Fireborne

This book has gotten a lot of advanced buzz, and I have to say, I can see why.

The telepathic dragon/companion trope is pretty well worn by now, and Munda doesn’t do much to add to it. But if you like that trope, you’re going to be okay with the eggs, impression, shared emotional states with dragons, etc. Munda does a great job with it.

Where this book takes a left turn, I thought, was with the political situation. The story (sort of*) begins ten years after an especially bloody revolution, overthrowing the dragon lords who were this world’s nobles. They kept the dragons to themselves, and of course they had everything. Including the leisure time for poetry. The rest of the world scrabbled to support them.

Until the revolution that overthrew them, and nearly stamped them out by killing all the dragon lords down the the smallest kid. But total annihilation is more difficult than it looks when it’s hand to hand slaughter, and a few got away, or were spared–including one of our protagonists, Lee, who was born Leo, his father an important dragon lord.

I said “Sort of” above because we get snippets of the revolution, and Lee’s story, along with Annie’s. She is our secondary protagonist, once a serf. As a serf she would never have been permitted near a dragon, but now she and Lee are dragon riders, for the revolution made it possible for commoners to test for dragon riding.

Early on, we get a glimpse of a past event, an execution. Lee and Annie, tight friends, both misunderstood the other’s reaction–and when the reader realizes it, the game alters. Nothing is predictable anymore. Moral dilemmas, with huge emotional freight attached, lie like landmines everywhere. There are no easy choices in this world.

I suspect Munda is a visual writer, as she paints in the complexities of character emotions through subtle observation of body language. That was a real pleasure to read–she avoids the easy but overused LED lights in eyes for emotional conveyance (his eyes gleamed/smoldered/flashed/shot flames, fire, ice, and daggers, blah de blah). That and the difficult choices, plus the twists in the backstory that you think you know, add up to a real page turner.

Tne climax is breathtaking, excruciating, exhilarating by turns. There is an exquisite balance between resolution and hints of what is to come to really make me eager to see what’s next.

Wow!

First off… Dragon Riding. Brings me back to my love of How to Train Your Dragon. This had all of those vibes but with a deeper and more in-depth background of Annie and Lee. I enjoyed the author’s abilities to create a vivid landscape of this world and craft such intricate histories for the characters. This is a slow read with building secrecies and hidden lies. Some parts are slow and others are action packed. There are themes of class, poverty and political strife. Looking forward to the next book for sure.

I’d recommend this to all those who enjoy books with dragons and want to slowly savor a read.

Perfect for fans of Game of Thrones, Fireborne has the tension, political intrigue, and incredible character dynamics to keep the reader engaged in the plot.

Munda did an exceptional job with this novel as she explores a world following a revolution. It has roots in the Greek works of literature, bringing in a philosophical aspect to the novel, making it an incredibly thoughtful young adult fantasy novel. There are many levels to this novel, starting with the revolution. It does recall the French Revolution as Munda did note that that event partially inspired her, and it does resonate in the novel, especially in the beginning where the peasants have stormed the palace, ending the aristocracy. Lee is the only survivor and then grows up under this new government, a government he believes in.

Lee’s survival leads to incredibly complex narratives that unfold wonderfully, especially as it shifts between both his perspective and Annies. Both of these characters have different backgrounds and origins but have both come together in this new world order. They balance each other perfectly, both are quite strong and silent, but they give off such different airs about them that makes them such a dynamic couple to read. However, more than that, each chapter sometimes shifts between each character reminiscing in a tone that breaks away into a third-person omniscient narrative. It blends the story and the narratives so well that it engages the reader, highlighting the complex natures of the characters and their vibrant personalities.

The novel’s many complexities highlight the richness and thought-provoking nature of the plot. There is a considerable amount of political upheaval in the novel that one would expect when following a revolution, and the integration and clear inspiration of Plato’s The Republic adds so many layers of intrigue and tension throughout the novel.

Fireborne is an utterly compelling novel that makes for a fantastic read. There are so many levels of intrigue and complexities that give the novel a well-rounded form. The integration of the past and the present allow for such smooth fluidity to the storytelling. A stunning read.

In all seriousness, Fireborne by Rosaria Munda is the best. I have nothing to compare it to. It is unique, yet takes elements I love from other fantasy novels and breathes new life into them. Do you like dragons? Do you like revolution? Do you like an unlikely hero? Do you love a heart-breaking romance? If you said yes to more than one of these, you are going to love Fireborne. Following two orphans of the revolution, Fireborne explores what happens to society and the teens left behind to rebuild it.

Annie and Lee are opposites. Annie is a former serf, orphaned when her family was executed by the dragonlord they served. She’s timid and shy, but very smart. Her brains take her far. She is allowed a dragon and trained as one of the new riders. Lee is the orphaned son of one of the dragonlords. He should have died, yet he was spared. No one knows how or why, and no one knows his true identity. He keeps it secret. His family was hated and despised, Lee knows that if his identity was ever leaked, he’d be killed. It is the mercy that he was shown and Annie’s history that gives Lee a unique perspective. Lee doesn’t want revenge for what was done to his family, he wants to move past it and build a better future for those that survived.

I love both Annie and Lee. They are unlikely friends that depend on each other to make them better. Lee cares deeply for Annie which is evident from their first interaction. Annie cares just as deeply, but also is confused. She knows who he is, even if the name was never spoken. This silence drives a wedge in their relationship, and when we the readers first meet them it is painful to see. The author’s writing evokes a powerful response from the reader. It is unlike anything else I’ve ever read. I truly felt both their pain and hurt. I just wanted to wrap them both in a hug.

