Fire Study (Study, Book 3)
by Maria V. Snyder
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Book Reviews of Fire Study (Study, Book 3)
Book Review: Not as interesting as the first two
Summary: 3 Stars
I just finished Fire Study, the last book in the Study series. It took me quite awhile to read it. It didn't have me as interested as the other two books in the series. I would go days without really wanted to read it. There was a lot of repetition in the book, summarizing from the other two books and repeating facts from earlier in the book, that dulled the book for me. Didn't have as much adventure, rather boring.
Yelena, the main character, has to fight the fire warper. She has many enemies in this book. Ferde who she defeated in the last book but was freed from another of her enemies Cahil. Cahil wants to rule Ixia and loathes Yelena and Valek. Yelena must also battle with the 1st Master Magician Roze who doesn't trust Yelena and believes Yelena is a spy from Ixia trying to take over Sitia. So, Yelena has a lot on her plate as she tries to find a way to get Ferde back and fight the Fire Warper.
There is still the same characters from the previous books, Valek, Ari, Janco, Fisk, Cahil, and Leif. Even though I didn't like Valek in the second book, this one I started to see the old Valek again. Yelena did start bothering me and if you have ever read House Of Night novels, she began to remind me the the main character in that series Zoey.
Some of the dramatic scenes didn't really hold any emotion for me. I don't want to list any to give anything away. But, when someone would die or something big would happen I didn't really seem important the way it was described. It would be described in two sentences and that would be the end of it.
I enjoyed the first two I just wished this one peaked my interested as much as the first one!
Book Review: The Compulsive Reader's Reviews
Summary: 5 Stars
There's no rest for Yelena, the popular heroine of Poison Study and Magic Study, in this spellbinding and fast paced third novel. Picking up from where Magic Study left off, Yelena is called away from The Citadel in Sitia by her Storyweaver, Moon Man, to capture the killer Ferde, and his rescuer, Cahil who are in the hands of the Daviian Vermin. But the Vermin lead Yelena, her brother, Moon Man and their group on a wild chase throughout the whole of Sitia, always one step ahead. They are smarter than what Yelena gives them credit for, and soon have easily influenced the Councilors and Master Magicians who rule Sitia.
Very quickly, Yelena and Leif go from predator to prey and must flee to Ixia in order to avoid execution. Cut off from her Sitian allies, and afraid to even use her own magic, Yelena finds herself walking a fine line. She must learn to accept help from others, to know her own limitations, begin to trust herself and her power, and ignite that stubborn streak of hers towards her foes if she's to preserve both of her countries' ways of life.
Once again, Snyder proves she knows how to please readers. Fire Study lives up to its name in this flaming hot and unforgettable read. Fast paced and quick witted from the beginning, you'll lose track of time throughout this page turner. Fire Study achieves an elite status that very few novels could ever live up to. All the favorites from Snyder's previous novels are present, from Ari and Janco to Perl and Esau, Cahil to Valek, Star to Fisk, and Nutty to Dilana; they're all wound into this suspenseful and splendid novel to make this third Study novel a glorious finale.
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Book Review: Too slow to start, and too much going on; not my favorite installment in the Study Series
Summary: 3 Stars
Plot Summary: Yelena is on tenuous ground in Sitia. The Council and some of the master magicians do not trust her Soulfinder abilities. Some of her old enemies have escaped, and Moon Man from the Sandseed clan summons Yelena with a cryptic note. After a prolonged and unsuccessful hunt across half of Sitia, Yelena returns to the Keep to find that the tables have been turned on her. She's now persona non grata, and she must flee to Ixia for protection. From there nothing goes right, and the story tumbles from one disaster to another.
So far this week I've had a knack for reading books that start slow. This is the third one that hasn't grabbed me until the halfway point, and I'm looking forward to breaking out of this rut soon. It's no fun plodding through one or two hundred pages while trying to find something to get excited about.
Yelena spends much of Fire Study at loggerheads with everyone who should be her ally - her brother Lief, the Story Weaver Moon Man, and even Valek loses patience with Yelena's brash, go-it-alone attitude. She's not a sympathetic character this time around, and combined with the chaotic action, it creates a disjointed story.
Fire Study is the third and final book in the Study Series, or trilogy, I should say. Sadly the last two books never matched the first, Poison Study, for originality and storytelling. Still, I did enjoy following Yelena's exploits over three books, and Ms. Snyder's Glass Series is almost identical, except glassmaker Opal takes the center stage.
Book Review: Excellent romantic fantasy
Summary: 5 Stars
After being raised in the Territory of Ixia and having gained the trust of Commander Ambrose and the love of his second in command Valek, Yelena returns to her homeland Sitia to study magic. Belonging to both countries, Yelena wants to become the liaison so that neither place will war against the other. Her studies are once again interrupted when she goes to find Ferde the Soulstealer and Cahill the pretender to the Ixian throne.
It is believed they are hiding in the Avibian Plains where the Sanseed Clan (Yelena's cosins) live. A splinter group of the clan has turned to the forbidden blood magic and Storyweavers dub them Vermin; whereas they call themselves the Daviian Clan. Their mysterious leader's goal is to rule Sitia; no outsider has seen him. The Vermin take control of the Sitia government and prepare to conquer Ixia. Yelena and her Ixian lover Valek hope to prevent the carnage, but to succeed she must make a promise that will keep the pair of lovers separated forever.
FIRE STUDY is a magical tale filled with intrigue, double crosses, and duplicity and stars a beleaguered heroine who swims in treacherous waters in order to stop a bloody war from occurring as both countries are dear to her. Valek loves Yelena beyond reason and will do almost anything to help her yet he is also a sexy alpha male who will not allow the woman who owns his heart walk all over him. Yelena loves him too and has started to get close with her family but first she must stop an evil person from destroying her birthplace before getting involved in personal matters.
Harriet Klausner
Book Review: Fire Study
Summary: 4 Stars
Not as good as the first in the series, "Poison Study" but worth a look. "Poison Study" (book one) may well be my favorite read this year - it had the perfect balance of action, mystery with a hint of romance, and well-developed and likable characters. Yelena and Valek, the main characters, are pure chemistry together and just leap off the page. However, in the latter two books of the trilogy, Valek isn't incorporated into the story as much. How or why the author decided to leave-out her best character in chapter after chapter of "Magic Study" (book two) and "Fire Study" (book three) is beyond me. Although Yelena is interesting and a strong female character, it's her relationship with Valek that is the spice of the story. And when they don't appear together the story is left bland. (Without giving anything away, Valek is in this story more than in "Magic Study". ) However, any chapters where he is not included are forgettable, and the reader seems to be waiting for his appearance for the story to really take off.
That is the only reason I gave "Fire Study" 4 stars instead of 5. In contrast "Poison study" should receive 10 stars, if possible. It's really a page turner.
I'm probably being too hard on this book. I did enjoy reading it, and on the whole I liked the ending. The author left some room for a book 4 -- which I would read. I just feel like the author was poorly advised by publisher or her writer's group in the direction she went with "Magic Study" and "Fire Study." Again I can't believe an author would be so remiss as to ignore her best character in half of the book.