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Wildefire (Wildefire #1)

by Karsten Knight (Goodreads Author)

3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 · rating details · 4,103 ratings · 684 reviews

Ashline Wilde never received an instruction manual on how to be a 16-year-old Polynesian volcano goddess. If she had, it might have contained helpful warnings such as:

• Dreaming about your (thankfully) mortal boyfriend may cause your bed to spontaneously combust
• Oven mitts should be worn at all times during heavy make-out sessions

Instead, Ash has to learn these life lesso...more

Kindle Edition

Published (first published July 26th 2011)

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YA Mythology Series

30th out of 169 books — 149 voters

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Apr 14, 2011 Kat Kennedy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kat-s-book-reviews, ya-pnr-maddness

Wildefire by Karsten Knight is what The Goddess Test should have been and wasn't.

In fact, Wildefire does many things right that the YA genre has been getting wrong. Those involved in the recent uproar over the lack of cultural inclusion in this genre can take a nice, refreshing, Polynesian breath of fresh air.

Or, you know, enjoy one of the many OTHER aspects of Polynesian culture...

Ashline is the modern reincarnation of an ancient Polynesian Goddess. Her sister, Eve, is also a reincarnation of...more

85 likes · like · see review

May 20, 2011 Vinaya rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-loved, comparative-5-stars, favorites, hmm-that-was-interesting, i-ll-stalk-you-til-you-read-it, surprised-me, ya-fantasy

I did NOT see that coming! No, I didn't. Not. At. All.

Okay, so Karsten Knight and I got off to a rocky start. Not personally, of course, but in terms of his prose. I read the first chapter of Wildefire on the Simon & Schuster website, and I was not very impressed. I wished desperately that a competent editor would take a pair of shears to the prose and trim it. It was florid, there were too many similes, and it was trying too hard to be 'pretty prose', if you know what I mean. Being a hype-w...more

56 likes · like · see review

May 15, 2011 Tatiana rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, ya, series-dropped-lost-steam, why-the-hype, tres-annoying

This is not for me.

A shocking amount of pointless, gratuitous, glorified violence that is written in such a way as if it should be applauded by the readers (and to my chagrin, yes, apparently some do think it is perfectly OK, no, cool, for a girl to beat up another girl for messing around with her boyfriend); everyone's flippant attitude towards this violence (really, a week's suspension for knocking someone unconscious?); a girl with her teeth knocked out trying to be mouthy with her victimize...more

42 likes · like · see review

May 20, 2011 Ceilidh rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Over the past few years, in the wake of the sparkle madness, we’ve seen a wide variety of paranormal mythologies saturate the YA market to the point where much of it has become derivative, overdone and frankly, a little dull. To find something original in the market is always pleasant, so a novel centred around a reincarnated Polynesian goddess was automatically a must read for me. So far, my GoodReads friends have been mixed in their opinions on the novel, so I will have to be the dull one here...more Over the past few years, in the wake of the sparkle madness, we’ve seen a wide variety of paranormal mythologies saturate the YA market to the point where much of it has become derivative, overdone and frankly, a little dull. To find something original in the market is always pleasant, so a novel centred around a reincarnated Polynesian goddess was automatically a must read for me. So far, my GoodReads friends have been mixed in their opinions on the novel, so I will have to be the dull one here and fall right in the middle.

Ashline is a great protagonist. She’s often stubborn and incredibly sarcastic – the banter she shares with her friends is a particular highlight of the book – and makes stupid mistakes, but she also suffers with consequences and has to learn how to mature and figure out what to do with her life and newfound destiny. Her relationship with her friends, family and the culture clash she has known through her whole life made her an often complex but always interesting heroine. This was also an instance where the obligatory romantic element didn’t bother me so much; she and Colt had great chemistry, actually took time to get to know one another and didn’t spend all their time obsessing over one another.

Aside from Ashline, the supporting cast ranges from good to bad in terms of development. Her group of close friends and fellow gods were especially humorous and their interactions made for some of the best parts of the novel. They actually felt like teenagers, not adults in smaller bodies, and their own personal journeys, while handled a little clumsily (the prose is serviceable but nothing particularly groundbreaking), brought further layers to the mythological elements, another high point in the book. However, I had a strong dislike (and not in the way the author intended) to Eve, Ash’s sister. She was a straight up sociopath with nothing beyond her two dimensional destruction and selfishness. I can understand what Knight’s intentions were with the character, and there are hints of bigger repercussions in her relationship with Ash, but they were overwhelmed by her psychotic behaviour. The moments where she is supposed to develop beyond this felt hollow, making her ultimately an underwhelming antagonist to the story. Another possible antagonist is introduced late into the novel who is even more two dimensional than Eve, complete with Bond villain style exposition of her past, but she’s dropped almost immediately.

