Going Down in Flames by Chris Cannon ~ Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the Going Down in Flames Blog Tour hosted by YA Bound Book Tours. Click here to follow along with the tour schedule.

Title: Going Down in Flames

Author: Chris Cannon

Release Date: June 30th 2014

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy 

Source: Review copy  

Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Kobo  

If her love life is going down in flames, she might as well spark a revolution.

Finding out on your sixteenth birthday you're a shape-shifting dragon is tough to swallow. Being hauled off to an elite boarding school is enough to choke on.

Since Bryn is the only crossbreed at the Institute for Excellence, all eyes are on her, but it's a particular black dragon, Zavien, who catches her attention. 

Zavien is tired of the Council's rules. Segregated clans, being told who to love, and close-minded leaders make freedom of choice almost impossible. The new girl with the striped hair is a breath of fresh air, and with Bryn's help, they may be able to change the rules. 

At the Institute, old grudges, new crushes, and death threats are all part of a normal day for Bryn. She'll need to learn to control her dragon powers if she wants to make it through her first year at school. But even focusing on staying alive is difficult when you're falling for someone you can't have.

Bryn is a hybrid dragon - her mom is a Blue, her dad is a Red - who can breathe fire or ice. She's snarky, strong, and unwilling to back down from a challenge. Those qualities make her a kick ass heroine and just the right dragon to incite change in the archaic ways dragons have been forced to live for so long by their governing body, the Directorate.  

Bryn has a crush on Zavien, but I didn't. I think she was too quick to forgive him when he'd act like a first class jerk. She'd come close to crying, he'd apologize, and she'd forgive him right away. I'd stay mad for at least a day, especially when he confessed he was manipulating her emotions. Maybe I'd even stay angry at him for a week! I figured there had to be more to his story than what first appeared. 

I loved Mr. Stanton, the head of the Green dragons and Bryn's teacher for Elemental Science. He doesn't look at her the same way most do - he sees her as having potential to do amazing things. I could tell from their first meeting he would be a person of authority whom she could trust and confide in. He's one of my favorite characters. I also really liked Ivy and Clint, two black dragons who soon become friends with Bryn. It was nice to see she wouldn't be completely alone. 

Some of the remarks other students made were downright horrendous, especially the Blues. One blue dragon female told her her mother should've had an abortion. The Blues were the most hateful and treated her worse than the other groups did by far. Even some of the teachers treated Bryn terribly, like Mrs. Hanfelder, the history teacher. 

I knew history was going to be a problem class for Bryn since her parents are well known for running away as they did and not following the Directorate's rules. The first day of class, she tells the class crossbreeding can't produce a functional dragon. Obviously, she's not only spiteful but also dead wrong. She tells Bryn she's an abomination who should have been put down at birth. But then I was ecstatic when Bryn came back with, "Do all the teachers at this school attack their students? Or are you just a raving bitch?" I probably would've cried, but not Bryn. I love a heroine with a lot of spunk! 

Overall, Going Down in Flames is a book I loved - it's fun with a lot of humor and exciting with a lot of adventure. I loved Bryn to pieces - she's exactly the kind of lead female character YA books need. 

My Rating:

I love reading and writing snarky, kick-butt characters who take on the world and win. 

My truths: You can never have too many books, shoes, or purses. 

Coffee is the Elixir of Life.

There should be a National Nerf Bat Day where you are allowed to whack annoying people upside the head.

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook

  

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Blog Tour organized by: