Review Detail

Billed as the prequel to Kristin Cashores wonderful fantasy, Graceling, Fire is a prequel only in the most remote sense.  In an off-the-cuff manner, it introduces the concept of a graceling (a person endowed with almost superhuman ability in a specific area) and a graceling character that appears in both books.  However, Fire stands very well on its own.

Fire, in this story, is a human monster.  In her native The Dells, monsters come in amazing colors.  Fires hair is a shimmering red which draws animal monsters to her because they like to feed on each other.  Fires beauty makes men fall in love with her.  But people are also repelled by monsters.  Her talent is telepathy.  She can read peoples minds and transmit her thoughts wordlessly.  This talent is put to use by King Nash and Prince Brigan of The Dells, whose lords to the north and south are contemplating war.

Fire is the daughter of Cansrel, also a monster and a confidante of King Nashs father.  Cansrel was known for his telepathic talents and his utter cruelty.  Until her fifteenth birthday, Fire lived in virtual seclusion with Brogan, a former Dell military commander and his son Archer, three years older than Fire.  Archer and Fire developed a close, and at times, suffocating love.  When Fire is summoned by King Nash to interrogate a prisoner, Archer does not want her to go but she feels she must.  This decision begins a series of events that will test Fires abilities, her love and her friendships.  Over the course of months, Fire becomes an integral part of the royal court and learns what love and friendship are all about.

So, what makes Fire, the book, special?  So many things.  The characters are marvelous, from the royal family to Fire and her family to the enemy lords to the invisible archer to the river mare who follows Fire at a distance.  The place itself, The Dells, is wonderfully described, including the underground passage ways, the mountains and rocky plains.  The action is engrossing, the plotting amongst the lords, the retribution for slights, the planning for war, even the attacks of the monsters.  The romance, while anticipated, is enjoyable.  Cashore has a way of making readers need to keep reading, need to see what happens next, need to get to the end.  Pick up Fire and you wont get burned.