Fire Falling (Air Awakens, #2)

by Elise Kova

Soldier… Sorcerer… Savior… Who is Vhalla Yarl?

Vhalla Yarl marches to war as property of the Solaris Empire. The Emperor counts on her to bring victory, the Senate counts on her death, and the only thing Vhalla can count on is the fight of her life. As she grapples with the ghosts of her past, new challenges in the present threaten to shatter the remnants of her fragile sanity. Will she maintain her humanity? Or will she truly become the Empire’s monster?

• ISBN10: 1619849526
• ISBN13: 9781619849525
• Publish Date: 19 November 2015
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Price World Publishing
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 350
• Language: English

Reviews

[ladygrey]

I was definitely more frustrated with this book than the last one. Vhalla is pretty obtuse. Immediately, I’m like this is ridiculous. Sareem’s death wasn't her fault. Then Vhalla spends so much time being stupid. Aldrik flat out told her the connection between them and what it means to him and she’s spending so much being all confused by obvious things. And I don’t even mean the subtext which isn't so obvious but is still clear. I have a feeling he's not going to put her in her place like he did in the last book so I may not enjoy this one as much.  And it keeps going with the dreams. I don’t understand why she’s trying so hard to be stupid about obvious things.

And there seems to be more internal ruminating on events and emotions we already know. And the particular tone seems a little stronger with a noticeable amount of odd phrasings and sort of sideways approaches to things.  

Finally what I figured out is I liked these characters and this world more when Aldrik is mercurial and strong and mysterious. And when the story is more focused on magic rather than war. 

[vagasker]

Nothing much really happens until the very last chapter in this book but due to its short length I did not get bored. It gives more insight to the different characters and magic system which I appreciated. Also this book ended on a cliff hanger that really makes me want to pick up the next one right after!

[Vicki]

This picks up right where the last book left off. The first half was a bit slow going and mostly centered around the march to the front lines. Lots of marching, training and time for drama. Call me crazy, but I do love me some angsty drama if it's not overly done and if there's a somewhat justifiable reason for it. And there was definitely some between Vhalla and Aldrik during the first half while both of them dealt with their own insecurities, the differences in their stations and the fears/implications of their feelings for each other. For me, it was the perfect amount of drama and it didn't drag on for the whole book.

Larel and Fritz make a return in this book. We also see more of Daniel and Craig. There were a few new characters as well: Elecia was stuck up snob and basically a mean girl. I loathed her in the beginning but think we'll grow to like her eventually. The Emperor is a real bastard. Although we only see him for a short bit, I really liked Aldrik's Uncle Ophain. I hope we see more of him.

Things pick up in the second half, both from a plot perspective and from a relationship perspective, once they reach the Crossroads. There was something I definitely wasn't expecting and a crazy cliffhanger. I am officially addicted to this series.

[Leigha]

A young woman transforms from a library apprentice to a sorcerer in this awesome new adult romance-fantasy series.

I devoured the Air Awakens series over a week. Five books in one week! I’ve owned the first one for ages, finally sitting down to read it this past July. While the beginning is BEYOND slow, the rest of the series more than makes up for the start. Vhalla and Aldrick are – how should we put it? – not terribly interesting in the start of the series. Vhalla is your typical “good girl” and Aldrick your typical “bad boy” archetypes. It’s not until they begin growing, both as individuals and as a couple, I found myself invested in their story. Their transformation during the series is dramatic and earned.

Secondary characters are well-developed, particularly those characters involved in multiple novels. I’d be cautious at giving my heart to any of the characters. All of them – including our leads – are placed in perilous situations throughout the series. Sometimes characters survive with emotional and physical scars, while others meet a grisly fate. *tears* Creating a series with life or death stakes requires, well, life and death stakes. I appreciate the authenticity Ms. Kova cultivates by creating a series where beloved character can, and do, die.

The world building is top notch. The magic system is comprised of elemental magic – air, water, fire, and earth (very similar to The Last Airbender anime). Each region of the continent maintains its own nuances as do the people from those regions. Events in the books build until the dramatic conclusion. While I bought each book separately, I highly recommend purchasing the complete series on Amazon. Trust me – you will want to read them all!

tl;dr Fantastic world building, epic romance, and earned character development makes this life-and-death series a must read.

[Sam@WLABB]

Rating: 4.5 Stars

The adventure continues, and it's a fantastic journey to the North. We learn a lot more about this world and get more backstories for many of the secondary characters. I liked filling in those gaps, and learning all those things really filled out the story. The bond between Aldrik and Vhalla is brought to a new level with some cool magic stuff, and Vhalla begins to grow into her power. The romance is turned up, the heartbreak is turned up, and the ending was devastating for me. It was the most unfair cliffhanger ever!!!

