FIRELIGHT by Sophie Jordan
Series: Firelight, #1
Publication Date: September 7th 2010 by HarperTeen
Rating: 
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Summary: A hidden truth.
Mortal enemies.
Doomed love.Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki—a descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.
Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will’s dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away—if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She’ll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.
Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.
Review Overview:
- Jordan’s writing style felt too choppy; just not for me
- Fantastic kissing scenes, but Will felt a little flat
- Loved the dragons, but I hated the mix of fantastical elements in the high school setting
I’m actually struggling to come up with my thoughts for this review. On one hand, I read this book pretty quickly, but on the other hand, I don’t know how much I really enjoyed it. I wanted to love FIRELIGHT, but I just couldn’t get myself to.
I think what bothered me the most when reading this book was the writing style. Jordan’s writing was just too choppy for my tastes. In a way, it does remind me a bit of Lisa McMann’s writing, however, I found that I had no problem with McMann’s writing.
Jacinda isn’t the most likeable heroine out there. She complains. A lot. I usually feel a lot more empathy for the protagonist, but in this case, I think I do have to side with Tamra, Jacinda’s younger twin sister. I found Jacinda unlikeable, mostly because she is selfish. Okay, her mom is a bit extreme to want Jacinda’s draki to die off, but she did have a valid reason for leaving the pride.
Okay, the kissing scenes? Totally hot. But Will? I know he’s supposed to be really attractive and all that, but I can’t help but feel that he was kind of flat. It’s only been a couple of days since I finished reading this book, and I can’t remember anything about him other than: 1) He’s a hottie that everyone wants. 2) The Big Secret 3) He’s a really good hunter. But these are just general facts. I can’t help but feel that his relationship with Jacinda is just super shallow.
And then of course, since this is the first in the series, FIRELIGHT falls under the category of Book Without an Ending. Nothing really happens. The big shocker that ends up like a slap in the face for Jacinda, I saw coming way too early on.
I’m a huge dragon-lover so the fact that this one didn’t live up to my standards was quite disappointing. I think I would have loved to see Jacinda outside of the stereotypical (and to be honest, quite overdone) high school environment with the – shock – fantasy twist. I loved the initial chapter learning about the pride and the hunters, but the high school setting just diluted my enjoyment.
However, I’m not ready to give up on Sophie Jordan just yet. I’m determined to dive into one of her historical romances. Maybe that kind of writing will be more to my liking. I do admit that FIRELIGHT has super fantastic kissing scenes and I can only imagine just how great Jordan’s romances can be.
Other Reviews:
Down the Rabbit Hole
A Journey of Books
Lady and the Books
Small Review
About the Author
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Find the Author
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Sophie Jordan grew up in the Texas hill country where she wove fantasies of dragons, warriors, and princesses. A former high school English teacher, she’s also the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Avon historical romances. She now lives in Houston with her family. When she’s not writing, she spends her time overloading on caffeine (lattes and Diet cherry Coke preferred), talking plotlines with anyone who will listen (including her kids), and cramming her DVR with true-crime and reality-TV shows. Sophie also writes paranormal romances under the name Sharie Kohler.
Whoa you redid your design, looks cool!
I haven’t read Firelight yet. I keep hearing a lot of things like “It’s twilight but with dragons” and stuff like that sorta. I should read it soon. Usually I love dragons too.
Haha! This is “old”.
Well, at least for me.
Okay, I haven’t read Twilight yet but based on my knowledge of it, I don’t see how it’s like the book. But what do I know.
TOTALLY agree with you! Especially your bullet points at the top. The kissing scenes were hot but Will, eh, he’s so “stock hot guy” Jacinda annoys me SO much.
I don’t remember the writing much from Firelight, but when I was reading Vanish I kept thinking that the writing/dialog was much better suited for an historical fiction than a paranormal set in modern times. So maybe her historical romances will be better.
Wow. I can’t believe that you actually read Book 2 as well! I don’t think I can do it.
I guess this sounds more like a coin toss, I think I may try it too plus I haven’t read a book about dragons LOL I’m curious
I hope you end up liking this more than I did!