Book Two in the Fire and Thorns Series
Rating: Five out of Five Stars
I legitimately squealed when I finished this book. Like the high pitched annoying sounds 11 year old girls make when they see a baby penguin or something. It’s Just. That. Fabulous.
Girl of Fire and Thorns took me awhile to get into but once I was in, I was swallowed up by the beauty of Carson’s writing. I am a sucker for good world building and this baby gave me everything I wanted. To me a high fantasy book should have a world that is it’s own character. You need to know it, feel it, love it or hate it just like any other character in a story. You want to be able to relate to it and visualize it in your mind. I could actually see a map in my head of everywhere the characters went in the novel. From the water fall to the underground city it was vivid and clear and glorious. *whimsical sigh*
Not only am I once again impressed with Carson’s writing ability, but I am also ecstatic that this is a functioning, well thought-out, crucial-to-the-story installment. So many times author’s second book in a trilogy or sequel seems forced or convoluted because they are trying to build suspense and foreshadow everything that will happen in the next/last book. They forget that the readers still want to be transported to another world and see the characters grow. But Crown of Embers has it’s own flavor, story, personality that makes it just as engaging and engrossing as book one. It feels like a natural extension of the plot but it layers on so much more feeling and passion and emotional connections you just sink more and more into the story the longer the book progresses.
It’s a beautiful story with a unique, not cookie-cuter YA female pro-tag that will have you riding the wave of fantasy hard. When the book ends it takes you a second to come back to life in the real world because the story just feels so… real.
And this line.. soo romantic. Reminds me of my book boyfriend Mr. Darcy. Jane Austen would be so proud:
“I love you the way a drowning man loves air. And it would destroy me to have you just a little.”
Rattle The Stars 
Tell me what you think!