I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

What a fun and entertaining read! Loved the author’s style and I’d definitely read them again. More books, please!

I had this earc and I also had a physical arc from ALA and I tried both formats and just could not find myself enjoying the story.

There was such a golden opportunity to subvert the abusive love interest trope, but no: This book embraced it full stop. Also, it tried to tackle issues like gentrification and mental health, but it did so in such a simplistic manner.

‘A Thousand Fires’ by Shannon Price was absolutely amazing and I read it in one sitting, I absolute recommend it.

Valerie's younger brother was killed by the Boars two years ago and she is determined to avenge his death. Joining the Herons, the rival gang of the Boars, is part of her plan but she finds herself taken by a mysterious gang called the Stags. Jax, their leader, promises to help her get her revenge leaving her no choice but to stay in the gang and leave her family and friends behind.

The books started really strong but it went downhill so fast. It's upsetting because I really wanted to love this book. I personally liked Valerie's character except when she's around Jax. The other members of the Stags were interesting as well but we didn't get enough of their backstories. I didn't really care about the romance. Aside from Jax is a total creep, the romance felt flat and unnecessary in my opinion. I thought the foundation of the gangs were not that strong. I was under the impression that since they're teenagers, there would be so much angst and edginess. I didn't get any of these from this book. The plot was a bit predictable and the ending felt rushed and unresolved. I did like how gentrification and privilege were discussed in this book. Overall, I was disappointed that I ended up not loving this book as much as I had hoped. I'm still willing to give her next book a try though.

tw: depression, PTSD, self harm, suicidal ideation

Wow this was a dark novel. I guess I should not be surprised since it deals with gang, violence, drug and alcohol use with teens. But I was surprised about the cutting from the main character. She feels grief and shame/blame for the death of her little brother and punishes herself through self-harm.

Also this is totally on me, but I assumed this was a dystopian/rebellion story when in actuality this was a contemporary story- a very dark and gritty contemporary that made me feel really bad about a lot of social issues and problems that are very real, with gangs battling each other for many different things.

Overall this book was just ok, not at all what I was hoping for or expecting. If you like gritty realistic contemporary stories this may be for you. Side note, don't expect a HEA, this is too realistic for that.

This was...a lot. I don't know what I was expecting, but it really took on a different tone than I had assumed it had. I also thought there were some kind of fantastical elements for some reason. All in all, an objectively good book, but one I would have a hard time recommending to other people

"My thoughts bleed with the reminder that I'm dancing with demons, flirting with the monsters."

This was a unique story, it was refreshing and fast paced. It has such a great storyline and I find it promising. I haven’t read anything like this.

The story is about three gangs who fighting against each other. These gangs recruit people on their eighteenth birthday and they only have to stay in for one year.

Valerie our heroine lost her brother by a member of the Boar gang.She and Matthew were friends and then they have a relationship .Matthew was picked by the Herons and Valerie by the Stags.The Stags decide to team up with the Boars to take out the Herons. They agree that the Herons need to be stopped.

Overall, it was original and so refreshing , it was emotional at some parts too.A great story.

TRIGGER WARNING: Cutting

This book was marketed as a retelling of the Illiad, and I admit that I haven't read the Illiad beforehand so I can't really say if this book was a good retelling at that.  However, I just felt like this story was lacking for me.  I really wanted more out of this book than it gave me.  By the time I finished this book I kept going back to the last few pages not believing that that was the end.  It just seemed really short, and I wish it was a little longer.

This book did have some interesting gang dynamics, but they also were a little hard to understand.  I didn't know why the gangs had to take teens when they turn eighteen.  Plus the gang's history wasn't really deep rooted at all; it was all fairly new and recent.  It definitely wasn't a long-standing tradition that I had been expecting.

There also really wasn't much character development or growth.  due to this I felt like I just didn't connect with the characters as much as I normally would've.  I feel really bad in saying this but the characters were regrettably forgettable.

The romance in this book seemed pretty lackluster.  And at times the love interest was a little unstable.  It almost would've been better if there was either more romance or none at all.

This book did have a lot to do with grief and loss with a bit of vengeance thrown in as well. The main character has to deal with a lot of past trauma, and we see how that affects her decisions later on.

The author did a fairly good job for a debut novel, and I'll definitely be picking up their next book and seeing how they've grown as a writer. 

I gave this book 3/5 stars on Goodreads.

A Thousand Fires by Shannon Price was one of the most thrilling debit novels I have read in a long time. It was dark, gritty and really delves into the perks and perils of revenge even for someone you loved dearly. Highly recommended.