From the first chapter, the book grabs you and is paced to keep you invested in the mystery, rushed ending aside. However, this opening may also put off many readers because of its violence. There is a lot of violence in the novel and it verged dangerously close to being gratuitous for me. I can understand the inherently violent nature of the gods and goddesses, and their struggles to keep control over their strange, burgeoning powers, but the characters often take a disappointingly flippant view of this violence which I found to be grating as the novel progressed. The opening chapter’s fight was a particularly bad example of this – I don’t care how violent or peaceful your neighbourhood is, there is absolutely no way you’d only get one week’s suspension from school for that sort of fight. The fact that this fight takes place over a boy didn’t please me much either. As well as the violent elements, I felt that the group accepted their fates a little too quickly, and seemed to take control of their powers with the same unrealistic speed.

While I didn’t love “Wildefire” in quite the same way many of my reviewer friends did, it was refreshing to read a paranormal YA with unique mythos, a strong, complex female protagonist and a circle of friends with witty interactions who actually cared about one another and did more than act as plot devices. Now that the first part of the story is told, I hope Karsten Knight can further develop a great story free deserving of that killer cliff-hanger, which will leave you both infuriated and waiting for more.

3.5/5.

I received my e-ARC of "Wildefire" from Simon and Schuster's Galley Grab programme.(less)

26 likes · like · see review

Jun 26, 2011 Jillian -always aspiring- rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: People who enjoyed Neil Gaiman's American Gods

Shelves: paranormal-supernatural-books, 2011-reads, exceeded-my-expectations, glad-i-gave-it-a-chance, best-endings, left-me-with-mixed-feelings, surprisingly-liked, out-of-the-box-ideas, writing-to-which-i-aspire, wowed-me, reviewed

(Actual Rating: 3.5 stars)

Wildefire by Karsten Knight is a strange beast of a novel. Nearly 400 pages, it's a bit of an intimidating novel – especially if you had been reading many iffy opinions about it as I had. Too much senseless violence. Unsympathetic heroine. Creepy love interest. So many one-star reviews had been coming into my Goodreads feed that, after a while, I had simply deleted the book from my shelves despite my having had the book listed to-read since August 2010.

But something hap...more

26 likes · like · see review

May 27, 2011 Steph Sinclair rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, galleygrab, 2011-reads, original-and-creative, disappointment, could-have-been-better, guilty-pleasures, young-adult, e-arc

*Sigh*
Do you know how you are really excited about a book and you have this feeling you are going to LOVE it. But soon as you start reading it you start to wonder if you have received the same copy as others who fell head over heels in love with it? Well, that is exactly what Wildefire was for me. I have a confession. I totally fell for the hype with this one. I really wanted to love this. Even when I felt like giving up halfway through, I continued on in hopes that it would get better. But, ala...more

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Jun 18, 2011 Nafiza rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: debut-authors-11, 2011, books-for-review

This is going to be a very long review – I probably shouldn’t even say review. More of a discussion, really, of what I thought about this book and why I was not impressed by it.

The last book that produced such a visceral reaction in me was the latest one in the Strange Angels series. That one, I didn’t complete because well, I disliked it that much. This one I felt compelled to complete because people whose reviews I follow assured me that this book gets better. After completing it, I have come...more

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Jul 13, 2011 Ashleigh Paige rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: just-not-good-enough-to-stick-with, s-and-s-galley-grab, the-decent-shelf-of-meh, arc

See more of my reviews sooner on The YA Kitten!

I got pressured into reading this book. Many of my Goodreads friends read it and their opinions fell on both sides of the spectrum with a few in the middle. Some of my friends (and you know who you are) asked me if I'd read it and said I should when I replied that no, Wildefire wasn't in my reading pile. Now I've read it and I'll parachute into that middleground. Not good, not bad, and certainly not a "me" book.

What seemed to attract so many people...more See more of my reviews sooner on The YA Kitten!

I got pressured into reading this book. Many of my Goodreads friends read it and their opinions fell on both sides of the spectrum with a few in the middle. Some of my friends (and you know who you are) asked me if I'd read it and said I should when I replied that no, Wildefire wasn't in my reading pile. Now I've read it and I'll parachute into that middleground. Not good, not bad, and certainly not a "me" book.

What seemed to attract so many people to it was the promising premise and the diversity of its characters so many readers were wishing for. On those, Wildefire delivered. The premise was a fresh one and the cast had a diversity in races I wish the rest of YA literature could embrace. I love having characters from all different backgrounds--Polynesian, Japanese, Haitian, and Egyptian, to start--but their actual characterization leaves a lot to be desired. None of them have their own distinct personalities that set them apart from one another and they sound almost alike in what they say.

