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The Books of Bayern #2
Enna Burning
Enna's life was not meant to be simple.
When her brother, Leifer, brings home a mysterious piece of vellum that teaches him how to set fires—without a spark, without flint—Enna cannot decide if this power is one she wants for herself, or something that should be extinguished forever. And when Bayern, their country, goes to war, the choice becomes nearly unbearable.
Enna never imagined that the warm, life-giving energy of a fire could destroy everything she loves, but she must now save herself and Bayern before fire consumes her entirely.
When her brother, Leifer, brings home a mysterious piece of vellum that teaches him how to set fires—without a spark, without flint—Enna cannot decide if this power is one she wants for herself, or something that should be extinguished forever. And when Bayern, their country, goes to war, the choice becomes nearly unbearable.
Enna never imagined that the warm, life-giving energy of a fire could destroy everything she loves, but she must now save herself and Bayern before fire consumes her entirely.
317 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2004
About the author
Shannon Hale
97 books13.7k followersShannon Hale is the New York Times best-selling author of six young adult novels: the Newbery Honor book Princess Academy, multiple award winner Book of a Thousand Days, and the highly acclaimed Books of Bayern series. She has written three books for adults, including the upcoming Midnight in Austenland (Jan. 2012), companion book to Austenland. She co-wrote the hit graphic novel Rapunzel's Revenge and its sequel Calamity Jack with husband Dean Hale. They live near Salt Lake City, Utah with their four small children, and their pet, a small, plastic pig.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,989 reviews
December 13, 2017
This was soooo good. Much darker than The Goose Girl, but it worked really well. I love the character of Enna and seeing her struggle and be faced with so many obstacles, I was rooting for her the whole time. I loved The Goose Girl, but I loved this one even more.
April 21, 2023
❤️🥀It was strange and beautiful how destruction and life were bound together in fire.🥀❤️
That was an amazing sequel!
It wasn’t quite as enchanting and and lovely as The Goose Girl. But it was still beautifully written and mesmerizing. Enna got everything she deserved from her own personal story. Hale perfectly captured how being consumed, inside and out, by fire must feel.
We spent the whole book in Enna’s head, watching her dissolve and succumb to the heat. The writing and plot and everything had a very feverish feel to it.
❤️🥀Heat remembers that it was once a part of something living, and it seeks to be so again.🥀❤️
I almost felt like I was being eaten up by fire myself.
Aside from the vivid writing, Enna Burning has other wonderful tropes, including…..
꧁༺❤️🥀 deep and beautiful friendships
꧁༺❤️🥀 found family
꧁༺❤️🥀 sweet and wholesome romance
꧁༺❤️🥀 coming of age/finding yourself
꧁༺❤️🥀 magic in the mundane
꧁༺❤️🥀 forgiveness and second chances
꧁༺❤️🥀 war
Aside from a bit of violence, it’s squeaky clean, and that just puts a cherry on top of it all. <3
❤️🥀”Fire must burn.”🥀❤️
Overall, this book is like a fever dream. I highly recommend this series!
That was an amazing sequel!
It wasn’t quite as enchanting and and lovely as The Goose Girl. But it was still beautifully written and mesmerizing. Enna got everything she deserved from her own personal story. Hale perfectly captured how being consumed, inside and out, by fire must feel.
We spent the whole book in Enna’s head, watching her dissolve and succumb to the heat. The writing and plot and everything had a very feverish feel to it.
❤️🥀Heat remembers that it was once a part of something living, and it seeks to be so again.🥀❤️
I almost felt like I was being eaten up by fire myself.
Aside from the vivid writing, Enna Burning has other wonderful tropes, including…..
꧁༺❤️🥀 deep and beautiful friendships
꧁༺❤️🥀 found family
꧁༺❤️🥀 sweet and wholesome romance
꧁༺❤️🥀 coming of age/finding yourself
꧁༺❤️🥀 magic in the mundane
꧁༺❤️🥀 forgiveness and second chances
꧁༺❤️🥀 war
Aside from a bit of violence, it’s squeaky clean, and that just puts a cherry on top of it all. <3
❤️🥀”Fire must burn.”🥀❤️
Overall, this book is like a fever dream. I highly recommend this series!
