Of Fire and Stars: Volume 1

Audrey Coulthurst

Nov 2016 · Of Fire and Stars Book 1 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

An atmospheric and romantic debut fantasy perfect for fans of Ash and The Winner’s Curse.

Betrothed since childhood to the prince of Mynaria, Princess Dennaleia has always known what her future holds. Her marriage will seal the alliance between Mynaria and her homeland, protecting her people from other hostile kingdoms.

But Denna has a secret. She possesses an Affinity for fire—a dangerous gift for the future queen of a land where magic is forbidden.

Now Denna has to learn the ways of her new kingdom while trying to hide her growing magic. To make matters worse, she must learn to ride Mynaria’s formidable warhorses before her coronation—and her teacher is the person who intimidates her most, the prickly and unconventional Princess Amaranthine, sister of her betrothed.

When a shocking assassination leaves the kingdom reeling, Mare and Denna reluctantly join forces to search for the culprit. As the two work together, they discover there is more to one another than they thought—and soon their friendship is threatening to blossom into something more.

But with dangerous conflict brewing that makes the alliance more important than ever, acting on their feelings could be deadly. Forced to choose between their duty and their hearts, Mare and Denna must find a way to save their kingdoms—and each other.

Plus don't miss the sequel: Of Ice and Shadows!

Ratings and reviews

ngl, I've read a lot of better story plot than this. If this was a man and woman romance, it's seriously typical. But because it's a GL story and I'm craving for more, I LOVE IT. I'm saving up to buy the sequel. I like it was called affinities and they had to write the symbol to praise them. It's good that this has a sequel because the ending of this book was so realistic to me, and it's a book about fantasy. It made more sense to me that the ending built it that way to give way to the next book

Found this book on accident, decided to read it out of curiosity, ended up staying for a rich story with vibrant characters and a mysterious but pleasing world. I like how a lot of things are addressed in this book, magic, relationships, point of view...it all melds together beautifully, this world that Audrey has created is one that I'll be glad to re-visit again and again, because it's rough and surprising while still being absolutely believable and stunningly beautiful. I'm very glad I read this book.

It felt a little forced at the end, as if the author ran out of ideas to tie up loose ends realistically. The main antagonist turns into textbook villain mode, where they're like "This doesn't benefit me at all, but I'll just harass you for that climax to work". Same can be said for how [spoilers] goes out and spills their big secret in public cause...for no reason other than making it look all dramatic. Overall solid and believable story progression that I loved very much. I even love the ending. Just not 'how' it ended.

About the author

Audrey Coulthurst writes YA books that tend to involve magic, horses, and kissing the wrong people. When she’s not dreaming up new stories, she can usually be found painting, singing, or on the back of a horse. Audrey has a master’s degree in writing from Portland State University. She lives in Santa Monica, California. She is the author of Inkmistress and Of Fire and Stars, which was named a Publishers Weekly Flying Start. Visit her online at www.audreycoulthurst.com.