I'm picky about romance in YA books and hardly notice them anymore because I'm not much of a romance person, but I kind of liked what Ashline and Colt had. Yeah, Colt says some pretty creepy things sometimes, but I've seen much worse and I can't expect every character ever to be good at words because some people (including me) are bad at words. Their development is good and their date into the woods at sunset was a great scene both for them and as a scene in a book. Certainly not my new favorite couple, but they're fun to read about.

The first chapter of the book is infamously divisive due to the violence and the book nearly lost me there too. I've read the myths too and I know the goddesses tend to go after the women and not the cheating gods of spouses, but that doesn't mean I can't be irritated. There were more than a few things off with how the characters acted, especially with the principal just standing by and letting a girl be beaten up by two different people. It isn't a book easily judged by the quality of its first chapter, that's for sure.

The prose and writing has its strong moments, especially during action scenes where Ash and her friends have to fight or in Ash's visions of a small girl being studied by scientists. Then it attempts to be pretty prose and only succeeds occasionally. There were more than a few "wait, what?" sort of moments to do with the prose. I would quote them so you could see what I mean, but I would rather not because it's an ARC. Cutting some of the failed pretty prose attempts before final publication would be a great idea.

Wildefire in its first half is somewhat dull. Ash is settling in at her new school, meeting and getting to know all the important players, but very little happens until about thirty-five or forty percent of the way in. Maybe this has to do with how impossible it was for me to concentrate on this book. I never became emotionally invested in the characters or their situations either. It's not a good thing when I have to sit down and force myself to read a book because I can't pay attention to it. It wasn't that I wasn't in a reading mood--I've been reading a lot the past few days--but Wildefire couldn't keep my attention.

The second half is when the story really starts to kick in, but close to the end of the book (and I admit this with shame), I skipped about seventy pages to get to the end because I still wasn't interested and I was ready to get the book over with. I don't feel like I missed anything vitally important. A truly good book is good from the first page to the last; readers shouldn't have to endure a dull first half to get to a worthwhile second half.

I don't know if I've said this before, but I'll close my review by saying it: I WISH PEOPLE WOULD STOP ENDING THEIR BOOKS WITH CLIFFHANGERS. You don't need to use cliffhangers to make people read the next book in your series. If the reader liked the first book, they'll probably read the books that come after it. Ending books with cliffhangers just results in frustrated readers. Wildefire definitely wasn't a "me" book with all its strengths and flaws, but give it a try if you're interested.(less)

11 likes · like · see review

Jun 08, 2011 Crystal rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011

I cannot finish this one. I have really tried to like it, but I am going to give up. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the summer and I feel so let down. I have been told that it gets better but I am having trouble getting past the characters attitudes. Ash was so violent that I don't know if there is any way for her to redeem herself. I was also shocked at how X-Menish this book was. I wasn't prepared for that and it felt way to cliche. So I am going to let this book go and grab some...more

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May 22, 2011 Katya rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, arc-galley, favorites, myths-revised, teen-lit, the-ya-project

What? What?! What do you mean! You can't end the book like this! I demand a sequel!!!

*scuffle*

*straps alter ego to the wall*

*mutters* Damn fangirls.

Q: So, how can I describe Karsten Knight's "Wildefire" without sounding like a complete and utter psycho?

A: I can't. I can promise though that I will not go off stalking anyone - I'm in a session right now.

But on the (relatively) serious note, I have to say that this was one of those experiences that you want to repeat, again and again. Seriously: I...more

11 likes · like · see review

May 03, 2013 Lea rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: annoying-romance, epic-fail, made-me-want-to-punch-something, make-it-stop-now, mythology, tstl-characters, wtf

.

Yep, so in a nutshell, I was not a fan of this book. Like, at all.

My main issue with Wildefire was that I didn't like the main character.

Wait, scratch that-- I could not stand the main character.

Wait, scratch that again-- I wish the main character had taken a running dive off of a cliff and spontaneously combusted in mid-free fall, or met any other catastrophe a la Wile E. Coyote.

Like so:

Yes, that's how much I detested Ashline Wilde-- I had to whip out some visuals of her cartoon-ish demise.

W...more

8 likes · like · see review

Mar 26, 2011 Kari rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-teen

The Short Version:
Unique in concept and engaging in play out, Wildefire covers a range of emotions and builds a strong plot with fantastic characters. Filled with witty banter and sarcastic retorts, and written in an incredibly fluid, intelligent way, this one is both fun and interesting. Ashline is a phenomenal central character, smoothly built and perfectly damaged to create a well rounded, fully dimensional and relatable protagonist. The plot has a very steady pace, and with easily inserted...more The Short Version:
Unique in concept and engaging in play out, Wildefire covers a range of emotions and builds a strong plot with fantastic characters. Filled with witty banter and sarcastic retorts, and written in an incredibly fluid, intelligent way, this one is both fun and interesting. Ashline is a phenomenal central character, smoothly built and perfectly damaged to create a well rounded, fully dimensional and relatable protagonist. The plot has a very steady pace, and with easily inserted world building but plenty of mystery, Wildefire rockets out of the gate and doesn’t hold back.

