Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to TBR & Beyond Tours, Netgalley, and Blink for this free copy. All quotes in this review are taken from the Advanced Reader Copy and may change in final publication.

Could you imagine not living in the sun for 15 years? So for me, since I’m older than that 15 year period, I don’t know how I would feel going from the Light to straight up Darkness all over. But that’s also because we are naturally used to the sun, right? We benefit from the sun in different ways, and it helps us go through our day. Our main character Siria Nightingale is nearly 16, so she has never lived in a world where the sun was around. That’s all she knows, and yet for some reason, her body keeps reacting super negatively to the Darkness…

While the synopsis does say that she discovers something at the Choosing Ball, it doesn’t say what she discovers so I won’t say anything since that would be a spoiler. But let’s just say that really, the Choosing Ball and the events that take place during that time are really what set off this journey into something that Siria never dreamed of. It’s very interesting too to see the kind of reasoning that goes behind the Choosing Ball and why Queen Iyzabel picked the people that she did for the “guests of honor” at the Ball.

One of the things that I thought was interesting was that despite Siria and her childhood best friend Linden having some sort of weird falling out while she was training to be on the Queen’s Court, all that needs to be either set aside or dealt with between them because they are stuck together for life. Or, at least into the end of the book, right? I thought it was a little sad though, that for some reason they had that weird falling out because of how close they were when they were younger. I mean, Siria never wanted to be a proper lady of the court. She wanted to be a gardener. She loved working with her hands and getting dirty in the garden and being with her best friend Linden and Yarrow, hearing stories about when the Sun existed and the creatures that lived in the Sun. The Sunchildren, I believe their names were?

Oh yeah, in case the synopsis wasn’t clear, there are a lot of different paranormal creatures in this world, like nymphs, mages, etc. Which I guess would make sense since it was Queen Iyzabel that somehow blocked the Sun and created this suffocating Darkness that everyone seems to like. I don’t know if they really do though, since it’s clear in the way that Siria describes other people that she deals with that they are severely Vitamin D deficient. They have sallow skin, and are just super pale, and it just doesn’t seem healthy at all. But I guess it makes sense when there is no source of Vitamin D anywhere, and that’s all they know. Would you really want to be super pale that you’re almost translucent? I don’t know.

I will also say that I personally didn’t like how self-deprecating that Siria was in the beginning. Honestly it just really bothered me, even though I understand why she was like that. Like, I absolutely hated how her parents treat her and even at the Choosing Ball, at that scene and I was like YOU SUCK AS A PARENT but again I can’t really say much about it because that would be spoilers. But Siria was always putting herself down compared to everyone else and it was so damn tiring. Yes, I get that you have red hair versus everyone else’s brunette or black hair, but damn chica that doesn’t mean that you’re ugly! Or that something’s wrong with you! Or that you’re less than everyone else!

Anyway.

For the most part I thought that this was enjoyable except for those instances. I get that the girls weren’t all going to be able to be part of the Queen’s Court, but the teasing and stuff was not cool for me. I don’t like girl on girl hate, and this one just felt unnecessary as well. Not unnecessary to the story because I get it, but just… why do they have to talk crap, you know? Ya feel?

But the rest of the story was good! I love the dynamic between Siria and Linden, and being able to have them deal with others as a “ragtag” kind of group to save the world from eternal darkness was super intriguing. I had a lot of fun with it, and I’m curious to know if there may be additional stories in this world because I’d love to hear about them one day.

The overall premise of IGNITE THE SUN caught my eye (along with the cover) and I liked the idea of a world shrouded in darkness. The writing moves quickly and made it a quick read, if nothing else, but I can't say I was truly invested in the story. Siria is your typical Chosen One and a lot of the moments with her that could have created tension ended up falling flat, either resolved too quickly to make an impact or brought upon by some convenient plot device. I also wasn't buying the romance but I think a lot of that had to do with the writing style and the way it was presented. For a character-focused story, I didn't have enough interest in Siria. She wasn't all that interesting, nor were the side characters.

