Unfortunately I no longer wish to review this book as the first few chapters did not reel me in. Thank you for the opportunity.

Why did I pick it?
I thought the synopsis sounded a bit different from the usual YA I’d picked up recently and wanted to give it a try.

What I loved about it
I loved that this book did not mess about. Right from the very beginning things got moving and FAST. Although I love a bit of world building it was still really refreshing to just jump straight into the action without much preamble.

Saying this there was still world building, it was dropped in when most appropriate to the storyline rather than as scene setting which I definitely preferred.

I really liked that this book did not go where I thought it was going. I was expecting something of a dystopian novel and got something with a lot more fantasy elements that I had been originally expecting so it was a very nice merge between the two.

What I loathed about it
Some of the plot points weren’t as detailed and thought out as I would have liked, but then I think it’s difficult to have a fast-paced storyline and yet still provide the rationale and the character development that I thought was missing.

Although I did like the curve to a more fantasy based world I hope that the storyline returns to the city eventually as I do feel there was more to explore there.

Thoughts
A great read for those that like a short and fast-paced storyline, I look forward to seeing how the rest of the series pans out.

Fire Lines has some of the best world building characteristics I've read in a long time. I really enjoyed the fast paced writing and plot driven story. I am a total fantasy buff, so when a book comes along and grabs me like this one did, I take notice. I really enjoyed this book immensely.

I found the style of this book difficult to get into. Not my thing.

I suppose the best description of my feeling about this book would be "not what I was hoping for". I requested this book based on the description. I hadn't heard of it before so I was hoping for a surprise diamond in the ruff. What I got was a lump of coal. This book could be really good with a bit more editing and work but right now it reads as a bit of a mess.

I really liked the beginning. It's interesting and it opens so many questions. However when she left this crazy land where she was living for all her life I didn't like it as much as before. I think the plot is original and I found the idea of this world uniqe and fresh, however I couldn't enjoy her journey. I think that is so because I don't like all of the main characters. The love triangle didn't surprise me, but I was kind of shocked when she was suddenly kissing with one of the boys.
I really loved the way animals, well elephants, are depict in this book. The scene with Kole and Maya is really sweet and later when they're in danger I literally cried.

Thurlbourn’s world-building is exceptional. It’s imaginative and detailed, and completely immersive. In a way, we’re introduced to the multiple worlds - first the city of Nhatu, with its dystopian regimes, and then the wider world, each region with its own lores and customs.
Characters are convincing with complex relationships, although the love triangle and ensuing conflict was perhaps a little too unpredictable to be completely believable. Emi is brilliant, a strong but impulsive female lead. In a way, she is two characters - the heroine she discovers she is destined to be, and the girl who left behind her oppressors and her family. Her harsh upbringing in Nhatu saw her facing untold difficulties at the hands of her oppressors, and these origins are never forgotten, informing her choices. Each identity weaves together to form a convincing whole. Emi faces two separate antagonists - the classically evil villain, Mahg, and the oppressive rulers of Nhatu, who hold her mother captive. The needs of dealing with both are effectively played against each other. It’s fantasy plus a dystopian setting, and there’s huge scope here for a Hunger Games-esque rebellion and defeating a Voldemort-esque evil lord.
Thurlbourn’s writing is great, with lots of splendid visual sequences. Pacing is excellent making this an easy read - the perfect escapism. I can’t wait for the next in the series.

Disgraced by her father's rebellion against The One City, Emi and her mother have been banished to the impoverished Red Quarter. Here they are subjected to nightly raids by ruthless Cadet's in search for anything magical - outlawed since the fall of the cities outside the walls of The One City. But Emi has a secret. She's magic. When her secret is exposed, she must leave everyone she loves behind in search of the truth that could save her family. But can Emi really live up to her destiny beyond the walls?

This started off really well. The world building is good - early on we get a story explaining a little of the history and backstory of the world in which the characters inhibit, and it's detailed and well described. It also helps set up Emi's predicament, and the harsh reality in which she lives. I really enjoyed the opening chapters as they were filled with an overlying tension and a strong sense of danger as Emi really struggles to get her magic under control. I was also fond of the characters, and relationships that were formed between Emi and the other Red Quarter inhabitants, especially Hedge.

