A Shadow Bright and Burning (Kingdom on Fire, Book One)

Jessica Cluess

Sep 2016 · Kingdom on Fire Book 1 · Sold by Random House Books for Young Readers

About this ebook

"Vivid characters, terrifying monsters, and world building as deep and dark as the ocean."
--Victoria Aveyard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Red Queen
 
I am Henrietta Howel.
The first female sorcerer in hundreds of years.
The prophesied one.
Or am I?

Henrietta Howel can burst into flames.
Forced to reveal her power to save a friend, she's shocked when instead of being executed, she's invited to train as one of Her Majesty's royal sorcerers.

Thrust into the glamour of Victorian London, Henrietta is declared the chosen one, the girl who will defeat the Ancients, bloodthirsty demons terrorizing humanity. She also meets her fellow sorcerer trainees, handsome young men eager to test her power and her heart. One will challenge her. One will fight for her. One will betray her.

But Henrietta Howel is not the chosen one.
As she plays a dangerous game of deception, she discovers that the sorcerers have their own secrets to protect. With battle looming, what does it mean to not be the one? And how much will she risk to save the city—and the one she loves?
 
Exhilarating and gripping, Jessica Cluess's spellbinding fantasy introduces a powerful, unforgettably heroine, and a world filled with magic, romance, and betrayal. Hand to fans of Libba Bray, Sarah J. Maas, and Cassandra Clare.

"The magic! The intrigue! The guys! We were sucked into this monster-ridden, alternative England from page one. Henrietta is literally a 'girl on fire' and this team of sorcerers training for battle had a pinch of Potter blended with a drop of [Cassandra Clare's] Infernal Devices."
--Justine Magazine

"Cluess gamely turns the chosen-one trope upside down in this smashing dark fantasy."
--Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Unputdownable. I loved the monsters, the magic, and the teen warriors who are their world's best hope! Jessica Cluess is an awesome storyteller!"
--Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"A fun, inventive fantasy. I totally have a book crush on Rook."
--Sarah Rees Brennan, New York Times bestselling author

"Pure enchantment. I love how Cluess turned the 'chosen one' archetype on its head. With the emotional intensity of my favorite fantasy books, this is the kind of story that makes you forget yourself."
--Roshani Chokshi, New York Times bestselling author of The Star-Touched Queen

"A glorious, fast-paced romp of an adventure. Jessica Cluess has built her story out of my favorite ingredients: sorcery, demons, romance, and danger."
--Kelly Link, author of Pretty Monsters

Ratings and reviews

This book holds a delightful tale of a strong female protagonist who fights for everything she has in this world. I absolutely adored it, it held rich characters and actual strong moral battles about what it means to sacrifice something and what it means to accomplish the greater good. Not only that but it is written greatly with unexpected twists that will leave the reader hungry for what may or may not come next. A beautiful cover and a wonderful read I can't wait to get my hands of the next installment.

The moment I picked it up I could not put it down. Its everything you could dream of in this book. Magic, Romance, Betrayal, Friendship, And The Secrets! (I so hope she and Blackwood start a romance 😝(Also you got to get this turned into a anime!!!!) I would recommend this book to others because the book isn't just good it actually warps your imagination and wraps you into it so it’s hard not to read it. The book also pulled at your emotions a lot from the start. The characters felt so real and alive that at points in the book, it was like when you yell at the T.V. actors for doing something bad or even felt bad for them if something happened to them. Through the whole book there really is no slow boring parts, all their really is entertainment through and through. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone, even people that seem all tough, I bet if they read it they would even have their emotions played with.

I loved this book, easy fun read I cannot wait until the 2nd book comes out!

About the author

JESSICA CLUESS is a writer, a graduate of Northwestern University, and an unapologetic nerd. After college, she moved to Los Angeles, where she served coffee to the rich and famous while working on her first novel. When she's not writing books, she's an instructor at Writopia Lab, helping kids and teens tell their own stories. Visit her at jessicacluess.com and follow her on Twitter at @JessCluess.