The Extended Version:
Ashline has an incredible internal strength that explodes off the pages from the start and doesn’t relent. Even when she’s unsure about something, Ash never backs down or makes excuses for herself. Her sarcasm is hilarious and she always has a come back for everything, no matter the situation. Even when forced to face some hard truths not only about herself but others, Ashline finds a way to handle it in a way that says so much about her character, while still being understandable and fun for the reader. She is fierce in all the best ways, gentle at just the right moments, and intelligent in the most refreshing of manners.

Apart from Ashline, there are several others characters who play a strong role and have pretty large presences throughout. Eve, Ashline’s older sister, shows up at the most unexpected but perfectly timed moments, and seems to wreak havoc wherever she goes. Knight does a remarkable job showcasing the full nature of the relationship between these two, from the connection of sisterhood to the push and pull of their differing personalities and actions. Despite her violent overtones, Eve has some softer moments, pitching her in a subtly sympathetic light that has a lasting impact. Cole has an intriguing nature from the first time he steps onto the pages, and is suave and smooth while still unsure in all the right ways to make him downright delectable and memorable. Raja is my favorite character of the bunch, as witty and on her toes as Ashline and makes some fantastic character strides. Though she comes across at first as the stereotypical gorgeous snob, she is far from it and Knight weaves this perfectly throughout. Closing out the cast of characters is Rolfe and Ade, two boys who are swoon worthy and completely fun, and Jackie, who fits into things in an interesting way, and is a great friend to Ash.

Though the characters stand out prominently, and have a beautiful kinship between them that plays an integral part in the whole story, the plot also has a lasting effect. With new elements mixing with some polished, known concepts, Wildefire covers the gauntlet from downright creepy to empowering. Intertwining mythologies and giving a very strong contemporary and human component to it, Knight has built something that is unlike anything else. The worldbuilding happens in a very easy way, often coming through quietly without the reader fully realizing it until later. Playing heavily on building mystery while still revealing new information at a steady rate as well, Knight has woven a perfect mystery in a fun and fresh way.

Rounding out this book’s homerun in quality is the writing. Though written in third person, this one puts the reader right into Ashline’s mind throughout and forges a very intense connection from the start. Never once did I find myself drifting out of her head, nor did I notice the third person perspective for the bulk of the story. With gorgeous, noteworthy descriptions and a fantastic grasp on and use of the English language at its finest, Knight not only showcases his storytelling skills but his writing talents as well. The descriptions have a great flow, never coming off as bulky or forced, and create a very firm imagery. Even with this, there is still a very distinct and clear voice that clearly screams Ashline, while still giving intonation to the other characters as well.

Though ending on a killer, jaw dropping cliffhanger, Knight wraps up much of this book’s events while still leaving it in a place where the reader will have no way of predicting what’s coming next. There are plenty of completely unexpected twists and reveals, and the full magnitude of everything laid down in this installment is impressive. The chapter set up also adds an interesting overall element to the book, breaking it not only down by day but into three sections, with an interlude to each that adds a huge level of mystery. The transitions between, however, are very smooth, and tie together by the end of the book. Interesting and fun more than anything, but still harboring plenty of intense moments, and with some very well done action scenes, Wildefire breaks new ground both in concept and play out.(less)

7 likes · like · see review

Jun 18, 2011 Caitlin rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: eagerly-waiting-release

BEFORE

Well, what the fuck?

That's all I have to say after reading the first chapter/preview. I'll still read it, but now I'm a little annoyed.

AFTER

I give up. I tried. I seriously wanted to see something underneath all the cut-out characters, over the top--everything. I wanted to find something that would make my heart race, even if it was for a measly second. But no. Instead, I can't stand it. So, I stop right here (page 104).

I'll keep it simple: nothing is realistic. It's like Knight took what i...more BEFORE

Well, what the fuck?

That's all I have to say after reading the first chapter/preview. I'll still read it, but now I'm a little annoyed.

AFTER

I give up. I tried. I seriously wanted to see something underneath all the cut-out characters, over the top--everything. I wanted to find something that would make my heart race, even if it was for a measly second. But no. Instead, I can't stand it. So, I stop right here (page 104).

I'll keep it simple: nothing is realistic. It's like Knight took what is desirable--teens being adults along with "awesome" godly heritages--and then wrote a book. So instead of having REAL people, we have blown up, outrageous characters who do outrageous things without batting an eyelash. Cool, right?

NO.

