Smokeless Fire by Samantha Young was released today, October 21, 2011 in the U.S. and the UK in eBook format and is currently available to order online at Amazon (U.S.) and Amazon UK.
A paperback edition of Smokeless Fire is in the works and will be available to order online soon.
Smokeless Fire is the first book in the new Fire Spirits series by author Samantha Young.
Fear the Heat…
For the last two years Ari’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.
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Ari Johnson had no idea that her life could get more complicated than it already was.
Her childhood best friend Charlie, the boy she had a secret crush on for years, had completely fallen apart when his brother was killed. And try as she might, she could not save him from the downward spiral he was in.
Her father was more absentee than anything. And every time she tried to let him know just how much she really needed him, he made her feel ungrateful and selfish and spoiled.
She was supposed to graduate and go to college just like all her friends. She was supposed to be excited about it. But all she could think about was how much she didn’t want to go.
Of course, after everything she learned about who and what she was, who her parents really were and just what was expected of her, she’d gladly take those complications any day.
Finding out she was a Jinn, a legendary being with magical abilities was bad enough. But finding out the man who raised her, the man she thought was her father, wasn’t actually her dad, was a shock she didn’t think she could get over any time soon.
And to make matters even worse, she wasn’t just any old Jinn, but one that was being sought after to choose sides in the War of the Flames, putting everyone she knew in danger.
As much as she had wanted her life to be different, she never wanted this. And if she could be granted one wish, she’d wish to have her old life back.
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Smokeless Fire is the enchanting and incredibly exciting first book in the new Fire Spirits series by author Samantha Young. This story, which introduces readers to the ancient, magical and legendary world of the Jinn, is a captivating and refreshingly unique addition to the current offerings for young and not-so-young adult readers.
Stories of genies and their power and magic go way back, but this author adds her own spin and creativity, weaving in new ideas and breathing new life into these age-old tales.
Smokeless Fire is the story of a girl, Ari Johnson, who at eighteen discovers that she is not human as she had always believed, but is the daughter of two Jinn who left her in the mortal world to be raised by a man she had thought was her father.
She is forced to learn about her history and about who and what she is, because living in ignorance has put not only her, but her friends, in danger. And those who are looking to have her on their side will stop at nothing until she embraces her magic and her powers and chooses to join them.
Even with a protector at her side around the clock, Ari will have to decide whether she can live with putting everyone’s life at risk by refusing to accept that she is Jinn and ignoring the tremendous power and magic that exists within her or whether she’s willing to risk her own life if she does.
The Jinn rulers in this story are cold and calculating, master manipulators and exceptional game players, with incredible power and little regard for who gets hurt. Even if it’s one of their own.
And while all Jinn are not evil, most have a dark side. With the amount of power at their command, it’s very easy for the darkness to take hold, and hopefully Ari won’t succumb to its lure.
Smokeless Fire is an utterly riveting must read with characters who have intriguing abilities, and hidden motives and agendas that remain shrouded in secrecy at the story’s end, leaving readers anxiously awaiting the next installment in the series.
Reviewer gives this book
On a personal note:
I have read enough of Samantha Young’s writing to know that she is madly, insanely, ridiculously talented and that I will love basically anything she has to write. But I will admit that I thought based on the subject matter alone that this would be my least favorite of her books. I was wrong.
Completely and totally wrong. I cannot believe how much I love this new series by one of my favorite authors. I never would have thought I could fall in love with a story about Genies or Djinn (or Jinn as they’re called in this book). I was never lured in by their powers or the world in which these legendary beings existed. Until now.
Now I can’t wait until the next book in the series is released. Especially after the way things ended, which makes me want to jump on a plane to Scotland to beg the author to reveal what she has in store for Ari, Jai, Charlie, The Red King…and The Glass King.
Although I had taken a sneak peek at the first chapter on the author’s blog some time ago, so I knew that the story intrigued me, I wasn’t sure just how much I’d love this story when the point of view switched from Ari to Jai in the second chapter. As a Jinn, I just wasn’t sure how much of a connection I could possibly make with him, and when he was first introduced I wasn’t sure just what part he’d play in the story. I remained wary.
Until the very next chapter. Once it switched back to Ari’s perspective I was immediately sucked right back into the story. Ari was a totally sympathetic character. I couldn’t help but ache for her and the loneliness she felt after basically losing her best friend Charlie after the death of his brother.
