Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson - Paul's Review

*I received this book as an eARC from GreenWillow Books via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: Walk on Earth a Stranger
Author: Rae Carson
Upcoming Release Date: September 22, 2015

Synopsis: Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety? 

Walk on Earth a Stranger, the first book in this new trilogy, introduces—as only Rae Carson can—a strong heroine, a perilous road, a fantastical twist, and a slow-burning romance. Includes a map and author’s note on historical research.

------------------------------------------------------------

Review: Rae Carson is one of my favorite current authors. She writes beautifully and her characters are always fully fledged people. I love that she includes diversity. She is a master at putting words in the right order to convey emotion in the perfect way. So obviously, I loved this book. 

This book is a historical fantasy, but the magic aspect of it though dire to the plot only comes into play a few times. The meat of the novel is an adventure story of moving across a whole country to unknown lands. I'm not very familiar with this time period. Most of my knowledge of the era comes from Oregon Trail and a small museum I visited in a California gold mine. 

There are so many interesting characters that Lee meets in her journeys. I found myself attached to so many of them and absolutely despising others. Carson's writing definitely brings strong emotions out in me. 

I loved the way minorities are portrayed. Everything is period-appropriate, but to be interpreted by a reader from the 21st century. Gender is a big topic. Race also comes into play. 

I give this book a 5/5 and HIGHLY recommend you read it! Rae Carson is one of the strongest and most under-appreciated voices in YA now. This is the first in a new trilogy, but it is a complete story. I am so glad there's going to be more! 


--PAUL

Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson - Paul's Pre-Reading

*I received this book as an eARC from GreenWillow Books via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: Walk on Earth a Stranger
Author: Rae Carson
Upcoming Release Date: September 22, 2015

Synopsis: Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety? 

Walk on Earth a Stranger, the first book in this new trilogy, introduces—as only Rae Carson can—a strong heroine, a perilous road, a fantastical twist, and a slow-burning romance. Includes a map and author’s note on historical research.

------------------------------------------------------------

Why?: Rae Carson is one of my favorite modern writers. She uses words so efficiently. I absolutely loved her Fire & Thorns trilogy, especially the accompanying novellas. I love the way she write characters. She always includes diversity and shows well rounded people. 

Expectations: Truthfully, I'm not very familiar with the Gold Rush era other than my slight addiction to Oregon Trail in elementary school and a gold mine I visited once in California. I'm interested to see how Carson is able to weave history with fantasy. A girl with the power to detect gold during the Gold Rush? That is an amazing pitch just there alone.  

Judging a book by its cover: I love the cover. The gold is very present. The title is huge. The colors of the sky and the clothing evoke feelings of the Wild West. I'm excited for this magical historical YA!


--PAUL

The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns #3) by Rae Carson - Paul's Review

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns #3)
Author: Rae Carson
Year Published: 2013

My The Bitter Kingdom (#3) PRE-READING
My Girl of Fire and Thorns (#1) REVIEW
My The Shadow Cats (#0.5) REVIEW

My The Shattered Mountain (#0.6) REVIEW

My The King's Guard (#0.7) REVIEW

My Crown of Embers (#2) REVIEW

Ashley's Girl of Fire and Thorns (#1) REVIEW
Ashley's Crown of Embers (#2) REVIEW

Synopsis: The epic conclusion to Rae Carson's Fire and Thorns trilogy. The seventeen-year-old sorcerer-queen will travel into the unknown realm of the enemy to win back her true love, save her country, and uncover the final secrets of her destiny.

Elisa is a fugitive in her own country. Her enemies have stolen the man she loves in order to lure her to the gate of darkness. As she and her daring companions take one last quest into unknown enemy territory to save Hector, Elisa will face hardships she's never imagined. And she will discover secrets about herself and her world that could change the course of history. She must rise up as champion-a champion to those who have hated her most.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Review: Rae Carson is at the top of my list of favorite authors right now. She not only creates an amazing and interesting world inhabited with complex characters, but she does it in beautifully written prose. 
Romance plays a big part of this trilogy, but there is so much more that is bigger. Elisa is such a bigger person than just her love life. And she knows it. The evolution of her relationships from the first book to this one is done so well. 

