From the Embers (Born In Flames #3)

 

 

Title:  From the Embers (Born in Flames #3)

Author: Candace Knoebel

Publisher:  48fourteen

Pages: 400 Pages

Genre: Fantasy

Source: Amazon

Rating:  5 Stars

 

Summary:

I am the Progeny. The one deemed to carry this weight. The weight of knowing too much. Of knowing there is a darkness in me. Of knowing that even The Fates can screw things up.

Aurora Megalos knew becoming the Progeny meant great sacrifice, but what she wasn’t prepared for was sacrificing herself. Since the day of her birth, she has been set on a path she couldn’t control; a path conceived by The Fates. After discovering she is mortally connected to her arch enemy, Zordon-a son of a Fate, Aurora is left with a path that seems hopeless.

Until she discovers a revelation in the prophecy.

With war on the horizon, she must find a way to defeat the one who threatens to take everything and everyone she has ever loved from her, without destroying herself. The barrier between both realms is broken, The Fates have been overrun by Zordon, and his darkness now spreads throughout the lands. The odds are stacked against her. Will Aurora and Fenn find a way to undo the work of The Fates in time to save the realms from complete destruction?

Review:

I wish I could leave it like that BUT instead let me just tell you how wonderful this was… There were NO loose ends. I loved that. There was tragedy. I liked that too. Why?! Well, because when the fate of TWO worlds is happening and there is only ONE person who can save EVERYONE you have to expect some loss. You have to expect to be heart broken at least once and certainly be prepared for it to be someone close to you or the character in this instance. Aurora was EVEN MORE kick ass to me in this one simply because she does sacrifice so much more. She loses family, friends, ally’s, her innocence and at some point her self. She literally goes to war with Zordon and risks everything worth anything to her. I think I liked this book the best. It made me tear up and I sympathized with Aurora, Astral, and Lexi. There were times where I wanted to smack Fenn, Zane, Soothe and Kaede around. In fact I wanted to smack most of the men around Aurora  for babying her. She steps up in a big way in this book. Yes she is still laced with self doubt but who wouldn’t be when faced with her odds. I am glad that the author didn’t forget about Mily when finishing the trilogy. That made it even more awesome to me. The book was balanced emotion wise for me…I spent most of the first half anxious and worried that things wouldn’t work out and then about 3/4 of the way in my anxiety eased and i was able to breathe normally again; I was relieved but saddened and THEN FINALLY the last 1/4 🙂 I was nothing but unicorn farts and and gliterry kittens. 🙂 I was very pleased with how the trilogy ended and so happy my characters got the ending they so deserved.

 

Recommendation:

 Oh Please Oh Please Read This! It was fantastic. Amazing. Wonderful. Spellbinding!

Embracing the Flames (The Born in Flames Trilogy #2)

Title: Embracing the Flames (the Born in Flames trilogy #2)
Author:  Candace Knoebel
Publisher: 48fourteen
Pages: 412  Pages
Genre: Fantasy
Source: Amazon Book Page,
Rating:  5 Stars

Summary:

The Stone of Immortality has always been kept under the watch of the Draconta. That is, until the betrayal of a Fate. Now, everything is about to change.

Aurora Megalos accepted her destiny without blinking-even if it meant succumbing to her dragon side. Deemed the Progeny, she left the ordinary life she knew and has done everything in her power to learn the ways of her new home and what it means to be part dragon. But when her mentor, Astral, suddenly disappears, she is forced to take the reins with war on the brink. She sets out on an epic journey to find what her arch enemy, Zordon, is after. What she discovers is far worse than she could’ve ever imagined. She will be tested and pushed to the limit. Lives will be lost, love will be found, and most importantly, a battle will begin.

 

Review:

To summarize how i feel:

Uhm, so this book was uhhhhmaaaaaaZING…I decided that sleep was unimportant to me just so that i could finish this book…since i work two jobs that was almost stupid of me BUT i didn’t care because this was just as wonderful except more kick ass than the first one! Alex is super kick ass and i found there was much more action in this one than the first. I know i held my breath every couple of chapters and rushed to read through it. There was indeed more tragedy and heartbreak in this book but i found that it gave me more to love. Alex Fenn Zane and Lexi continue to break the rules as expected and as usual with some success i might add. Alex meets her mama and grandparents officially. If you ask me, Dragons are a bit stuck up but hey as an ancient royal dragon i probably be that way too. Of course Zordon is raising hell and Soothe plays hard to get. As the title suggest Aurora in my opinion finally embraces that dragon part of her and succeeds in being a whole. The ending of this one…thank goodness for it because it immediately preps me and revs me up for book 3. The only reason i’m not reading book 3 right now is because i started mushing up these first two into one big book. Astral disappearing was the best thing to happen to Aurora being that it forces her to make her own decisions. She even learns what it is to disobey her parents. Eve hates her and Im not sure if you found out book 1 or 2 but you do find out a lot about Eve. That blew my mind. This was certainly a page turner with the amount of action AND information thrown at you. I was forced to think with the group to try and solve the mystery of what the hell Zordon really wants…needless to say i was no good at it and the author bless her heart spelled it out for me in the end which …still shocked me and i loved it. Zordon is a sneaky slimy bastard and i kind of hate him. -_- he’s smart though so i begrudgingly respect him…a little bit. *Sighs* I’m as afraid as Aurora that he will succeed and it sucks. Aurora has gotten a lot better with her magic and went through another round of serious combat training so beware Zordon in book 3. We’re coming for you! Btw…i thought Fenn and Zane were going to kill each other. I’m happy to say that they don’t but you know for the usual mind blowing reasons – read it and find out.