IGNITE THE SUN wasn't a bad book by any means but I felt like it could have used a bit more time. Will keep an eye out on Howard's future books.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a surprisingly quick read, despite being more than 300 pages long. It was fast-paced (but not too much) and I really enjoyed the plot even though I found it a little bit too predictable at times and most problems seemed to be too easily solved.

I LOVED the setting and the world-building! I appreciated how the author included some mythical creatures that I've rarely seen in books such as a banshee (who was my favourite character). I would love to learn more about this world, the creatures that inhabit it, their magic and their myths.

Unfortunately the characters lacked depth and I wasn't able to connect to any of them. In the first half of the book I hated the main character, Siria: she was constantly whining and complaining. I really appreciated her character development in the second part of the book though.

I believe that the villain had a lot of potential which was unfortunately wasted. She could have been developed so much more and I would have loved her to appear in the book more than a couple times.

Overall it was a good read, especially considering that it was the author's first novel. However I think that it could have been at least a duology, in order to give space to a little more development.

Thank you to NegGalley! I received an e arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were interesting as well as the magic system. It was evenly paced and believable in the fantasy world. Siria grew into her own along with the support of both known and unknown acquaintances. The romance (which wasn't the main focus of the story) was believable for two teenagers who didn't know how to tell each other how they truly felt for each other. Their journey was filled with surprises and danger with twists along the way. Great read!

unfortunately didnt like this one. I think it was the writing because it sounded right up my alley! Was also confused most of the time. Dnf.

I loved this book! It is an adventurous story with great character development and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Siria is an amazing character; at first I wasn’t sure about her, but I understood why she was acting the way she was, and her character arc is masterfully done! The author did a great job at putting the reader in the scene and letting them feel the emotions of the characters as well.

I stayed up way too late trying to finish it, only to get up early so I could actually finish it before the kids woke up. This book is really hard to put down because it is such a compelling read!

I highly recommend this book and I’m looking forward to reading future releases by this author!

Content:
Mild swearing
Sweet romance

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“Being afraid doesn’t make you a coward. It’s how you react that makes you a coward.”

If you’re looking for a fast paced, awesome side characters, a main character that really grows, Ignite the Sun by Hanna C Howard is for you! Releases Aug 18 so be sure to add to your TBR! Thank you tbr and beyond tours and blinkyabooks for my arc!

Ignite the Sun hooked me right from the beginning, it jumped right into action and then the adventure started right after. The pacing was fast but in a good way, the descriptions of the action scenes kept me on edge and made not want to put it down.

The side characters were some of favorites and I really loved that they became part of Siria’s family. There is romance but it’s very innocent.

I would definitely recommend this book and is great for young YA readers!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received an ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Ignite the Sun is a YA fantasy with an intriguing concept. And one of the major positives of this book is the world building. I love its unique take on both literal light and darkness, with some receiving power through the sun, and an evil power, Witch Queen, Iyzabel, rising up to try to snuff that out.

And I love that it includes the less common magical creatures, creating a more diverse group of creatures than you often see in fantasy, with naiads, wood nymphs, and banshees, to name a few. It makes the story stand out amidst the many that include dragons or fae.

However, while the plot was fairly engaging, I found myself struggling to become fully invested in the characters, as there wasn’t much depth or development to keep me interested in them.

However, I understand this is a debut, and with a bit of growth, there is a lot of potential for a great story. I also get that I may not be the right audience for it. If you like YA fantasy and are looking for a fresh take on the genre, I recommend giving this one a try.

