Bright Smoke, Cold Fire by Rosamund Hodge

Bright Smoke, Cold Fire (Bright Smoke, Cold Fire, #1)

by Rosamund Hodge

Sabriel meets Romeo and Juliet in this stunning and atmospheric novel-the first in a duology-from the author of Cruel Beauty and Crimson Bound. When the mysterious fog of the Ruining crept over the world, the living died and the dead rose. Only the walled city of Viyara was left untouched. The heirs of the city's most powerful-and warring-families, Mahyanai Romeo and Juliet Catresou, share a love deeper than duty, honor, even life itself. But the magic laid on the Juliet at birth compels her to punish the enemies of her clan-and Romeo has just killed her cousin Tybalt. Which means he must die. Paris Catresou has always wanted to serve his family by guarding the Juliet. But when his ward tries to escape her fate, magic goes terribly wrong-killing her and leaving Paris bound to Romeo. If he wants to discover the truth of what happened, Paris must delve deep into the city, ally with his worst enemy ...and perhaps turn against his own clan. Mahyanai Runajo only wants to protect her city-but she's the only one who believes it's in peril. In her desperate hunt for information, she accidentally pulls Juliet from the mouth of death-and finds herself bound to the bitter, angry girl.
Runajo quickly discovers Juliet might be the one person who can help her recover the secret to saving Viyara. Both pairs will find friendship where they least expect it. Both will find that Viyara holds more secrets and dangers than anyone ever expected. And outside the walls, death is waiting...

Reviewed by shannonmiz on

2 of 5 stars

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You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
First, let's take a moment to appreciate the cover on this book. So much pretty. I am clearly stalling here, because I really wanted to like this book and... I didn't so much. But there were some things, so how about we start with those?

The Stuff I Liked:

  • The Romeo and Juliet aspect. I thought it was a very unique way to retell the story, and I enjoy a feuding families/forbidden love situation. This book definitely fits the bill!

  • There were friendships and such that started blossoming, and I really enjoyed those. They added a lot of readability to the book, as well as helped me feel a bit more connected to the characters in general.


The Stuff I Didn't

  • Really, my main gripe with this book was that I spent most of the time confused, and overwhelmed with names and places. And worldbuilding that I didn't completely "get", which I'll get into.

  • I didn't feel a lot for the characters one way or another. I didn't hate them or anything, I just felt apathetic about them. Maybe it was because there were quite a few characters who were involved, but instead of feeling immersed in the story, I just kind of felt like a spectator who was kind of bored.

  • The worldbuilding didn't make a lot of sense to me. I have no idea if it was supposed to be straight up fantasy, or if the world was based partially in some kind of post apocalyptic city, or what exactly was happening. And then there are some kind of... zombies with a plague? But they're called Reapers, which is just... well, this, because my brain defaults to The 100:


  • It simply just didn't pull me in. I know that isn't all that helpful to you reading this, but it's really how I felt. It was an interesting premise, it just kind of left me not caring about the outcome or the characters.


Bottom Line: While this one wasn't for me, the idea was definitely intriguing and some people have had lots of love for it, so you might too! I doubt I'll read the next book in the series, though.

*Copy provided by publisher for review

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 30 July, 2016: Finished reading
  • 30 July, 2016: Reviewed