Wildefire

“I didn’t say anything,” Ash said.“Maybe not with your mouth, but your eyes just called me a slut.”First, the good, because I'm a positive person. The main character in this book is a Polynesian girl. A person of color. A very rare thing to happen within an YA novel.But now the bad. Just because the book makes an effort towards diversity, doesn't mean it's going to be good. And for me, this book was not good.Believe me, I wanted so much to love the main character. I wanted her to be fe [...]

Wildefire by Karsten Knight is what The Goddess Test should have been and wasn't.In fact, Wildefire does many things right that the YA genre has been getting wrong. Those involved in the recent uproar over the lack of cultural inclusion in this genre can take a nice, refreshing, Polynesian breath of fresh air.Or, you know, enjoy one of the many OTHER aspects of Polynesian culture Ashline is the modern reincarnation of an ancient Polynesian Goddess. Her sister, Eve, is also a reincarnation of a g [...]

This is not for me. A shocking amount of pointless, gratuitous, glorified violence that is written in such a way as if it should be applauded by the readers (and to my chagrin, yes, apparently some do think it is perfectly OK, no, cool, for a girl to beat up another girl for messing around with her boyfriend); everyone's flippant attitude towards this violence (really, a week's suspension for knocking someone unconscious?); a girl with her teeth knocked out trying to be mouthy with her victimize [...]

This is going to be a very long review – I probably shouldn’t even say review. More of a discussion, really, of what I thought about this book and why I was not impressed by it.The last book that produced such a visceral reaction in me was the latest one in the Strange Angels series. That one, I didn’t complete because well, I disliked it that much. This one I felt compelled to complete because people whose reviews I follow assured me that this book gets better. After completing it, I have [...]

I did NOT see that coming! No, I didn't. Not. At. All.Okay, so Karsten Knight and I got off to a rocky start. Not personally, of course, but in terms of his prose. I read the first chapter of Wildefire on the Simon & Schuster website, and I was not very impressed. I wished desperately that a competent editor would take a pair of shears to the prose and trim it. It was florid, there were too many similes, and it was trying too hard to be 'pretty prose', if you know what I mean. Being a hype-w [...]

*Sigh*Do you know how you are really excited about a book and you have this feeling you are going to LOVE it. But soon as you start reading it you start to wonder if you have received the same copy as others who fell head over heels in love with it? Well, that is exactly what Wildefire was for me. I have a confession. I totally fell for the hype with this one. I really wanted to love this. Even when I felt like giving up halfway through, I continued on in hopes that it would get better. But, ala [...]

(Actual Rating: 3.5 stars)Wildefire by Karsten Knight is a strange beast of a novel. Nearly 400 pages, it's a bit of an intimidating novel – especially if you had been reading many iffy opinions about it as I had. Too much senseless violence. Unsympathetic heroine. Creepy love interest. So many one-star reviews had been coming into my feed that, after a while, I had simply deleted the book from my shelves despite my having had the book listed to-read since August 2010.But something happened a [...]

Over the past few years, in the wake of the sparkle madness, we’ve seen a wide variety of paranormal mythologies saturate the YA market to the point where much of it has become derivative, overdone and frankly, a little dull. To find something original in the market is always pleasant, so a novel centred around a reincarnated Polynesian goddess was automatically a must read for me. So far, my GoodReads friends have been mixed in their opinions on the novel, so I will have to be the dull one he [...]

I read up to page 118 and that was enough for me. I could not stand the main character- Ash. From the very beginning, she grated my nerves- her dialogue and her actions were nasty and violent. I don't mind violence in a book at all. In fact, I've been known to read some pretty violent books but this was just stupid violence for the sake of what, I don't know? And don't get me started on Ash beating up a girl, hurting her boyfriend and then suddenly, she decides to be forgiving when the girls com [...]

Read the first 80 pages, skimmed the rest, saw the big secret, saw the big cliffhanger. Style and story are just not for me, and I really have no interest in spending the time to write a review. More details in my reading status update.

No no no no no no no just a million times no, Karsten Knight. I don't really even know why I rated this book two stars; it deserves a one but I feel like being nice today so it gets two stars forI guess for even being published. Because either Knight is the smoothest negotiator in history, his publishers have never read a good book in their lives, or they all are idiots. Maybe even a mix of all three, but I'm guessing more of the latter. Alotmore of the latter. First of all, Ireallyhated Ashline [...]

BEFOREWell, what the fuck?That's all I have to say after reading the first chapter/preview. I'll still read it, but now I'm a little annoyedTERI give up. I tried. I seriously wanted to see something underneath all the cut-out characters, over the top--everything. I wanted to find something that would make my heart race, even if it was for a measly second. But no. Instead, I can't stand it. So, I stop right here (page 104).I'll keep it simple: nothing is realistic. It's like Knight took what is d [...]

Ok, so I didn't finish reading the book, and let me tell you - I didn't even want to. I would rather go sunbathing on the surface of the sun.(Also this review might contain a few spoilers for the first three chapters of the book.)Holy shit. There are just so many things I’d like to talk about that I don’t even know where to start. -How about the beginning? -Thank you, voice at the back of my head called common sense and logic, something that the characters in this book lacked. So. In the ope [...]

No. Just no.So I logged onto PulseIt for the first time in weeks to find this book was already up for free, and was like, "Why not?" I love mythology, particularly those types of books that try to put it in perspective with the present - such as Rick Riordan, the amazing guy that he is - and the multicultural aspects that people kept raving about sounded appealing.All I can say is, I have no idea why I went through with finishing the story.First of all, a guy writing from a girl's POV (honestly, [...]

Picked this book up on a book sale. Should've known better.

I cannot finish this one. I have really tried to like it, but I am going to give up. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the summer and I feel so let down. I have been told that it gets better but I am having trouble getting past the characters attitudes. Ash was so violent that I don't know if there is any way for her to redeem herself. I was also shocked at how X-Menish this book was. I wasn't prepared for that and it felt way to cliche. So I am going to let this book go and grab some [...]

What? What?! What do you mean! You can't end the book like this! I demand a sequel!!!*scuffle**straps alter ego to the wall**mutters* Damn fangirls.Q: So, how can I describe Karsten Knight's "Wildefire" without sounding like a complete and utter psycho?A: I can't. I can promise though that I will not go off stalking anyone - I'm in a session right now. But on the (relatively) serious note, I have to say that this was one of those experiences that you want to repeat, again and again. Seriously: I [...]

I created a new shelf just for Wildefire called Pure Torture. Seriously I think you have to be a sociopath to truly enjoy this book. Nothing but senseless violence from a main character who think her sh*t don't stink. The book literally starts with a fight all over a stupid boy. Fight after fight all in the town of Scarsdale, New York. This part cracked me up because I live in the same county and let me tell you, if this happened here the school vp wouldn't just stand by why some girl got her te [...]

Update: I found out WHICH Polynesian Goddess he based it off of. And ding ding ding, it's MINE (Hawaiian). enchantedinkpotvejournalI'm so annoyed. Yeah, yeah, every volcano brings about birth and destruction. Whatever. That's SUCH a scientific/exoticized view of things. If he really wanted to invoke our mythology well he should've actually paid attention to our origin stories.It's not like it's really hard to find. sacred-texts/pac/hm/hmcred-texts/pac/hm/hmYeah, I'm done.Edit: Another thing that [...]

.Yep, so in a nutshell, I was not a fan of this book. Like, at all. My main issue with Wildefire was that I didn't like the main character.Wait, scratch that-- I could not stand the main character.Wait, scratch that again-- I wish the main character had taken a running dive off of a cliff and spontaneously combusted in mid-free fall, or met any other catastrophe a la Wile E. Coyote.Like so:Yes, that's how much I detested Ashline Wilde-- I had to whip out some visuals of her cartoon-ish demise.Wh [...]

1.5 starsTo say I fell for the hype for this book would not be the truthe the truth is that I created my own hype for this book, long before I found Karsten's blog and saw how hilariously funny he is, which only added to it. The sad part is that after all my excitement, I didn't like Wildefire. I know, I'm crying too, because that means that what comes next is stuff I hate to type.It's truth time and if you loved this book, you may not like what I have to say.Let me start off by saying what I li [...]

Well, this book fizzled and died for me. For the record, I really wanted to like Wildefire by Karsten Knight, but the read just went from bad to worse. For starters, it’s not at all what I expected it would be. For second, it’s not very well written. The transitions are clunky and the author uses too many weird devices to tell a story.I always know it’s a bad thing when I am not absorbed in a book, but this was ridiculous. I spent three days lazily chipping away at this book and didn’t g [...]

why do people like this so much?

The Short Version: Unique in concept and engaging in play out, Wildefire covers a range of emotions and builds a strong plot with fantastic characters. Filled with witty banter and sarcastic retorts, and written in an incredibly fluid, intelligent way, this one is both fun and interesting. Ashline is a phenomenal central character, smoothly built and perfectly damaged to create a well rounded, fully dimensional and relatable protagonist. The plot has a very steady pace, and with easily inserted [...]

2.5 starsThis premise is bursting with potential, but these characters need a big dose of likeability. While I commend Knight for his bold choice to write from a female POV, Ash's voice needs some work. The dialogue and narrative is littered with crude words and phrases that I'd venture to say many (most?) females just don't use. It's like the Beautiful Creatures syndrome in the inverse. However, there is simmering potential in both the premise and writing, so I'll definitely be checking out the [...]

So, I'm struck with the urge to tell you, dear reader, to run out and pick up a copy of Wildefire posthaste. More importantly, whatever you do, do not try to compare this to The Goddess Test because the only thing that they remotely have in common is the fact that they both feature deities/gods/goddesses. In Wildefire there is reincarnation, a very strong heroine (both figuratively and literally), deities from a bevy of religions and places, unusual weather (and lightning strikes) and--in my opi [...]

All I can say right now, having just put the book down, is that this is a book you should definitely judge by it's cover, because the text is as fantastic-ly deep as the cover is symbolic.

RTC!

Update:I tried to reread this in an effort to complete the series, and just one chapter in (albeit a nigh 40 page chapter), I know this isn't going to well. Rereading is a tricky business, because sometimes you end up looking at your past self like HUH? There's so much girl hate in the opening chapter, not to mention the fact that a girl is murdered for the offense of hooking up with Ashline's boyfriend. The writing's clunky, and a lot of things made me side-eye already.When Wildefire came out, [...]

P233 “There’s a fiery tide coming, and there’ll come a time when you’re going to have to decide where you stand. Do you want to be just a flicker in history? Or will you stand up and be a torch in the tide?”Wh… thi… bril… puhhh…….Words. Gone. All the beautiful ones have been stolen from the stars and knitted into literary jewels by the awesome Karsten Knight. Seriously. Wow. I could lick this book the writing is so utterly scrumptious, divine, brilliant. I literally hugged th [...]