Review: Ignite by Skye Malone

Book: Ignite
Author: Skye Malone
Series: The Kindling Trilogy #2
Genre: YA paranormal
Source: author (thank you!)
Publisher: Wildflower Isle
Release: July 27th, 2013
Pages: 269

Find your people. Save us all.

When a horrific assault on their hideout leaves the Hunters shattered, Ashe has only one choice: follow Carter’s orders and embark on a desperate mission to find the Merlin wizards and expose the secret sect of the Blood once and for all. She only has one problem.

She has to convince her people the Blood exist first.

It will be no easy task. Scorn for the Hunters runs deep and the Merlin wizards are fighting a war all their own. No one can be trusted and nothing is what it seems. On her own and with no hope of support, Ashe is in a race against time to stop a conflict that is spiraling dangerously out of control.

But when old prejudice turns deadly, Ashe’s mission becomes more desperate still. Betrayal lurks around every corner. Dark revelations challenge all that she thought she knew.

And suddenly the Blood aren’t the only ones after her anymore.

Goodreads / Amazon / iBooks / Kobo / Nook

***I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion in any way***

Following on the heels of the last book, Ashe is frantically trying to find the secretive Merlin wizards in order to warn them about the Blood, a dangerous group of wizards seeking to wreck havoc. But it's not that easy: the Blood have long since been known as mere myths, and the Merlin wizards are preoccupied, engaged in an ever-lasting battle with the Taliesin wizards. But time is running out, with both the Blood and the Taliesin spiralling out of control, and Ashe needs to find a solution fast.

What stood out the most to me in this book was Ashe's sheer determination. She met roadblock after roadblock, encountering those who would led her astray in name of actually helping her, and those who full-on wanted her gone. But she persisted time and time again, and I'm glad to see that it paid off in the end for when it really mattered. Though there was less emphasis on her powers in this novel, there still were some wicked demonstrates of her fire abilities.

One character that we learn quite a bit about is Cole and his background. Though he wasn't as present in the novel as I would have liked, we still got a fair bit of him and his less-than-ideal situation. However, it was really Lily who captured my attention in those scenes with Cole; after what's revealed, I'm definitely interested in what the extent of her abilities are! 

I would have liked to see more reoccurring characters from the first book. Though the new cast of characters are likeable, it was a bit hard trying to keep them all straight, continuing to wonder if the old cast would make a reappearance. It would have been nice to have seen some of the Hunters go through some more character development.

Though Ashe's battle to convince the Merlin wizards of the existence of the Blood properly expressed her frustration, I found her way out to have been a bit to easy. I questioned some of the characters' seemingly blind devotion to her, as she hadn't quite proved herself worthy to gain such strong followers yet. Following her because of who her father was can only get you so far, after all.

All in all, this book was still excellently written, with a few twists I did not see coming at all. I did find that it lacked the same luster as the first book did, with some of the characters either not present or not developing as I wanted them to have. Regardless, it still it worth the read, and I'm definitely interested in seeing what truly becomes of the Blood once Ashley's through with them!