[tweetybugshouse]

This is book two in the air awakens series by Elise Kova and i have to say i loved this book but their were times i was like can we just have her choose a prince to be with and then yes finally that does happen and with any luck we can leave all the history of torment behind. Their is a certain character in here which i totally wanted to slap i even posted that to the author can i smack her please. Even though she ends up being related to the princes she still holds her self a bit to snobbish above poor Vhalla and i think she needs to be take down a notch. Then the heart ripping death that occurs really had me bawling i was like no not that character no you can not do this to us. Then of course she ends it on an epic cliff hanger so that you want to run to the next book.

[Chelsea]

What I Loved

After reading the first book and completely devouring it, I had fairly high expectations for this next book. I’m glad to tell you all that it did not disappoint! All the elements I loved in the first book were brought into the second book and were even made a little better.

I’m finding that I’m really loving the plot that’s happening in these books. There are some parts that I expect to happen but most of the time I’m completely taken by surprise when the plot goes in a different direction. It’s not a typical fantasy book, plot-wise, because those elements you’re expecting don’t ever come. Instead the author actually uses some creativity (which YA can be lacking a lot of the time) and makes something even more magical than what you were expecting.
I might have different opinions than some people, but I ship Vhalla and Aldrik really hard, but my heart is taken by Baldair. I love the relationship Vhalla and Aldrik have going on, and the romance is only making the story better, but I can’t help but fall in love with Baldair even single time we get to see a little more of him. He’s not even being very nice right now, but I can tell he’s a great little brother even though he doesn’t always show it. I think that all the relationships in this book are going to be extremely important later on because the author is really taking her time to develop them which I appreciate. Also I love that every character introduced has a very important part to play no matter how small it might be. This is a story where all the little things add up to one great big ending, I can feel it.

I seriously loved everything else about this book but those were the main highlights for me.

What I Didn't Like

I honestly can’t think of anything I didn’t love in this book. The only small thing I can think of was that some parts felt a little rushed and they could have been slowed down just a little for us to take it all in. I could also use just a little bit more info about magic users and what they can all do. It’s still a great story without that extra information though.

Who I'd Recommend To

I’d recommend this to YA fantasy lovers who are also a big fan of romance. If you don’t like romance heavy books then this isn’t the one for you. I can tell you that there’s no love triangles or insta-love in this book which I’m very thankful for. This only proves that fantasy and romance can be mixed well with each other.

[shannonmiz]

This review was originally posted on It Starts at Midnight
You know when you're reading a book, and suddenly you look down to see that you're making actual puddles of tears on your own lap? Yeah, that is a thing, and it was the product of this book. This is one of those reviews that is extra hard to write because you just want to flail and throw the book at people. Yep, it was that good. I haven't read a book that had me this entranced in a long while.

You probably want to know what was so epic, no? Great, because I shall tell you these things!

• That tiny, pesky worldbuilding issue I had in the first book? Gone, fixed, I am now informed and in the loop and have a map for reference. This is perfect. We also start to find out the stakes, both for Vhalla and the rest of the empire.


• Vhalla still amazes me at every turn. She's still coming to terms with her situation, which means that sometimes she is bitter and angry and scared and miserable. And other times, she realizes that she needs to step it up and basically kicks ass. But she still needs a hug when it's over. This is what makes Vhalla so real- yes, she can handle herself better now, she understands more of what is at stake in her world. But she is still just a young woman with feelings and emotions like everyone else, who is looking for friendship and acceptance and love. She knows you can be both tough and retain your humanity. She can love as fiercely as she fights; she can conquer enemies and nurture friendships. I love her now more than ever.


• There was a perfect balance between action and character development. There was a lot of action as Vhalla and the gang march to a war, of course. But there was plenty of restful periods where we got to know all of the side characters quite well. Since there's only a finite number of people traveling, we get to really learn a lot about those involved with Vhalla. But the action scenes are full of tension, yet move at a pace where I never once felt lost. Best of all, the events really had quite a cumulative effect- the ramifications and fallout always had an impact on other scenes.


• The romance is so swoon-worthy I can hardly contain myself. I haven't shipped a couple this hard in a long time. Even though there are so many reasons that they should be apart, their chemistry and affection is undeniable.

Bottom Line: While I loved Air Awakens, Fire Falling did the rare and fabulous job of outshining its predecessor. I basically don't know what to do with myself until Earth's End. Things definitely ended on a "need next book now" level, and I do. I absolutely do. Fire Falling made me swoon, laugh, cry (fine, sob), and I definitely count it among my favorite books. Next, please!!