Daughter of the Burning City Hardcover – 29 Jun. 2017

Came within the estimated time. Bought as a present for my daughter. She was very happy with it.

Okay I have SO MANY feels about this book! I am genuinely conflicted about not giving it 5 stars, but while I did really enjoy it, it won't be one i rave about for plot reasons (maybe for others - Luca 😍).So let's start with plot stuff! It's super enjoyable and the world is interesting and well put together. I like how we see how little Sorina knows about both Gomorrah and the outside world, and how we learn along with her. I like all the characters of Gomorrah too. Sorina herself I am a little mixed about - she's a solid character with relatable angst, and I really liked how her having no eyes was dealt with! And her relationships with her family was lovely. But for me, while I liked her, I didn't love her. I wanted her to solve the mystery and sort her relationship but that's it.Onto the mystery. I guessed the twists around Luca and Sorina about halfway through, but didn't the full aspect in terms of the mastermind. I felt a bit sad to be right, but that was more because I didn't want to be than disappointment in the storyline :)I also love that the book is so inclusive - sexuality is casually irrelevant in many ways, a main character who is effectively disabled (though more in looks than ability, which I think does make it different).And then finally, on to Luca. Who I need to mention for being special to me. 😍💙😍 I love everything about him except the twist (despite being a spoilers review I like to not completely ruin it!). Mostly the way he owns his approach to relationships, is honest about what he wants and while letting Sorina lead a bit, he also was good at stating boundaries (or lack of). And Sorina was respectful and understanding of him. And just 😍 everything about that was lovely, including Sorina coming to realise that he was moving from annoying to possibly cute lol! It made me super happy to see something different and supportive and inclusive and on it's own this would have got the book 5 stars hehe!!

I am obsessed with the world-building of this book & totally blown-away by the incredible story that takes place within it. I loved this book <b>so</b> much & it's being added to my list of 2017 favourite reads; I'm genuinely angry at myself for not reading it sooner. Amanda Foody has created an incredible book here, I hope she is proud!

This is a book of unique and original characters, mysterious murders and a girl with no eyes. This is most definitely a different book, challenging ideals and it also has a circus - what more could you want? A bit more plot, is the answer, but aside from that this book really has it all.If you've read Amanda Foody's newer release, Ace of Shades, as I have then I think you might feel that this is perhaps a step back in terms of pacing and plot. The excitement and incredible relationships within Ace of Shades are lacking a little in this book.The story centres on Sorina - an illusion worker creating people who others can see, but who are her own imaginings rather than real people. Despite this, they read as "real" characters with their own peculiarities in this book and I enjoyed that - it's so fun to read about a host of unique characters. Sorina is also unique in that she has no eyes, but despite this she can still see. I can't explain how - it isn't explained in the book - and neither is the fact that Gomorrah (the ever-moving circus) is constantly smoking, but it makes for more interesting descriptions so sometimes it's easy to ignore (it did niggle at me a bit).Sorina spends most of the book trying to solve a murder - a member of the circus, of her imaginings, has been murdered. This shouldn't be possible; this person was an illusion and cannot die. I really liked the mystery behind the murdering, but if I'm completely honest this was where the problem was for me. This plot wasn't exciting. The characters, illusions and magical world absolutely was, but if not for that I definitely wouldn't have enjoyed this book so much. Sorina, equally, isn't that likeable. Her relationship with Luca is interesting - I really appreciated that Foody chose to make sexuality and gender diverse concepts, and instead triumphs that anyone can and should love whomsoever they choose. And how great is it that for once our main heroine isn't drop-dead gorgeous and the romance isn't love at first sight or unrealistic; Sorina and Luca have occasional conversations about boundaries which I liked.A unique book for sure, but not necessarily the most gripping plot.

Je suis tombé par hasard sur ce livre lors de recherche sur des histoires dans le genre fantasy. Et la couverture de la version reliée me tentait beaucoup.Je peux dire que je ne suis pas déçue de ma lecture. Je n’avais aucune appréhension sur celle-ci et au final, j’ai été agréablement surprise.Nous suivons Sorina, une « freak » illusionniste qui a pour particularité de porter un masque à longueur de temps car elle n’a littéralement pas de yeux, mais peut quand même voir comme n’importe qui. Elle est entouré de sa famille d’illusions qui représente chacun une figure familiale ou amicale. Cependant, la veille de l’expulsion de sa ville - festival Gomorrah par la garde de la cité où ils s’étaient installés, l’un des siens est retrouvé assassiné. Le choc est rude, mais notre jeune fille va tout faire pour trouver le coupable.J’ai vraiment aimé ce côté de ville itinérante avec les spectacles, marchands et autres du monde du cirque et freak show. C’est une ambiance spéciale qui séduit dès le début. L’intrigue se concentre sur la recherche du ou des coupables de ce qui arrive à la famille de Sorina et j’ai beaucoup aimé le fait que notre héroïne ne veut pas qu’on l’écarte et fait ses recherches de son côté avec l’aide d’un membre récent du Gomorrah, Luca.Pour conclure, les cent dernières pages sont vraiment riches en révélations, mais pour autant, la fin n’est pas bâclée et n’est pas ouverte. J’ai vraiment apprécié l’esprit amical - famille de cette histoire et j’ai passé un très bon moment de lecture. Concernant le niveau d’anglais, je trouve qu’il est assez abordable pour débutant.

