The Girl of Fire and Thorns (Girl of Fire and Thorns, #1)

by Rae Carson

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.
Elisa is the chosen one.

But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can't see how she ever will.

Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.

And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people's savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.

Most of the chosen do.

• ISBN10: 1464049394
• ISBN13: 9781464049392
• Publish Date: 1 July 2012 (first published 20 September 2011)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Recorded Books
• Format: Audiobook
• Language: English

Reviews

[layawaydragon]

Not a fan of all the God stuff but it kept me reading. Glad to read another fat protagonist.

[liz089]

This one has been on my TBR for ages.. always meant to read but it never happened. Until now !
Though I do think I would have loved it more if I had read this one at a younger age, it was still very interesting and different.
Loved having a big (curvy) MC in a YA fantasy book, that almost never happens ! Awesome. It makes it much more realistic too, being a well-fed and sort of lazy princess. Of course she can not run for miles and has zero endurance. Very refreshing !
The world was interesting and the plot intruiging, some action as well.
Loved that the romance was more on the background and not the main focus of the story.
Downside for me was that it was very focussed on the God / praying aspect, not big on the religious side, but I do understand that it was part of the story and needed. Though not my kind of thing.

More like a 3.5 stars overall, but since we do not have that option I will round it up. Do want to continue with this series, somewhere this year hopefully, but there are some amazing new releases that I MUST read first haha.

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

The Girl of Fire and Thorns hit me immediately with some fantastic high fantasy vibes and I was so excited to start it! I knew going in that this book would have a “chosen one” and I really like how Rae Carson worked with the trope to make it feel less exhausted. I wouldn’t say it was a perfect book, but it was pretty good!

The setting in this book was refreshing in its variety. We have two coastal kingdoms, with prosperous tradeports, and yet, there’s no focus on the sea. We spend most our time in deserts or forests. Carson does a good job of not only making her reader see the elements of her setting, but remembering the challenges and following through with them. Characters are from a variety of classes in The Girl of Fire and Thorns and there were a few moments that stood out really well to make this clear. In particular, there was a scene where the characters are allowed to “freshen up” and it’s only then that her travelling companions remember Elisa is a princess as she returns in court finery. It’s interesting how material things set the classes apart, even these days… I thought the way she wrote Elisa as a princess was really well done.

That said, Elisa definitely wasn’t perfect. While I appreciated her reactions to things and the moments of human realness that Carson incorporated to make her feel a bit more raw… Elisa was very changeable. I know people who are like this, so I know it’s not a badly written character necessarily, but how quickly and easily Elisa changed her mind and alliances to suit her current situation – and then immediately believed them with all her heart – was a bit frustrating. As a reader, I think I would have liked to see a bit more of Elisa struggle when it came to her political ideals.

It would be impossible to talk about The Girl of Fire and Thorns without talking about religion. Religion is a large part of this book. Elisa is a Bearer, which means a Godstone was bestowed upon her and placed in her navel at her christening and it means she has a divine purpose in this world and will serve in some way. She spends a lot of the book praying for guidance, for strength, or simply just praying because her Godstone warms her body when she does so, like a happy cat. There’s a bit of theological discussion about faith as well. Religion weaves into a lot of different fantasy, but The Girl of Fire and Thorns stood out to me because it is 1.) very present; and 2.) a monotheistic fantasy religion. Which are less common.

There were definitely some transition and pacing issues to me where I had to stop and recount exactly where Elisa was now and how it happened. And on the other hand, there were scenes that felt like they dragged on and on. There were quite a few “convenient” things that happened to move Elisa where the author wanted her to be, and they stood out to me. Otherwise, it’s a perfectly enjoyable novel with a unique magic system.

I think what I liked best about The Girl of Fire and Thorns was the way it mixed old tropes with original ideas. It was enough to make the book feel fresh and unique. It’s worth a read for fantasy fans. I can’t promise anything mind blowing, but I don’t think it’s a waste of time, either. I’m curious enough to keep reading!

I wasn’t sure how if I would like this book since it started off the main character being married off at a young age, but I surprisingly enjoyed the story. The characters were well developed and the plot was intriguing the whole way through.

[Cocktails and Books]

Interesting premise. I loved the heroine and was glad to see she's grown into a much stronger person that she was when we first met her. Now to see what happens next.

[KitsuneBae]

Err~ This one made me uncomfortable, what with everything seems to be centered on God.

[Sam@WLABB]

My daughter read this book back in 2013 and has raved about Rae Carson, but I still did not read this book. So, why did I finally read the book? Because I attended the Fierce is My Middle Name panel at BookCon and wanted to buy what she was selling. I must say, I am not disappointed. This book captivated me. I HAD to keep reading to find out the fate of Elisa, Cosme, Alejandro, Humberto, Belen, Ximena, and everyone else. I cared about their fates. This book is full of strong female characters. Cosme doesn't mess around. She is independent and self sufficient and is able to soldier on after suffering loss. Ximena's ferocity is not as overt, but hidden away until she needs to release it. And then, there is Elisa. Elisa suffers from low self esteem and comforts herself with food. Why? Because she is the bearer of the Godstone and instead of being spoken to or with, she is spoken about. She is weighted down by learned helplessness, but when she is thrust into a sink or swim situation, she shows that she can live up to her destiny.

Towards the end of this book, Elisa reflects, "I didn't need faith in God so much as I needed faith in myself." This punctuates her personal growth and I cannot wait to see Elisa grow more and more. On to the next book!

Reread: May 24, 2015: I forgot how much I loved this book. Elisa is just an amazing character that you can't help but love. And Hector. Oh, goodness, thank you for Hector. New review coming soon.


First read: October 19, 2011
*I’m writing this review quite a few months after I read it so I hope I cover everything :D

Post originally on my blog: Oh, For the Love of Books!

Characters:

The Girl of Fire and Thorns is a beautiful coming of age story with a main character that goes from self-pitying to being determined and resilient, trying to find her place in this captivating world.

I read the Girl of Fire and Thorns because it came highly recommended. However, after reading just a bit, I almost didn’t finish it because I wasn’t sure I was going to like it. You see, Elisa is the self-pitying, no confidence type of girl. Constantly bashing her body (she’s overweight) yet doing nothing about it. Actually what really bothered me was the fact that she was fat because that was how she dealt with her problems. Something I can’t relate too. For me, instead of complaining about it, do something about it. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had those days where I starts bashing on myself, but I’m a naturally happy person and I’m alright with how I look. Instead of complaining about it, I’ll work hard to change it and make myself feel better. Now, that’s just me. However, I can see how many girls would relate to Elisa, but for me, it was a bit hard at first.

She also didn’t see how important she was. You see, she is the carrier of the Godstone, a stone that is in her naval (creepy, I know) placed there by God which is pretty important by most other people's standards. However, she herself thinks it is pointless and that she is not the right person to carry it. Start the constant complaints. Again, not my cup of tea, but I wanted to see where it went.

However, don’t let what I said earlier stop you, because I came to love her! Although she may think she isn’t important as the carrier of the Godstone, there are many that realize her importance. Heck, one many even kidnaps her because he thinks she’ll be his people’s saviour. And on this journey (that she eventually willingly goes on) she learns about herself and how important she is.

After this point, I grew to love Elisa. On her journey she became a strong woman that learned that if something bugged her, she had to change it instead of complaining about it. However, what made her relatable and understandable was the fact that this change wasn’t instantaneous. Many things over the course of her journey started to slowly change her and give her confidence. She will never be as skinny as some of the other women, but she can get to a weight that she’ll be happy with. She is also incredibly intelligent and strategic, something that was ignored in her home because she was the second daughter. However, she comes to learn to use her intelligence which helps her a great deal throughout the story (You go girl!!).

Each person in the story changed Elisa in some way. There were many good people in this story that loved Elisa even when she didn’t love herself. Her first love interest helped her so much. Although I wasn’t in love with him, I grew to care for him. He was amazingly sweet and loved Elisa for who she was which in turn helped her realize just how important she was.

However, I want Hector. He may not be in the book that much, but there’s just something about him. I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for him ;)

Plot and Pacing and Worldbuilding:

Although this book starts out slow, it comes to a steady pace after a while. Not to fast, not to slow. Just perfect so that I felt like I was on this journey with her. The plot, while not constantly exciting with a ton of battles and fighting (which is normally how I like my books), it was still engaging. So if I like battles and action, why did I still give it 4 stars? Because all of the stuff that did happen, all those little battles helped Elisa come to love herself which is something I’ll always be happy about. Go self-confidence!!

The world building was excellent! I felt like I was there with the characters. She didn’t go into too much detail, but just enough so that you could feel like you were actually going on the journey with Elisa.

Now, there is one thing that really creeped me out throughout the story. The Godstone…what?! In her naval?! I don’t think that's exactly….normal. Lets just say this creeped me out quite a bit, specially at the end! It just sounded painful! And is this a religious book? Yes and no. While it make many references to God (Godstone), its not a specific religion. Connections can be made, but its not necessary. This religion is the religion of this fictitious world.

Don’t expect a happy ending. And for me, I loved it. Nobody’s life is perfect and I don’t like when author’s make it that way. In order for it to be realistic, there’s gotta be death and sadness. Now, the story isn’t over, and its not like it’s a depressing ending or anything. Its just not a perfect one either. Elisa goes through hard times, but she pulls through anyway. I can’t wait to join Elisa again on her continuing journey of self-discovery.

[wyvernfriend]

Interesting story about a princess who finds a purpose and a backbone on various adventures and also learns about the problems of power.

[tweetybugshouse]

I was really excited to read this book my friends raved and said it was great read. I am so sad to say that this book was a disappointment for me and that in no means it was a terrible book. It had a great potential, i was intrigued by the concept of the chosen with the Godstone in the navel, i wanted their to be exciting edge of their seat action, their just wasn't. I was bored half way through as Elisa was walking to yet another destination. I was left wanting when nothing really came of the godstone concept. Their a lot of book that get talked up in their hype and this one just did not live up to the hype for me.