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fantasyjohncena's review
4.0
Fire in the Stars is a book about survival, redemption, hope, and freedom. also, lots of murder.
Harper, a seventeen year old kleptomaniac, is sent to Penance Island, just one of hundreds of delinquent teenagers dropped onto the island with a backpack and a promise: they'll never get back home.
it's similar to lord of the flies, with less cannibalism and more straight-up murder.
in contrast with Harper, there's Clint, who's been on Penance for a while and knows how to survive. he does a lot of the murdering in the book, thanks to orders from the "Queen of Penance", Esme.
As far as first kiss stories went, mine was especially awful. It really didn't deserve to be called 'Seven Minutes in Heaven' when your lip ended up getting snagged on their braces. The remaining four minutes in the closet consisted of me yelling at him as he desperately searched for something to stop the blood rushing from my lip; he'd also explained afterward he had some sort of salivary gland issue - which explained a lot, actually.
the book is has a few little moments like this, where nothing particularly lethal is happening and Harper is just Harper. she's sarcastic and a bit rude, yes, but she's also pretty funny sometimes. her personality doesn't feel forced onto the reader; it's natural and realistic. even in dangerous situations, Harper is still a teenager, dealing with and reacting to things the way teenagers do.
this is not the best book ever, but it's also not trying to be; it embraces its more tropey parts and comes across as more genuine than gimmicky.
i will say, though, that i found Rogge's chapters better, not just in terms of overall writing quality, but also characters that just seemed much more fleshed out.
Kazajian's chapters are more confused and he repeats words and phrases too much, making it difficult to read. i also found Clint to be a less compelling protagonist than Harper. he's just not a good person, and while that in and of itself wouldn't normally turn me away from a character, it in combination with his stoic-manly-murder-guy attitude was aggravating more than intriguing.
my favorite thing about this book - besides there not being a romantic subplot, thank the good and gentle lord above - is the side characters; they're developed very well and are just as important to the plot and story development as Harper and Clint. (also s/o for having an aroace character!!!!)
i do think that the novel has too much plot for its own good - it could be easily split into another novel. even at 400 pages, i don't feel like it explored everything it could have. i also would have liked to read more about the island itself.
despite its faults, Fire in the Stars is still a very good read, especially for a book written and self-published by two teenagers. the plot moves along at a steady pace, and the twists aren't too predictable, which is hard to pull off in a work like this. i would recommend it to most fans of action-adventure novels, as long as they aren't bothered by violence (there's a lot of it) and like a heavily involved plot.
overall rating: 4/5
Harper, a seventeen year old kleptomaniac, is sent to Penance Island, just one of hundreds of delinquent teenagers dropped onto the island with a backpack and a promise: they'll never get back home.
it's similar to lord of the flies, with less cannibalism and more straight-up murder.
in contrast with Harper, there's Clint, who's been on Penance for a while and knows how to survive. he does a lot of the murdering in the book, thanks to orders from the "Queen of Penance", Esme.
As far as first kiss stories went, mine was especially awful. It really didn't deserve to be called 'Seven Minutes in Heaven' when your lip ended up getting snagged on their braces. The remaining four minutes in the closet consisted of me yelling at him as he desperately searched for something to stop the blood rushing from my lip; he'd also explained afterward he had some sort of salivary gland issue - which explained a lot, actually.
the book is has a few little moments like this, where nothing particularly lethal is happening and Harper is just Harper. she's sarcastic and a bit rude, yes, but she's also pretty funny sometimes. her personality doesn't feel forced onto the reader; it's natural and realistic. even in dangerous situations, Harper is still a teenager, dealing with and reacting to things the way teenagers do.
this is not the best book ever, but it's also not trying to be; it embraces its more tropey parts and comes across as more genuine than gimmicky.
i will say, though, that i found Rogge's chapters better, not just in terms of overall writing quality, but also characters that just seemed much more fleshed out.