This has been one of my favorite series this year and I am glad I gave the first book a chance to begin with.

 

Recommendation

Uhm Duh! read it now! well…read the first one first and THEN read this one. This one kicked ass and the 3rd I’m sure is going to blow it out of the water.

 

– Kayla

Born in Flames

Title: Born in Flames (The Born in Flames Trilogy Book #1)
Author:  Candace Knoebel
Publisher:  48fourteen
Pages:  302 Pages
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Fantasy,
Source: Amazon Book Page
Rating: 5 Stars

Summary:

Red mirrored scales race up my arms as the haze of pain blurs my vision. My bones crack, breaking to realign. I scream. It is then that the realization of my unavoidable fate sinks in; I am of a dying race. I am dragon.

Aurora Megalos, orphaned and teetering on the edge of adulthood, thought finding her past would curb the sting of being an outcast. Having no memories of the time before she awoke on her foster mother’s doorstep, she yearns for the emptiness inside her to be filled. With her fellow orphaned best friend, Fenn, by her side, she has nothing to lose and everything to gain. But something powerful stirred within her that she couldn’t explain. Something wanted out.

In the dark of night, a crazed Seer erases everything she’s ever known with an impending prophecy. She now faces two paths. Return to her true home to protect a dying race against a growing evil, or stay hidden in the safety of our realm with a shot at a true love. With a vengeful Arch Enemy stopping at nothing to see her dead, she’s running out of time; a decision must be made. What would you choose?

 

Review:

I will admit, this book was a complete surprise to me. I thought it would be run of the mill shape-shifter dragon paranormal romance book and then just move on….yes I was looking for a fluffer since i couldn’t figure out what to read but this pulled me through my reading slump and made me read the 2nd one in anticipation for the 3rd. Aurora Megalos…kick ass weird chick living in Hawaii. I can’t explain much of the book without ruining the plot and believe me if you decide to read this you don’t want it ruined.

Aurora never really felt as if she has had a place and cannot remember her life before being taken in by her foster mom. She meets a creepy stranger on the bus and all of a sudden her life starts to change. This creepy person has set in motion a chain of events that will have you clicking or flipping pages as fast as you can. I seriously felt like maybe i rushed through the book. I didn’t even right this review before starting the 2nd one. There is a certain point where i just had to put down the book for a minute and just breathe. I loved the connection between Aurora and Fenn from the beginning. I love that Aurora is a bit real world normal. Her character is someone i would be friends with; she’s full of self doubt and she doesn’t see herself the way others do. She tends to be a pessimist and weird things happen when she gets angry. She’s a smart ass and stronger than she thinks. I’m glad that she is the story line and its not about someone saving her. She has a lot of learning to do on her journey to finding herself and some of it is rough but she pulls through. Yes, she has help from Fenn and yes someone usually does come along for the assist but she usually falls on her ass herself and attempts to get herself out of it. Its not her fault that she is practically a celebrity and doesn’t know it. Fenn….Fenn is dreamy. like creamy peanut butter and honey that has been whipped to a poofy yummy goodness. He’s hot, smart, sensitive and seems to get Aurora without words having to be said. It’s nice that Fenn balances Aurora out so well and its just nice. I like that for now he is not a goober just sitting around or a neanderthal bossing her around. He’s a great guy even though he hurts her feelings for her own good at some point but it is what it is and it all works out eventually. You meet some wonderful characters in  this book; Lexi, Eve, Gabe, Zane, Astral and Zordon. I wanna just have a moment and chat someone up to death about each character but I don’t know to many people around me who had read this so I’m stuck ranting to myself.

The author did a great job of sucking me in when i didn’t want to be. I felt like she just forced my attention into her book and then i was hooked like an addict. As of this moment I am 71% finished with book 2 and I am excited to see how things work out.   Aurora really comes in to her own and finds about 80% of the answers she is looking for in this book… All that’s left is the impending world doom, unraveling the prophecy, and saving everyone’s life – that’s all. What could possibly go wrong?  🙂 READ ITTTT!!!! ITS AWESOME!!!

 

Recommendation:

 Oh yes! If you love dragons, romance, kick assery, and a bit of mystery this is it. Like I said this was surprising for me.