There are so many great minor characters, some that we have known since the beginning and some that we don't meet until this book. And characters we know more about from the excellent novellas. Some of my favorite were Mara, Belen, and Red. 

Another whole subset of characters that I love are the locations. Carson did an excellent job making so many of the locations have as much depth as the minor characters. 

There were so many callbacks to the earlier two books. It made this book really feel like a conclusion to a trilogy. It was one story spread between three books instead if three stories back to back. 

It was so nice to see Elisa's growth from the start if the series. I loved where all the characters ended. You can really tell Carson put a lot if thought into each character's path. 

The godstones play their own part in this book. And we get to learn more about the Inviernos. We get to see them in their native lands with snowy mountains and the caves within.

One of my favorite scenes was when Elisa fulfilled her godstone's calling. It was done so well and I loved the implications of it. 

This trilogy is my favorite YA fantasy series. Everything about it gives me chills. You should definitely read this trilogy if you have not! I can not wait for Rae Carson's next book!!! I give this book a 5/5!!!


--PAUL

The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns #3) by Rae Carson - Paul's Pre-Reading

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns #3)
Author: Rae Carson
Year Published: 2013

My Girl of Fire and Thorns (#1) REVIEW
My The Shadow Cats (#0.5) REVIEW

My The Shattered Mountain (#0.6) REVIEW

My The King's Guard (#0.7) REVIEW

My Crown of Embers (#2) REVIEW

Ashley's Girl of Fire and Thorns (#1) REVIEW
Ashley's Crown of Embers (#2) REVIEW

Synopsis: The epic conclusion to Rae Carson's Fire and Thorns trilogy. The seventeen-year-old sorcerer-queen will travel into the unknown realm of the enemy to win back her true love, save her country, and uncover the final secrets of her destiny.

Elisa is a fugitive in her own country. Her enemies have stolen the man she loves in order to lure her to the gate of darkness. As she and her daring companions take one last quest into unknown enemy territory to save Hector, Elisa will face hardships she's never imagined. And she will discover secrets about herself and her world that could change the course of history. She must rise up as champion-a champion to those who have hated her most.

Why?: Rae Carson! Her writing is amazing! I've loved the first two books in this series so I'm ready for this one!

Expectations: I expect another amazing fantasy novel. 

Judging a book by its cover: I like this cover. I like that the covers for this trilogy all match. I like the wintery feel if this cover. 


--PAUL

The Crown of Embers (Girl of Fire and Thorns #2) by Rae Carson - Ashley's Review

My Pre-Reading
Paul's Review

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: Crown of Embers
Author: Rae Carson
Year Published: 2012

Synopsis: In the sequel to the acclaimed The Girl of Fire and Thorns, a seventeen-year-old princess turned war queen faces sorcery, adventure, untold power, and romance as she fulfills her epic destiny.

Elisa is the hero of her country. She led her people to victory against a terrifying enemy, and now she is their queen. But she is only seventeen years old. Her rivals may have simply retreated, choosing stealth over battle. And no one within her court trusts her-except Hector, the commander of the royal guard, and her companions. 

As the country begins to crumble beneath her and her enemies emerge from the shadows, Elisa will take another journey. With a one-eyed warrior, a loyal friend, an enemy defector, and the man she is falling in love with, Elisa crosses the ocean in search of the perilous, uncharted, and mythical source of the Godstone's power. That is not all she finds. A breathtaking, romantic, and dangerous second volume in the Fire and Thorns trilogy.


Review: This book was absolutely fantastic. It was completely different from The Girl of Fire and Thorns, and I think that made it even better. While the series opens with a story of epic adventures and fighting and a girl maturing from someone not qualified at all to be a leader to someone who wins a major battle for her people, this book really delves more into the politics and Elisa's emotions. Now that her husband is dead and she is left to rule her country alone, being a war hero won't keep her happy or loyal or even safe for long. 

Being on the political side of things for this book was really interesting, even though I'm not one to go looking for books about politics and such. I think it really helps expand the world. I mean, it's one thing to be able to create a world and describe its physical attributes, but it's a completely different thing to be able to describe its government in a way that makes for an interesting story and keeps the same feel as the previous book. I love Carson's writing style, and she does an excellent job keeping the reader engaged. 

