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A Spark of White Fire (The Celestial Trilogy #1) by Sangu Mandanna

"Similar to "Game of Thrones" only in space, there was a lot going on with a lot of different people and they were all important and connected but my tired, overworked brain had trouble keeping up."

2 Stars 

Pros: I liked Max as a character, I'm all for the tall, dark, mysterious supposed bad boy with a heart of gold cliche, but the kissing cousins thing just made it weird.  

Cons: It felt like Game of Thrones, only in space, so there was a bit of a kissing cousins vibe going and I wasn't feeling it/The book tried to have these big, shocking moments I was just non-plussed, unaffected./The presence of the Gods irked me as they did in The Illiad, it's all terribly convenient to have divine intervention for your MCs. I feel like it's the cheapest fake-out cheat of all time 👍🤣

Full Review:  

My co-worker, who has recommended some amazing reads such as, A Man Called Ove , The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and the Horse, and I'll Give You The Sun, raved about A Spark of White Fire. Excited at the prospect of another great read, sadly I was thoroughly disappointed.

This book had great potential but at the same time, I felt like maybe Mandanna was trying too hard.  There was just way too much going on at once. We meet Esmae, an orphan girl who's spent all her life knowing she's meant for bigger and better things. And she also happens to be the twin of the rightful king of Kali but who's been exiled and now she has this one chance to meet him at a tournament held in her kingdom. It all felt very convenient. 

This book just didn't hook me and that's okay. They can't be all winners and this one wasn't a complete flop. It just didn't engage me as some books do. It was a very middle of the road read. 




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