I absolutely devoured this book! I had bought the first in the series based on cover art and description but hadn't gotten around to reading it for one reason or another until now and I'm so glad I did! The first book was incredible and built a world I haven't read before. I love the idea of the shikigami and this book delves deeper into them and Kurara and how they are all tangled up together.

The world building is incredible and the action is non-stop. I am not always great at picturing what the author is describing but I could see this world in my mind and almost picture what it would look like if it were ever made into movie (which I hope it does).

Kurara is complex and strong and I absolutely love her! I also really appreciated the character arc for Himura in this book. His relationship with Mana made me smile and helped redeem him for his actions in the first book.

I am in dire need to find out what happens next and can't wait for book three!

I received an early digital copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review. I will be buying a copy for my library as I loved this book and it's predecessor so much that I have to have them for keeps!

I honestly loved this one more than book one. While not as fast paced, I really enjoyed getting to dive more into the history and magic system. Will definitely be picking up book 3.

this book is a great middle book for this trilogy. It has plenty of action and adventure, a satisfying conclusion to this book, and plenty more for the finale.
Kurara grows quite a bit emotionally in this story, and I can't wait to see what she will do in the last chapter. The Sorabito companions serve as wonderful sidestory, and Haru is a wonderful sidekick.
there isn't a date yet for the last book, so I will keep my eyes peeled :)

This book definitely was a solid sequel to a good beginning of the series, and I actually enjoyed this more than book 1. It was fast paced, full of action, and with not a single dull moment in the whole book. The setting was beautiful and descriptive, the character arcs made sense and their thought processes and actions were actually rational(this was the best part in the book as it's something that isn't always found in ya books!!). I raced through it and I can't wait for the 3rd book to release as I'm sure it'll be even better than this one!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. Everything in this review is my own opinion and has in no way been influenced by the writer, publisher, or Netgalley.

**Initial Reaction**: 9

**Characters:** 10

**Setting:** 10

**Plot:** 9

**Pace:** 8

**Style:** 10

**Ending:** 9

**Enjoyment:** 10

75 / 16 = 4.6875

Rounded Rating = 4.75

While I didn’t love the first book, the pacing feeling off, rebel fire felt like a fantastic escalation of the stakes, and expansion on the world.

Rebel Fire by Ann Sei Lin [Penguin Random House Canada #NetGalley]

In this sequel to Rebel Skies, readers continue right off where the first book ended on this adventure as Kurara and her friends escape the Princess. Kurara is determined to find a way to free the shikigami even if it means confronting the past memories that she had erased. I loved how the story and plot kept at an intense pace - and it continued to weave a magic in this fantasy world that matched all the potential and exhilaration of the first book.

While very much the “second book in a trilogy” (slower paced, kinda scattered, not as compelling), REBEL FIRE gave us a lot of answers that I personally really wanted. I think it was a little unbalanced (with Kurara taking in most of the POV real estate) but it kind of had to be in order to get us the answers we needed in order to drive us forward into the higher stakes of book three. Himura was an unexpected star in this one, but I got rather annoying with Haru and Tsukimi - and Sayo and Tomoe were just kind of… there. It was truly Kurara’s and Himura’s story.

I still want a little bit more concreteness as to “how the magic works” - because obviously there was training and stuff that makes the imperial Crafters so talented, but for Kurara it just seems… intuitive? And I don’t understand it from a quantifiable perspective.

Bring on book three!

The magic system was very interesting and I really enjoyed some of the characters. I did find myself having a hard time getting hooked into this book in some chapters and others were easier to want to keep reading.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Rebel Fire by Ann Sei Lin is a third person multi-POV sequel to the YA Japanese-inspired fantasy Rebel Skies. Kurara, Sayo, Haru, and Tomoe are making their way to Kazami City and Princess Tsukimi and Himura are hot on their tail. Kazami City holds the secrets behind the existence of shikigami, a secret nobody was quite ready for.

Princess Tsukimi is the kind of villain that loves being a villain and I love women characters that fit that archetype. There’s something very similar to Azula to Avatar: the Last Airbender in how she just despises her brother and is vying for the throne, unable to see how all of her actions make the people around her hate her in return. She views anyone and everyone around her like they are disposable as she pursues answers she seeks. But underneath all of that, she has a deep-seated insecurity that comes from her mother being a Crafter and she can’t even make paper fold on command.

For character relationships, Sayo and Tomoe read very Queer to me, whether that is them being in a relationship already or on the cusp of one though there’s not a lot explicitly on the page to push this forward. Their words and actions point to a deeper relationship and the fact that certain things are behind closed doors, in private, implies that maybe the world isn’t OK with a relationship like theirs or maybe they aren’t ready yet to invite people in.

The character with the most growth was Himura. Haunted by what happened to Akane in the last book, his view of shikigami keeps shifting until he starts to see them the way Kurara does, as people. The humanity of shikigami is pushed further with Banri, a shikigami bear who feels fear and wants to protect Kurara at all costs.

I’m so excited to see how this story concludes because Rebel Fire did some super cool stuff that I would love to see explored further and expands upon what we say in Rebel Skies.

