firebreathingmermaid's profile picture

firebreathingmermaid 's review for:

Blazewrath Games by Amparo Ortiz
5.0

adsjfafkas;dfjdsakl;fjsdakfj okay this is going to be 50% my book review and 50% me raving dreamily about how much this book meant to me personally.

I'll start with a general review. This is a really well-done Urban/Contemporary Fantasy story, which happens to be my favorite genre. The world building is very thorough, but laced perfectly into the actual story. I definitely prefer books that take that approach to those which give too much of an info dump at the start. This book launches you into everything from the start and carries you through with perfect pacing the whole time, just the right amount of action, backstory, character development, everything through every single chapter. I don't really know how this was achieved, because there was a whole world and history of that world, a magic system, dragon breeds, and a sport to develop, but Ortiz really managed to put everything and the kitchen sink into this novel without losing the pacing or getting into the weeds at all.

That's really hard to achieve and most books miss the mark at least in one or two spots, but for a relatively short novel, somehow Blazewrath Games managed to do everything it needed to do at just the right time. Even despite the fact that there was a pretty large cast of characters, I was able to feel each one of them as an individual and get attached to them. This novel even brought me to tears a few times with some of the more impactful scenes, through character growth, conflicts, etc.

And not to mention, DRAGONS??? I'm sold. This is a perfect YA Contemp Fantasy and I would highly recommend it!

Now to the more personal side of things:

Oh my God a book that centers around a Latinx girl who is struggling with her sense of identity and belonging??? Where have you been all my life. I don't think I'm anything like the character of Lana personality wise, but I still connected with her so much. She's half Puerto Rican (hey, me too!) and she grew up/lived most of her life outside of the island. A big part of her character arc is the struggle of being "Puerto Rican ENOUGH" or feeling like she doesn't belong and can't represent her people. That's a rough feeling, especially when her own team member uses that as a weapon against her. Let me tell you, reading that hurt my soul, as someone whose own FAMILY has said similar things, as if I'm not related to them. Lana's reconciliation of who she is and what she fights for and choosing to do it despite SOME voices (including one in her head, at times) trying to tell her she isn't "enough" of who she is... that was inspiring. I need that. Young readers who are mixed race, or caught between cultures, struggling with their cultural identity, etc... they need that. And this book delivers it, and SO much more.

Five huge stars to this book!