Fireborne: 1 (Aurelian Cycle)

Product Information

I look down at this boy, vulnerable, at my mercy, and think, To the ends of the earth I will protect you. In the beginning, I really struggled with the characters. I was unsure if I really enjoyed Lee's POV because just in his first POV, I was annoyed by Annie before we even really meet her. She was just so heavily mentioned that I could not stand her. But in the end, I prefered Lee's POV to Annie's. His character was calmer, more reasonable and less... sensitive in a sense. I felt like Annie was always annoyed by something or someone. From the beginning, this book pulls readers in . . . full of drama, emotional turmoil, and high stakes.”— Kirkus, starred review

Annie and Lee's new world involves book burnings, tightly spun propaganda, and a clear overclass that still has privilege over the expendable lowest class. Their rulers believe that murdering children from the old regime is okay. and yet...things were truly worse under the DragonLords This is only the first book of three and yet I already know this is going to be a series I will never forget. There is such a huge focus on government corruption and its ability to make anything seem alright with the right words. The right spin on a history they say they don't want to repeat. Is burning a man at the stake okay if you stop at a point where he can be healed? Is starving a group of people okay because they have no worth in the future? The politics. The morally gray characters. The angst. The longing. The complex character dynamics. The DRAGONS. Rosaria Munda's Fireborne is an upcoming fall 2019 release that I hadn't heard much about. Having spent much of my time wedding planning over the past 8 months, the following is what I knew: it's fantasy, said to be a mix of Rachel Hartman's Seraphina and Pierce Brown's Red Rising, and Munda was inspired by the Aeneid and the Republic. I'm always down for fantasy; I haven't read Seraphina, but I did read Red Rising and felt iffy about it; and I could barely get through the Aeneid and the Republic in college. I didn't have high hopes of enjoying Fireborne, but I kept my mind open and unassuming.I was very partial to Lee, both a victim of the new government and a privileged benefactor of the old. His perspective was really interesting to watch evolve. Recommended for both teens and adults who enjoy a mentally stimulating novel and for those who wish to lose themselves in a world full of dragons.” — School Library Journal, Starred Review The thing is this book has all these tropes but they’re presented in a way that doesn’t feel tropey. Also I’m just trash and enjoyed this book beyond reason but either way, still recommend

There were however a couple of plot conveniences that were quite convenient. read: nobody else noticing Lee’s striking resemblance to his father

This series is not what I expected. I assumed it would be a cheeseball fantasy romance with weak world-building. Nope. This story centers around Annie and Lee, two orphaned survivors of a great revolution that brought about the end of the ruling Barron class of dragon riders in favor of a 'communist' system. Annie's family was killed by the establishment, while Lee is the last surviving child of the dragonlords that oppressed the masses. Years later, they find themselves competing for a coveted spot in the country's dragon-riding military, only to be faced with the return of the surviving dragon lords and the reality of a second war. Now, a new battle looms as old tyrants resurface to reclaim control. Are they ready to do battle on their dragons? the story is pitched as Aegon Targaryen and Hermione Granger with dragons, set in the aftermath of a bloody revolution. I wanted to imagine an orphaned aristocrat who has every reason to seek revenge, until he realizes that maybe, his family did wrong, too.And that is enough for me to know I absolutely need to read this! So many authors ignore the aftermath of the wars they write and I personally need more books on that topic! And, man, I'm glad I went in suspending hopes of any kind. Fireborne hit every need of mine when it comes to a fantasy story: