Book Review – Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova
I am Renata Convida.
I have lived a hundred stolen lives.
Now I live my own.
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.
My rating:
This is very much a book of three parts for me. I liked part one, thought part two was mediocre, and loved part three! The parts that sell it are where we get to see the outside world and how it affects Ren. Between the rebels and the palace politics, there is a lot to see, and the second half of the book especially is where we begin to see how everything Ren thinks to be true is not necessarily so.
The magic in particular is a system I’ve not directly seen, and I especially liked that Ren’s was rare and even the other rebels didn’t trust her because of her capabilities and her past. We also quickly see the level of trust that Ren puts in the memories she takes, and this is something that I find fascinating. We all know that memory is very pliable, yet Ren largely treats them as fact. I feel that the sequel will definitely show her changing this, as by the end of the book the contradictions are clear. Whether it is her own prejudices colouring the memories, or those of the original owners, I’d love to see her cast a more analytical eye over what she learns.
Ren’s early time with the rebels was very enjoyable, and thought the way that it set up the world and the magic was fascinating. We also get a hugely tense moment that was very shocking at the end of this section, and I loved that the author went there! Also a lot of the relationships from early on really help set the scene for the final part in a way that’s not heavy handed at all – it’s very well done.
The middle part is where I struggled, as Ren is sort of trapped and really getting nowhere with her self appointed missions. Life in the palace is definitely intriguing, but other than setting up a couple of allies and a couple of bad guys, we don’t really gain much, and honestly this is my only real complaint about the book. The Spanish influence (especially with the inquisition elements) were probably at their strongest here, but honestly, it didn’t feel like as big a part of the book as I perhaps would have liked.
However it’s definitely all worth it when it comes to the final part. It’s pretty much the second half of the book, and its where the action really begins to play out, and we finally get to learn some more secrets. This is where we start to see contradictions in the memories she takes, or gains access to. Some of the foreshadowing was a little heavy handed, and while I had some spoilers for how things would play out, I don’t feel that I needed them to see certain things coming! It is done to reasonable effect though – as we are not overloaded with information and it doesn’t seem too convenient.
Plus we finally move back away from the castle, and we get to see how those relationships with the whispers change with her time away, and how Ren’s perspective’s change, which is more important. Plus there’s a lovely conversation with the only friendly whisper which shows her perspective on things isn’t as solid as she thought, which is fantastically done.
Romance wise, I adored the romance early on with Dez, as it’s so rare to see an established relationship, and I also love a childhood friends to lovers element. Later on we definitely get hints of things going a different way though, and I will be MOST interested to see how that plays out.
Overall I found this really enjoyable, and I definitely can’t wait for the next book. 4 stars.
Buy Incendiary from Waterstones.
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