Ignite the Sun

July 15, 2020
In a sinister world of perpetual darkness, only Siria the sunchild can bring back the light. Siria Nightingale has grown up reciting the mantra of Gildenbrook, a posh girls boarding school and incubator for the queen's courtiers: "The Light was dangerous and destructive. Thank Her Highness the queen, the Darkness protects us now." From the beginning, Siria knows she is different. Her red hair stands out, and she radiates extreme heat at the slightest provocation. At the Choosing Ball in Queen Iyzabel's obsidian castle she is outed as the escaped sunchild and thus as the archenemy of the wicked queen. Siria explodes with destructive solar energy, sending the court into confusion and releasing her from the castle. She is rescued by her parents' humble servants, Yarrow, a wise old mage, and his grandson, Linden, a hunky young wood nymph and Siria's best friend. The excitement of constant transformations, battles, and terrifying escapes is sustained throughout the long narrative. During a grueling journey to reach the northern rebel stronghold where she can experience the vernal equinox, Siria comes to terms with her true identity and learns to utilize her solar powers for good and, ultimately, to destroy the Darkness. Her metamorphosis from an insecure teenager to a compassionate and powerful individual will appeal to readers struggling with self-esteem. Siria is White, and Linden is brown-skinned. An absorbing tale of triumph and self-discovery. (Fantasy. 14-18)

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August 14, 2020

Gr 8 Up-Fantasy lovers will enjoy this tale of family, conflict, and finding out where in the world one might truly belong. Adventurers will also enjoy following redheaded Siria's travels as she finishes her fourth and last year at the Golden Brook school. It seems like yesterday she was home with her best friend, brown-skinned Linden, listening to old man Yarrow tell stories about the myth of the Sun, before the Queen enveloped the world in shadow. Tomorrow she'll go to the Queen's Court, hoping to be chosen and make her parents proud. But she is spirited away in the night, driven to the Court early with other girls who have brightly colored hair. The Queen will do anything to find the Sun Child so she can keep her from fulfilling the prophecy. Siria stands on the stage with the others, fighting the heat and dashing the hopes of her parents as she suddenly explodes in a blaze of light. Now she is on the run, fleeing an angry Queen and trying to survive being bright in a land of dark while learning how to become what she really is. Fans of Jeanne DuPrau's "Books of Ember" series will appreciate the action and adventure, and readers of Scott Westerfeld's "Uglies" series will enjoy the coming-of-age questing and questioning expressed so well by the main character. VERDICT This well-paced fantasy will leave readers hoping for a second book to continue the saga; recommended for teen and older tween libraries.-Cathleen Ash, Manor H.S. Lib., TX

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