Kazajian's chapters are more confused and he repeats words and phrases too much, making it difficult to read. i also found Clint to be a less compelling protagonist than Harper. he's just not a good person, and while that in and of itself wouldn't normally turn me away from a character, it in combination with his stoic-manly-murder-guy attitude was aggravating more than intriguing.
my favorite thing about this book - besides there not being a romantic subplot, thank the good and gentle lord above - is the side characters; they're developed very well and are just as important to the plot and story development as Harper and Clint. (also s/o for having an aroace character!!!!)
i do think that the novel has too much plot for its own good - it could be easily split into another novel. even at 400 pages, i don't feel like it explored everything it could have. i also would have liked to read more about the island itself.
despite its faults, Fire in the Stars is still a very good read, especially for a book written and self-published by two teenagers. the plot moves along at a steady pace, and the twists aren't too predictable, which is hard to pull off in a work like this. i would recommend it to most fans of action-adventure novels, as long as they aren't bothered by violence (there's a lot of it) and like a heavily involved plot.
overall rating: 4/5
awordshaker's review
4.0
I just finished this book late last night, and I’m still trying to put my thoughts together, trying to piece together what I just read. My thoughts may be a little scrambled but here we go.
As I read The Fire In the Stars, I kept on imagining how it could be adapted to screen as a T.V show. Fire In The Stars has one of those plots that’s so intriguing, and makes me want to know every single detail about the island, and the mysteries surrounding it. From the minute, we are introduced to Harper as she is dropped off onto the island, I began to wonder who in their right mind would think that an island full of criminals is a good idea. Within the 9 months that Penance Island was put in place, a war started and ended, causing a rupture between various members of the islands. I’m honestly just surprised that mass homicide didn’t occur within the first week of the establishment of this Island.
From the first page, when we first met Harper, as she was being flown to Penance Island, I fell in love with her. She’s such a total badass, while still having a kind heart- no matter what she may say-. As we began to see her kleptomania in action, I began to really sympathize with her, and wonder if she really deserved such a cruel sentence as Penance Island. Though we do get a little taste of her past, and what led her to Penance Island, I would have loved a little more backstory for her, and perhaps a little more insight on her kleptomania, to give her a little more depth to her personality.
I didn’t like Clint, I didn’t sympathize with him at all, I didn’t understand why he was such a supporter of the leader of the Island, Esme, honestly he just didn’t appeal to me. But that didn’t stop me from really enjoying his POV, and what he brought to the story. There were times when I began to think that maybe he was an okay guy, but then he just goes and brutally murders someone, and I’m just like wait never mind. There was a part where someone says that people call him a psychopath, and he’s surprised. Clint is a psychopath there’s no doubt about it. Though by the end, I began to feel sorry for him, and I kind of wish the book could’ve been longer, so I could have grown to like him.
One of my favorite things about the book were the side characters, all the side characters were so interesting and honestly I could’ve read an entire book about them. I really wish we could’ve gotten a little more backstory on those characters. I honestly don’t care if that would’ve made the book longer, I just loved them so much, and want to know more about them. These characters really added something to the book, and I’m glad that Harper didn’t stick to her policy of always being alone because without some of these characters this book wouldn’t be the same. I wish they got more page time though, some of them were really not there for a lot of the book. I guess that just made me appreciate them even.
One of the things I really appreciated about this book, was the fact that the authors didn’t create a romantic sub-plot. I was terrified that Harper and Clint would end up together, which would have been the worst romance ever, and would have ended up with one of them being murdered by the other. So I’m so grateful that they didn’t go in that direction
The last 50 pages or so were probably the most devastating thing ever, and a lot of things happened that I’m just going to pretend didn’t happen and let’s just pretend that everything turned out wonderful, because that’s just way easier than facing the truth.
I did have a few issues with the book, one of them being the length. Though the book was 400 pages, I really wish it was longer, or like stretched out into another book because 400 pages wasn’t enough. There’s so many things that weren’t explained in much details, things that I desperately want to know. I really wished they focused on the mysteries of the island a little bit more, instead of the politics of the islands, which was interesting, but could’ve been cut down on. I could honestly read 800 pages of this book, and not complain one bit.
So overall I really enjoyed this book, I thought it was fast paced, filled with an interesting and diverse cast of characters. The plot was absolutely fantastic, and is one that I’d love to see being expanded upon. Though I had some minor issues with it, I highly recommend it to anyone who likes fast paced reads, filled with action and adventure. Expect to have your heart broken multiple times, and to at least shed one tear.
As I read The Fire In the Stars, I kept on imagining how it could be adapted to screen as a T.V show. Fire In The Stars has one of those plots that’s so intriguing, and makes me want to know every single detail about the island, and the mysteries surrounding it. From the minute, we are introduced to Harper as she is dropped off onto the island, I began to wonder who in their right mind would think that an island full of criminals is a good idea. Within the 9 months that Penance Island was put in place, a war started and ended, causing a rupture between various members of the islands. I’m honestly just surprised that mass homicide didn’t occur within the first week of the establishment of this Island.
From the first page, when we first met Harper, as she was being flown to Penance Island, I fell in love with her. She’s such a total badass, while still having a kind heart- no matter what she may say-. As we began to see her kleptomania in action, I began to really sympathize with her, and wonder if she really deserved such a cruel sentence as Penance Island. Though we do get a little taste of her past, and what led her to Penance Island, I would have loved a little more backstory for her, and perhaps a little more insight on her kleptomania, to give her a little more depth to her personality.
I didn’t like Clint, I didn’t sympathize with him at all, I didn’t understand why he was such a supporter of the leader of the Island, Esme, honestly he just didn’t appeal to me. But that didn’t stop me from really enjoying his POV, and what he brought to the story. There were times when I began to think that maybe he was an okay guy, but then he just goes and brutally murders someone, and I’m just like wait never mind. There was a part where someone says that people call him a psychopath, and he’s surprised. Clint is a psychopath there’s no doubt about it. Though by the end, I began to feel sorry for him, and I kind of wish the book could’ve been longer, so I could have grown to like him.
One of my favorite things about the book were the side characters, all the side characters were so interesting and honestly I could’ve read an entire book about them. I really wish we could’ve gotten a little more backstory on those characters. I honestly don’t care if that would’ve made the book longer, I just loved them so much, and want to know more about them. These characters really added something to the book, and I’m glad that Harper didn’t stick to her policy of always being alone because without some of these characters this book wouldn’t be the same. I wish they got more page time though, some of them were really not there for a lot of the book. I guess that just made me appreciate them even.
One of the things I really appreciated about this book, was the fact that the authors didn’t create a romantic sub-plot. I was terrified that Harper and Clint would end up together, which would have been the worst romance ever, and would have ended up with one of them being murdered by the other. So I’m so grateful that they didn’t go in that direction
The last 50 pages or so were probably the most devastating thing ever, and a lot of things happened that I’m just going to pretend didn’t happen and let’s just pretend that everything turned out wonderful, because that’s just way easier than facing the truth.
I did have a few issues with the book, one of them being the length. Though the book was 400 pages, I really wish it was longer, or like stretched out into another book because 400 pages wasn’t enough. There’s so many things that weren’t explained in much details, things that I desperately want to know. I really wished they focused on the mysteries of the island a little bit more, instead of the politics of the islands, which was interesting, but could’ve been cut down on. I could honestly read 800 pages of this book, and not complain one bit.
