It has been over a month since I received this audiobook. The narrator isn't doing it for me. I hope to complete it but unfortunately, their voice is not engaging enough for me to want to listen. Because of this I couldn't tell you anything about the book thus far. I think I'm two hours in (yikes).

First I would love to say that the narration of this book was great and I absolutely loved all her voices she gave the many many characters in this novel. She did an absolutely perfect job.

For me the story was dense, definitely one I’d expect from 2 or 3 book series. I do usually prefer stand alone but felt there was a lot of backstory that was a little hard to grasp when listening. I enjoyed the way the dragons were in power in this book and how that relationship worked and developed with the humans. It was certainly unique! Overall it was an interesting read that I wish had more time.

This book, I don't even know where to start with this one. I liked it, I actually really liked it; I think it's my favorite dragon book of the year so far.

Now, I will say there were some pacing issues. I don't like being dropped into the middle of a story, and we are in this one, but for some reason, it didn't bother me as much as some others have.

The world-building in this one is fantastic, and the characters and the story are great, and the magic, well, it's magical, no pun intended.

I had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook, and it's amazing; Lauren Fortgang is beyond amazing and was the perfect choice to narrate this epic tale.

Thank you to MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for providing a copy of this e-book. I have voluntarily listened to it, and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for sending me an early copy of this audiobook! All opinions are my own!

If you need another dragon book to sate your new obsession, here's the intriguing new book for you! I love the way the worldbuilding makes everything feel so unique despite the newfound "dragon renaissance" we've had going. The separation of the two worlds/cultures is the first intriguing part, and it just keeps going from there.

My one issue was that it took way too long to actually get to the heist part and then get me hooked in the story. Once Anahrod was with the others, it became super enjoyable, but before that, I couldn't find the point in it and it kept feeling like there was no plot, just a lot of worldbuilding for no reason.

My favorite part of this was the found family aspect. The characters were really loveable, even when they were flawed. The romance was also really well done and made everything feel so much more special even in the middle of a lot of chaos. Not to mention the plot twists that were beautifully crafted and added to all the excitement!

I can't wait to see where this series goes, I know it's going to be a great journey!

To my dismay, I did not appreciate The Sky on Fire as much as I would have liked to. I really wanted to love it. Still, apart of the elements that didn't work out for me so much, I did have fun reading it.

The cast of characters is incredibly diversified, and the narrative is really well-paced. Although I liked the characters, I would have preferred to see more character and world development. Given the sorcery, animal-talking people, and variety of magic, it would have been wonderful to delve even more into the realm of magics.

The fact that the dragons have control over the riders is something I greatly enjoy. This was, in my opinion, a really original perspective on riders and dragons in fantastical settings. The narrative of organizing and carrying out the heist was excellent. There were some unexpected turns in the plot, and I was always genuinely interested to see what would happen next. But since the majority of the book was devoted to establishing up the universe and backstory, I wish there had been a little more action. Instead, it felt like everything was wrapped up quickly.

The narrator of the audiobook was great! Her accents were a good fit for the characters. And since the narrator's distinct voices for each character made it easier to differentiate them in the audio version, which was helpful given there were a lot of different characters.

I believe this book would be interesting for readers who enjoy fantasy novels with dragons.

We need more Fantasy standalones like this tbh!

I really liked the concept for this book, and I did enjoy the characters. However, I was confused for the majority of the book. The book does just pick up in action almost from the first page so it was a bit hard to familiarize myself in the world and the story. The characters also were a little hard to tell apart in some scenes which did make it confusing.

I will admit I think if I would have read a physical version of this with the audiobook I would have been able to follow along a bit easier, just to have the character names and such in front of me.

Overall tho it's a solid fantasy book, filled with dragons and heists!

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I think many will really like it. I liked, but didn't love, it. Lyons drops you right into this world full of dragons and misfit characters. There is a ton of adventure and a great plot surrounding a heist. I really enjoyed how these dragons were different. They could take over the bodies of their riders. The relationships between humans and dragons were interesting. There is found family with these misfits. They felt so real in how they both argued with each other and fought for one another. While all of this really should work for me it didn't quite get to the "love" category for me. The book is long as is the case with many fantasies. In that length, I also got lost at times. There are a lot of characters and scenarios playing out. I read both in print and audio and really enjoyed the audio as the narrator helped me to stay engaged throughout. There was just a ton going on and it was hard to keep up at times. I started out thinking this was going to have more romance. While it does have some romantic elements that are deliciously queer-positive I would say this is more fantasy with a romantic element.