The plot is centered around a tournament, which all the dragonriders have entered. Each win gets them closer to being the leader of the new dragonriders, an aerial fleet for the kingdom. The undertones of the tournament and education they receive is different than what the general public receives. History is being rewritten by the winners of the revolution that occurred ten years prior. Annie, Lee, and the other riders know it. The question is when is it too much. When do you tell the truth and when do you tell a pretty lie? This book explores propaganda and a society in which people are divided not by their birth but by their smarts.

Overall, if you haven’t guessed already, I love Fireborne. It is a fantastic read. The details and the dragons, the new government, and Lee and Annie drive the plot making it a fast read. If you enjoy YA fantasy with a heavy dose of politics, I highly recommend it. Me? I’m just going to be over here waiting for the next installment with bated breath because I need it ASAP please!

I’m going to start out this post by letting it be known by all and sundry that I was provided with a physical finished copy of Fireborne from the publisher for publicity posting and a digital review copy from the publisher via Netgalley and FFBC in exchange for an open and honest review. I’m way too opinionated for this to sway me but the FTC requires me to make this sort of thing known. Now, on to the good stuff!
I enjoyed reading Fireborne for the most part, I mean, who doesn’t love the idea of riding dragons? But y’all, I have hated Plato for nearly a quarter of a century now and Fireborne screamed its ties to Plato so loudly the entire time I was reading the book. I spent half the time reading the book muttering ”I freaking hate Plato”. I thoroughly applaud Ms Munda though, if Fireborne wasn’t so well-written, I wouldn’t have made it through the book and I would have taken a while to make the connection to Plato. The world-building in Fireborne is hardcore and so in-depth that you can practically see the story taking place around you. There are so many characters that climb out of the book and act out the story for you.
That being said, there’s more to Fireborne than my distaste of Plato. There is romance and subterfuge, betrayal and heartache, competition and political turmoil. Fireborne centres around Lee sur Pallor and Antigone sur Aela, two orphans brought together as small children in an orphanage who grow up together, closer and closer, knowing that their pasts are twisted round each other in a choking knot. They’re now teens and facing each other in a contest for position as First Rider in the new regime’s dragonrider corps. As with all teens, there are hormones running amok and tempers getting out of hand left and right, and oh yeah, family acting out in the wings killing people and loyalties being called into question. For the most part, I’m a fan, but the love polyhedron thing? Not really. I want to throw Crissa off a dragon mid-flight because chicks before…. you know where I’m going with that. And I still haven’t figured out Power. Duck annoys me, he’s like an untrained dog you’re worried is going to lift his leg and pee on Annie to mark his territory half the time. Get the girl a clicker. But these are kids being trained for battle and serving their people, what else do you expect but messed up kids?
I’m still not sure about where I stand on continuing this series, but I do know that this was a 4-star read. Weird, right? But I can’t discount the storyline or the writing, I may be angsty over whether or not I personally like the story, but I do know when an author’s done an amazing job. Despite the Plato.

This has been a Once Upon a Time, I Read a Book review and you can visit my dot-com for more goodies and weirdness any time!

Fireborne is a fantasy novel set nine years after a bloody uprising against a brutal regime in which the poor were treated abominably by their “Dragonlords”. The main characters are Lee, the son of a Dragonlord killed in the uprising, and Annie, whose family was slaughtered by Lee’s father. They are training to ride dragons to be able to defend their country.
I read an ARC of Fireborne and loved it. It was plot and character driven, fast paced and had great world building. The characters inspire empathy and the reader very quickly cares what is going to happen to them. The Dragons add an exciting dimension to the story. Attitudes and values from the old and new regimes cause tension between the characters. Lee is faced with a difficult choice when his loyalty to the new regime is questioned by the appearance of a family member from the old one. Inspired by the Aenid and the Republic, Fireborne is thought provoking and raises a lot of ethical questions about how to structure a society.

Inspired by a combination of classics such as Plato and also by dog fights above England during world war 2 the author imagines what it would be like if dragons fought in the air. It’s a crazy combination that works as the story she tells is about the aftermath of a revolution that leaves the victors and indeed the dispossessed struggling in their new utopia but have they truly created a paradise with freedom and prosperity for all or is it an illusion that can come crashing down ?
Our hero is Lee who hides the fact that he is the son of a much reviled and now dead Dragon Lord. He’s fought his way up through the ranks and now his goal of becoming First rider is within sight but first there’s the little matter of actually winning the trials. One of his rivals is Annie who is probably the person he is closest to but even she doesn’t know his secrets.
This story takes these characters and indeed the reader on a moral journey where it’s difficult to categorically state what is black and what is white. The political machinations are muddied with the author showing shockingly that even the heroes of this world have feet of clay . Do not expect a straight forward romance either because even then these characters make decisions that feel uncomfortable. If like me you want to read this because it’s about Dragons then I have to say that sadly even though these riders can communicate with their Dragons there isn’t as much of that here as perhaps I’d hoped. Instead we get the story told in turns from the point of view of both Lee and Annie as history starts to repeat itself and war is coming.
This is incredibly hard to rate because as much as I applauded the ending at times it did feel a little slow. Plus I know that we are all influenced by something and it’s almost impossible to have a completely new idea but the set up for these characters reminded me of another famous series.
Lee the young hero who is orphaned.
Annie the best friend who is undoubtedly brilliant but looked down upon by elitist snobs .
School/ academy setting.
Vile fellow student who is frequently rude and nasty to Annie.
The old guard determined to bring back dark times.
Yes I know it’s a completely different story but sadly all of the above plus a couple of other things did take me out of the story at times. I think overall given that it’s a book about squadrons of Dragons taking to the skies and fighting what really let this down was a distinct lack of action as even at the end when a much anticipated showdown occurs it just seemed to happen so very quickly. This isn’t a bad book because I did enjoy this story and I hope the sequel allows the Dragons and their riders to really show what they can do !
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe