Review: Hidden

HIDDEN (Firelight #3)
Sophie Jordan
Paranormal Young Adult
260 pages
HarperTeen
Available Now
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Jacinda was supposed to bond with Cassian, the "prince" of their pride. But she resisted long before she fell in love with Will—a human and, worse, a hunter. When she ran away with Will, it ended in disaster, with Cassian's sister, Miram, captured. Weighed down by guilt, Jacinda knows she must rescue her to set things right. Yet to do so she will have to venture deep into the heart of enemy territory.

The only way Jacinda can reach Miram is by posing as a prisoner herself, though once she assumes that disguise, things quickly spiral out of her control. As she learns more about her captors, she realizes that even if Will and Cassian can carry out their part of the plan, there's no guarantee they'll all make it out alive. But what Jacinda never could have foreseen is that escaping would be only the beginning....

Loyalties are tested and sacrifices made in the explosive conclusion to Sophie Jordan's Firelight trilogy.

MY THOUGHTS
An action-packed conclusion to the Firelight trilogy, Hidden brings Jacinda face to face not only with the Hunters who have been systematically exterminating her kind, but also with all the issues she ran from when she and her family left her Pride originally. Though this last installment flows nicely and easily thrusts us into the middle of death and danger from the first page, some of the tension crackling in the first two books seems absent, problems arising and then easily overcome as Jacinda and company learn a series of uncomfortable and painful truths. There is a both a great deal of pain and passion throughout, but they feel slightly muted – as though we're viewing them through panes of glass – able to see and hear but not reach out and touch.

Jacinda has been a strong heroine throughout, feisty, independent and unwilling to succumb to the expectations of those around her simply because they can only see the Pride as a collective rather than as individuals who make up a whole. In Hidden, Jacinda is as much of a fighter as she's ever been, always protecting those she cares for and making the hard decisions when necessary. Her relationship with Will is one of those elements seemingly free of the aforementioned tension however, the forbidden aspect of their relationship in Firelight a non-issue now that Will has left his family behind, and the acute pain caused by a heart torn in two different directions when Cassian made an epic play for her affection in Vanish is reduced to a mere ache as Jacinda maintains her surety that Will is the right choice for her. While we thoroughly appreciate her decisiveness and the dissolution of the love triangle, her moments with Will seem to lack some of the emotional intensity found in previous books, brief moments of heat flaring before being quickly extinguished by new and often life-threatening intrusions.

The final showdown between the Hunters and the draki is a touch anticlimactic given the magnitude of the hatred on both sides, the battle with Will's family and the repercussions it has on Jacinda's Pride all wrapped up fairly quickly and easily in the final 30 pages. There are several unforeseen twists in those final pages to ensure we're utterly riveted, though a more thorough exploration of one particular revelation might have increased the impact of a few major events, causing our hearts to break instead of merely bruise from the blows. Overall, Hidden is a quick and entertaining read, wrapping up lingering questions as to what the future holds for Jacinda, Will, Tamra, and Cassian, and I can't help but hope a spinoff with Tamra and/or Cassian might be in the works at some point so closing the back cover of Hidden does not mean I've walked out of this world for the final time.

Rating: 3.5/5

Character Interview + Giveaway: Miram from Vanish

Today I have Miram from Sophie Jordan's newest young adult release Vanish joining me on the blog! For those of you who don't know, Miram is Cassian's sister and has the nifty ability to turn herself invisible. Color me jealous. Vanish just released on Tuesday, you can read my review of it HERE.

Can you share with us one moment growing up where your ability to become invisible came in handy?

Just one? Any time I wanted to know what somebody really thought about me it was easy enough to spy on them. Any time I wanted the answers to a test, it was an easy enough matter to sneak into a teacher’s classroom and look through their desk – even if they were in the room!

Name the best and worst parts of having Cassian as a brother.

The best part is that Cassian will someday lead the pride. As his sister, I’ll have my share of respect when that happens. Finally.

Do you think you would ever be able to fall in love with a human as Jacinda has?

Never! Absolutely not. I wouldn’t be a traitor to my kind. I’d rather die alone. I mean … can’t she control her feelings? She fell for a human! Other than it being just wrong it’s gross!

What is the one chore necessary to take care of the pride you dread most?

Ugh. Gutting crew. I’d never want to do that. Thankfully I will never have to … that's reserved for lesser draki.

Can you describe your father and Cassian’s reactions when they found Jacinda, Tamra, and their mother gone?

Ugh. You would have thought the world was ending. They questioned everyone, installed a curfew – you name it. All because of Jacinda. Dad was furious and Cassian … Well, I’m not sure how Cassian felt. He didn’t rant and rave like Dad did. He just kept looking into the distance. And then he convinced Dad he could find Jacinda and her family and bring them back. I’m surprised Dad let him go. I guess he was just that desperate to have Jacinda back. Like she’s special or something … whatever…

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions Miram! For more information on Sophie, Firelight, and Vanish, you can find her here:

Website
Facebook
Twitter
Vanish Trailer

GIVEAWAY

I had the pleasure of meeting Sophie (and the amazing Tera Lynn Childs - both of them are adorable) at a book signing last night in Dayton, Ohio where I picked up one beautiful finished copy of Vanish to give away on the blog today! Additionally, the fabulous people at Teen Book Scene have some fun swag to go along with it. To enter, please just leave a comment on the post with a valid email address so I can contact you if you win. Contest is open to US residents only and will run through midnight EST on Tuesday, September 13th after which time a winner will be chosen and announced on the blog. Good luck everyone!

Review: Firelight

FIRELIGHT (Firelight #1)
Sophie Jordan
Paranormal Young Adult
323 pages
Harper Teen
Available Now

THE STORY
Jacinda has always been a little different. As though being a draki, a descendant of dragons who can shift into human form, weren't unusual enough, she's even distinct among her own kind. She possesses the rare and much-coveted ability to breath fire, a talent that has made her invaluable among her pride and left her little freedom to make her own choices.

Her life is planned down to the last detail, she's to marry the alpha's son Cassian and further populate their pride with little fire breathers. Desperate to escape the smothering confines of her predetermined fate, Jacinda disobeys a strict draki order and takes to the air during the day without the safety of darkness to hide her from their mortal enemies, the Hunters. She quickly finds herself trapped, facing certain death at the hands of a young Hunter her age, only to receive a reprieve as he turns a blind eye to her hidden location.

As a result of her own carelessness, Jacinda, her twin sister, and her mom are forced to flee the pride and relocate in the human world. Staying human too long will kill Jacinda's draki, something she can't bear to accept. But in midst of the misery of a human high school, her draki flares to life in the presence of the young Hunter who saved her, and she marvels at her simultaneous luck and misfortune as he seems similarly drawn to her–a moth to her flame. Together they enter a relationship that could not only destroy them both, but the entire draki species as well.

MY THOUGHTS
This story is a warm breath of fresh air, alighting us with the emotional heat of first love and branding itself as unique among a plethora of paranormal creatures populating young adult fiction. The formula of forbidden romance is nothing novel, but it's almost always tortuously appealing, and Ms. Jordan infuses her tale with a dragon lore that adds a richly dark and threatening element to the typical teenage declarations of undying affection. It's no longer simply a matter of falling in love with a damaged bad boy and risking a shattered heart, but rather the very real possibility of the ruination of a family and the potential annihilation of an entire species.

Jacinda suffers from some stereotypical teenage girl indecisiveness, her internal monologue often contradicting her outward actions when it comes to Will, but she also possesses a refreshing candor, acknowledging her own weaknesses instead of feigning ignorance and creating a barrier between herself and us with her continuous denial. The dismissal of her feelings and the blatant disregard for her draki nature by her mother and twin sister weighs heavily on Jacinda, and she is strong enough to admit that at times her resentment of her current circumstances is a bit selfish (though her mom and sister are equally, if not more, egocentric in their pursuits). She recognizes she should want her mom and sister to be happy in their normalcy, and reveals to us she doesn't know how to feel differently despite her wish to do so for their sakes. We empathize as she struggles as so many of us do to stay true to herself in the face of her family's bitter disappointment that she not try harder to change, an abject loneliness and inability to be wholly and completely herself suffocating her a little more each day; and her situation forces our hackles to rise and our bodies to tense as a protective instinct for Jacinda and a righteous indignation on her behalf draws us deeper into her predicament.

The relationship between Jacinda and Will is sweetly common on the surface, the popular boy feeling drawn to the mysterious flame-haired new girl, but there's a dark truth smoldering in the embers of this fledgling connection, waiting patiently for a catalyst to spark the quiet flame into a roaring blaze. Jacinda believes she understands Will's appeal, feeling a kinship with him because he inexplicably saved her life, but we get the fleeting sensation every now and then that Will's answering attraction is not as simple as it seems. A new facet destined to alter everything we think we know dances on the edges of our understanding, just waiting to reveal itself and swipe our feet from under us, leaving us in a heap on the floor fully bowled over by the weight of this new discovery.