They're have been plenty of books (and other forms story telling mediums) where the author requires to reader to stretch their sense of realism. Example: Heist Society(I would use The Goonies as an example but it's not a book, so yea). A bunch of teenagers gang together and plan to steal a painting from a museum. It's adolescent Ocean Eleven. Of course we all know a bunch of teenagers, conning a highly protected painting is impossible, but Ally Carter is able to pull it off with tons of charm. The best thing of all--her characters are still children. They still fear getting caught by adults, they still are aware of what they're doing and the consequences, they each of insecurities. The characters themselves are grounded even if what they're doing isn't. You can still relate and identify with one or the other characters, and still be entertained by the absurdity.

Knights--not so much. It's almost like he tried too hard to provide badassery (yea, not a real word) for entertainment. Way, way to hard. Entertainment isn't everything. Depth in fact, is more important than entreatment (IMO). I rather have a badly paced book, with meaning, than a book that goes and goes and goes, but leads to no where. Plus, how else am I suppose to relate to the main character?

In all honesty, I'm too lazy to write it all out. I could probably go on and complain about Ash, her sister, the WTF violence, the teen/adult problem, creepy romance interests, lack of authority. But I want to wash my hands of this book. Let's all move on, shall we?(less)

13 likes · like · see review

Jan 09, 2013 Wendy Darling rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-general, read-2011, young-adult, skimmed-or-unfinished, eye-bleeding, inexplicably-violent, annoying-main-characters, male-ya-author, poc, 2011-publication

Read the first 80 pages, skimmed the rest, saw the big secret, saw the big cliffhanger.

Style and story are just not for me, and I really have no interest in spending the time to write a review. More details in my reading status update.

9 likes · like · see review

Jun 06, 2011 Penelope rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: published-2011, reviewed-books

1.5 stars

To say I fell for the hype for this book would not be the truth...because the truth is that I created my own hype for this book, long before I found Karsten's blog and saw how hilariously funny he is, which only added to it. The sad part is that after all my excitement, I didn't like Wildefire. I know, I'm crying too, because that means that what comes next is stuff I hate to type.

It's truth time and if you loved this book, you may not like what I have to say.

Let me start off by saying...more

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May 18, 2011 Sharon rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle, 2011-debs, pure-torture, least-favorite-books, unfinished

I created a new shelf just for Wildefire called Pure Torture. Seriously I think you have to be a sociopath to truly enjoy this book. Nothing but senseless violence from a main character who think her sh*t don't stink. The book literally starts with a fight all over a stupid boy.

Fight after fight all in the town of Scarsdale, New York. This part cracked me up because I live in the same county and let me tell you, if this happened here the school vp wouldn't just stand by why some girl got her te...more

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Jul 02, 2011 Kaye rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: My worst enemy. No wait, I don't want them to be tortured by this either.

Shelves: 2011, summer-2011, pulseit, mythology

No. Just no.

So I logged onto PulseIt for the first time in weeks to find this book was already up for free, and was like, "Why not?" I love mythology, particularly those types of books that try to put it in perspective with the present - such as Rick Riordan, the amazing guy that he is - and the multicultural aspects that people kept raving about sounded appealing.

All I can say is, I have no idea why I went through with finishing the story.

First of all, a guy writing from a girl's POV (honestly,...more

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May 14, 2011 Kristin (Beneath Shining Stars, I Read) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So, I'm struck with the urge to tell you, dear reader, to run out and pick up a copy of Wildefire posthaste. More importantly, whatever you do, do not try to compare this to The Goddess Test because the only thing that they remotely have in common is the fact that they both feature deities/gods/goddesses. In Wildefire there is reincarnation, a very strong heroine (both figuratively and literally), deities from a bevy of religions and places, unusual weather (and lightning strikes) and--in my opi...more So, I'm struck with the urge to tell you, dear reader, to run out and pick up a copy of Wildefire posthaste. More importantly, whatever you do, do not try to compare this to The Goddess Test because the only thing that they remotely have in common is the fact that they both feature deities/gods/goddesses. In Wildefire there is reincarnation, a very strong heroine (both figuratively and literally), deities from a bevy of religions and places, unusual weather (and lightning strikes) and--in my opinion--just the right amount of romance. More importantly, Ashline Wilde is Polynesian and as such, is a welcome change.

By no means is Wildefire a slow read, but it was the sort of book that I wanted to savor and as such, I took three days to read it. It's the sort of book that you don't want to finish reading simply because you don't want things to end--and well, then you might be like me and deathly afraid of cliffhangers. Speaking of cliffhangers, wait until you get to the last page! The sentence that I just typed will make a lot more sense when you reach it--and now I've got theories, but I promise you, my lips are sealed. The only thing that I will tell you is that you might want to look up something mentioned at the end--and actually I was going to add more onto this sentence, but I realized that it might make you speculate, and I don't want to ruin that moment of, "No way!"

