Firebolt is an exciting start to a promising series, filled with magic, dragons, and teenage angst. Elena’s journey to embrace her destiny is relatable, and the world of Paegeia is rich with potential for future adventures. Fans of dragon lore, epic fantasy, and YA romance will find much to enjoy in Adrienne Woods' debut.

(full review on my blog)

A bit too cliche with the characterizations. I didn't care for that so much. The idea was solid, the execution didn't work for me.

Sorry for the extended delay in reviewing. I'm working on catching up on my backlist of netgalley reviews.

This a book where the imagination and theme is there, but for me it was poorly executed. The beginning started out good but I did notice some grammatical errors. So sadly for me the authors writing was very lacking.

The biggest issue with this book is that it really did not age well. Maybe if I'd read this book when I was younger I could've focused only on the good, as the bad would've been less jarring, but unfortunately that doesn't change my opinions of this book today.

This book is very much a high-school style book of its time (2013). There's your cliques, mean girls, the brooding bad boy, etc. There's cringy cursing (with 'beeyotch' being the most commonly used), the narrator uses an odd valley girl accent for certain female characters, and it all just feels very tropey. There wasn't, thankfully, too much girl on girl hate and slut-shaming, something another book I read from this era had an issue with, so this aspect of the story was more annoying than harmful.

My biggest issue with this book was its outdated terminology regarding marginalized characters, ideas regarding virginity, and its odd avoidance of the existence of queer people (which is also indicative of it's time, but it's still very noticeable now). First, this book is laden with terminology that is actually quite offensive. Luckily, these words are generally used once or twice, but it still was jarring to read. The terms included 'oriental', 'gypsy', and 'slave-driver', with the latter more frequently repeated. Second, there is an odd emphasis on the main character's virginity, from the very beginning of the story. The MC is warned that being a virgin might not be a good thing, or to at least not let this one guy/dragon in school know, because that dragon race is notorious for being very into virgins and wanting to defile them (also odd side note, but this race name changed from sunblast, to fireblast, to sunblast again throughout this book?). But then, at the end, the MC is the only one who can complete a special quest because she's the only virgin, or 'true maiden' of the group. It just feels so odd (and slut-shamey) that the MC is considered special for this reason, and that it makes her a 'true maiden'. They could've just... not. Lastly, there was just something very off-putting in this book that made me realize that this book is only straight characters. There's a special bond in the book that happens between a dragon rider and dragon very rarely, and when it's between two people of opposite genders, it means love/marriage etc. However, when it's between two people of the same gender, it's only considered as a brothers/sisters relationship. The strength of the bond is shown as intense and intimate, and the fact that romance can only occur, or is only seen as an option, when the two are of a different gender just straight up erases queer relationships. Like, this book is from 2013. Gay people existed in 2013?

The book itself wasn't much stronger, even when the impact of these above issues is ignored (if you even can ignore it, as a reader). I honestly feel as if I predicted all of the upcoming plot twists for this trilogy within the first 50%, and the only way I'd continue this is to see if I was actually right. Nothing really happens for most of this book besides annoying high school drama, and the characters themselves don't add much instead as they all feel super tropey. The only reason that this book isn't 1 star is because I was mildly invested in where it would go by the end, and I am still mildly tempted to continue to see what happens next. However, I don't think I will, because the above issues would bother me too much.

Overall, I feel like this book very much fit in the YA Fantasy of 2013 (not that it excuses the problematic issues it has now), and it just doesn't feel like a book that belongs in 2021 due to the issues outlined above. Even just an update to fix some of the outdated terminology would help a lot, but would still only elevate this to a 3 star for me at best. I was intrigued, but in the end, this wasn't for me.

Firebolt, in short, was a mediocre novel. It definitely had the potential to be a really good fantasy but it just fell short. The writing was very poor, and often used many repetitive statements that got to be quite annoying. Character development, especially the main character fell a little bit flat. The world building could have used a bit of a boost for readers to full understand and immerse themselves into the story. And the romance, *heavy sigh*, it just wasn't it. I think some fantasy readers will still enjoy this, but overall, I think it could use a little work.

This book really got my attention & made me focus on it though I don't have much time these days due to exams &all.
A very detailed story, makes you feel as if you're living every incident in the heroine's day, getting to know her well & the people she intetacts with. The writing is not that great at first ,you get used to it though as the story flows. Overall its a good read.

This book originally caught my eye for two reasons. One, I love the cover, but two because it's about dragons! I was sucked into this book within the first few sentences. The world of dragons in this was so rich and fascinating, but I wish there was some sort of guide to all the dragons to keep track of what is what. I also really loved the world that this book takes place in. The world building as well as the character development was well written. I truly felt as though I connected with Elena.

