Saturday Series: Smokeless Fire (Fire Spirits#1) by Samantha Young

New start of the Saturday Series and we begin with Smokeless Fire by Samantha Young. It is the first book in the Fire Spirits series. The next couple of saturdays I will be reviewing the next books, there are four in total. Darkness Kindled, the fourth book, will be released on April 23, which is just in time for my review.

For the last two years Ari Johnson's life has been anything but normal, and on her 18th birthday, when her friends surprise her with a gimmick genie claiming to grant wishes, Ari discovers the truth. The tragic and strange occurrences surrounding her 16th birthday were not coincidental and her life is never going to be the same again.

Ari's real parents are not normal. They are not loving. They are not human.

They are myth.

They are Smokeless Fire.

They are Jinn.

Review:

One word: Genies! We're not talking genie in a lamp, three wishes, Aladdin style, but a Jinn. I wish to become one and if that isn't possible Jai can certainly be my protector and "stalker".

Ari our main character is very likeable and easy to associate with. She's graduating and planning to go to college, but she's not really sure about it. She's crazy about this boy, Charlie, but he barely notices her, meanwhile her Dad is always away on business.

So she's not really happy with her life and finding out whom her real parents are doesn't make it any easier. On the contrary it makes everything worse times ten. The only bright light is Jai, her Jinn protector/guardian, who is of course a total hottie.

An re-occurring theme in Young Adult these days: one girl and two boys, which one should she choose. This time both boys are kind of "bad boys", but while one may turn out good, the other one is heading off the rails. So that's pretty cliché, but when you get to know the characters you absolutely won't mind. I'm already halfway in love with Jai. He's perfected the whole tormented and brooding attitude.

What I loved most about this book, was the original paranormal phenomenon of Jinns. Werewolves, vampires, angels and etc. are fun, but getting kind of old sometimes. So genies or rather Jinns are definitely refreshing. The world Samantha Young has created is very unique.

After the first fifty pages you realize this is only the beginning, there are definitely going to be more books. So it's more an introduction into the world of Jinn and the first obstacles Ari has to clear, before she can become what she is meant to be. This creates some nice tension between her and Jai, which is interesting to follow. Still there is a bit lacking, like I'm waiting for the real stuff the happen, which hopefully will be in the next book.

Connect with Samantha Young:

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