So overall I really enjoyed this book, I thought it was fast paced, filled with an interesting and diverse cast of characters. The plot was absolutely fantastic, and is one that I’d love to see being expanded upon. Though I had some minor issues with it, I highly recommend it to anyone who likes fast paced reads, filled with action and adventure. Expect to have your heart broken multiple times, and to at least shed one tear.
rplusd's review
3.0
I'm about to toss a lot of shade and mixed feelings at this book. It's pretty much The Lord of the Flies meets The Hunger Games' Catching Fire. Maybe some Death Cure from The Maze Runner series too, just a Frankenstein of those concepts and ideas.
It makes the action in this pretty nonstop and fast paced. I can see where time was spent putting this together. Though even with that care, I still can't say that I liked it? It felt a bit like a rough draft. If a beta or just a little more editing went into it, I might have enjoyed it more.
But three stars isn't bad on my scale! It's just a disclaimer on that you might like it, but it's not so much my cup of tea.
When I first picked this up, I didn't fully realize that it was self published. In terms of rating, that hardly matters. But as I was reading it just becomes more and more increasingly clear that it was.
Some time ago I read an article about writing do's and don't. Now, typically, I don't agree that "good writing" can be defined into a bullet pointed list, as it depends on the author. But I kept thinking back on how it noted that dialogue should be no longer than three sentences unless other wise needed. Yet, even then, it still needs to broken up. So, Frank, that tidbit was for you.
Otherwise, as far as the typos I found - and I confess that I am in no position to criticize. But when you make a mistake on your own character's name? How do you not catch that? And then to have such obvious mistakes that anybody reading this would catch. Like a sentence that starts off one way before repeating itself in a different tense. As if someone had already made an edit and forgot to use the delete button to remove the old line.
Then, sorry not sorry, what really makes me cringe is that there's a bio for the editor in the back of the book. So I'm questioning if things were changed after they looked at this or if money should be returned.
All that aside, the plot itself is so reliant on steps in a sequence that it's pretty guessable. So okay, cliches are cliches and I don't mind when they're done well. But half of this still had me going "but WHY?". Which is annoying because yes, I can see how it moves the plot along but also no, it's questionable and excessive.
I mean does Frank and the beachers have to be THAT brutal? All that mass murder without any real pay off? Also, can I point out that the "mutes", a nick name for the "mutants" DO NOT have useless powers?
Clint and Frank are up there laughing about some guy who can breathe under water and another who can glow. Are those things really useless when you're surrounded by water with food swimming around in it and nights of unlit darkness. Hmmmmm...
So just stuff like that was so furiously annoying to me. But again, like I said before, the book as a whole is not bad. I do also want to point out this might be the first asexual rep I've ever read, which kudos. And it's not painful or difficult to read. At most, I just kept side eyeing everything.
It makes the action in this pretty nonstop and fast paced. I can see where time was spent putting this together. Though even with that care, I still can't say that I liked it? It felt a bit like a rough draft. If a beta or just a little more editing went into it, I might have enjoyed it more.
But three stars isn't bad on my scale! It's just a disclaimer on that you might like it, but it's not so much my cup of tea.
When I first picked this up, I didn't fully realize that it was self published. In terms of rating, that hardly matters. But as I was reading it just becomes more and more increasingly clear that it was.
Some time ago I read an article about writing do's and don't. Now, typically, I don't agree that "good writing" can be defined into a bullet pointed list, as it depends on the author. But I kept thinking back on how it noted that dialogue should be no longer than three sentences unless other wise needed. Yet, even then, it still needs to broken up. So, Frank, that tidbit was for you.
Otherwise, as far as the typos I found - and I confess that I am in no position to criticize. But when you make a mistake on your own character's name? How do you not catch that? And then to have such obvious mistakes that anybody reading this would catch. Like a sentence that starts off one way before repeating itself in a different tense. As if someone had already made an edit and forgot to use the delete button to remove the old line.
Then, sorry not sorry, what really makes me cringe is that there's a bio for the editor in the back of the book. So I'm questioning if things were changed after they looked at this or if money should be returned.