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve read another YA fantasy, so this book couldn’t have come around at a better time! •
•
The old kingdom of Luminor has been defeated by the evil queen witch Iyzabel who has banned the sun and covered the kingdom in eternal darkness. Siria Nightingale has always been fascinated with the sun, and longs for stories of the old kingdom from her mentor Yarrow, although no one else can understand Siria’s fascination with the light. Siria, along with her friends and companions, head to the heart of darkness to try to restore light to the kingdom, but not without a deadly battle with Queen Iyzabel. •
•
This story gave me major HP and LOTR vibes which I totally loved, and I honestly couldn’t put it down! It had every thing I wanted in a YA fantasy: self-discovery, love interest, fierce battles, and magic! I could definitely see this becoming a series at some point, as the ending left a lot of future story untold. Thank you so much to Blink and NetGalley for my eARC to review! •

This book took me longer than expected the finish. Nothing at all to do with the book, I think it was just a reading slump that I was going through.

I actually really enjoyed this book, a lot more than I expected going in! I think the world building in the book is what stood out to me the most. It’s probably one of the best systems that I have seen in a book of this genre. Terra-Volat is full of mystical creatures that I want to meet. This book left me wanting to be a part of this world!

The magic system was just as good. Whilst at first I was fairly confused by it. Eventually once I had gotten to grips with it I found myself enchanted by it. I feel like there was a lot going on, and I could have been explained more in places but overall I did really like it.

Now this book did have the chosen one trope which is something I don’t normally like. Mainly because I never see it done very well. This book changed my mind, I really liked it. It was probably my favourite trope of the book. Whilst there is romance, it’s not too prevalent which suits my needs and tastes perfectly.

I would recommend this book!

Living two different lives and not knowing which one is real and which is fantasy. That can make life pretty hard on Siria. The world building is the best part by far. I really enjoyed all the information.
Siria did annoy me a bit in regards to questioning everyone around her due to lies from the past. I kind of felt like it was redundant. An outcast at school Siria must learn to keep her head up and push forward.

As a debut this needs a little work but I look forward to what is next for Howard.

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Ignite the Sun

Author: Hanna Howard

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 3.5/5

Recommended For...: fantasy, chosen ones

Publication Date: August 18, 2020

Genre: YA Fantasy

Recommended Age: 16+ (slight violence and gore, romance)

Publisher: Blink

Pages: 352

Synopsis: Sixteen year-old Siria Nightingale has never seen the sun. The light is dangerous, according to Queen Iyzabel, an evil witch who has shrouded the kingdom in shadow.

Siria has always hated the darkness and revels in the stories of the light-filled old days that she hears from her best friend and his grandfather. Besides them, nobody else understands her fascination with the sun, especially not her strict and demanding parents. Siria's need to please them is greater even than her fear of the dark. So she heads to the royal city--the very center of the darkness--for a chance at a place in Queen Iyzabel's court.

But what Siria discovers at the Choosing Ball sends her on a quest toward the last vestiges of the sun with a ragtag group of rebels who could help her bring back the Light ... or doom the kingdom to shadow forever.

Review: Overall, I really liked the book. The plot was intriguing and the book engaged me from beginning to end. The book was paced right and I really liked the world building that was done as well. The book is definitely rememberable and worth the read.

However, I did have a problem with the characters. There were a lot of problems for me. Some weren’t detailed enough, the romance felt forced, some characters did some things that were questionable and the constant questioning from our main character was really annoying to be honest. I think it would have been better if the author took time to develop the characters and have them grow.

Verdict: Worth the read!

Bringing you to the world of old, this tale twists and turns to create a beautiful piece of writing. Bridging the fight for Light, this new universe is unique and brings you deeper and deeper into it. Full of smart characters this story brings together historic tales and beliefs and weaves it into a current book not to be missed.

Although it took me awhile to finish this book, Ignite the Sun included several elements that I rather enjoyed, leading me to give it a solid 3 stars.

My favorite part of this book was by far the worldbuildling. Going into the story, I didn’t know Terra-Volat was inhabited by nymphs, elves, dwarves, naiads, banshees, and more. When these mystical creatures appeared on the page, I was pleasantly surprised and excited to see what roles they would play in Siria’s story. This made for an incredibly interesting cast of characters with different magical abilities that rendered the world unique among so many other YA Fantasies of late.