However, the romance was something I was not into. It felt like a typical high school type of romance that did no start with a strong foundation whatsoever. The entire relationship felt rushed and it was just not good. In addition, the story did feel rushed as well. There just just so many unasnwered questions that the book just kinda sped through. I'm hoping the second book will answer them.

I had a hard time getting into this story. The writing just wasn’t there for me. Maybe if I started with the earlier books it would be better.

I have rarely read Dragon based YA fantasy and it was a refreshing change. There was a concept or two that drew on other works, but I can’t help but love the uniqueness of the dragons in this book.

I absolutely loved the exciting and unique plot. I loved that Adrienne Woods stuck with the age-old legend that dragons love riddles. This book was pure adventure and the build-up to the adventure and climax was so well done that I was constantly kept on the edge of my seat.

Her characters are fun and interesting but they fall short a little in this book. I can’t say for sure but I think that if I continue to read the series that the characters will develop a lot. I liked the main character Elena. She was a bit too much of an angsty teenager in the first chapter. Straight after that though she grew on me as she started to develop as a character.

The ending of this book left a lot to look forward to in the next few books in the series. From the plot to the characters, there is still a lot that Adrienne Woods can do with this lovely concept.

PS: I’m from Johannesburg, South Africa, and Adrienne Woods is also from Johannesburg! I am so happy that there is a great fantasy author who lives in the same city as me!

Okay, let’s start with the (unfortunately few) good things. This book is fast paced and it has some funny jokes inside that made me smile from time to time. But sometimes what made me giggle was the story itself and its shallowness.
The characters had no depth nor development and the book was so filled with clichés it was completely predictable. The world building wasn’t so bad but it wasn’t good enough to be mentioned either. I think the only reason I managed to finish reading this novel was that it was fast and easy to read. The descriptions were minimal, lots of action and dialogue, and I don’t particularly love long and detailled descriptions but this time the lack of it was too much.

There are WAY too many adverbs when people are speaking.

Elena's father has moved her from place to place every 3 months.
On the last move, he and Elena are attacked by dragons, he is murdered and Elena is wounded.
Elena doesn't ask the questions that anyone would want to know:
- Where is his body?
- Is there a funeral?
- Who tried to murder them and why?
- Who was his dragonian?
- Why did he leave Paegeia?

Also, she mourns her father almost as an after-thought. She never asks WHY he was killed.

Elena has no agency whatsoever until the end of the book where she takes herself on a suicide mission.

can i just say, YIKES: "His mouth felt as if it were made to fit mine. There wasn't a nose or chin in the way, and our tongues danced in perfect rhythm."

this was so awkward to read. Tongues don't 'dance', especially 'in perfect rhythm.'

I received an advance ecopy of this title via NetGalley. My thanks to NetGalley and Fire Quill publishing for this opportunity.

Actual rating: 3.5 stars, but I rounded up because math.

Review Blurb: Firebolt is a strong first volume in a series, albeit one with some left to be desired.

Pros: DRAGONS. I'll probably read anything involving dragons. I'd read a book about dragons watching paint dry. For real.
The whole 'hidden world, dragons among us' concept is brilliant and fresh while still remaining within the realm of "yup, that's a YA fantasy novel."
The details and world-building were plentiful and I had little trouble visualizing each scene.
The action got going right away. I never had time to be bored.


Cons: If Elena had used the phrase, "for the love of blueberries," one more blasted time, I would have lost it. First, no 16-year-old talks like that. Second, if that was an author's attempt to avoid cliches, it backfired horribly. The MC used that phrase a billion times and it was jarring and out of character each time.
Elena was kind of a weak and unlikable protagonist. Yeah, her situation was jarring and crazy and weird and sad, but she was basically useless.
The romance: UGH. No development, no descriptions of interactions (mostly just telling - "We kissed for a long time."), and it just made zero sense. I wasn't even interested in Elena's guy - so uninterested, in fact, that I don't exactly remember his name.


Hopefully future volumes will include more info about the how and why of this magical world. I really did enjoy this despite its faults and intend to read the rest of the series too.

It started as a little confusing and boring until the dragon fight but it soon became really addictive. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves people who ride dragons and romance.

tw: use of the word g*psy, parent death

Hold on to your seat, kids. You are in for a ride.


Oooooh boy, do I have a lot to say about this book. Like a lot. There were things that really rubbed me the wrong way but there were a lot of positive things too. But, I'm sad to say, this will be a bit of a negative review because this book really rubbed me the wrong way.