All that aside, the plot itself is so reliant on steps in a sequence that it's pretty guessable. So okay, cliches are cliches and I don't mind when they're done well. But half of this still had me going "but WHY?". Which is annoying because yes, I can see how it moves the plot along but also no, it's questionable and excessive.
I mean does Frank and the beachers have to be THAT brutal? All that mass murder without any real pay off? Also, can I point out that the "mutes", a nick name for the "mutants" DO NOT have useless powers?
Clint and Frank are up there laughing about some guy who can breathe under water and another who can glow. Are those things really useless when you're surrounded by water with food swimming around in it and nights of unlit darkness. Hmmmmm...
So just stuff like that was so furiously annoying to me. But again, like I said before, the book as a whole is not bad. I do also want to point out this might be the first asexual rep I've ever read, which kudos. And it's not painful or difficult to read. At most, I just kept side eyeing everything.
marybooksandcookies's review
4.0
Shit son.
OKAY THEN. CAN YOU DETECT MY EXCITEMENT?!?!?
I seriously cannot express how wild of a ride this book was to read. I was so pleasantly surprised! So fast paced, so much action, gritty, raw, heartbreaking at times; the only thing missing is a tag line that should scream “No one is safe!”. Because. No one. Is. Safe.
From Goodreads:
Seventeen-year-old Harper, incurable kleptomaniac, never expected to end up on a place like Penance. Yet, here she is, imprisoned on the secluded island full of delinquent teenagers. At first glance, the place is everything they want: freedom. No laws, no authorities, just pure, unadulterated liberty.
With that freedom, however, comes danger. At the center of the chaos and brutality that rocks the island is Clint, a seasoned murderer working under the elusive, self-proclaimed Queen of Penance, Esme. Cold and brutal, Clint’s reputation has managed to keep the islanders in line — until now.
As Harper unwillingly becomes entrapped in the island’s politics, and a tragedy leaves Clint hunting for revenge, Penance’s unstable order begins to crumble. As their fates draw closer, both Harper and Clint must survive against bloodthirsty criminals, unnatural weather, and their own inner demons before their blood too is spilled in the sand.
Penance is a scary place to be in. It sounds like a holiday, being shipped to an island, with no supervision, allowed to do whatever you feel like doing, but reality isn’t that simple. As humans, we will always have the tendency to form a society, to instate rules, written or not. And that’s what happens on Penance. There is a struggle for power, people band together according to allegiances, and you sometimes forget that these are kids we’re talking about. It’s a very violent book and it hits you hard when you really sit and realise that these kids are willing to do whatever they need to survive, including murder. I felt immense sadness for them, because… kids should be taken care of, not thrown into the unknown, into a violent environment and left to fend for themselves.
I loved both Harper and Clint, the main characters. The story is told in alternating points of view and, while I usually don’t really enjoy books written this way, their voices were different enough not to confuse or annoy me. Harper is smart, she’s courageous and it’s ironic to see her do whatever she can to avoid being seen and getting involved in the island’s politics, while achieving the exact opposite. But she’s resourceful, imaginative and clever enough to survive even the stickiest of situations. Clint was… difficult to empathize with, most of the times. He’s a complicated individual, ruthless and hard-hearted. He’s left his humanity behind, in a way, and that makes him a very dangerous person, someone you don’t really want to get on the bad side of.
There is a plethora of characters that make an appearance, which makes it believable that the island is inhabited by so many kids. While there is a genuine concern that so many characters may confuse the reader, such concern can be set aside, because Rogge and Kazanjian manage to give depth even to the characters that appear for a handful of pages. These side characters add flavor and make the second half of the book even more difficult to read. You’ll understand what I’m saying when you get there, trust me. Also, the last 50 or so pages may be one of the most intense I’ve ever read in my life, so be warned.
The only thing I didn’t really like, and what caused me to give this book only 4 stars instead of 5, was that the ending felt rushed. I felt a bit unsatisfied with it. Also, the mysteries of the island could have been expanded upon, because they really piqued my interest. But I do appreciate the fact that it’s a stand-alone and not part of a series. We definitely need more books like this one.