Ashline Wilde leaves New York on less than pleasant terms and situates herself at Blackwood Academy in Northern California. It's there that things really begin to unfold as she learns that she's not the only one on campus with unusual powers. Drawn together, the group of five will have to come into their own and more importantly, complete the tasks set before them to keep Ragnarok from occurring. However, this isn't the only thing happening in Ash's life. Her psychotic sister Eve has found her (and doesn't appear to be leaving anytime soon), Colt Halliday definitely likes her (and she's got the hots for him), and lastly, she's been having visions about a little girl who looks like her, but isn't her. It's never been quite so awkward to be a teenager.

I'm trying really, really hard right now to give nothing involving spoilers away so all I'm going to tell you--if you haven't guessed by now--is that I seriously enjoyed reading Wildefire and that was one hell of a read. Ash is strong, kicks some serious butt, and isn't anti-dresses (although clothing tends to dislike fire and as such, doesn't like Ash too much). Her sister? Is a bit crazy but loves her little sister, even if she wrecks Ash's life and to be perfectly honest, she struck me as a, well, you know, b-word. Serena has a very dry sense of humor, Raja definitely grew on me (she's my second favorite character in Wildefire after Ash), and I loved the chemistry between Ash and Colt. Then there's Blackwood Academy which is amazing in its own right--and if I had to pick a fictional school to go to high school at, this would be it. I mean, their mascot is a spotted owl! Granted of course, I'd probably steer clear of the tennis courts.

So now that I've spent four paragraphs telling you about how much I like Wildefire, I'm going to once again recommend that you pick up a copy. Also, although there is action in Wildefire, I feel that it's more about the characters evolving from teens who know nothing about who they truly are, to teenage gods and goddesses (although they're still not there yet--I mean, it's only book one... right!?). This is a story that I'm hoping continues--as in doing the "is it written yet, is it written yet!?" dance. (less)

5 likes · like · see review

May 21, 2011 Courtney added it · review of another edition

Recommended to Courtney by: Emily Hainsworth

Shelves: 2011, ya-fiction

Here's something I never thought I'd say in a review but wouldn't mind saying again: Wildefire is pretty much what you would get if Sam Raimi decided to write a YA novel. We're talkin' like, Xena (okay, I know that's Rob Tapert but Raimi produced and they're friends and have you ever compared Army of Darkness to a Xena episode? Like certain cinematic sensibilities? I KNOW!) infused with the violence of Drag Me to Hell and the kind of wry humour you get in flicks like Evil Dead 2 and Army of Dark...more Here's something I never thought I'd say in a review but wouldn't mind saying again: Wildefire is pretty much what you would get if Sam Raimi decided to write a YA novel. We're talkin' like, Xena (okay, I know that's Rob Tapert but Raimi produced and they're friends and have you ever compared Army of Darkness to a Xena episode? Like certain cinematic sensibilities? I KNOW!) infused with the violence of Drag Me to Hell and the kind of wry humour you get in flicks like Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness. I could probably end my review here and that would be enough, right? Who doesn't like Sam Raimi? The only thing I was going to say was the blurb doesn't really suggest a Sam Raimi kind of time but then I re-read it and it seems to have a promise of violence AND ends all like punnily so I take it back.

Wildefire is pretty rollicking. I have been trying to think of the best word to describe it as I read and that is the one I came up with. Rollicking! It really is. The first 37 pages are a lot of fisticuffs, which may or may not be to everyone's liking (I like fisticuffs) but it does set the stage for everything that follows, except maybe not in the way you'd expect. Knight is clever in his set-ups. 99,000 times I thought the book was going one way--and I sort of felt like the narrative was slyly winking at me when it did--and then took me in another direction, all, "HAH!" And I appreciated that, even though it made a fool out of me roughly 99,000 times. Eventually, you (by you I mean me) have step back and trust that you're going where you're supposed to be going and the destination is going to be good, and in the case of Wildefire, it really was. You know when you read a book and you want a BIG finish? This book had that.

(Also? VOLCANO RELATED LITERATURE, okay. I love volcanoes.)

Ashline is a really fresh protagonist. She's ANGRY and clever and did I mention angry? Her reactions are often caustic/sarcastic, knee-jerk and physical. Ash is no empty vessel, guys. As such, she made choices that frustrated and confused me at times--she went this way, when I was thinking, no, go that way! Girl, what are you doing?--which, in my ~humble~ opinion made for a more engaging read. Her unpredictability, just the fierce PRESENCE of character, is such a sell for me. I also like that she wasn't defined by Colt. Colt was really interesting. He was there JUST enough, so it made their interactions more electrifying/gratifying. It felt earned.

Overall, Wildefire is a fantastic and ROLLICKING arrival on the YA scene. I am looking forward to whatever Knight has in store for us next. Which would appear to be a sequel. Which I better not have to wait too long for.

Futher thoughts: If Wildefire gets optioned for a movie maybe Sam Raimi can direct it and Bruce Campbell can totally cameo in it, somehow. Are you reading this Karsten Knight? Tell your people I said this. Find a way.

But seriously, you guys, good stuff. I know lots of readers who would enjoy this one. I'll be recommending it to them.

Also shout-out to Emily Hainsworth who sent this to me. Thanks, ~*Emily*~!(less)

12 likes · like · see review

Sep 25, 2012 Krystle rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: did-not-finish

Update: I found out WHICH Polynesian Goddess he based it off of. And ding ding ding, it's MINE (Hawaiian).

http://enchantedinkpot.livejournal.co...

I'm so annoyed. Yeah, yeah, every volcano brings about birth and destruction. Whatever. That's SUCH a scientific/exoticized view of things. If he really wanted to invoke our mythology well he should've actually paid attention to our origin stories.

It's not like it's really hard to find.

http://www.sacred-texts.com/pac/hm/hm...
http://www.sacred-texts.c ...more

5 likes · like · see review

May 25, 2011 Krys rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, medium-length-book, third-person-narrative, arcs-i-no-longer-have, read-in-2011, mythology, series

Well, this book fizzled and died for me. For the record, I really wanted to like Wildefire by Karsten Knight, but the read just went from bad to worse. For starters, it's not at all what I expected it would be. For second... it's not very well written. The transitions are clunky and the author uses too many weird devices to tell a story.

I always know it's a bad thing when I am not absorbed in a book, but this was ridiculous. I spent three days lazily chipping away at this book and didn't get any...more

7 likes · like · see review

Aug 17, 2011 Cait rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

No no no no no no no just a million times no, Karsten Knight. I don't really even know why I rated this book two stars; it deserves a one but I feel like being nice today so it gets two stars for......I guess for even being published. Because either Knight is the smoothest negotiator in history, his publishers have never read a good book in their lives, or they all are idiots. Maybe even a mix of all three, but I'm guessing more of the latter. A lot more of the latter.

First of all, I really...more

15 likes · like · see review

Aug 05, 2011 Kristi (The Story Siren) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: signed-books, books-i-own

That first chapter was insane (so was the last one for that matter) talk about a beat down... I would not mess with Ashline Wilde, I can tell you that much. Girl is bad ass. I also wish I could channel her witty and sarcastic comebacks.... I've never been that cool, nor that confident. Ashline is about as far from a Mary-Sue type character as you can get. And I loved it! The other characters are just as vibrant and unforgettable as Ashline.

The mythology within the story was fascinating. The mix...more

5 likes · like · see review

Feb 09, 2011 Melannie :) marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: coming-up

It sounds like nothing I've read before.

Volcano goddess= MUST READ.

*EXCITED*

3 likes · like · see review

Apr 21, 2011 Kreag Sheehan marked it as to-read · review of another edition

I can't wait! We need to see more male authors out there in the YA world too.

3 likes · like · see review

Aug 06, 2011 KM added it · review of another edition

Shelves: mythology, 2011-debuts, simon-schuster

Hmm...

I'm having a really difficult time reviewing this book, mostly because I've got a lot of mixed feelings. All the negative comments about it are true:

- There's a lot of unnecessary violence.
- There's a lot of unnecessary vulgar language.
- The girls in the story act like boys.
- There aren't any sympathetic characters.

But having said all that, I've got to admit that I liked the book. The premise is an interesting one - a mixture of lots of different types of mythology, like a sort of "X-Men"...more Hmm...

I'm having a really difficult time reviewing this book, mostly because I've got a lot of mixed feelings. All the negative comments about it are true:

- There's a lot of unnecessary violence.
- There's a lot of unnecessary vulgar language.
- The girls in the story act like boys.
- There aren't any sympathetic characters.

But having said all that, I've got to admit that I liked the book. The premise is an interesting one - a mixture of lots of different types of mythology, like a sort of "X-Men" meets the ancient world. There are also a lot of questions thrown out there about who the characters really are, the identity of the true villain, and how everything ties together. In fact, I'd venture to say that there aren't many questions answered at all in this first book of the series. That could have been frustrating, but I didn't find it distracted from my enjoyment of the book; I just hope there are some answers in the next one.

One did bother me was the lack of characters I could sympathize with or even like. Ashline is, quite possibly, the most manly girl I've read in YA fiction to date. And I don't mean in the way she dresses or looks; I'm talking in the way she acts - how she treats her peers, views relationships, and talks. By the end, I was wondering if she had a drop of estrogen in her system at all.

One reviewer mentioned that all the girls in Karsten Knight's debut talk like boys in a locker room, and I have to say I agree. There's no short of cursing, smack talk, and vulgar references. Don't get me wrong - girls certainly have their fair share of crude moments, but I'm not sure I know that many girls who would talk like that with boys around. Maybe one girl out a group that size would; but all of them? I doubt it. There wasn't a girly girl in the bunch, or a modest one either. Sure, you can have a kick-butt heroine, but someone she knows she be different. Even Hera and Athena had their softer moments.