I think of the the biggest things that upset me about this book was it had sooooo much potential. I mean a ton of potential! I believe wholeheartedly that this could have been the next Harry Potter, with the bits of magic and the dragons. I don't say things like that lightly. In fact, I hardly say that. So imagine my disappointment when it fell flat.

Let me break it down. Elena was the MC and alright, as far as MCs go. She's 16 years old, hasn't had an easy life and is dealing with trauma from witnessing her dad's death. She is then thrown into the world of Paegia, where she thought it was just a story and discovers that dragons exist. Needless to say, Elena wasn't coping well. But I don't blame her. She drove me nuts sometimes but I remember her trauma and cut her some slack. Even though she was really boy crazy. Maybe I'm just old but that was kind of annoying.

Her roomates, Becky and Sammy (a dragon) were awful. I wanted to scream. They knew of Elena's trauma (the headmaster didn't exactly keep it a secret) and yet they laughed, yes laughed, at her fear of dragons. They called her weird for constantly searching the skies and cowering whenever she thought she saw one. After a while, they got better but I never forgot how they treated Elena in the beginning.

There was a lot of girl hate in this book and it often seemed to be for no reason or it was over Lucien, the love interest. Yes, I know they are teenagers so I know girl hate would happen. But I really thought at the last 20% or so, that the girl hate would have led to a huge character arc but nooooooope. I was rewarded with the same old from the first part of the beginning. Over it.

The way the world was built was confusing at times. It happened pretty fast, which was how Elena learned about the world. It was frustrating how we were almost expected to know everything (because Becky and Sammy were b words whenever Elena's ignorance of the world showed) and it was especially frustrating how Elena was expected to know everything. The master of the school nearly let her fail and I wasn't impressed with how they just threw her in and didn't help her deal the trauma she was facing. I don't like to diagnose people but I think Elena had PTSD and it was never talked about or dealt with. That could have been amazing rep for those that have PTSD. A real missed opportunity there.

There is more I could go on but I'm tired. The funny thing is, despite all my complaints, I want to read the next book. The plot and the dragons were just interesting enough that I want to keep going. Plus, there was an ARC so everything I complained about could have been changed when the book was published. So I'll keep going.

I liked this book, but it is not as good as I was expecting it to be.
It started out slowly and it was hard to get really in the book.

Elena has been running her whole life, and she is so tired of it.
She just wants to be normal, have a normal life and not always leave, just when she gets settled in.

One the day she is finally getting answers from her dad, it is also the same day he gives his life for hers. She finds out her dad is not just her dad but a Dragon. Waking up in a medic ward in another land. she has to figure out this new life and why her dad didn’t tell her.

Overall it was an alright book, not really my cup of tea but still a good read.

I think this book would be better suited to a younger crowd. I had a hard time getting through this book but my 12 year old child liked it. He said it was great. I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from Netgalley

Couldn't put it down, but flawed

This was a tough book to review, mostly because I didn't much care for the way it was written. The characters are extremely juvenile, the protagonist is a wimp and CONSTANTLY crying, the plot is patchy and the world building is weak. Despite this, I stayed up late reading it, and woke up wanting to throw myself back in. Woods definitely has a flair for fantasy.

I picked up this book on several occasions and couldn't get past the first part. The part in the beginning when her dad is running with her but refusing to tell her anything even though it would have been easier to at least try then to continually side step the issue.
The writing was choppy and overly descriptive when it felt pointless and could have used a lot more description in other places.
In the end this was a DNF for me. It just didn't work for me and I couldn't get into it.

I missed my download window on this one, so had to borrow it from my library. And since there is only one copy in the state (for good reason) had a bit of a wait.

I didn't feel like there was much of a *story* here. There was a lot of stuff happening to and around the main character, Elena, but she just sits there and cries, she doesn't interact with the action at all. There's a lot of passiveness as she lets the story happen to her without question, she just accepts (and cries a lot). So the conclusion is completley unbelievable- Elena decides to take drastic and random action on a dangerous mission.

There also wasn't a lot of world building or descriptions going on in this novel. It made the book a bit difficult for me, with the weird parallel dragon-world and all.

That being said, I think the idea here is awesome, it was just poorly executed and poorly edited. I feel like this would appeal to middle school students and younger teens.

I just didn't feel this one the way others did. I immediately didn't like the writing style. I found it a bit jarring and hard to read. I didn't like Elena. She's flat. She's irritating and immature. The romance was borderline, if not flat out, insta-love. I liked the premise. I did not like the execution. I honestly DNF this one before I hit 25%.

Sorry!