Book Blurb
The first book in a new trilogy from the acclaimed Heidi Heilig blends traditional storytelling with ephemera for a lush, page-turning tale of escape and rebellion. For a Muse of Fire will captivate fans of Sabaa Tahir, Leigh Bardugo, and Renée Ahdieh.
Jetta’s family is famed as the most talented troupe of shadow players in the land. With Jetta behind the scrim, their puppets seem to move without string or stick—a trade secret, they say. In truth, Jetta can see the souls of the recently departed and bind them to the puppets with her blood.
But ever since the colonizing army conquered their country, the old ways are forbidden, so Jetta must never show, never tell. Her skill and fame are her family’s way to earn a spot aboard the royal ship to Aquitan, where shadow plays are the latest rage, and where rumor has it the Mad Emperor has a spring that cures his ills—and could cure Jetta’s, too. Because seeing spirits is not the only thing that plagues her.
But as rebellion seethes and as Jetta meets a young smuggler, she will face truths and decisions that she never imagined—and safety will never seem so far away.
Heidi Heilig creates a vivid, rich world inspired by Asian cultures and French colonialism. Her characters are equally complex and nuanced, including the bipolar heroine. Told from Jetta’s first-person point-of-view, as well as with chapters written as play scripts and ephemera such as telegrams and letters, For a Muse of Fire is an engrossing journey that weaves magic, simmering romance, and the deep bonds of family with the high stakes of epic adventure.
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Toot's Review by Stacy Sabala
I’ve read
this author before and liked the books, so I was very interested in this new
one. It was a completely original story
based around political unrest and a rebellion.
The themes were dark and so was the mood. The main character is Jetta. She is traveling with her parents. They are shadow puppeteers and perform for
audiences in towns they travel through.
They are well-known because of Jetta’s secret of harnessing spirits
inside her puppets. She and her parents
find themselves caught in the middle of the unrest. They are helped by Leo who is the owner of
the Le Perl. He helps them flee.
The Armee is
now after her and her family. The
General Legarde suspects her of practicing Necromancy. The story centers around their attempt to
flee and what happens along the way.
Jetta is confused to which side is the one to trust. At first, she fears what the rebels are doing
to the people. Then as the journey
continues, she sees what the Armee is really doing. There is more going on than she
realizes. She also learns the secrets
about herself and why she is the way she is.
She is young, confused and doesn’t understand what her abilities
mean. She believes she suffers from
madness. She will do anything for a
cure. The general exploits that. She must make tough decisions and unfortunately,
she lets her emotions lead her. She has
no clue what she is really up against and is so stubborn she refuses to believe
what she sees isn’t what is real. Her
naivety was annoying as was the fact her mother’s refusal to be truthful made
her that way. Then Leo wouldn’t admit
anything that was going on either. I was
almost as confused as Jetta for a lot of the story and I didn’t like that.
The
storyline unfolds, and I was not surprised at what happened in the final confrontation. However, the author left everything
hanging. I felt there really wasn’t any
closure for this book. It just kind of
stopped. I give it a 3 out of 5.
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