Overall, I would say that this one is worth a try. While it wasn't my favorite, I did enjoy it and genuinely believe there are some who will love it, especially if you are a fan of dragons in your books. These dragons really come alive on the page!

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC.

I really would give this a 3.5 stars and I want to say, I love the narrator. She always does a fantastic job. That being said, she couldn’t quite save this novel for me.

It started out strong but a little over halfway the pacing slowed down and it just kind of dragged for me. The plot was interesting and I loved the idea of social rings and rings showing your sexuality and orientation. That being said, I wish it had been explained better. I don’t know if the physical or ebook had a glossary, but when things like “leaves” and “roses” were brought up, there was no explanation of what they meant. Some things I got just by context clues but others I just wasn’t sure. That was really frustrating. It was such an interesting concept that I hadn’t seen before but I wish it had been explained better.

I think this could have been a higher star rating if the pacing had maintained throughout the book and some characters and the world had been built up more.

If you love dragons, heists, and queer love, this is a MUST-read this summer. Absolutely delightful, and especially loved that it's a standalone!

I am so sad that I ended up DNF'ing this at 50%. First off, the best part of this book - the audiobook narration was phenomenal. The different character voices and the pronunciation of ALL THOSE names and places - excellent. The narrator was the MVP here.

Unfortunately, I felt no connection to the characters or plot. We are dropped directly into the action which usually works very well, but it left me feeling disconnected and like I had missed some critical introductions. I was always a bit confused who the characters were and the connections between all of them. I also had trouble following the plot at times. I thought I had a good understanding of the end-goal, but then other twists or side quests would pop up and I'd get distracted and wonder how this is getting us any farther along.

Combining all of these aspects, and them all still being prevalent at the 50% mark, I decided to DNF. I honestly kept forgetting I was reading it, I had such a meagre connection with the characters and plot.

I do not take this as an indicator of Jenn Lyon's work by any means. The Ruin of Kings is still firmly on my TBR!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced listener copy. All opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Unpopular opinion: this book is WAY better than Fourth Wing. If you're looking for a book with dragons that actually has soooo many dragons - this is it. And the dragons have a bigger role! *sigh = heaven*. The story was fast-paced and suspenseful. The characters were vibrant and well-rounded. Did I mention that the dragons were epic? And the dragons were flawed. Flawed dragons who hoard things... like dragons do. *swoon*. I could go on and on about the dragons: they struggle with power structures, they fall in love, they all have different powers.

Anahrod finds her life uprooted in the worst way. She edges out a living with her titan drake in the Deep until she's kidnapped several times. Thus a merry band of misfits is formed. A wizard, a sage poet, a barbarian, a few dragon riders, a king in disguise and the most nefarious and sinister of thieves (who never actually stole anything, but can communicate with animals...) - this is sounding like dungeons and dragons campaign, right?

What I loved:
the dragons. I LOVED the dragons.
The band of misfits.
The heist.
I loved the narrator.
The romance level was just right for me. Implied spicy, but not explicit.
The world building.

3.5⭐ rounded up to 4. I finished this book almost a month late, but the truth is that I struggled with the first 70%. Fortunately, the rest was awesome.

❤️ The last 30%
❤️ Interesting worldbuilding
❤️ *Daddy Sicaryon* and the dragons
❤️ The “why choose” MFF romance
❤️ Voice actor performance
❤️ That COVER! 🐲
❌ Too much worldbuilding / happening for a standalone
❌ Bland FMC
❌ Inconsistent pace
❌ Underdeveloped romance

Trigger warnings: violence, death, public execution, attempted murder, blood and gore, kidnapping and slavery, poisoning, fire and fire injury.

Plot:
As a teenager, Anahrod was sentenced to death for a crime she didn’t commit. Against all odds, she survived the deadly fall into the Deep and has lived there ever since. 15 years later, a strange group saves her from being captured by the local warlord, then spirit her away to the cloud cities, where they ask for her help in stealing from the hoard of Neveranimas, the current ruling dragon. But there is a catch: Neveranimas knows about Anahrod’s secret powers and wants her dead at all costs.

There are so many interesting things about this book: a demonized FMC, an endearing group of misfits, tons of dragons, a dragon rider academy, MFF romance, an impossible heist, sky cities and deep kingdoms, magical powers, LGBTQ rep, etc. Unfortunately, there’s just *too much* happening—so many plots and subplots, and new goals, and new obstacles to overcome, and lore/info drops, and new characters, and betrayals and and and.

Now, give me this world and main plot and character set, but make it a duology or a trilogy, with more direction, more consistent pacing, and more fleshed-out characters/relationships… and you’ll probably get the next big hit. Unfortunately, it sometimes felt like a DND campaign where the DM spent a lot of time and care building the world, but then lost control of the plot lines and started to “wing it.”

