Scan barcode
cupiscent's review against another edition
4.0
This is set in the same world as the [b:Dreamhunter|357091|Dreamhunter (The Dreamhunter Duet, #1)|Elizabeth Knox|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1441659311s/357091.jpg|3017563] duet (a New Zealand analogy, this time bringing in the pre-colonial peoples), but considerably later. It shares in the joys of Knox's style - simultaneously lush and razor-sharp, and very, very smart (not just clever, but common-sense-and-real-world smart). There's a darker edge to this (where Dreamhunter was Edwardian froth hiding scalpel-sharp truths) that manifested for me as a strong and looming sense of uneasiness, like stormclouds building and building until things broke and revealed all their twisted-together terriblenesses.
Thoroughly enjoyable, full of thought-provocation, deft and lingering.
Thoroughly enjoyable, full of thought-provocation, deft and lingering.
cerizeseries's review against another edition
5.0
I like Elizabeth Knox's stories simply because they're original and very fresh. I just wish more people would read this and the Dreamhunter duet and have a whole new experience.
Oooh I love how mysterious Ghislain is and that all the questions were answered at the end of the book. I want moreeee. I got confused every now and then though because of the smart outtakes of Canny and the part of her being the twin of her mom and how she is going to free Ghislain. I also cried at the part where Canny visited Marli the day before she died. All in all I really loved this book.
Oooh I love how mysterious Ghislain is and that all the questions were answered at the end of the book. I want moreeee. I got confused every now and then though because of the smart outtakes of Canny and the part of her being the twin of her mom and how she is going to free Ghislain. I also cried at the part where Canny visited Marli the day before she died. All in all I really loved this book.
sophie_madeleine's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing. Absolutely amazing. It was like Elizabeth Knox had taken her Extra and turned it into this book. I couldn't put it down. I absolutely loved it.
srousseau's review against another edition
4.0
Canny is a math genius and the daughter of a true hero. All she wants is to stay home and visit her friend in the hospital while her parent's and brother travel. But her mother makes her go with her brother and his girlfriend on a trip that will change her life forever.
This is a wonderful fantasy. It requires a lot of attention to detail. It moves slowly, but is worth the time. For complicated fantasy lovers.
This is a wonderful fantasy. It requires a lot of attention to detail. It moves slowly, but is worth the time. For complicated fantasy lovers.
andye_reads's review against another edition
5.0
I decided to pick up a book that I haven't heard too much about, called Mortal Fire by Elizabeth Knox. I read her Dreamhunter duology a few years ago (on the recommendation of Stephenie Meyer) and they were so strange, but also really good. They've stuck with me over the years and I've often found myself thinking about the world Elizabeth created. I felt the same way about Mortal Fire.
I have no way, really, to describe this book, or explain how I felt about it. It was slow and strange, but beautiful and fascinating. There were complexities that you rarely find in YA, and a storyline that I've never even come close to before. There were times where I wasn't sure if I liked it or not, and times where I thought it was one of the best books I've read in a long time. This book took some concentrating. It wasn't one of those mindless reads that you could fly through in a couple of hours. There were times I actually had to stop and re-read certain paragraphs just to work out what the author was trying to get across. But let me just tell you, it was worth it. To see this story unfold, the mystery unravel, all the intricately placed details and foreshadowing fall in to place was just brilliant.
I think this is a book that will only appeal to a certain type of person, I'm not sure how many actual teens will take the time to delve into this story, but if you commit to it, and invest in it, I think you'll end up loving it like I did.
-Andye
ReadingTeen.net
I have no way, really, to describe this book, or explain how I felt about it. It was slow and strange, but beautiful and fascinating. There were complexities that you rarely find in YA, and a storyline that I've never even come close to before. There were times where I wasn't sure if I liked it or not, and times where I thought it was one of the best books I've read in a long time. This book took some concentrating. It wasn't one of those mindless reads that you could fly through in a couple of hours. There were times I actually had to stop and re-read certain paragraphs just to work out what the author was trying to get across. But let me just tell you, it was worth it. To see this story unfold, the mystery unravel, all the intricately placed details and foreshadowing fall in to place was just brilliant.
I think this is a book that will only appeal to a certain type of person, I'm not sure how many actual teens will take the time to delve into this story, but if you commit to it, and invest in it, I think you'll end up loving it like I did.
-Andye
ReadingTeen.net
tc_booksandmore's review against another edition
5.0
Really interesting and different, loved the magic and history.
interplanetarypages's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't finish this book because it was super boring and the jumps between the main character and the forest children were unclear and confusing.
It was a great concept but it didn't deliver
It was a great concept but it didn't deliver
mostlyshanti's review against another edition
4.0
I have no idea how to respond to this book. Well, I have LOTS of ideas, but they don't quite make sense. Sort of like Mortal Fire.
I'm going to separate this review into good, bad, and confused, because that is how I feel about this book.
GOOD.
I loved the setting. The author had obviously put a lot of thought into the Zarene valley, and I'm definitely going to hunt down the Dreamhunter duet. I also really loved that it was based on New Zealand, and that the author was a New Zealander. I feel sort of unpatriotic, because I don't don't really read many books by New Zealanders. I'm working on changing this, but there isn't much speculative ya, or I don't know how to find it. The magic was very detailed...perhaps too detailed. I had no idea what was going on. The plans were very clever, and I felt enough in the dark that I didn't know what was going to happen next.
