DAUGHTER OF THE FLAMES

The cover for this book is absolutely gorgeous, don't you think? I read the blurb for this book ages ago and have been waiting impatiently for it since. It was released in June in the US, so I ordered it online and got it a week later... but by then I was in the middle of writing my own novel and had to put it aside. And then when I finished I'd started another book already, and then the 11th Plum book was released -- ah, to cut a long story short: I started reading it late Sunday afternoon and finished it early this morning.

And what did I think? Wow! That's what. Honestly, this book is awesome. There was so much tension and the desire to know what was going to happen next, that I became totally captivated.

Isabella "Izzy" De Marco is a New Yorker who discovers she is the long-lost heiress of a legacy of magic handed down to the women in her family by Joan of Arc. She is part of the House of the Flames and hasn't known about it for 26 years. Now, her nightmares are getting worse, and she notices a strange man in black watching her house. Izzy also meets the dark and mysterious Jean-Marc de Devereaux. He tells her magic exists, as well as other darker things. She finds herself thrown into a world that's in turmoil and Jean-Marc becomes her mentor and anchor into this new world of the Gifted.

This book was action-packed from the beginning and pretty much doesn't let up. Actually, there's commotion and chaos all the way to the end and you're left wanting more. Izzy is a great character who proves her strength even though she's continually struggling with what's happening around her. Jean-Marc is captivating and bordering on the edge of good-guy-trying to-help-her, or good-guy-in-this-for-his-own-benefit. There's a great array of interesting characters I can't wait to read about some more. Yeah, this is a trilogy and I can't wait for the next instalments!

So do yourself a favour, check it out! Today -- what you waiting for? ;)