I didn’t dislike this book- I just felt that is was slightly more juvenile than I would have liked. The idea of the gangs and their wars sounded interesting, almost like The Outsiders or something a little more modern, but I found myself not enjoying this execution. It would suit younger readers (13-16) well.

unfortunately, i DNF this book. I was hoping as i kept going thought it i would start to love plot and the characters. But they felt flat to me as well as the plot. So because id wasn't able to make myself finish it i will be natural and give it 3 stars.

First, Price is an incredible writer and I look forward to following her publishing career. This book was atmospheric and beautifully written. Absolutely haunting. The pacing was off for me and I had a hard time cracking the shell of the characters.

I stopped reading about half way through the book. I was planning on picking it back up but the story wasn't screaming at me. I felt like the characters were pretty flat and didn't have much of a personality and the story was moving a little too slow. It had a lot of potential to be a great book for me. I know a few of my friends have really enjoyed it though so I would recommend it to others if they want a different dystopian vibe.

Unfortunately, this was not the book for me. I tried very hard to read it, but I had to DNF it.

I don't feel like I can accurately review this book as I did not finish it. So I kept this as neutral as I could. And rated it 3 stars.

Thank you for allowing me the chance to read it.

Review: 4 Stars

A Thousand Fires was an absolutely incredible read that I found myself tearing right through. Books that are about criminals are my catnip, so I’m not surprised that I loved this book about gang wars in San Francisco. A Thousand Fires is marketed as a re-telling of The Illiad and while I never read The Illiad I know about it and I know a lot about Greek and Roman mythology. I had expected this book to have some fantasy elements because of the comparison, but there weren’t any. Typically I would be really bummed about the fact that a book I thought would have fantasy elements didn’t turn out to be a fantasy at all, but this book was amazing just the way it was and if I knew it wasn’t a fantasy ahead of time I might not have given it a chance.

By the end of the first chapter I was so intrigued and I knew that I was already hooked by Shannon Price. The plot of A Thousand Fires is about 3 gangs fighting against each other, but the story didn’t just focus on the criminal elements of gang life, but also the politics and corruption of the city. The ways that the gangs contolled the city of San Francisco reminded me of how the mob used to be a controlling force in NYC. The corruption of the city and the politics of rival gangs make this book a fascinating read. This isn’t just a book about gang violence and trivial vendettas, this is also a book about scheming and plotting to help turn a city around.

The plot had me intrigued, but it was the characters that got me so invested in this story. Valerie found a family within the stags and the close relationships between the gang members felt so realistic. Found families are something I love to read about and I think that this one was done really well because I really cared about each character. Valerie was a great main character because she was so relatable and it was easy to sympathize with her. The death of her brother was her reason for getting involved with the Wars and her pain and grief were both conveyed so well that I felt like I really understood her. I think the teenage portrayal of the characters were done very well. I felt like I could see myself during my own teenage years in each of the characters throughout the story. All of the characters felt so real and were written so well.

While the characters truly made the story what it is I don’t feel that I can say that this novel was character driven, or even plot driven. Shannon Price did a fabulous job of balancing an intriguing plot with characters that felt like real people. I’m so glad that I stumbled upon this book because it was so worth the read. I think this was a great debut YA novel and I can’t wait to see what Shannon Price writes next.

This book was so engaging and awesome! Valerie is such a brave and admirable main character and I live in a place where gangs are around, but I don’t here many things about them. Gang violence and the dangers with them are important to know and this book really helped me understand even if they are fictional. People have motivations for different reasons which this book shows.

Shannon Price is incredible as always! Absolutely could not get enough of this book! Thank you to the publisher for providing a NetGalley widget in exchange for an honest review

I'm sad to say that I'm a bit disappointed with this one.

I had high expectations and they have not been met. The premise seemed too ambitious and the execution is lacking. Characters needed more development and fortunately enough the main character is not one of them. I would say that the best thing about the book had been the development of the main character. Besides that, I think this YA novel needs a bit more work.

However, I would say that this book is extremely fast-paced. The reader gets thrown into the action during the first few chapters. I think it would have been better if the world-building had been set up earlier in the book.

Lastly, as a Filipina myself, I love the representation in this book. While the reviews can be a bit divided, I believe the author had set up a solid fan base. I know she has the potential to write another best-seller. But this one, unfortunately, is a miss for me. I still thought it was an 'okay' read for a first book though.

Trigger warnings: some characters can seem creepy (i.e. too close or too touchy), violence, self-harm, depression, murder, etc.