Secondary character Xander is someone of particular interest, his quiet menace emanating so strongly despite his brief appearances the pages seem to pulsate with static energy at the mere mention of his name, electric tingles racing from our fingers up our arms to raise the fine hairs on our necks in recognition of a formidable foe. He is only ever coolly polite to Jacinda, making him all the more disturbing for his apparent calm, an infinitely patient hunter just waiting for his prey to slip and make itself known. It's imperative to stay on alert at all times, eyes constantly searching for the whereabouts of this detached and calculating predator whose clearly caught a scent and will unflinchingly follow it's trail to the violent, bitter end.

The end is a touch abrupt, with Jacinda's wings taking her airborne after several explosive revelations rattle the very foundations of the relationships forged thus far, leaving us staring at the inside back cover bearing the full brunt of our newfound knowledge. The second installment can't come soon enough, a bevy of delectable future possibilities creating a ravenous hunger for answers that have just flown right out of our reach.

Rating: 4/5

In My Mailbox #8

In My Mailbox was created by Kristi over at The Story Siren and is a great way to see what other bloggers are reading and reviewing. I always love seeing what everyone else got for their week!



For Review:
Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton
The Lying Game by Sara Shepard
Once in a Full Moon by Ellen Schreiber



Bought:
Nevermore by Kelly Creagh
Firelight by Sophie Jordan
The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook

Interview: Sophie Jordan

Sophie Jordan's young adult novel, Firelight, releases today and she was nice enough to stop by and answer a few questions!

What made you choose dragons out of all the paranormal beings?

I knew I wanted to write a paranormal YA for awhile before I came up with the “draki-descendant from dragon” premise. It might sound silly, but I really did wait for the idea to come to me. I wanted to write a young adult novel with a strong romance (of course!), but the paranormal element was elusive. I wanted the paranormal aspect to be unique and fresh – both for the current market and me, too. I needed to be excited about it. I had lots of ideas flit through my mind that I quickly dismissed, but when I landed on dragons I knew I hit something that wasn’t being done in YA, and I got very excited. When I started thinking about how dragons might have evolved I knew I had the making of a great new paranormal world.

What is your favorite part of writing about first love?

Oh, that first meeting! The sparks! And, of course, there has to be conflict, otherwise things would get boring. So I guess my favorite part in writing about first love is establishing the conflict that is working to tear the “lovers” apart.

Do you find it more difficult to create a character (physical description, emotions, thoughts) or to name them?

Naming characters is pretty simple for me. I have lots of names swirling around my head. A character’s thoughts, however, can get tricky. I feel fairly in control of writing description and emotions … but sometimes you can get too close to a character and lose objectivity. You can miss the mark about what they should be thinking in a certain scene given what’s happening. When I revise, this is what I’m mostly cleaning up.

What is your favorite Firelight moment? Something during the writing process? Publishing? Promoting?

As difficult and hair-pulling as it is, I loved revising Firelight. By that time, I had something to work with. The bones were there, I just had to flesh it out. Even though the material was a bit rough, I could see the promise, the hint of what was to come. This is where the magic happens!

Do you have any special plans for release day?

Well, I’ll probably write – for a little while at least! But then I’ll gather some close friends for lunch at one of my fav places and then maybe stalk Firelight in a book store or two!

Thank you so much to Sophie for stopping by! If you're interested in learning more about Sophie and Firelight, you can find her here:

http://www.sophiejordan.net/

Cover Critique: Firelight

Let me preface this post by saying that my design critiques of these covers are in no way, shape or form a reflection on the author, the content or the publisher. I know the authors have very little, if any, control over the design. These are strictly my thoughts stemming from my design experience.

There are some seriously beautiful young adult book covers out there at the moment. Firelight is one of those, and one of my personal favorites. First, there's the single striking image of this young woman's face. I'm always partial to simplicity in book covers, I think the "less is more" concept is exquisitely fitting and always catches my eye more than a busy cover with lots of fonts and transparent images layered on top of one another.

Perhaps it's the trauma of years of design work where marketing would seek to fill any gloriously empty space with type, or an image, or a giant starburst screaming "look inside for a chance to win!" But nothing makes my eye start to tick more than a beautiful cover ruined by trying to include too much, making it hard for the eye to focus on anything at all, let alone what they really want potential buyers to see. But I digress into boring designer-mode:)

Once her face and bright red hair grab your attention, there's the subtle scale pattern covering her eye that makes you want to read the premise of the book and figure out just why this beautiful girl seems to be sprouting scales. It actually took me several minutes to notice that her eye is slit like a dragon's (now the scales are making sense Jenny, way to be brilliant) and not that of a human's at all. This cover is subtlety at it's finest.

Furthermore, dotting the "i" is a little flame, an inconspicuous nod to the title. The flourishes on the font are nice, balancing well with the graphic instead of overpowering it. Overall, this is just a really beautiful cover and I can't wait to see it printed to get the full effect.

Do you agree?