Acho que esse é o livro mais esquisito que eu já li. Encaixa muito bem com o enredo e a protagonista, que faz parte de um show de "freaks" (aberrações) no Festival Gomorrah onde vivem e com o qual viajam pelo mundo. Eu esperava que tivesse um foco mais em circo, mas o máximo que tem é a apresentação da Sorina e da sua família de ilusões nesse show, além do aspecto do festival. O livro é mais focado na investigação da protagonista e na sua relação com um garoto, Luca, que tem um poder único também e é bem bacana.Confesso que eu não esperava grande coisa do livro, então acabei me surpreendendo. É bem escrito, tem uma história interessante e a grande revelação do livro, apesar de ter sido previsível, ainda faz sentido e encaixa com muita coisa. Foi bem emocionante também, cheguei até a ficar ansiosa pelo romance. Outro ponto alto é a representatividade. Apesar de se passar em um mundo completamente novo, tem pessoas de várias raças diferentes (e com detalhes que deixam o mundo parecido com o nosso), além da protagonista não ser hetero e o interesse romântico dela ser assexual. Ainda foram coisas bem feitas, não aleatórias e inutéis na história.Minhas críticas são pequenas. Primeiro, acho que o final ficou corrido demais. Não é porque já resolveram o clímax principal que tem que correr para finalizar o livro. Nisso, além da resolução ficar apressada, a autora acabou deixando algumas pontas soltas que não deveriam ter sido deixadas, principalmente a questão sobre as ilusões da Sorina, o que realmente são e como ela as cria. Precisava ficar mais certo, mais claro, mais exato.Minha outra crítica é para a criação do mundo. São nomes bem diferentes para não ter um mapa. É muito difícil se situar, ver as cidades pelas quais estão passando, ver onde fica cada país e entender o conflito geopolítico desse universo sem ver em um mapa. Para mim, poderia ser uma palavra nova por vez que mencionavam um lugar, porque faria pouca diferença. Eu preciso ver isso em algum lugar, ver desenhado mesmo. Mas isso pode ser um problema meu só, de eu ser muito visual. Uma coisa que não é algo que só vai incomodar a mim é que a autora não explica tão bem quais são os países, quais são as cidades, então fica difícil de localizar a quem pertence a realeza de vez em quando.Mas o livro tem bem mais coisas boas do que problemas. A protagonista é interessante, o romance é bom, a vida dela no festival com seu pai adotivo também. Gostei da reviravolta, gostei dos momentos de tensão e apreensão, teve até um em que eu mal conseguia respirar! Gostei de torcer pelo casal, de encontrar personagens mais complexos do que eu esperava, de ler e ler e perceber que esse livro é bastante original e único, bem diferente de tudo que eu já li. Gostei bastante!

Amanda Foody made an amazing universe for this book, a book that will keep you on suspense, a good combination of romance, crime and dective type. 100% recommended

Among the millions of books that's there are this books plot definitely makes it stand out. I am a book reader and have read a lot of books and never have i seen a similar plot. This book is a break from the repeated plots. Amanda goody sure knows how to write a page turner books. Definitely recommend it.

I usually like fantasies with magical carnivals or circuses in them, and this certainly has that, but it has a lot more besides. I immediately became attached to teenaged Sorina, the head of the Freak Show in the traveling carnival city of Gomorrah, and her family of performers, from Crown, whose body is covered with fingernails instead of hair, to toddler Blister, who performs fire magic. They are a very close family indeed, because they are all illusions created by Sorina—but somehow they have become real enough, not only to be seen by her audiences, but to be murdered, one by one, as the story progresses. I don’t just mean that someone makes them disappear; these are real murders, with blood everywhere and bodies to bury afterward. The grief-stricken Sorina, therefore, must solve not only the classic murder-mystery question of “whodunnit,” but a greater question: how can an illusion be killed?Sorina is more than a performer in Gomorrah; she is also the adopted daughter and heir apparent of the show/city’s Proprietor, Villiam. Because of her youth, he has kept most of the details of Gomorrah’s past and the Proprietor’s job from her until now, but the murders suggest to both that she needs to learn more, and quickly. Readers don’t learn much about the geography and politics of the land Gomorrah travels through until about a third of the way through the book, but thereafter, these elements become increasingly important. Sorina also encounters romance, but her her relationship with Luca, a fellow performer who helps her investigate the murders, develops slowly, and the author does not hit the reader over the head with it.I was amazed to discover after I finished the book that it was part of a “Harlequin Teen” series. Such an imprint would have led me to expect (mistakenly, perhaps) not only a “YA” book but a rather superficial one, heavy on the romance—but this book is anything but. It does have a teenaged protagonist, and a romance of sorts, but the character development and the issues raised, including the nature of reality and illusion and the painful inner conflict that competing loyalties can produce, make it worthwhile and enjoyable reading for people of any age.