this was a really good young adult novel, the characters were great and I really liked the plot of the book. I'd be interested in reading more from the author.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Wow! Such a stunning and interesting novel. I loved the plot and the light / dark contrast that played throughout the book. This is definitely a book you don't want to miss!

I really enjoyed this book but there are parts that a little confusing at times. It does feel like this should be a series. Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for my gifted copy.

The book did not really work for me. I DNF'ed it. I wasn’t able to connect with any of the many characters in the book and I found myself putting down the book a lot because it was never really catching my attention.

Amazing!!!! I cant begin to tell you how much you need this book in your life!
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Such amazing talent, the writing is extraordinary and thrilling and left me breathless! I felt like I was in the characters shoes! Not overly detailed, complicated storyline but the timeline make it easy to follow. Adventure, romance, relationships, emotional, and breathtaking! The world building is easy to follow as well, a beautiful detailed universe!! Edge of the seat storytelling!!

I received an audio version of this book to listen to in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Ignite the sun is a beautiful light vs dark fantasy book that has elemental magic and creatures that are both intriguing and well described. I loved the romance element entwined within this story and found it slotted in very well. I was fascinated with the cover and blurb of this book and was captivated with the idea of a 'sun child' and a world where sunlight and stars were legends.

The narrator does a fantastic job to narrate this story and I found her voice soothing and captivating to listen to.
I love fantasy books and this one was a great listen.

This was a super fun book! I enjoyed reading it. I loved the plot, which was absoluty amazing. I would highly recommend this book. It's a must read.

When I managed to get my hands and an e-ARC ( thanks Netgalley) it was ages ago. In a way or another, I finally started to read again and I decided it was time to read this book. And… it could have gone better.

Okay, I don’t think there’s any particular way to say that if you’re searching for a young adult fantasy book that stand out, this is not the book. But it could have been! I’ll talk about that later.
Ignite the Sun is a bit a book of occasions and feelings that I wished to see but the novel never gave them back. And yes, it’s a standalone, it’s a debut but so many feelings were not there. I’m huge sucker for anything that touches complicated family feelings, and I felt the whole situations was just merely touched and not even that well.

Let’s go with order… and whit that I mean starting with Siria. This will touch the spoiler territory, so if you don’t want to know a thing about this book, better turn away from this review starting from now. To be honest, it’s kind of impossible for me to discuss what worked and what not without making at least a bit of spoilers.
Siria is a chosen one, but also a special chosen one. I’m not against the trope, actually I think it’s one of many potentials (the weight of the world on your shoulder is a big topic), but the way it started, the way it was introduced was bit… BAM! Things are happenings, accept it, reader! Which okay, I can pass over that but at the same time so many things where revealed and they way it happened was very… not impactful? At the second revelations regarding Siria’s nature and origin, I rolled my eyes, because I was like: oh, wow, figures.

Now, this introduce another couple of things that didn’t work for me. Now, once the chosen one trope is on march, it’s here and nothing will bring it back or write in a new fresh way, other potential was wasted. Siria don’t really… feel love for her people? Don’t get me wrong, she loves her friend, and befriend other people in her company.
But when someone decide to save people she never knew before, that she’s supposed to protect and care about, how does she pass from survival to actual love for them? It’s something one should feel deeply and at the end of the book those are her people, her kingdom… which good for Siria, but I didn’t feel the big love she could master for her heritage.
It would have been amazing to see it explored! At the start of the novel we see a Siria afraid of her powers (the actual progression to loving her powers and owning them was actually pretty nice), afraid of hurting people, calling herself a monster. We have a girl that live 16 years under one single idea, she was partially grown to hate what she’s. True, some people in her life help her, but I wanted more. I wanted to see Siria feel love for the people and not just some people.

Same thing, kind of, for family matters. There are mention of Siria desperate desire to make her strict parent happy, then she discovers a new truth about her family and she… pretty much embrace it? Give. Me. The. Struggle.
Look, there’s nothing more interesting and difficult and cool than family relationship and here… so many things missing.

Now, to end with what didn’t convince me we have:

1) how is that, again, we have Siria the young adult protagonist that can’t befriend a girl of her age to save her life. Come on.