Characters:
Anahrod’s background was interesting, but her personality was a little bland and it felt like she was simply carried by the plot for the whole book. The secondary characters, on the other hand, were awesome! They had very distinctive and fun personalities, and I absolutely loved the heist team and their dynamics. Sicaryon was definitely my favourite character. The romance was a bit of a tease though—I wanted moooore.

Writing:
The writing seemed fine to me, but the storytelling would have benefitted from more thorough planning, questioning, and editing.

Audiobook:
Impeccable narration. I loved how the voice actor changed her voice for *every single character*. I could have listened to her talk as Ris for hours and hours.

This was such a good read! The story was easy to follow, the world building was perfect! Everything about this has me wanting more!

THE SKY ON FIRE by Jen Lyons was a cool book. If you tell me a book has a heist and dragons in it, I want to read it. But add snarky characters, lots of puns, and dragons talking—you have given me a book with many things I adore! Not to mention, Lauren Fortgang, who is an exceptional narrator, narrates the book. She gives voices to all the characters and brings the story to life in exciting ways with those voices.

This is my first Lyons book, but not her first book with dragons, which she writes so well. If you are a fan of dragons, you will love this book. How they were described with their magic, used as characters, and moved the plot along made it so exciting to read—some of the best wow moments happened during scenes with the dragons!

Then there is this ramshackle bunch of characters that shouldn't work well together, but they do. And I shouldn't love them, but I do. They don't have a name like the Crows for their little heist group, but they work well together. And the heist is intense and nail-biting!

I'm sad this heist is over. However, with that epilogue ending, could I possibly leave my fingers crossed for more…please? It is supposed to be a standalone—a fantastic fantasy standalone. I definitely recommend it!

Thanks, Macmillan Audio, for the ALC!

Content warnings: animal death

I'll admit, I had trouble really connecting to the characters in this story. It felt a little rushed when it came to character development. Of course Ana was well developed, but I would have loved more backs story and development of the other characters. The narrator did a good job. If it weren't for the narration, I may have DNF'd the book. I did love the dragons and the world, but needed more to really dig into it. It may have been better stretched out into a duology to develop the world and characters for me.

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I was looking forward to this book based on its synopsis but while reading it, it lacked so much. I was unable to connect to any characters, the story seemed all over the place, and the none of the characters were properly developed. I was barely able to get through parts of this book. I am disappointed as I really was hoping to enjoy it.

The Sky on Fire has everything anyone could possible want from a fantasy adventure story. There's a ragtag cast of characters, a unique magic system, interesting world building, heists, side quests, a school for dragon-riders, and romance. The story follows Anahrod, used to being on her own in the jungles of the Deep, who is suddenly swept up in adventure. After being nearly kidnapped by a warlord of the Deep, she is kidnapped instead by a group of adventurers who want her help stealing from a dragon's hoard. I enjoyed the characters and they all had unique voices. The plot feels a bit scattered in the beginning, but every part of it is there for a reason and they all get tied together in the end. The audiobook was excellent and the narrator did a great job voicing all of the characters. This will be a great one for people who enjoy adventure stories.

Even though this book states it’s the next fourth wing, it’s not. Sure there’s dragons in it. But it doesn’t have the easy readability that fourth wing has. And then it goes and adds weird sexual preference things. Not my jam. I feel like this book would be good for a niche audience, not a wide range like fourth wing. Thanks NetGalley for the chance to try this book. Next time I won’t fall for a cool cover and hype book endorsement.

Thanks to Macmillian Audio for gifted access to this audiobook. All opinions below are my own.

This is a fun dragon filled adventure. It starts in the middle of the action so give yourself some time to settle in. There are lots of characters and mythical creatures and unique world features. It is genuinely immersive. What I liked the most was the relatability of our main character Anahrod. Her backstory and the heist she leads are both really entertaining. In this world dragons without a rider can go rampant and be uncontrolled monsters, how they select their riders and figure out how to deal with the rampant dragons are big plot points and both were very unique.

The only thing I didn't like was the completely unnecessary sex scene in the middle, I feel like that was hammered in to appease The Fourth Wing fans. It didn't make any sense other than to check the "romance" and "queer" boxes to attract those readers. 

The narrator was great and I would definitely read another book in this world.

I had such a good time with this book. I had never heard of it before and decided to request it on goodreads and I am so glad i did. Dragons, a heist, queer representation, a crazy unique and interesting world, and fun and sassy characters.