A review by cassiealexandra
A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross

adventurous mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

I gave A River Enchanted 4.5 stars, feeling a little dissatisfied with a few minor items. I said in that review that I hoped my feeling of floating would come to a resolution with book 2, and it did. Even though the difference between my ratings is only .25, I loved this book so much more than its predecessor.

As was the case with River, the writing in Fire was atmospheric and beautiful. My desire for more time spent on magic was fulfilled tenfold. I loved seeing the crossover between the mortal and spirit realms. I got my wish for more interaction with the Folk, spirit portals, and enchanted libraries. I also appreciated that in addition to continuing to look at married love as book one did, this one had a focus on familial love and a deeper exploration of parent-child relationships. The ideas of clan and family are such huge themes in this duology. I felt like characters really grew in this one and were each given opportunities to come into their call and place in the world.

Again, there were a couple minor items that I struggled with, but they hardly affected my enjoyment of this book. 1. The switching point of view sometimes felt abrupt and left me wanting more from the previous storyline. When the storyline picked back up, it sometimes involved a slight time hop instead of going back to the original moment. 2. The pace sometimes moved a tiny bit slowly, which sounds funny coming from someone who isn’t usually bothered by that. I think the real issue was that I either wanted more action or more character development. Those two elements felt just a tiny bit off balance and it affected the pacing for me.

The bottom line: I loved this and was satisfied with the conclusion. Jack, Adaira, Sidra, Torin, and Frae will stay in my memory for a long time to come.

 — NOTES — 
Genres: fantasy
POV: third-person, multiple
Content: death, violence
Romance: 5 vaguely descriptive, nearly fade-to-black scenes

— MY RATING CONSIDERATIONS — 
(all out of 5)

Pace: 4
Enjoyment: 5
Craft: 5
My Gut Feeling: 5

Total Stars: 4.75
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