The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson - Review

The Girl of Fire and Thorns
(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.

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My Review:

I have to be honest. I really liked the summary, but even after reading so many great reviews, I still wasn't sure I would enjoy this book. I don't normally go for science fiction, but with a chubby heroine, I just HAD to give it a try. LOL. And I'm glad I did!

It was So, SO good! Really... unbelievably good. And somewhat sad. I loved to see how much the characters grew! Elisa was a great surprise, she became so strong and independent! It actually influenced me quite a bit. (read here: diet). Our dear main character goes from naïve chubby teenager princess to powerful respectful queen in a matter of months.

Elisa was God-chosen to carry the Godstone, a rock glued to her belly-button, that warms up everytime she prays and gets cold when danger is close. Oh, and as it's supposed to be very powerful, everybody wants to rip it off of her(but it only comes loose after the carrier is dead, so....). The concept of the Godstones was a bit difficult to grasp at first, but as you read, it becomes less and less of a mystery. The repetitive mentions of religion and God can be tiring, but I overlooked it and payed attention to the story itself.

The desert scenes were very well descripted, it was very interesting to read about how they survived sandstorms, with very little water and even less food (rat soup, anyone?), having to walk ALL day under the scorching heat of the sun, and sleeping in tiny tents with empty stomachs. Great way to lose weight and toughen up, huh, Elisa?

I really fell for some of the secondary characters, like the King's personal guard, Hector, and the cute kidnapper, Humberto, but what I really wanted was to slap Alejandro, the King, profusely. I actually came to really like some of supporting characters, but then the author started to kill them, and that was disappointing to say the least... but I'm sure it had to happen so the story could go where she intended it to go.

If you expect deep romantic interactions (like I always find myself doing), I wouldn't recommend this book to you. But if you also like adventure, drama and survival stories, go for it!!

Can't wait for the next one!!! I can't wait to see more of Hector! *-* Congratulations, Rae Carson, you are terrific!