Long and Short Reviews

Fire and Shadow by Imogen Howson
Drollerie Press
Young Adult, Sci-fi/Fantasy
Short Story (novella), Sweet
Review by Orange Blossom

On Fern's 18th birthday, she discovers she's a fire-starter. It's a gift, and she's glad to have it. But fire starting is a curse as well as a blessing. Fern must learn how to control it, and to do that she has to leave her home and family, lest she burn them all by accident. Fern travels to a place where other young people have gathered to learn how to manage their gifts. Though none are firestarters, they understand self-control, and there are books to help. And that's where she meets Nik, the enigmatic magician who seems to understand her and her gift better than she does herself.

From the moment they meet, sparks fly, sometimes literally. Nik makes her lose her temper faster than anyone else can, but he understands her better than anyone else, too. Fern realizes something she didn't look for and didn't expect; she's falling in love with him.

But can Nik be trusted? Or is he hiding dangerous secrets of his own?

♥ ♥ ♥

This is definitely a story anyone can enjoy from young to old, a young adult dark fantasy that will keep you turning the pages till the very end.

Fern is a typical eighteen-year-old except for the fact that she’s a firestarter and has no idea how to control it. She contains the foibles of a typical young woman and one who has the unseemly flaw of panic which affects not only her new found power but her person relationships. She was realistically drawn and as a reader I wanted to know how she would deal with her new situation in life and how it would all work into the plot. The author put together a complete story regardless of its novella length. The secondary characters filled their roles brilliantly and the character of Nik will definitely steal your heart.

I was impressed immediately by Ms. Howson’s writing style. The story is told in lovely language that flows so well you really want to keep reading in order to find out how the heroine will defeat the menace to her world and her people. It contains the tenants to many well-written and plotted fantasy novels with a sweet romance strung throughout while at the same time fresh and original. It had a terrific ending and a couple plots twists which I was not expecting. In this day in age when much of the new fantasy being produced is filled with cliques and predictability, Fire and Shadow stands out in creative uniqueness. I encourage everyone to pick up a copy today.

Comments:

Date: Sat, Aug 2, 2008 at 2:28 PM
Your Name: Pam P
Your Comment: I do enjoy stories about magic and powers. Don't usually read YA stories, but I just might enjoy this one after reading the review.