The magic system is equally as enchanting, from Siria’s sunchild powers to Yarrow’s ingenious Runepiece. There are wood elves capable of controlling plants, naiads who can manipulate water, and an evil queen who weaponizes darkness. The magic system is very soft, with each ability seeming to have a wide range of powers, but it worked in this case.

Tropes/Clichés I think this book did well:

Light vs. Darkness. Light and darkness literally fight one another in this book, a fun twist on this trope.

The Chosen One. Siria is the last living sunchild in Terra-Volat after the evil Queen Ysabel covered the land in darkness. Siria is fated to bring back the light by using her powers to ignite the sun.

Childhood Friends to Lovers. Siria and Linden sweetly crushed on one another for awhile, creating a slow-burn before they revealed their true feelings. And, not a single love triangle in sight!

Old Wizard Mentor. Siria and Yarrow’s relationship felt authentic and sincere since he was a grandfather figure to her long before becoming her magical mentor.

Another factor I really appreciated is that most of the named side characters introduced early in the story end up coming back later and playing a part in the finale. Personally, I don’t like when authors throw in named characters as plot devices or to keep track of who does/says what in a scene. I appreciated that Howard had a role for all of her named characters and gave them significance throughout the book.

Now, what didn’t work for me…

So much of this book is showing rather than telling, which unfortunately made it quite boring and difficult to get through. While most books consist of “tell” scenes broken up by expositional “show” moments, Ignite the Sun felt like the exact opposite. Much of the story was centered in heavy exposition where we are told what the characters are doing or told what Siria is thinking and feeling. Scenes with dialogue, which typically allow the reader to connect with characters and understand their relationships, were short and sparse. On top of this, there were multiple scenes I wanted to see play out on page, but instead they were explained in two to three sentences or, even worse, skipped completely. Although this lessened at the end of the story, it still made the rest of the book difficult to get through.

Tropes/Clichés this book did not do well:

Light vs. Darkness. I also listed this in the positive tropes, but at times it felt heavy-handed, especially with the quotes from other books thrown in at the beginning of each section. Queen Ysabel loves darkness and black and suffering, and her subpar backstory wasn’t enough for me to classify her as more than a caricature SuperEvil™ villain.

Undiscovered/Untested Powers. Siria has grown up unaware of her sunchild abilities. She is able to master her powers in a short period of time before facing Iysabel, a powerful Witch who has been studying magic her entire life. It felt a bit unbelievable.

Lastly, regarding representation, there are BIPOC characters in this book, but unfortunately there are not any LGBTQ+ characters.

Based on the info I can find online, it looks like Ignite the Sun will be a standalone novel. While this debut definitely has its flaws, I think it shows that Hanna Howard has a lot of potential to grow in her work and she is an author to keep on your YA Fantasy radar.

Thank you to Blink via Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Imagine a world in which anyone younger than the age of 15 has never seen the sun. The world is covered in Darkness thanks to an evil witch who has so much power and influence over others that any sense of rebellion can only be found in the regions furthest from the royal city. Enter 16-year-old Siria Nightingale, a young girl who wants nothing more than to fit in yet has no choice but to accept her role in bringing the sun back to her people.

Siria has never seen the sun but has a particular fascination with it. Even so, she cannot openly express this fascination because everyone has been led to believe that the sun is evil and Queen Iyzabel shrouded everything in darkness to protect them - which includes destroying anything or anyone that connects to the sun i.e. the sunchildren, or other beings who might have any power to overthrow her some day.

With the help of her lifelong friends AKA the gardener Yarrow and his "grandson" Linden Sira escapes the royal city and begins a very long and dangerous journey north to reach the rebel group, work on a plan to overthrow Queen Iyzabel, and bring back the sun - all while having to adjust and learn how to control her new powers. This gives her plenty of time to get caught up with the truth of how the queen came to power, how everything she has been taught to believe is in fact a lie to keep her in power, and how she is the only one who can defeat her (or die trying, of course).

I wanted to like this book more, but unfortunately it was pretty predictable and filled with stereotypes we’ve seen in young adult fiction before. Although, I will give credit to Hanna Howard for her creativity in her world-building and magic system; for example, how magic can be manipulated for evil outcomes (i.e. to take life rather than heal) and the process involved in taking magic from someone else. Even so, many moments and descriptions felt like they could have been fleshed out a bit; I was left wanting more.

On the other hand, I appreciated Howard’s descriptions of the sun and the effect it had on life (or the effect without it). The citizens were weak and depressed, lands needed artificial sun to grow crops, and Siria becomes a different person (literally and figuratively) once exposed to it. Siria’s struggle to accept who she is, and the effect her powers could have on those she loves if she does not learn how to master them, adds more depth to her character and gives the reader insight as to the complications of possessing this magic.

Siria’s journey is exciting at times, but I feel like Howard could have gone into more detail with backstories and character development. Siria does grow as a character, but that is almost expected since this is her story. We get a lot of action and more reveals at the end, but again they were almost predictable. Nevertheless, since this is Howard’s debut novel, I can see that she has potential to flourish as an author and improve her craft.

I received this book in exchange for a review from NetGalley.

Wow, this book was quite a ride. It had its ups and downs, but overall I enjoyed it.

The world building in this book is phenomenal. Hands down one of the best and well thought of worlds I read in a long time. I could easily see her world and how it worked so well. The magic was believable and the different magical species was amazing.

The only reason I had to knock it down a level was the character development. It was a bit off for the main character Siria. Yarrow, Linden and Elegy I could easily see their character and understand them quite well. Linden and Yarrow were the best built and well thought out characters.

Yet Siria was just a bit too melodramatic for my taste. There were so many instances she overreacted to that I just rolled my eyes. We all know she is a teenager, but jeez louise was she dramatic.

Also her development was lacking. Her motivation was on point. I could feel her desperate need to please her parents and prove she wasn’t a failure, but her development was just bleh.

For instance, one character slapped her across her face, told her she was being a brat, then a page later she was no longer a brat. She self actualized in one day.

Unfortunately, this is not a one time occurrence. There were numerous times when a character would tell her something about herself and she would change within the next page.

It was really unbelievable.

There were so many opportunities to show her growth, and one instance she did, instead of simply telling us. Yet it just kept falling short.

Another reason I had to deduct a star was the plot. The pacing was a bit off, but the plot was well built. I just felt like this story should have been like three books into one. Like Siria went from learning something radically different from her world, learning about herself, and used the new knowledge within the span of one book.

I wish I could say more, but I would ruin the book. I will just say that she grew so accustomed to this new world so quickly that it made my head spin. Don’t get me wrong, the author wrote that it the story took place over the course of months, but it doesn’t feel like it. I can’t put my finger on why, but it feels like weeks.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book. It has its flaws, but I did enjoy it and look forward to reading more by this author. I can’t wait to revisit this world.

I really enjoyed Ignite the Sun! The concept was super interesting and while I felt as though certain parts could have been explained more, overall, it was executed pretty well and this was a book that I can definitely see lots of people enjoying! It had one of my favorite tropes (only one bed in a room in an inn) and I loved Linden and Seria together. The idea of sunchildren and the way that witches get their magic was really cool and I feel like I haven’t seen that kind of a magic system in too, too many books. I liked all of the magical elements within this book a lot honestly! I think it’s really cool that human parents can have a magical child and normally that’s something to celebrate (before Iyzabel took over anyway).
There were definitely some parts towards the middle that I thought moved a little slowly, but in the grand scheme of things they didn’t take away from the story at all. I’m a very plot driven reader and I still felt like I always knew where the plot was going and how the scenes were driving the plot. I definitely think that if y’all like YA fantasy, you should for sure check out Ignite the Sun!

I received an e-arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Siria Nightingale has been at a boarding/finishing school for the last few years in preparation for being presented to the queen in hopes of becoming part of her court. Though she hopes to win the queen's favor and finally be accepted by her parents, she knows that her unique appearance-bright coppery hair in a sea of brunettes and black hair-does not lend itself to getting her wish. The night prior to the Queen's ball, Siria is whisked away with other girls and receives special attention to her hair and attire, so her hopes start to rise. However, during the presentation, Siria transforms-into the kingdom's last sunchild and the daughter of the King and Queen that the current Queen slaughtered years ago. With the help of various other magical beings, Siria flees the palace and begins to learn about her true family and the rule of the kingdom.
The premise of this book was interesting, yet I found myself being bored with the overall story. Siria was not a strong enough character to keep my attention-the supporting characters were much more interesting. I also became frustrated with the will they/won't they between her and Linden-even though it was pretty much set up from the beginning. And-*SPOILER ALERT* as this is a YA book, one of the supporting major character's almost death bothered me. I think that him dying would have helped the book be a bit stronger and the ending be just a tad more realistic.

I received this e-ARC from Blink YA and Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book......honestly I have no words for much I enjoyed this book. Hanna Howard brought about a world that I'm surprised wasn't used before now. In Ignite the Sun we have a world that is plunged into complete darkness and Siria Nightingale always believed something wasn't right about it. Come to find out there's a very BIG reason as to why she really feels that way.

This was a journey I didn't realize I needed and it gave me a look into just how different our world could be if not for the sunlight. No one really thinks about something as common as the sun until it's gone and the world that Hanna Howard built around this was astounding. It was as if I was seeing the crumbling woods and dying plants through a gray hazed lens.

My only minor issue. The fact that the ending seemed to be rushed, I'm going to judge on the fact that I am assuming this is a stand alone and I felt that the way the story was rushed shows it. That's one thing that I don't particularly enjoy about single books is the fact that they cram so much into a single story but none the less I enjoyed it and can't knock a good book because of something as minor as this.

Though I'm not sure if she plans on continuing this story based on how it ended I would definitely be eager to get my hands on other works of hers.

Ignite The Sun had one of the most unique worlds I’ve read about in a long time. Siria lives in a kingdom where the queen has created a darkness to block out the sun because it is “dangerous.” For fifteen years, the kingdom has been in complete darkness. I have never read a book with this kind of atmosphere,
There were a few things I really liked about this book. One of them was how one of the main plot points was Siria being radicalized against her government. The symbolism there really spoke to me on a deep level. It's incredible what can happen to a person's thought process when they are removed from their home and exposed to the other side of the story. Watching Siria have to use her critical thinking skills and come to terms that maybe things aren’t really the way she had always seen them was really cool and I think Hanna Howard did a really good job of putting that down on the page.
I loved the idea of the sun-children. I thought it was kind of funny that sun children have red hair because I have red hair and the sun and I do not get along. But I can relate to the yearning that they feel for the sun. The sun may not like me but I love the sun.
This book had found family and childhood friends to lovers which was really fun to read about. The writing itself felt a little underdeveloped, but it didn’t take away from the story very much.
I felt kind of bad for Siria and how they treated her at certain parts of the book. Her whole life kind of gets turned upside down and they don’t give her the space to really process and instead get mad at her. Merrell especially was really horrible to Siria in the beginning for things that were in no way Siria’s fault and no one stepped in really to help her. It was really the only gripe I had with the book.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story. The ending brought closure because this was a standalone fantasy novel. There were no open endings or loose strings. Everything was tied up in a nice little bow and handed over. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone that is looking for that straightforward fantasy set in a new and unique world.