Fire & Flood

Favourite Quote: �¢??Now he�¢??s down to this: pretending. Pretending to be the brother who swung a right hook in my honor. Pretending to be the son who danced a jig in the end zone that his dad taught him. He�¢??s still the guy who isn�¢??t afraid to write more than his name in a greeting card. Still the guy who loves redbrick buildings and cars that growl and Cheez Whiz sprayed straight from the can into his open mouth.�¢?�¨He is still my brother.�¢?�¨He is not my brother at all.�¢?? After hearing mixed reviews about this book, I was hesitant going into it. The first half was okay for me but thankfully the second half really picked up and I started getting really into the book! A solid 4/5 stars from me! Since this was a dystopian, let�¢??s start with the plot and the world. I have to admit, at several points during this book, I was reminded vaguely of the Hunger Games! The competition, competitors, the deaths, the surivial etc were similar ideas to the Hunger Games but thankfully in many other ways, this story is unique and interesting! The world building wasn�¢??t that great, we only got a few details here and there but hopefully that will change in the next book and we�¢??ll get more answers! The completion itself was interesting and I�¢??m glad we only saw the first two stages of the competition as I feel that everything would have been rushed and bland if the author had done the whole competition in one book! The pace of the book was fast, mostly due to the action scenes that were on every few pages. There weren�¢??t many twists and turns in my opinion with the exceptional of one that I just never saw coming! I won�¢??t spoil anything but when the twist was out, the action-packed pages afterwards were just brilliant! The end of the book didn�¢??t leave on a cliffhanger but interesting enough that I�¢??m looking forward to the next book! As for the characters, in all honesty, Tella was one of my least favourite heroines ever. In fact I think she�¢??s definitely my least favourite dystopian heroine. She was ridiculously vain (seriously in a competition for survival and all she was worried about was her lack of make-up and her short hair!), I don�¢??t think she took the competition serious enough, at times she was caught up with her vanity and her crush! However she did have some redeeming qualities, I loved her deep connection with her Pandora and how she defended the other pandora�¢??s and at times she was strong and confident! A thing I did love about this book was the pandora�¢??s! They were amazing! Each had their own personality and I loved them all, I was cringing when some of them were being mistreated! And Maddox, he was my favourite fictional �¢??pet�¢?? ever. Enough said. As for the other human characters, I did really like Guy. He was mysterious, strong and capable leader though he did have his flaws, both physical and emotionally but that just made me like him even more! I also liked Harper, Jaxon and Olivia! There were also some horrendous villains that added something extra to the book! Overall, I really did enjoy this book and would recommend to dystopian lovers and anyone who wants a quick, action-packed read!show more

Fire & Flood is different, maybe a little strange but oh so much fun. I loved Tella and I connected with her straight away, we both have unruly curly hair that is the bane of our existence and we would do anything for the ones we love. For Tella the lengths she goes through in order to get a cure for her brother are extreme to say the least. The Brimstone Bleed seems to challenge not only Tellaâ??s stamina and survival skills but also her ability to step out of her comfort zone and work as a part of a team. When we first meet her she comes across as a spoiled girly girl, she packs nail varnish, just in case she has time for it during the race, but shes grows. The race also tests her resolve â?? is putting her life at risk worth the slim chance she has at saving her brothers? To Tella the answer is an unequivocal yes. Through it all Tella keeps her fantastic sarcasm and sense of humour that had me laughing out loud. The secondary characters are all as unique as Tella and each with a loved one they are trying to save. There is the strong and practical Harper, the motherly Caroline, the the loveble rambunctious young twins Ransom & Levi and the â??let me punch him in the throatâ?? Titus. And of course, there is the love interest, Guy, who is handsome and mysterious and knows the secrets behind the origins of the race. The romance between Tella and Guy is slowly developed and was a joy to watch happen, I canâ??t wait to see how it continues to develop in the other books. Now on to the most important part of the story PANDORAS, OMG how I want one, GIMME! Each of the contestants get to pick an egg at the start of the race and each of these eggs hatch into an animal that will be a companion and a helper, but these arenâ??t ordinary animals, they are way cooler. Believe me you will want one too. I do have a few question about the race, but I know they will be answered within the rest of the trilogy so they aren't a big problem to me. Some of my questions were answered in this book, but just enough to keep me wanting more. This book made me laugh, cry and angry and it definitely left me deperately wanting the next one Salt & Stone. If you are looking for a fun action adventure then you should absolutely read this. @ natheartsbooks.blogspot.co.ukshow more

Fire and Flood opens with a typical family scene - Tella's mad at her curly hair and blaming her parent's genes for it and arguing with her brother. Except Tella's life isn't normal. Her brother is sick, dying and no-one can save him. Except Tella. Tella receives a small blue box on her bed, in it a device that invites her to the Brimstone Bleed with a promise that if she wins, she will win a cure to any disease. It's when she gets this message that her parents start acting very oddly, in particular her father who tries to burn the device secretly but to no avail, and Tella grabs it back. Unsure if she's just going crazy, she's gets in her old beat up car and sets off to the first stop in the Brimstone Bleed race. Fire and Flood does feel like a few different books and things - the main thing I was strongly reminded of, surprisingly, was an almost-dystopian... Pokemon. No, really. The competitor gets an egg, it hatches and follows her around and listens to their commands. Not to mention they all have some freaky powers. Plus, some competitors are stealing other people's Pandoras or taking the dead competitors Pandoras. The first thing I noticed about Tella was her impulsiveness. As soon as she tries to grab a Pandora, a giant egg, another Competitor grabs her hair and yanks her back, so naturally a little later she simply cuts most of her hair short without a moments thought. She's also very, very funny - in the most dire of situations, such as a lion attack in a jungle, all she can think of was that lions aren't supposed to be in jungles. Priorities girl. It was interesting to see someone unused to these harsh ecosystems and battling their way through it, often we have tougher heroines who now what they are doing and Tella did exactly what I would do - followed someone else! Other than Tella, there's some very varied and interesting personalities in this book that I loved getting to know and I was sad when they left. I did feel sorry for the many Pandoras though. Everyone kept the eggs as safe as possible - until they hatched into various different creatures and while Tella named hers and protected it, others took a lot longer to connect with them and realise that they have feelings and personalities too and some people never understood that and treated them particularly cruelly. I'm really excited about where the sequels will take us, the rules for getting into base camp are probably going to get tougher and I'm definitely expecting a Battle Royale rule in there at some point. I' hopeful that the race will finish in the next book and the third one will take us to after the Brimstone Bleed, as I believe that there are things that were revealed in the book that can only addressed outside of the race. @UTM_Reviews on Twittershow more