The execution scene we see early on is also great. It almost felt like there was a gradual build up of emotion among the witnesses that leads to the inevitable outcome. I had high hopes at this point that this would be a really good novel.

However. I felt after this point everything started to unravel. I know it's a fantasy novel, but the story started to take a really unbelievable turn. The 'friend' of Emi's from the Gold Quarter, Tsam, has a rushed and rather far-fetched back story that Emi just believes and accepts blindly. He's woefully underdeveloped at the point of his reveal, and because of this I wasn't interested or surprised. Emi's past is also hurriedly explained, and again, accepted without question even though it's slightly ridiculous.

Then the author takes this moment to remove Emi from this wonderfully described city and plonk her into the unknown, with a bunch of new characters. I was desperate for more time within the city walls, and further develop the relationships established here. Unfortunately, these new characters are really annoying and one dimensional. All of them.

I lost interest after about 60%. I was so disappointed after such a promising start, but Cara Thurlbourn has proven she's more than capable of building a wonderful fantasy world. I'll look out for future novels.

So Fire Lines is an interesting YA fantasy novel about Emi, a girl who discovers the stories her father told her about the world outside her city were true. And in fact she is more than she ever knew.

This book has some really interesting world building in and some decent characters but it wasn't anything hugely special. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it but it wasn't a stand out book for me.

My only real issue however is that the final battle could be more action packed. It felt like not much happened and some of what did happen you don't read about until after. I wanted more of Emi realising her power and kicking butt and it was just...meh.

I did enjoy this book though and would recommend it. Oh and side note...both the author and publishers are near me so that makes me happy.

FIRE LINES is a slow burn of a story that becomes more intriguing the more you read on. It may take a bit to become fully hooked, but once you reach that point, you're in for the rest of the ride. Thurlbourn weaves a fantasy yarn that isn't as fresh or new as I would have liked, but it does contain several elements that I found fascinating and have yet to come across in young adult fiction. For that alone I would recommend giving this book a go. It helps too that the characters are easy to root to for, even when they do make questionable decisions. FIRE LINES is not a perfect novel, but it's one worth sticking it out for.

This is a coming of age and quest based fantasy about a young female protagonist facing dire odds against an evil and powerful foe, Mahg. Published 29 September, 2017, this is a debut novel by Cara Thurlbourn from Bewick Press.

Émi is trying to do the best she can manage after the imprisonment of her father and the demotion of her mother to a slum in her walled and isolated city. The anti-magic fanatical government and secret police are terrorizing the citizens. It's during a midnight raid when she turns 17 that Émi's latent magical skill bursts loose, endangering her and everyone around her.

The government's propaganda machine has convinced the populace that their walled city is the only thing protecting them from the evil outside, but Émi's not convinced that the walls around them are protecting them and not imprisoning them.

There are some nice twists on standard fantasy tropes. There are winged avatar/angel type beings along with some nice twists on the standard fantasy and magic themes. It's de rigeur to have angst and romantic drama in young adult fiction, but it doesn't overwhelm or drive the plot overmuch. There's enough romance to satisfy the audience without being completely over the top and unbelievable.

There are some technical problems with the pacing and plotting, even though it's a quest driven fantasy, there seems to be overmuch gratuitous 'go here, now over there, now back where you started from'. The band of adventurers seems less like a band and more like a group of squabbling teenagers on a class trip. That being said, it is a thoroughly readable book with a cast of relatable characters (for a fantasy novel).
I was impressed by the detail of the world building. Clearly there are other things going on in the backstory, and I hope the author shares some of those stories with us in future books. The elephant riders and watchers (winged people) are well written and freshly original.

Fair warning, this is not a standalone novel and ends on a dramatic cliff hanger. I'm looking forward to future books.

Three and a half stars

Fire Lines is a solid young adult novel. I loved that magical world and felt that the author does an excellent job detailing the background. I can see this novel doing very well with fantasy lovers and those who have previously enjoyed Hazelwood and The Diabolic. It definitely has great potential as a series.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for letting me read an ARC of this book.

This was an excellent read. Wrote along the same lines as Sarah J Maas' Assassin novels this will leave you wanting more. The story, plot and characters are all fabulous and I can't wait for the remaining novels.

Would definitely recommend!