2) the villain. We have a female villain but she disappears in the background. Again, she’s another one with a lonely past, lost someone and bla blab bla. Sorry, I can’t master particular sympathy or empathy for villains. I do understand many things, why and where it went wrong but eh.. I would have appreciated to see Iyzabel been her worst self. This woman is terrible: she killed everyone around her she, one would suppose, could generally love. She destroyed families, lead genocidal wars, has entire rooms full of dead people like they’re a freaking collection… and she appear for so little that she’s almost wasted.
Also, I do think that the sad backstory launched at the last pages of the novel was a bit of a NO. Can’t Iyzabel be just bad? Because a sad event in someone life don’t lead them to all of the above. The topic is even slightly touched in the book, when her formative years are mentioned, that probably something went wrong, but now Iyzabel is a grown-up woman who took her decisions. There’s so much to explore.

Time for what I liked! At first, I had a lot of doubts about representations, but it was cleared with the worldbuilding and as more character where described, but let’s do a list:

1) "old school” fantasy species! Maybe it’s on me and the book I pick but has been quite some time since I found elves, nymphs and so on in fantasy book. I loved to see them back and also to see them so colorful!

2)Yep, colors! Colors are pretty much everywhere. For example, mermaids are actually blue, sometimes even have purple parts on their body. Usually elements’ colors matches the ones of the species they’re bonded to. I think it was pretty cool

3)Freaking elemental magic that brought to some interesting combat sequences. People in the book actually fight with their elements, like swords made of water, they are connected to minerals and other things that can enhance them. There are explanations of how one element can also be connected to flying or even healing. I appreciated this a lot. It even got quite dark when it came to witches. I needed more.

4)This out of the worldbuilding, but I love that Siria cries, is stressed and protest at the start. I know many readers won’t like (but in honesty, every time a female character has a human reaction, she gets hate… so, can I be surprised?) but it was just normal and I liked it

So, my ending thought is that Ignite the Sun could have explored much more a lot of topics and ended up wasting an interesting worldbuilding with a lot of potential, ending up to be a… fantasy novel like many others?

First of all, allow me to appreciate the author, publishers, and the Netgalley team for the opportunity to review the book.
Ignite the sun is a world representing the thrive towards the light, our primal call for light, enlightenment, the weaponization of darkness, diverse creatures with many different powers ad each of these creatures fights for power for own group's survival and thrive. and each of these creatures determines the power rise of our protagonist.

The work is a 3.2-star work, interesting to read, very fast-paced.

The book perfectly shows human nature, behavior, and the consequences of some behavior.
I loved the worldbuilding, idea of darkness, showing a lot more than just physical darkness, far more than that, and I would love to dive deeper into that aspect.
Many thanks for the opportunity to review the book.

This book is exactly perfect. All the traditional elements I needed in a story at just the right pace and resolution. Every time I started to get frustrated a panicky, the conflict resolved and a larger one took center stage. "Ignite the Sun" is the story of a sun nymph who comes into her power by surprise in the midst of a reign of darkness. She must come to terms with who she is and save her kingdom and her friends. It's a beautiful fantasy story of self-acceptance, power, and determination to do what right, one step at a time.

I really enjoyed this book but I could have done with more action and more tension. I can't wait to read more books from this author.

I really enjoyed Ignite the Sun by Hanna Howard! I felt drawn into the world the entire time and was eager to find out what came next with every turn!

Probably my favourite aspect of the book was the world-building. Terra-Volat is an exciting, magic-filled world and I looked forward to learning about all the exciting places that Siria, Linden, and the others got to venture to.

The characters were mostly interesting as well. I especially loved the inclusion of Elegy! As much as I wish I loved Siria (and trust me she is mostly a great character) I occasionally felt like her powers were too convenient. I loved the idea of the sun giving her powers but sometimes I felt like they were only there just so she could overcome a barrier she encountered. I didn't like Queen Iyzabel personally, but I think she was a solid character and I can see other people liking her.