Then there's the issue of the entire book (with the exception of the prologue and epilogue) taking place within the span of a week. Because there was such little time elapsing, I felt like the pace was really slow. The middle lagged a lot, and I wasn't genuinely interested in the story until I hit the two-thirds mark. Then the climax felt a bit rushed. So pacing was a big issue for me.

On the positive side, I thought there was a lot of wit in the story, which I appreciated. From frequently visiting Karsten Knight's blog, I was hoping for his humor to translate to print. I wasn't disappointed. There quite a few good one-liners, and the dialogue was entertaining. But it made me wonder how believable it was that so many characters could be that witty and who can have a sarcastic quip all the time. Ashline really wasn't ever tongue-tied. It would have gone a long way for me to see her stumble some verbally...or really at all. She was a bit of a teen wonder, and I have a hard time identifying or sympathizing with a perfectly beautiful, talented, intelligent, funny, tough heroine. In this case, a little flaw would have gone a long way.

I wish I could say more about this book, but it kind of left me apathetic. Did I like it? Yeah. Do I want to read the next one? Sure. Will I be counting the days until book 2 hits the shelves? Definitely not. A slightly-better-than-mediocre read for me.

Thoughts?(less)

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Dec 30, 2010 Leandra marked it as to-read · review of another edition

I cannot wait for this book! Karsten is hilarious on his blog, and I can't wait to see what his writing style is like.

2 likes · like · see review

Dec 28, 2010 AJ marked it as to-read-11 · review of another edition

Oven mitts should be worn at all times during heavy make-out sessions...

Hahaha ^^ Very interesting storyline

2 likes · like · see review

Jul 21, 2011 Zoë Marriott rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This cover = LOVE.

1 like · like · see review

Nov 04, 2012 Lydia rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I went into this with an open mind but I have to say it disappointed me completely. I'm still not finished yet, but I figured I'd write this anyway. The god/goddesses bit initially seemed interesting but after reading the first chapter and getting to the second it was like I'd started reading a completely different book. The main character has a brutal fight with a classmate over an ex, inadvertently gets her killed, and possibly dies by the hand of her own sister. Yet flash forward about a year...more I went into this with an open mind but I have to say it disappointed me completely. I'm still not finished yet, but I figured I'd write this anyway. The god/goddesses bit initially seemed interesting but after reading the first chapter and getting to the second it was like I'd started reading a completely different book. The main character has a brutal fight with a classmate over an ex, inadvertently gets her killed, and possibly dies by the hand of her own sister. Yet flash forward about a year, and she's making out with some new guy, who she almost maims for trying to have sex with her. But forget all that violence now everyone, its normal in this book. This same under-aged teen will now go to some shady bar and hang out with her RA and classmates. My biggest problem with this book was all the "action/suspense" scenes that seemed to be randomly thrown in for fun. Especially the almost kidnap of Selene, her BLIND classmate. I mean sure, Ash and her friends hear some screaming and end up in a fight with her captors, narrowly saving her, by the way, but its almost like a far away dream that no one worries about after. The whole way reading I couldn't help but think is anything interesting going to happen? Or do I have to wait until the end for a fraction of SOMETHING to be explained or the plot to advance. What really grated on my nerves was the pure garbage that is Ash and Colt's whole relationship. It had to be one of the most boring, unrealistic, forced things I've ever read. There seemed to be no attraction between them and it seemed more like he's her adult stalker who picked a crappy job and is somehow allowed to be on school campus to meet his jailbait friends. All of Ash's friends though seem to fall in the same category of Colt and Ash, FLAT. No real fleshing out of their characters, just people who wander around with witty one-liners once in a while. From as much as I've read it could have a much better book if it was paced better, less monotonous, and more planned out than what is now: a wannabe supernatural, boarding school novel with some gratuitous, unnecessary violence, non-existent powers, and bare bone myths strewn across for the heck of it.(less)

2 likes · like · see review

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About Karsten Knight

Author of WILDEFIRE, coming July 26, 2011 from Simon & Schuster.

Karsten Knight has been writing since the age of six, when he completed his first masterpiece: a picture book series about an adventurous worm. In the two decades that have followed, Karsten worked as a proofreader, a bookseller, and a college admissions counselor before finally deciding that his true calling was as a volcano godd...more

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“Without missing a beat he said, “This year, Santa, I’d like a pony and an Easy-Bake Oven.”
Raja grunted and pushed him off to the side. “You’ll be getting coal in a place where it hurts if you ever attempt to sit in my lap again.” — 41 people liked it

“Colt has the subtlety of a car alarm.” — 27 people liked it

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