September 9, 2017
In this somewhat downbeat magical fantasy, a sequel to the marvelous The Goose Girl, Enna (best friend of Isi from the first book) comes into possession of an old manuscript that teaches her the art of fire-speaking, magically starting and controlling fire. At first it seems like a wonderful gift, but a couple of fairly major problems with this power soon become apparent to Enna. For one thing, it's a devastatingly effective weapon in war, and there are those who are anxious to control Enna, and through her set fire to their enemies.
I'm such a huge fan of The Goose Girl, but this? is a very grim tale, and a little too one-note for my taste. Apparently fire-speaking is a really dangerous gift to pursue. Who could have guessed?
Three stars, because there are still some lovely scenes and thought-provoking writing. The ending is heartwarming and a breath of fresh air. I also really enjoyed the next book in the series, River Secrets, so don't give up on the series if you liked Goose Girl but not so much Enna Burning.
I'm such a huge fan of The Goose Girl, but this? is a very grim tale, and a little too one-note for my taste. Apparently fire-speaking is a really dangerous gift to pursue. Who could have guessed?
Three stars, because there are still some lovely scenes and thought-provoking writing. The ending is heartwarming and a breath of fresh air. I also really enjoyed the next book in the series, River Secrets, so don't give up on the series if you liked Goose Girl but not so much Enna Burning.
May 3, 2008
I couldn't decide whether to give this book 4 or 5 stars. I debated for way longer than I have time to debate about truly unimportant things like this.
I struggled a bit through the first part of the book because I was reading the really exciting part of another book concurrently. (Why did I start a book before I finished my first one? I don't know, okay? I just wanted to.) I was really frustrated with the heroine from the first Book of Bayern (Isi/Ani) because she accomplished this incredible feat only to be defeated by the task in the second book (or so it seemed). Also, I didn't really like some of the choices Enna makes in the beginning of the book.
However, the second part of the book (from about where she gets captured on) was INCREDIBLE! I loved it! Everything that frustrated or confused me about the previous chapters was expounded upon and became clear. In fact, I was totally fascinated how the author deceived me about what was going to happen more than once. I seriously considered reading this book again to see how much more I could get out of it. And I would have if I didn't have River Secrets sitting on my desk waiting to be read next!
Let me just pay tribute to Shannon Hale once again. She is totally original. Her stories are fresh and unpredictable. Her characters are well-drawn with flaws and their own sets of idiosyncrasies. The worlds she creates are fascinating to read about. I am constantly amazed at the research she has to do in order to create lands like Bayern. The politics alone would take me years to think about and perfect. Shannon Hale is my hero!
I struggled a bit through the first part of the book because I was reading the really exciting part of another book concurrently. (Why did I start a book before I finished my first one? I don't know, okay? I just wanted to.) I was really frustrated with the heroine from the first Book of Bayern (Isi/Ani) because she accomplished this incredible feat only to be defeated by the task in the second book (or so it seemed). Also, I didn't really like some of the choices Enna makes in the beginning of the book.
However, the second part of the book (from about where she gets captured on) was INCREDIBLE! I loved it! Everything that frustrated or confused me about the previous chapters was expounded upon and became clear. In fact, I was totally fascinated how the author deceived me about what was going to happen more than once. I seriously considered reading this book again to see how much more I could get out of it. And I would have if I didn't have River Secrets sitting on my desk waiting to be read next!
Let me just pay tribute to Shannon Hale once again. She is totally original. Her stories are fresh and unpredictable. Her characters are well-drawn with flaws and their own sets of idiosyncrasies. The worlds she creates are fascinating to read about. I am constantly amazed at the research she has to do in order to create lands like Bayern. The politics alone would take me years to think about and perfect. Shannon Hale is my hero!
April 2, 2009
Dark, disturbing, and very thought-provoking. You never know what kind of book Shannon will write next, which is one of the coolest things about her! The Full Cast Audio version does it justice, too, with good acting and good music composed for the book.
June 25, 2008
Shannon Hale has yet to disappoint me. Her writing is a little slow at first (even she concedes that she sucks at making a novel grab the reader from the get-go), but there's something extremely satisfying about her writing style, even when it is being slow as all get-out. She manages to make this story interesting even when it is being entirely predictable (which only happened a few times, and even then she convincingly created enough doubt that the predictable thing was about to happen that it was still intriguing to read).
This type of novel probably isn't for everyone (a fact which I concede reluctantly, because I really enjoy her books and she's kind of my hero for being a severely well-educated and talented writer). Not only is it kind of slow, its plot is pretty much cheesy fairy tale stuff all the way through (and even though it's written in a wholly convincing and refreshing style and there are sobering twists that are more remniscent of real good ol' fashioned fairy tales than the stupid disney stuff, people who don't like the idea of this kind of story to begin with probably won't make it very far and will probably scoff at the cute/cheesy little moments that make nerds like me smile).
Wow I use a lot of parentheses. Anyway, Shannon Hale is a great writer and you should probably give her a chance, but if you don't like fairy tales (in which case, what's wrong with you?) it will probably be hard for you to get over the hurdle that is the first twenty pages or so. I had difficulty staying interested for this long and I had read the previous book and quite liked Enna's character, so if you haven't read The Goose Girl I really wouldn't suggest reading this to start out...Read The Goose Girl first so you have an idea of her style and her ability to reshape a preexisting fairy tale, and then if you enjoy it and wish the story could continue you'll happily trudge through the beginning of Enna Burning.
P.S. I really like that Shannon Hale doesn't forget that her characters are people and therefore need to eat and drink and go to the bathroom and bathe and stuff...
This type of novel probably isn't for everyone (a fact which I concede reluctantly, because I really enjoy her books and she's kind of my hero for being a severely well-educated and talented writer). Not only is it kind of slow, its plot is pretty much cheesy fairy tale stuff all the way through (and even though it's written in a wholly convincing and refreshing style and there are sobering twists that are more remniscent of real good ol' fashioned fairy tales than the stupid disney stuff, people who don't like the idea of this kind of story to begin with probably won't make it very far and will probably scoff at the cute/cheesy little moments that make nerds like me smile).
Wow I use a lot of parentheses. Anyway, Shannon Hale is a great writer and you should probably give her a chance, but if you don't like fairy tales (in which case, what's wrong with you?) it will probably be hard for you to get over the hurdle that is the first twenty pages or so. I had difficulty staying interested for this long and I had read the previous book and quite liked Enna's character, so if you haven't read The Goose Girl I really wouldn't suggest reading this to start out...Read The Goose Girl first so you have an idea of her style and her ability to reshape a preexisting fairy tale, and then if you enjoy it and wish the story could continue you'll happily trudge through the beginning of Enna Burning.
P.S. I really like that Shannon Hale doesn't forget that her characters are people and therefore need to eat and drink and go to the bathroom and bathe and stuff...
April 11, 2023
Rtc! <3
Each time she contemplated fire, she felt surer that she could learn it, and felt a place inside her, a place inside her chest, yawn eagerly.
I would like to start off by saying Finn is adorable and I love him 😌 and that
Enna Burning wasn’t quite as breathtaking as the Goose Girl, but I still very much enjoyed it 🥰 all of the characters are so cute, especially Razo. I LOVE THEM ALL SM.
I felt like the first 100 pages were a bit bland and the plot didn’t really start until around page 130, but it definitely kept getting better as it went on! And the love triangle was very entertaining as well 😏
Tysm, Malia, for lending me the books!!! I can’t WAIT to start the next one ❤️
Cheers! 🍻
Each time she contemplated fire, she felt surer that she could learn it, and felt a place inside her, a place inside her chest, yawn eagerly.
I would like to start off by saying Finn is adorable and I love him 😌 and that
Enna Burning wasn’t quite as breathtaking as the Goose Girl, but I still very much enjoyed it 🥰 all of the characters are so cute, especially Razo. I LOVE THEM ALL SM.
