I received this book for free from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Kindling by Traci Chee Series: Standalone
Published by Harper Collins on 2024 February 27
Genres: Fantasy
Pages: 423
Format: E-Arc
Source: Edelweiss
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From bestselling and award-winning author Traci Chee comes a standalone fantasy set against a war-ravaged world where kindling warfare—the use of elite, magic-wielding teenage soldiers—has been outlawed. In this rich and evocative novel, seven kindlings search for purpose and identity as they prepare for one final battle. For fans of the classic films Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven.
Once, the war was fought with kindlings—elite, magic-wielding warriors whose devastating power comes at the cost of their own young lives.
Now, the war is over, and kindlings have been cast adrift—their magic outlawed, their skills outdated, their formidable balar weapons prized only as relics and souvenirs.
Violence still plagues the countryside, and memories haunt those who remain. When a village comes under threat of siege, it offers an opportunity for seven kindlings to fight one last time. But war changed these warriors. And to reclaim who they once were, they will have to battle their pasts, their trauma, and their grim fates to come together again—or none of them will make it out alive.
From bestselling and award-winning author Traci Chee comes a gut-wrenching, introspective fantasy about seven lost soldiers searching for the peace they once fought for and the future in which they’re finally daring to believe.
Kindling has a lot of promise that made me pick it out of the the numerous ARCs offered in Edelweiss. It promised to give me an epic fantasy read condensed into one book instead of a crazy 10-book epic fantasy series, I mean who would not pick it up? Unfortunately, that is the main weakness of the book. There were so many leading characters, seven of them, to know but so little page time. It just wasn’t enough to build the angst and the pain to make me hurt for these Kindlings. I could neither relate to their journey nor really feel the PTSD that they are all suffering from. I was really excited about the thought of crying my heart out while reading the book but nope, I was instead taken to pages and pages of frown-inducing scenes. I was not convinced with the Kindlings’ predicament at all.
And since I could not feel any attachment to any one of the characters in Kindling, I was hoping that the plot would engage me but I got disappointed yet again. Look, I did assume that this was an epic fantasy but the battle that our characters had fought for in the end was relatively a child’s play compared to LOTR’s, The Wheel of Time, etc. So yup, I think have some fault, too, for expecting too much and not actually seeing Kindling as a YA book. To be fair, I really did set a high standard for this one because the synopsis was just way too awesome.
Yeah, I’m giving this one a 3-star review. Overall, it did entertain me and it was an easy read. The writing was uncomplicated although I would’ve appreciated it more if the POVs were limited to three. I sometimes find myself confused about which character was talking in the next chapter. And, uhm, before I forgot, I would like to apologize for this very late review. Thank you to Edelweiss and Harper Collins for the free ARC.