Title: Burn Bright
Author: Bethany Frenette
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Publication Date: February 2014
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Series or Stand Alone: Series, Book Two
Synopsis can be found here.
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Review:
Audrey and friends are attacked one night by a truly dangerous foe, a new Harrower named Susannah. She’s dangerous, more powerful than most Guardians including Leon, and bent on destroying the Kin and Audrey’s family and world as she knows it. But Audrey is bent on helping, even though she with a very upset Tink and an unstable Gideon by her side. The stakes are high and the Remnant is close…
Great sequel. This book is a bit darker than the original, but I liked that. Audrey is still stubborn and brave. I really like how natural her emotions are. She’s jealous when Tink gets called to be a Guardian. She’s torn when she finds out Gideon’s secret. She’s very human and real. There isn’t a lot of fun back and forth between the friends, but there are some nice exchanges between Leon and Audrey and Audrey and her mom. I feel like this is a great book for moms and daughters to read. They have a strong relationship, positive and realistic.
Susannah is very evil, though I never totally bought her motivation for utter chaos. I did really like Drew, a new Guardian who shows up and is out for revenge. He is the most interesting character in the book- his charge and wife died by Susannah’s hands. And all he want is to kill Susannah, or maybe he really wants Susannah to kill him. It’s one of the most universal topics – death, and grief and how we each deal with it. Drew was never supposed to live without his charge/wife. So what happens when a Guardian fails? I wish there was more with him and his story, but his character stole every scene he was in and his storyline added a great emotional gravity to the book, which I hope continues to get explored in book three.
Leon is of course the quiet, dreamy type and their relationship continues on with some warm moments and a little bit of heat. (And by this I mean kissing, peeps.) Very sweet.
Overall, I think Burn Bright is a great second book. The stakes are raised, the story moves fast and there are so many unanswered questions, I can’t help wanting to read the third book. Right. Now.
Rating 8 Cookie Worthy
Kimberly majored in Songwriting and currently works full time in the music industry. When she's not listening to music, knitting or writing, you can find her outside reading her favorite genres: Young Adult, Adult Fiction, Mystery, and Romance.