There were a few things that I wasn't a fan of. Although the writing was enchanting at times, it also felt like the author was telling instead of showing. I didn't find this a big problem, but it was worth mentioning. There were some fairly common tropes in Ignite the Sun such as the light/darkness trope, but I think it was done well enough to be original in this story. I'm also not a fan of the friends to lovers trope, but I think that was done well too.

Overall I gave this book 3 stars. It's a solid read and definitely enjoyable!
(I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review)

Strong world building meets a heroine with heart and more in an exciting adventure with an intruiguing twist.

Siria Nightingale has grown up with everything a girl could wish for: wealth, friends, and plenty of free space. She's a princess in her parent's estate, but one that loves to run around with the gardner and his son. She's wild and free, and her parents don't approve. So, when she finally heads off to school and four years later has the chance to be chosen to stand with the royals surrounding the Queen, she'll do what she can to make her parents proud. But as she stands on the dias, several things become clear. Her red hair will never fit in with the black of everyone else, others will never see her as someone who fits in, and her fear of darkness in a world of black carries a dreadful meaning she's not ready to face. Siria's worst nightmare is about to come true—she is the monster the Queen and her parents fear most.

I was looking forward to reading this one, and it is a tale to get lost in. The world in this book is vivid and bold, making it hard not to sink into it. While the blurb makes it clear that darkness reigns and an evil queen will have more than a few thrills throughout the plot, I was surprised (and thrilled) when mages, nymphs, dwarves and more mystical creatures stomped onto the stage. Especially when they blend right into the tale with as much finesse as they did here. These characters alone made this a book with reading, although Siria is an intriguing character in many ways herself.

Siria fits the role of a special snowflake in many ways, and this is something I'm not usually a huge fan of. She has secret, overwhelming strong powers and must learn to wield said powers from nothing. And lets not forget the chosen savior of their world and super strong heroine who can defeat anyone with a wink (if she gets those powers to go work). But her ample rough edges and corners...and a lack of arrogance...keep the cliche aspects from hitting too hard. Plus, she's got plenty to learn and enough character arc as she's thrown into a world she's hated all of her life. I just would have liked to get to know her a little better before her life flipped upside down.

What really makes this book (besides the world) is the side characters. They are rich and bold and simply a treat to accompany. These are what makes Siria an interesting character. Add the darkness to light aspect and an evil witch Queen who is determined to hold on to her power no matter what, and it's a read to cuddle up with and enjoy.

I received an ARC and enjoyed this adventure quite a bit.

I have received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a really great read! I couldn't put it down!

In this story you follow 16 year old Siria, who has never seen the sun and who has been taught that the light is dangerous. On her 16th birthday she discovers that she is a "sunchild", a fire nymph. When the queen took over Luminar when Siria was a child she cursed the land into Darkness forever and killed all of the sunchildren. Now Siria is on a quest to bring back the sun and overthrow the queen.

The world building in this book is truly amazing. There are elves, nymphs, mages, dwarves, banshees, and much more. The battle between darkness and the night was literal which I loved. All of the characters were relateable and complex. This is one of those books that you want to read on a winter day when your just waiting for spring to appear or a day when you can just sit down and power through it because you won't want to put it down.

The idea of this book drew me in, I haven’t read many books where dark and light is more than just a way of saying who’s good and who’s not. The evil witch, Queen Iyzavel, who rules the kingdom of Umbarza, is wanting to destroy the last sunchild; a sunchild is someone who can draw powers from the sun. See, light and darkness are literally fighting each other.
The main character is Siria who is livings live one two sides in this world. She could at times be a little annoying, like any character but I felt that it was who she was, just questioning everything. But it didn't bother me that much. I really found her a good character. For me I found that the side character, the rebels, were the funniest to read about; like any good royal books the rebels sometimes steal the spotlight.
I love the world. I liked the kingdom descriptions, I like the bite we got about the magic system. The mythology is woven thought it made it whimsical. I like Terra-Volat was painted as the heart of the darkness. The way the author plots this book was good, I only found a few parts slow, but I felt that it worked with the few actions and battle scenes.
As far as I know, this is standalone. It wraps up well, but I would enjoy more books set in the world. I was pulled right in by the world and how things work, would like more. If you like YA fantasy, you might like this one. If your look for a classic dark vs light read, then dive into this one.

A perfect YA fantasy for readers that enjoy magic, romance, adventure and so much more!

Siria Nightingale has only ever heard tales of the Sun. In the world she lives in, she has never seen the sun, it is only a legend. A witch known as Queen Iyzabel has shrouded the kingdom in shadows claiming it will protect her subjects from the dangers of the light. Even though she has never known the sun or light, Siria has always felt uneasy in the darkness and shadows. After years spent at academy, Siria is chosen by the queen to have a special spot at the Choosing Ball. What she doesn’t know is that she along with the others selected are suspected of being the long-lost Sun Child. Only the Sun Child can break the darkness and bring back the light to the kingdom. Siria along with the rebels sent to watch over her and help her try to save the kingdom and Ignite the Sun.

In Ignite the Sun, I felt Siria was the perfect protagonist. She grows throughout the story and comes into her own by the end. Her arc as a main character was truly enjoyable to read and follow along with. Readers watch as she starst the story as a young, impressionable woman ready to do anything to please the queen, until she learns the truth of her life and all she has believed to be the truth is a lie. The more she learns, the greater we see her grow as a character. She has her flaws, nothing in the story tries to paint her as the perfect person, and she embraces her flaws and learns to grow despite all that is placed in her way. Not once did I lack the ability to visualize setting or characters, Howard did a fantastic job painting a picture with words that readers will easily be able to follow along and enjoy. Readers that enjoy the mythological aspect of stories will be pleased with the history of the kingdom and how the dark came to overtake the light. This is a great story for Young Adults to read dealing with hate, bullying, teasing, and how to come into your own skin and be proud of who you are, even if it isn’t who you expected. I recommend this book to readers that enjoy fantasy, mythology, and hope for a life better than imagined for.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

This story is unique, fast-paced, and fun. Howard did well at introducing strong characters which added to the overall mood of the book.

In a land of darkness, the truth of one girl's heritage brings hope...and light.

Filled with magical creatures oppressed by a literally dark world, including nymphs, naiads, elves, banshees, this book is a tale of hope and good versus evil, or quite literally dark versus light.

On her sixteenth birthday, Siria learns a truth that sends her fleeing for her life in search of the truth, along with the only people that she can trust. I liked how this book chose to use magical creatures that aren't featured as much as others are in fantasy, and I wasn't expecting that, so that ending up being intriguing. This book plays a lot with common tropes and themes, like dark versus light (literally), the chosen one, and I can't say that any of these was really done in a wholly unexpected way. I wanted so much to love this book, but I had trouble with the pacing, and thought that there were parts that lagged while they were travelling, but then I felt like the ending was rushed as a result, with pages of undisguised information dumping to explain the world and rules of the magic.

I loved originality of the sun children and their powers, as well as the use of a plethora of magical beings. This was a quick read, both innovative and in other ways expected. I think that there was a good premise, with a solid theme, but it left me wishing for more layers in some areas.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I could not put this book down. From the very start we get action from the Queen trying to kill Siria ;our main character. Which sends her on a journey to awaken her true power that will either save her kingdom from darkness or destroy herself and everyone she loves.

My biggest complaint is the romance. Like .... I guess young marriage in this time frame is acceptable...but she was brought up a lady, but still ends up sitting in this boys lap? I get "you love him" "we might die" but.... Her being a 16 year old I did not care for all that.

I really liked the premise of this book as it reminded of me dark elves empires. And I had a good time reading it. It is a standalone, which is always a plus in fantasy because we so rarely find fantasies that are complete in a single book, but I also think that kind of affected this book's potential.

I found the overall storyline to be interesting, but the magic system could have been more nuanced. I have come to dislike systems where 'things are the way they are', I require more reasoning and history behind it; which I felt was missing from this book. The protagonist is a typical YA heroine, but she is enjoyable to read nonetheless. Although, I would have liked the relationships that she is tangled in, whether they be friendship or romance, to have more foundational strength.

Overall, it was a okay, light read; but the pacing, the unexploited potential and the unnecessary romance made it a little annoying.