Review 159. Rae Carson – The crown of Embers.

Title: The crown of Embers.
Author: Rae Carson.
Pages: 410.
Published: September 18th 2012.
Publisher: Greenwillow Books.
Sort: Part two of ‘Fire and Thorns.’
Part 1: The girl of fire and thorns.
Part 0.5: The shadow cats.

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.

Rating:

There is something magical about Carson’s writing-style. I absolutely loved The girl of fire and thorns and I also liked The shadow cats, so I had high expectations for this book. And boy, did it deliver! From the moment I started to read this book, I was hooked. There is something about Carson’s world-building and characters that works for me. From now on, I will buy everything Rae Carson writes, because I’m in love with her writing-style. This review contains no spoilers for The girl of fire and thorns.

Elisa is the hero after her victory against their enemy, but she is having a hard time ruling her country. She is seventeen years old and there are many spies and traitors in her own court. The only one she can truly trust are her maid Mara, her old nurse Ximena, her personal guard Hector and his royal guard. They are not enough to protect her from an assassin and Elisa is frightened for the lives of her friends. The fact that she cares so much about other people instead of herself is fantastic. I admire her strength and intelligence, especially for someone so young. I never had the idea I was reading a story about a teenager; she could have been my age without any problem. I just love Elisa and her flaws.

The appearance of an animagus brought many fear amongst the people and she must show them that she is strong enough to protect them: she is forced to find a new husband. When she meets Storm, an Invierne who is hiding away under her city, she learns about something called zafirna. This is the place where you can access the magic right away, instead of drawing it out of the ground. I really liked Storm. He is sarcastic and never afraid to speak his mind. He is difficult to read and that made him interesting. Elisa decides to travel to find the zafirna, but she is about to lose the one thing she loves the most: Hector.

I really liked the pace. It was very consistent and it made me fly through the pages. The story is building up and the ending delivers. I suppose you could call it a closed cliff-hanger. It makes me anxious for part three, but it doesn’t leave me with a bitter taste. It was the perfect ending for this story, which was filled with tense situations and action.

There is also some romance and it was fun to see Elisa and Hector dance around each other. I definitely understand where her feelings come from. Hector is adorable! He is loyal and he tries so hard to hide his true feelings. There are also many other fascinating characters in this story. There is Mara, who helps Elisa to feel like a normal girl now and then and Tristan, a sweetheart with a secret. Carson knows how to create amazing characters with own distinct voices.

I’m impatiently waiting to continue this story!