I also loved the way that Elisa grows and matures in this book. She learns important lessons, and gives up things that could help her be the most powerful ruler to save friends and rule on her own terms with her own strengths. And then there's the budding romance (that I totally called from the end of Girl of Fire and Thorns). I was very happy with how it was done - not too much, not too pushy, and just enough at the right time. I also love how Carson included same sex relationships like they were nothing out of the ordinary. 

In my opinion, the way religion is dealt with is done very well. A monothiestic religion is practiced, but there is magic and fantasy and all sorts of things built in to it. And although they refer to "God," it's very clear that the religion is a fictional one and not meant to offend or make a statement about any existing religions. I personally think that's a fine line to tread, and that Carson does an exceptional job with it.

I would totally recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA Fantasy novels. Especially fans of Kristin Cashore's Graceling series, Kiera Cass' The Selection, and all those types of books. Politics, fantasy, religion, and epic adventures come together for one amazing story. I can't wait to see how Elisa's story will end! 5/5 for sure on this book!


--Ashley

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns #2) by Rae Carson - Ashley's Pre-Reading

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: Crown of Embers
Author: Rae Carson
Year Published: 2012

Synopsis: In the sequel to the acclaimed The Girl of Fire and Thorns, a seventeen-year-old princess turned war queen faces sorcery, adventure, untold power, and romance as she fulfills her epic destiny.

Elisa is the hero of her country. She led her people to victory against a terrifying enemy, and now she is their queen. But she is only seventeen years old. Her rivals may have simply retreated, choosing stealth over battle. And no one within her court trusts her-except Hector, the commander of the royal guard, and her companions. 

As the country begins to crumble beneath her and her enemies emerge from the shadows, Elisa will take another journey. With a one-eyed warrior, a loyal friend, an enemy defector, and the man she is falling in love with, Elisa crosses the ocean in search of the perilous, uncharted, and mythical source of the Godstone's power. That is not all she finds. A breathtaking, romantic, and dangerous second volume in the Fire and Thorns trilogy.

Why?: I read The Girl of Fire and Thorns, and have been anxiously awaiting this sequel since I finished it. I can't wait to see how Elisa's story continues, and how she deals with being a new widow and queen of a foreign land at only 17. And I'm really curious as to what her epic destiny is!

Expectations: I'm expecting quite a lot from this book! Epic adventures, fantasy, magic, and probably lots of heart break. Because that's what Rae Carson does. Makes you fall in love with a character and then kills them. What a jerk. But I love it anyway and think it adds so much to the story.

Judging a book by its cover: I love this cover. It's colorful and striking and all sorts of fantastic things. If I saw it on a shelf somewhere, I would totally pick it up. 


--Ashley

Paul's November Book: The Crown of Embers by Rae Carson

Title: The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns #2)
Author: Rae Carson
Year Published: 2012

Amazon | Goodreads

Synopsis:  In the sequel to the acclaimed The Girl of Fire and Thorns, a seventeen-year-old princess turned war queen faces sorcery, adventure, untold power, and romance as she fulfills her epic destiny.

Elisa is the hero of her country. She led her people to victory against a terrifying enemy, and now she is their queen. But she is only seventeen years old. Her rivals may have simply retreated, choosing stealth over battle. And no one within her court trusts her-except Hector, the commander of the royal guard, and her companions. As the country begins to crumble beneath her and her enemies emerge from the shadows, Elisa will take another journey. With a one-eyed warrior, a loyal friend, an enemy defector, and the man she is falling in love with, Elisa crosses the ocean in search of the perilous, uncharted, and mythical source of the Godstone's power. That is not all she finds. A breathtaking, romantic, and dangerous second volume in the Fire and Thorns trilogy.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns Review
The Shadow Cats novella Review

Why?:  I absolutely adored the first book in this series. After finishing it, I immediately wanted to read more about Elisa. It has been over a year and I am so excited to finally read more of her stories.

Expectations: I expect Carson to continue the awesomeness that was the first book in this series. I expect even more growth from Elisa. I also expect to learn more about many minor characters as well as get to meet more characters that will have depth. I want to learn more about the origins of the godstones.

Judging a book by its cover: I like this cover. It is similar to the first book's cover. 


-PAUL