it, but it is this one that I have loved both times. The characters grow, the plot becomes more layered than ever, it's difficult to guess what happens next, and it's just a very solid read. I remember devouring this book within a single day the first time I read it, and I did it again this time. It's just impossible to set down. The first book introduces you to the world and the characters therein, but it is this volume that allows you to get lost in both.There's so much I want to say about this one but unlike with the first it is all but impossible to say any of it without spoilers. Allow me to say that the romance in this one is beautiful, the characters become even more dear to me and I find myself with new favorites, and Elisa rightfully claims her place as one of my favorite heroines ever.
5/5

 The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns, #3)

Thoughts:
As with the first two books in the trilogy I had difficulty setting this one down for any extended length of time; I simply had to keep reading and find out what happened to all of my favorite characters. However, while this one had just as much going on as the second one in the series it felt as if things were often resolved far too quickly or at other times too easily for all the build up. Some of the explanations were convenient but they worked so I can live with them. I think part of the reason that I felt that way is that I wanted this book to go on, I wasn't quite ready to leave this cast of characters and by the end of the novel everything was wrapped up. What I'm trying to say was that when I closed the book after reading the last page I was satisfied. I felt as if I was leaving the world in good hands.
4/5

FINAL THOUGHTS:
I really enjoyed this trilogy. It's that simple. I can't recommend it enough. If you enjoy character driven novels, it's for you. If you like fantasy, it's for you. If you like action, it's for you. If you like coming of age stories, it's for you. There's something in this for everyone and I just can't recommend this series enough. It's refreshing. It's fun. And it has some of my absolute favorite characters in it.
4/5

4 comments:

  1. Yey I love The Girl of Fire and Thorns SO MUCH! I push this series on anyone who like fantasy basically, haha. I'm shocked that I still haven't finished the short story collection, maybe I'll do that tonight :D

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    1. Yes! I do the same. It's got something for everyone I think. And it's great for people who are new to fantasy. [:

      I haven't even STARTED the short story collection...I keep forgetting about them. Thanks for the reminder! xD

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  2. Everyone loves this series! I really need to get started with this. I'm not a big fantasy reader but I want to start reading more this 2015.

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    1. Yay! That's a great goal. I'm working on branching out more in my reading too. If you need any fantasy recommendations feel free to ask! I've got tons. [:

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