A Shadow Bright and Burning
Kingdom on Fire 1
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4.3 • 12 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
'Vivid characters, terrifying monsters, and world building as deep and dark as the ocean.' Victoria Aveyard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Red Queen
I am Henrietta Howel. The first female sorcerer in ages. The prophesied one. Or am I?
Henrietta can burst into flames. Forced to reveal her power to save a friend, she’s shocked when, instead of being executed, she’s invited to train as one of Her Majesty’s royal sorcerers.
Thrust into the glamour of Victorian London, Henrietta is declared the girl who will defeat the Ancients, bloodthirsty demons terrorising humanity. Her fellow trainees are handsome young men, eager to test her power and her heart. One will challenge her. One will fight for her. One will betray her.
But Henrietta Howel is not the chosen one. As she plays a dangerous game of deception, she discovers the sorcerers have their own secrets to protect. With battle looming, how much will she risk to save the city – and the one she loves?
Exhilarating and gripping, Jessica Cluess's spellbinding fantasy introduces a powerful, unforgettable heroine, and a world filled with magic, romance, and betrayal.
'Unputdownable. I loved the monsters, the magic, and the teen warriors who are their world's best hope! Jessica Cluess is an awesome storyteller!' Tamora Pierce, New York Times bestselling author
'A fun, inventive fantasy. I totally have a book crush on Rook.' Sarah Rees Brennan, New York Times bestselling author
'Pure enchantment. I love how Cluess turned the "chosen one" archetype on its head. With the emotional intensity of my favorite fantasy books, this is the kind of story that makes you forget yourself.' Roshani Chokshi, New York Times bestselling author of The Star-Touched Queen
'A glorious, fast-paced romp of an adventure. Jessica Cluess has built her story out of my favorite ingredients: sorcery, demons, romance, and danger.' Kelly Link, author of Pretty Monsters
'Henrietta is pragmatic and bitingly funny, and she more than holds her own in a man's world. Cluess gamely turns the chosen-one trope upside down in this smashing dark fantasy.' Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
'[Cluess's] gaslit world besieged by Lovecraft-ian horrors possesses vivid life . . . an elegantly addictive read.' Kirkus Reviews
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sixteen-year-old Henrietta Howel can start fires with a thought, but because women aren't permitted to practice magic, she must keeps her power under wraps at the Brimthorn School for Girls, where she teaches in a magical version of Victorian London. After a sorcerer, Master Agrippa, visits the school, an attack by a "Familiar" of the (decidedly Lovecraftian) Ancients forces Henrietta's hand. Agrippa believes that Henrietta is integral to fighting the Ancients, offering to train her for eventual commendation by a young Queen Victoria and a place among the royal sorcerers. She agrees, on the condition that her childhood friend Rook comes along. In a strong opening to the Kingdom on Fire trilogy, debut author Cluess makes the most of her setting, never shying from gritty details, such as the "burned and ravaged" London outside the wards that protect the sorcerers; the contentious history between sorcerers and magicians adds heft. Henrietta is pragmatic and bitingly funny, and she more than holds her own in a man's world. Cluess gamely turns the chosen-one trope upside down in this smashing dark fantasy. Ages 12 up.
Customer Reviews
Fabulous
Loved this book, and world! Couldn’t put it down