And she just seemed so unbelievably lost. She had a father who seemed callous and distant and friends who seemed more fair-weather than anything. I kept hoping that Charlie would come around. I was rooting for the two of them. For awhile.
So of course when she discovered what she was – and you may think you know from the description, but you don’t – even with the all the problems and drama that comes with it, I couldn’t wait to see just what powers she had and how she planned on using them.
I have got to say that the author created some seriously awesome abilities for her characters. And not just Ari. The bad guys have some pretty wicked powers too. I am fascinated by Azazil and all his sons, the Kings.
But it’s Jai that won my heart. I did not expect that at all. I thought I’d be a member of Team Charlie, but nope, my allegiance is firmly with Jai. He’s all sorts of sexy. He’s strong and caring – even when he doesn’t want to be – and just a little bit broken like Ari is. They are so unbelievably perfect together.
I am a brand new fan of the world of the Jinn. Samantha Young created one that is unique and alluring and filled with all kinds of secrets that I want answers to. In my wildest imagination I had no idea there could be quite so many types of beings that had the cruelty and coldness of the Fae but with a whole different set of rules and such seriously bad-a** abilities.
There is just a hint of a love triangle, which I almost always tend to love and did very much so in this book, but for those who aren’t huge fans, this one felt important to the story.
And there is definitely a lot left up in the air at the end – I know I have a million and a half questions – even if it doesn’t quite feel completely like being left hanging off a cliff.
While I don’t usually take much notice of chapter titles, I did in this book, and kept trying to figure out what they could possibly mean before I started reading each chapter.
And I still have questions about that prologue even after I read the story and went back to re-read it (which I highly recommend). I definitely knew more about the location but I’m still wondering just who the characters are.
This new series is a definite must read for me. I could not put it down and easily devoured it in one sitting. And with passages like the one below, how could I not?
Favorite passage:
He laughed, an unhappy sound that ripped at Ari. She wanted to reach for him. Take his hand. Do something to comfort this man who had come so suddenly into her life, pretending to be some untouchable, uncaring being when there was clearly so much more to him than that.
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Book trailer for Smokeless Fire:
About Samantha Young:
Samantha Young is a 25 year old writer who resides in her home county of Stirlingshire, Scotland. She is a self-proclaimed book addict and kindle junkie, using fantasy, dystopian, sci-fi and paranormal novels to feed her addiction.
Her young adult paranormal trilogy The Tale of Lunarmorte is an amazon bestselling series and Young’s first foray into young adult fiction after graduating from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in ancient and medieval history. Samantha followed the release of this series with a second series, titled Warriors of Ankh. At present, she is a full-time writer working on a number of projects for near future release. Currently she is the author of seven novels and one novella. (From Goodreads)
This review is based on an eARC I received from the author in exchange for my honest review.
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To check out all the stops on the tour, visit the Fire Spirits website by clicking the banner, below.
Next stop: Visit Shortie Says for a character interview with Charlie and another chance to win an eBook of Smokeless Fire.
What’s Up for Grabs:
One winner will receive a signed copy of Smokeless Fire & swag. Two runners-up will win an eBook copy of Smokeless Fire.
The deets:
1. One entry per person.
2. You must be 14 or older.
3. Giveaway is International.
4. All prizes will be sent directly from the author
5. Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific on Friday October 28th. Winner will be chosen by Random.org and announced on Saturday, October 29th.
6. Winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours after notification to respond with their details.
There is no requirement to like or follow. But if you’d like to spread the word that would be awesome!
And if you’d like to stalk the author on Twitter, here’s where you can make that happen… @SYoungSFAuthor.
To enter, fill out the form below:
The Smokeless Fire giveaway is now closed. Stay tuned and the winners will be announced shortly.
Congratulations Julie! You are the winner for the signed print copy of Smokeless Fire plus swag sent directly from the author. I will be contacting you by email and you will have 48 hours to respond with your details or I will be forced to choose another winner.
Congratulations Sizzling Reads and Ashley Long! You are the winners for the eBooks of Smokeless Fire by Samantha Young. The 2nd place finisher was Kaitlyn in Bookland, but as she won a copy of the eBook of Smokeless Fire already from Fiktshun’s Ramblings, I’ve removed her name and gone to the third place finisher.
Kaitlyn – if you had wanted another eBook copy of Smokeless Fire, please email me and I’ll personally send you another copy!
Thank you to everyone for stopping by for the tour. Samantha Young is an amazingly talented author and I hope all of you get a chance to read her books.