Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

Elisa is the chosen one.

But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can’t see how she ever will.

Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.

And he’s not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.

Most of the chosen do.

Review: It seems that a lot of these books that I put off reading for a long time turn out to be some of my favorites. I got a lot of hype about this book but I was convinced that it wouldn’t hold up to it. I love it when a book proves me wrong. I was very quickly hooked on this book.

If I had to compare this book to other books in its genre I’d have to say that is is like Graceling with a dash of the Grisha trilogy. It has the strong female character with a special power that these books exhibit but, like the Grisha books, its world is done beautifully in a very different way.

One thing that really stands out about our main character, Elisa, is that she is in no way a bad ass strong character from the beginning. She certainly has her own personal strengths but she really has to become who she was meant to be through hardship and effort. She is shaped my experience and the acquisition of knowledge throughout the story.

I do think that the ending came about pretty quickly and I wished that it had slowed down a little bit. I think a little more explanation and time could have been given to make the book a five star work, but despite this I really enjoyed reading it. I finished the book in less than a day and started book two right after. Hopefully the series will continue to keep me ravenous for more!

What did you think of Girl of Fire and Thorns? Talk about it in the comments below!

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