The setting, a sort of idyllic paradise with a dark side, was almost tangible. Elizabeth Knox did a lot of world building, and she obviously understands the world she built really well. Using elements of New Zealand culture and history and mixing it with magic and coal-mining worked very well. The characters also had plenty of backstory, and I liked seeing parallels between Canny and her mother, especially considering what was revealed at the end.
The plot made sense, and kept moving, though the flashbacks didn't quite work.
BAD.
The bad for me was the same as the good. I feel like so much effort was put into the lush setting that the characters took a backseat. Canny spent so much time wandering through the forest past the wild pigs and admiring the midnight healing in the immaculate house that she could have spent in action. I would have liked it to be more fast moving.
With all the backstory, it took about half the book before stuff started moving. I knew exactly how things came to be, but I would have liked a little more action earlier on. The magic was so detailed that it wasn't used as much as it could have been. The plot sort of tripped up over the magic. The plot kept deviating to explain this or that. The back stories took too long.
To cut a long story short : the details diminished the plot. The book was too slow moving. If I am committing myself to 400 pages, I want there to be 400 action packed pages.
CONFUSING.
What I really didn't get in this book was the characters. Specifically, the characters relationships and though processes. Why were Marli and Canny friends? What did Sholto and Susan think of Canny being with them? How did Canny feel about her magic? I get that she doesn't quite get people, but I want to understand her. Why did Ghislain and Canny like each other? The characters were told not shown, and I didn't understand how that worked at all. The characters weren't at all relatable.
i am definite going to read this book again, when I know how it works. I liked lots of things. But it wasn't quite fast moving enough for me.
I'm going to separate this review into good, bad, and confused, because that is how I feel about this book.
GOOD.
I loved the setting. The author had obviously put a lot of thought into the Zarene valley, and I'm definitely going to hunt down the Dreamhunter duet. I also really loved that it was based on New Zealand, and that the author was a New Zealander. I feel sort of unpatriotic, because I don't don't really read many books by New Zealanders. I'm working on changing this, but there isn't much speculative ya, or I don't know how to find it. The magic was very detailed...perhaps too detailed. I had no idea what was going on. The plans were very clever, and I felt enough in the dark that I didn't know what was going to happen next.
The setting, a sort of idyllic paradise with a dark side, was almost tangible. Elizabeth Knox did a lot of world building, and she obviously understands the world she built really well. Using elements of New Zealand culture and history and mixing it with magic and coal-mining worked very well. The characters also had plenty of backstory, and I liked seeing parallels between Canny and her mother, especially considering what was revealed at the end.
The plot made sense, and kept moving, though the flashbacks didn't quite work.
BAD.
The bad for me was the same as the good. I feel like so much effort was put into the lush setting that the characters took a backseat. Canny spent so much time wandering through the forest past the wild pigs and admiring the midnight healing in the immaculate house that she could have spent in action. I would have liked it to be more fast moving.
With all the backstory, it took about half the book before stuff started moving. I knew exactly how things came to be, but I would have liked a little more action earlier on. The magic was so detailed that it wasn't used as much as it could have been. The plot sort of tripped up over the magic. The plot kept deviating to explain this or that. The back stories took too long.
To cut a long story short : the details diminished the plot. The book was too slow moving. If I am committing myself to 400 pages, I want there to be 400 action packed pages.
CONFUSING.
What I really didn't get in this book was the characters. Specifically, the characters relationships and though processes. Why were Marli and Canny friends? What did Sholto and Susan think of Canny being with them? How did Canny feel about her magic? I get that she doesn't quite get people, but I want to understand her. Why did Ghislain and Canny like each other? The characters were told not shown, and I didn't understand how that worked at all. The characters weren't at all relatable.
i am definite going to read this book again, when I know how it works. I liked lots of things. But it wasn't quite fast moving enough for me.
amdame1's review against another edition
2.0
I put a hold on this because it had gotten good reviews and sounded interesting, but I just couldn't get into it. It also took me almost twice as long to read it as a typical book of that length and genre takes me...
Canny is sent on a trip to a mining town to do research with her older brother and his girlfriend. She discovers that she is the only one who can see a house on the hill that is hidden by magic. Also, the only people in that particular part of the valley are two adults and then numerous children - but none over the age of 13. Turns out that Canny is able to do this type of magic as well and she manages to make it up the hill and discovers that a young man is being held prisoner there.
No swearing, small amount of kissing, small amount of violence/blood/gore
Canny is sent on a trip to a mining town to do research with her older brother and his girlfriend. She discovers that she is the only one who can see a house on the hill that is hidden by magic. Also, the only people in that particular part of the valley are two adults and then numerous children - but none over the age of 13. Turns out that Canny is able to do this type of magic as well and she manages to make it up the hill and discovers that a young man is being held prisoner there.
No swearing, small amount of kissing, small amount of violence/blood/gore
booksandbosox's review against another edition
2.0
http://librarianosnark.blogspot.com/2014/10/review-mortal-fire.html