Enna Burning (Books of Bayern, #2) (Bayern)

by Shannon Hale

Enna and Princess Ani became fast friends in "The Goose Girl", but now that Ani is married to Prince Geric, Enna returns to the forest. Then Enna's simple life changes forever when she learns of her power to wield fire. Enna is convinced that she can use her ability for good - to fight Tira, the kingdom threatening the Bayern borders. But the power of the fire grows stronger and she is soon barely able to control it. Enna becomes more and more reckless and is captured by the Tiran army. A handsome and manipulative young captain drugs and holds Enna prisoner until Ani and her old friends, Finn and Razo, attempt to free her. But has the desire to burn already gone too far?

• ISBN10: 0747570698
• ISBN13: 9780747570691
• Publish Date: 15 November 2004 (first published 15 September 2004)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 9 February 2009
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 336
• Language: English
• URL: http://bloomsbury.com/Trade/

Reviews

[ladygrey]

I really wish goodreads had half stars. Especially on either side I'd the 3 star mark to distinguish books I really liked from ones that were just ok. This would definitely be the former.

It was a little hard to get into at first. The plot moved really quickly and I hadn't reconnected enough with the characters to care. But once I did reconnect it was great. There's a reason I love Isi and Enna and Finn and even poor Geric who I'd have liked to see more of. Emma's struggles sometimes were a little frustrating but they were also realistic with how out of control she was. And Finn and Razo were great.

I liked how strong Enna was despite the forces at play in her and around her. I liked that the power was something she had to struggle with and had to fight. I loved seeing her and Isi work together and how brave and kind and loyal Isi was. The more I think about it these are really great characters in a very good story and I'd absolutely recommend these books to young readers.

LOVED it!!

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

Enna Burning is a perfect companion book to The Goose Girl. Hale retains the characters from her first book but brings new ones to the forefront, allowing them to control the action and even flavor the book with their different personalities. Enna is a stronger, more tempestuous protagonist than Isi, and Enna Burning becomes slightly darker and more action-oriented than The Goose Girl.

The story is solid enough to stand on its own, not relying on the success of The Goose Girl to sell it. Hale has the same compelling narrative voice, but she has lots of new ideas. Readers will be delighted with the development of elements from the first book, including the way magic functions, and how they inspire new plot and dynamic character personalities. They will also be excited to watch the unfolding of a new romance.

I have one complaint against this book, and it is that the premise is unsound. (Minor spoilers ahead.) Once Enna decides to use her power over fire against the enemy, the best way she can think to do it is by burning one or two perimeter tents in the Bayern towns they are occupying. Eventually she upgrades to burning small piles of supplies. In my opinion, her actions are having absolutely no effect on the war effort, but they are presented by the narrative voice as completely serious threats—and not just actions that Enna foolishly and mistakenly thinks are significant. Apparently, she is actually helping Bayern win a war by burning about three unoccupied tents (something someone with a match might also have accomplished.) The enemy’s response is equally absurd because they view her as incredibly dangerous, despite the lack of evidence she plans to burn anything larger. These scorched tents form the basis for the entire subsequent plot, and it is disappointing because there is no reason they should.

This review was also posted at Pages Unbound Book Reviews.