Favourite quotes:
“It’s the lawless places that have the most unspoken rules. And the unspoken rules bring the steepest prices.”
“We fight for false freedom, live in our self imposed paradise and die knowing that it was always just a prison. There’s no courage in that.’
★★★★
Publication date: September 18th 2015
OKAY THEN. CAN YOU DETECT MY EXCITEMENT?!?!?
I seriously cannot express how wild of a ride this book was to read. I was so pleasantly surprised! So fast paced, so much action, gritty, raw, heartbreaking at times; the only thing missing is a tag line that should scream “No one is safe!”. Because. No one. Is. Safe.
From Goodreads:
Seventeen-year-old Harper, incurable kleptomaniac, never expected to end up on a place like Penance. Yet, here she is, imprisoned on the secluded island full of delinquent teenagers. At first glance, the place is everything they want: freedom. No laws, no authorities, just pure, unadulterated liberty.
With that freedom, however, comes danger. At the center of the chaos and brutality that rocks the island is Clint, a seasoned murderer working under the elusive, self-proclaimed Queen of Penance, Esme. Cold and brutal, Clint’s reputation has managed to keep the islanders in line — until now.
As Harper unwillingly becomes entrapped in the island’s politics, and a tragedy leaves Clint hunting for revenge, Penance’s unstable order begins to crumble. As their fates draw closer, both Harper and Clint must survive against bloodthirsty criminals, unnatural weather, and their own inner demons before their blood too is spilled in the sand.
Penance is a scary place to be in. It sounds like a holiday, being shipped to an island, with no supervision, allowed to do whatever you feel like doing, but reality isn’t that simple. As humans, we will always have the tendency to form a society, to instate rules, written or not. And that’s what happens on Penance. There is a struggle for power, people band together according to allegiances, and you sometimes forget that these are kids we’re talking about. It’s a very violent book and it hits you hard when you really sit and realise that these kids are willing to do whatever they need to survive, including murder. I felt immense sadness for them, because… kids should be taken care of, not thrown into the unknown, into a violent environment and left to fend for themselves.
I loved both Harper and Clint, the main characters. The story is told in alternating points of view and, while I usually don’t really enjoy books written this way, their voices were different enough not to confuse or annoy me. Harper is smart, she’s courageous and it’s ironic to see her do whatever she can to avoid being seen and getting involved in the island’s politics, while achieving the exact opposite. But she’s resourceful, imaginative and clever enough to survive even the stickiest of situations. Clint was… difficult to empathize with, most of the times. He’s a complicated individual, ruthless and hard-hearted. He’s left his humanity behind, in a way, and that makes him a very dangerous person, someone you don’t really want to get on the bad side of.
There is a plethora of characters that make an appearance, which makes it believable that the island is inhabited by so many kids. While there is a genuine concern that so many characters may confuse the reader, such concern can be set aside, because Rogge and Kazanjian manage to give depth even to the characters that appear for a handful of pages. These side characters add flavor and make the second half of the book even more difficult to read. You’ll understand what I’m saying when you get there, trust me. Also, the last 50 or so pages may be one of the most intense I’ve ever read in my life, so be warned.
The only thing I didn’t really like, and what caused me to give this book only 4 stars instead of 5, was that the ending felt rushed. I felt a bit unsatisfied with it. Also, the mysteries of the island could have been expanded upon, because they really piqued my interest. But I do appreciate the fact that it’s a stand-alone and not part of a series. We definitely need more books like this one.
Favourite quotes:
“It’s the lawless places that have the most unspoken rules. And the unspoken rules bring the steepest prices.”
“We fight for false freedom, live in our self imposed paradise and die knowing that it was always just a prison. There’s no courage in that.’
★★★★
Publication date: September 18th 2015
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