Book Review: Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova

Incendiary Release Date: 28th April 2020
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Renata Convida was only a child when she was kidnapped by the King's Justice and brought to the luxurious palace of Andalucia. As a Robari, the rarest and most feared of the magical Moria, Renata's ability to steal memories from royal enemies enabled the King's Wrath, a siege that resulted in the deaths of thousands of her own people.

Now Renata is one of the Whispers, rebel spies working against the crown and helping the remaining Moria escape the kingdom bent on their destruction. The Whispers may have rescued Renata from the palace years ago, but she cannot escape their mistrust and hatred--or the overpowering memories of the hundreds of souls she turned "hollow" during her time in the palace.

When Dez, the commander of her unit, is taken captive by the notorious Sangrado Prince, Renata will do anything to save the boy whose love makes her place among the Whispers bearable. But a disastrous rescue attempt means Renata must return to the palace under cover and complete Dez's top secret mission. Can Renata convince her former captors that she remains loyal, even as she burns for vengeance against the brutal, enigmatic prince? Her life and the fate of the Moria depend on it.

But returning to the palace stirs childhood memories long locked away. As Renata grows more deeply embedded in the politics of the royal court, she uncovers a secret in her past that could change the entire fate of the kingdom--and end the war that has cost her everything.

You know, I’ve been having a lot of trouble with YA fantasy lately. A lot of it has started to feel the same, and so I’m having to really pace myself with it. I picked up Incendiary as it’s the Space Sirens book club pick for October, and I’m so glad I finally gave it a chance because I ended up really enjoying it!

Firstly, the plot isn’t all that original. But that’s ok! The main character Ren was taken from her family at a young age, and has powers that could come in useful in the palace of the evil king. She heads over there to kill the prince for killing her lover (boyfriend?) and along the way she uncovers a few more things. It sounds like your generic YA fantasy, but I think the author pulled it off really well and overall I was very impressed.

I think what I liked most about Incendiary was the setting, which is well developed and Spanish-inspired. I would love to learn a bit more about the world in which this is set in the sequel, but I think the author did a really good job of introducing the history and the conflict in this one.

Additionally, the plot is super fast paced! My copy of the book is quite long (at almost 500 pages), but I flew through it with no trouble at all, and I think it might have also reignited my love for fantasy a bit.

As for the ships, I’m not entirely certain on where I stand, but I do know that I can’t ship the one that reminds me of Celaena and Chaol. It’s just so dull. Give me the Zutara in the sequel, PLEASE.

I’ve never read anything by this author before, but after reading Incendiary I’m very keen to check out her backlist. Go and check out Incendiary if you’re looking for a fast paced action plot, because you’re in for quite the ride. I do think the characters were a bit generic and flat, but I’ve read a LOT of YA fantasy at this point and it’s getting harder and harder for them to stand out to me.