Hey all, Dani here.
Am I back with yet another book that I read last year? Yes, I do believe that is true. I’ve had review backlogs before, but I think this is the worst. But, at least I am making progress now, so I’m going to take that as a moment for celebration. You know, enjoy small victories and all that. Anyway, it has been a busy weekend…just not on the tasks I wanted to focus on. Okay, yes, I did manage to check a few things off the to-do list…but most of the weekend was spent playing Stardew Valley. So if my post schedule gets a little weird now/for the next few days, it’s because I’m trying to catch up on things because I got somewhat addicted to another video game.
Anyway, I guess we should just jump into the review.
Once upon a time, there was something called the sun … In a kingdom ruled by a witch, the sun is just part of a legend about Light-filled days of old. But now Siria Nightingale is headed to the heart of the darkness to try and restore the Light—or lose everything trying.
Sixteen-year-old Siria Nightingale has never seen the sun. That’s because Queen Iyzabel shrouded the kingdom in shadow upon her ascent to the throne, with claims it would protect her subjects from the dangerous Light.
The Darkness has always left Siria uneasy, and part of her still longs for the stories of the Light-filled days she once listened to alongside her best friend Linden, told in secret by Linden’s grandfather. But Siria’s need to please her strict and demanding parents means embracing the dark and heading to the royal city—the very center of Queen Izybel’s power—for a chance at a coveted placement at court. And what Siria discovers at the Choosing Ball sends her on a quest toward the last vestiges of Light, alongside a ragtag group of rebels who could help her restore the sun … or doom the kingdom to shadow forever.
Ignite the Sun is:
- A YA fantasy adventure that is exciting and unique
- An allegorical exploration of the struggle with anxiety and depression
- Perfect for readers 13 and up
My Thoughts:
Rating: 4 stars
Gosh, I need to re-read this book. I’m fairly certain I read it before it released last August, so my recollection of specific details is extremely hazy. I realize that might make it sound like the book isn’t that good since it’s not very memorable, but I do remember that I enjoyed reading it. But I also read 250 books last year, and I’ve read like 61 this year so far, meaning that’s a lot of specific book information to remember, and sometimes it doesn’t happen. I also have my mind very filled with D&D information, and that takes up a lot of space and processing power.
Anyway, I did find this to be a rather interesting fantasy story. I enjoyed the stories of The Light and The Darkness. It was an interesting set-up for the world-building and the magic and such.
We meet our leading lady Siria Nightingale first as a child, if I remember correctly, and she’s still a bit wild and free, fascinated by stories and spending time with her best friend who is basically the groundskeeper’s kid at her family estate. Fast forward years later and Siria is at a school for the more well-to-do children of rich and/or powerful people, and she has to be more poised and refined and all that.
So sounds like so many other fantasy YA protagonists out there. Some of the reveals and plot points are predictable, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t good, necessarily, or that they aren’t well executed for this story. It just means that authors (and readers) take elements they/we enjoy from various books and toss them together to make another story, calling it exciting and unique, when really most stories have a lot of similarities. But we sometimes really enjoy that. It’s nice to have an idea of what to expect…so you have a teenage girl who wants to be one way, but is forced to act another way because of family/society/whatever, and then that girl discovers something–usually some magic ability/family secret/etc–and it sets her off on an adventure or on a quest. Typically this involves meeting up with a ragtag group of other individuals, and more often than not they take on the government or kingdom or whatever to try and make things better.
There’s nothing wrong with these kind of stories. They are still good. And obviously I’m talking about reading this one again, because I do recall enjoying it. I just don’t remember a lot of the specifics. Oh, I will also say that the cover is lovely. It is definitely an eye-catcher.
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Well, that is all from me for today. Thanks for stopping by, and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.
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