Heart of Smoke

A great fantasy series, action packed and engrossing

4.5 Stars for the entire series! I’m going to keep this review spoiler free, for the sake of the series, since it’s four books, and I don’t want to ruin the ride for anyone! This is a great post-apocalyptic, dystopian society series that starts out in on of the poor, less fortunate, forsaken cities that support the dome communities, which are inhabited any those with money and power. Lanni lives her life to protect her sister, and that is the absolute one consistent through the entire series. In everything she does, keeping her sister safe is her number one thought and priority. Lanni has very few people she trusts in her life, for good reason. Her life is a constant of fear and labor, trying to claw and fight to find ways to survive in the ash and sooted atmosphere, an environment not truly fit for habitation, but forced to work to support the domes created by the Incorporation, which are mini ecosystems created in an effort to save mankind long enough to outlast the environmental disasters. On top of the threat of violence by dome guards, there is the threat of the vampires that inhabit the darkness.

As things quickly fall apart in the city, Lanni finds herself and her sister essentially kidnapped and put on a transport to a dome community far away from the one their city supports. It’s highly illegal for someone not born in the domes to live in them, so they are forced to take on false personas and lie about their pasts in order to fit in and not raise any suspicion. But the path to the domes isn’t easy or safe, and once their in the domes, there are so many red flags and warning signs about the supposed utopian society. Lanni has a very difficult time in trusting anyone, as would be expected. She has conversations in her head with the best friend she was forced to leave behind in the city as a way to work through her frustrations and fears. Slowly she starts to let people in, and a small “found family” is created for Lanni and her sister within the dome community. Lanni also finds herself romantically entangled with three different boys in the dome, even if she doesn’t feel strongly towards all of them, she develops different connections to each of them that end up shaping her in very different ways. But the building rebellion of the dome residents continues to grow, and Lanni finds herself right in the middle of it.

There is a fast paced series, with a lot of action and world building. The relationship between the city dwellers and the dome dwellers is seeded in a lot of hate and fear, and as things progress, it’s something that they all have to deal with in order to survive. The more we learn about the Incorporation, the more nefarious it becomes, and as things boil over, the rebellion takes center stage. In her deep need to protect her sister, Lanni is manipulated into doing things on both sides that she doesn’t truly want to do, but feels that she doesn’t have a choice. Her struggle is at the heart of everything, her desire at times to just give up battling with her need to protect her little sister. She doesn’t suddenly develop great powers, or become a strong rebel leader or anything, this isn’t that kind of story. Her story is one of survival, and what you do and sacrifice to survive, at any cost. Even the ending, while technically an HEA, isn’t all hearts and flowers. It’s real, and raw, and it feels perfect for the series. Overall, the four books create a fantastic arc, action packed, filled with every emotion, and a lot of hope.