I would recommend this to fans of Rebel Skies, readers of YA Japanese-inspired fantasy looking for more epic-leaning fantasy, and those looking for a YA with a female villain who loves being a villain

Rebel Fire is Book 2 in the fantasy YA trilogy by @annseilin1. I was VERY excited to be able to read this NetGalley ARC thanks to @penguinrandomca and @tundrabooks. I was part of a Tandem Readalong for Book 1 (Rebel Skies) this past April and it left off on a good cliffhanger that made me very anxious to continue the saga! You absolutely must read Rebel Skies first before Rebel Fire.

Synopsis:
We left off as Kurara had barely escaped capture by the evil Princess Tsukimi. In this world of sky cities, land cities, Imperial rule, the mysterious Crafters and their shikigami paper spirits designed to do their will, there are several groups of people vying for control of Mikoshima.

Kurara has just discovered that she herself is not human, but a type of human-form shikigami, and with this comes amazing power, but also a feeling of not belonging. She, with best friend Haru (also shikigami), and human sky city friends, Tomoe and Sayo, all seek to help save their world before the Princess, or her brother Prince Ugetsu completely destroy all the sky cities and shikigami that they cannot control.

Their adventure finds dangerous stops at underground cities, a grave-digger, and equally both new friends and foes as they seek to find a Star Seed, which Kurara believes can reshape the whole empire for a better future.

Opinion:
This sequel did not disappoint! The flow of the author's writing and how she continues to unveil the inner workings of each character and their motivations really adds to the magic of this adventure. I love how more of Kurara's past is revealed and by the book's end, it is left with the biggest quest still ahead. I can't wait to wrap up the story with Book 3, Rebel Dawn! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#NetGalley #annseilin #tundrabooks #penguinrandomhousecanada #bookreview #yafantasy
#stephsbookreads

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I had not read the first in the series when applying for this NetGalley book, so I purchased and read the first book to better understand this one. There are so many things I love about this story, Kurara & Haru’s relationship being the top one. They have such a great connection, and their shared history really adds to the allure of the book.

I mourned many of the shikigami that we lost in the story as well as their origins in general. I loved that we learned more about them in this book! I knew there was more to the shikigami while reading book 1, and I’m so glad the author gave us more of their history!

I truly hope there is another book (hint, hint) lol!

Thanks again #netgalley for this arc copy of #rebelfire

Rebel Fire is the second installment in the Rebel Skies Trilogy and it did not disappoint. While book 1 takes place mainly in the sky and sky cities Rebel Fire takes place on the ground. I absolutely love how Ann Sei Lin describes the world of Mikoshima, Kazami, and Nessai are so beautiful you can imagine yourself there. Kurara is the best type of heroine and I love seeing her continue to grow through book 2. While in many series the second book tends to be lackluster this is not the case for Rebel Fire, the action scenes are amazing and the stakes are higher then ever. I ate this book up and IT spit me out, book 3 can't come out soon enough!

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for providing the eARC.

The second in a pacy and lyrical fantasy adventure trilogy set in a world of flying ships, sky cities and rebel uprisings.

I loved the first book and think I might've enjoyed this one even more. Can't wait for book three!

If you are into war and origami then this is the perfect book for you. Beautifully written and the cover is gorgeous. This is the second book in the series and worth the read.

ARC Copy...Satisfied with the continuation and very much so they will be another book at least to wrap things up. Loved to see the extension of the paper magic system and world building around the shikigamis with shocking reveals for the later.

I have been provided with a review copy of this title from NetGalley for an impartial review. I just really enjoyed this story and I just didn’t want it to end. I just lost myself in and I just couldn’t get enough of these interesting characters. I can’t wait to see what’s next from this author.

The second book in the Rebel Skies fantasy series! We dive back into the world of airships, magic, and shikigamis! Kurara has just escaped from Princess Tsukimi and recovering from her mentor's betrayal. Kurara and her friends are determined to free the shikigami and this quest is only made harder with the possible impending war. She has to find Suzaku, one of the greatest shikigami of all but she's not the only one looking to get to Suzaku. Kurara is put on the spot in this one, especially with secrets of her own past being revealed and so many dark twists are in stored for her and her friends. This one is the second book in the series and from the way it ends, there will definitely be more books. Unfortunately, I think this will be the last one for me, I really tried to like this one and was hoping the second book would capture my attention more but I just found myself not caring all that much and trying to read to get to the end. i definitely think this was more of a "its me not you" thing and that young adult readers who are fans of Studio Ghibli and fantasy/steampunk worlds, would enjoy this series for sure though.

*Thanks Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada, Tundra Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

After finishing Rebel Skies, I couldn't wait to read the continuation of this story and Rebel Fire did not disappoint. The world building and intriguing magic system of this series are on par with the best fantasy books or films that I have read or seen for audiences of any age. The characters, good and bad, are engaging and the narration style of switching POVs brings the reader into their individual quests and plights. The action is somewhat steadily paced through the first half of the book but really picks up in the later half especially towards the end. This end absolutely left me yearning for the next book in the series as I clearly need a conclusion to Kurara's story. I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys fantasy reads that paint visually striking pictures in their minds with adventure and magic and characters that touch your heart. I definitely understand the comparison that some reviews make to studio Ghibli films but I would say that it reminded me even more of Avitar: The Last Airbender (animated) series or graphic novels.
I received advanced digital access to this book thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Penguin Random House Canada, Tundra Books) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

This was a great continuation of the series. I ate this book up. I would recommend this book if you enjoy Asian mythology.