I felt like the first 100 pages were a bit bland and the plot didn’t really start until around page 130, but it definitely kept getting better as it went on! And the love triangle was very entertaining as well 😏
Tysm, Malia, for lending me the books!!! I can’t WAIT to start the next one ❤️
Cheers! 🍻
January 19, 2012
Ok - the cute little baby prince helped this book scrape by with 3 stars! :-)
For the most part, I really did not enjoy this book. If you deleted the words fire, burn and heat, you'd lose 2/3 of the book. I thought the plot was unimaginative and very forced. Kind of like when you used to add adjectives in your English papers at school to try and get the required number of pages.
Plus, any book that spent a good part of the time BURNING PEOPLE ALIVE or talking about someone wanting to burn people alive, was really creepy to me! Right out of a horror novel. This would be a torturous way to die and no amount of writing about Enna's regrets at doing so, softened what happened. I can't imagine this in movie form. (shudder!) As a story about Enna, it only rated 2 stars. With the small sideline parts about Isi, Geric, Razo and Finn, it barely managed to make it to 3 stars.
For the most part, I really did not enjoy this book. If you deleted the words fire, burn and heat, you'd lose 2/3 of the book. I thought the plot was unimaginative and very forced. Kind of like when you used to add adjectives in your English papers at school to try and get the required number of pages.
Plus, any book that spent a good part of the time BURNING PEOPLE ALIVE or talking about someone wanting to burn people alive, was really creepy to me! Right out of a horror novel. This would be a torturous way to die and no amount of writing about Enna's regrets at doing so, softened what happened. I can't imagine this in movie form. (shudder!) As a story about Enna, it only rated 2 stars. With the small sideline parts about Isi, Geric, Razo and Finn, it barely managed to make it to 3 stars.
September 17, 2020
I absolutely adore this series, and not in the *obsession* kind of way, but in the way that it makes me dream dreamy things.
I have reread this series at least six times now, and I won’t stop. It’s one of those series that has a special place in my dark heart that brings a little light and perspective to my world.
Hale has made a beautiful world where the elements and animals have languages that people can grow to understand if they try hard enough. Imagine being able to see pictures and hear words on the wind of things around you. It could save your life. Or feeling the heat of the living things around you, always being aware of your surroundings.
But every gift, has its consequences.
“They laughed much harder than the memory was funny because it felt good to laugh.”
Just like Isi, Enna wasn’t born with the language of fire on her tongue (Literally the title of the book is Enna Burning. It’s not a spoiler). She learned it, even though she saw the way knowing how to speak with fire can end for someone. She did it for her country.
Tira wants to overcome Bayern for their lands that they believe are rightfully theirs. But after a superstitious-act makes Enna believe they will lose the war unless she burns... she may end up just like the people in the past who could speak to fire.
What I love about this book is that even though fire seems like the must destructive language you can learn, it isn’t. Once again, the most dangerous language is shown and the beauty of fire and air is revealed.
Enna is a phenomenal protagonist. She isn’t the fearful Isi from the last book (though I love Isi and everything she overcame in the last book. That girl does not give up), but she has spunk. And don’t even get me started on Finn and Razzo. I want to be everyone’s best friend and go on all these adventures with them!!
I love this whole world that Shannon Hale has dreamed up. It isn’t dark but it isn’t light and fluffy. It kind of reads like a fairytale itself. It’s very much a middle-grade read, but still enjoyable when you are older if you like to dream pretty things and wish that you could hear and understand the languages of the elements and animals around you.
---
I feel like I'm in middle school again. I love this series so much <3
I have reread this series at least six times now, and I won’t stop. It’s one of those series that has a special place in my dark heart that brings a little light and perspective to my world.
Hale has made a beautiful world where the elements and animals have languages that people can grow to understand if they try hard enough. Imagine being able to see pictures and hear words on the wind of things around you. It could save your life. Or feeling the heat of the living things around you, always being aware of your surroundings.
But every gift, has its consequences.
“They laughed much harder than the memory was funny because it felt good to laugh.”
Just like Isi, Enna wasn’t born with the language of fire on her tongue (Literally the title of the book is Enna Burning. It’s not a spoiler). She learned it, even though she saw the way knowing how to speak with fire can end for someone. She did it for her country.
Tira wants to overcome Bayern for their lands that they believe are rightfully theirs. But after a superstitious-act makes Enna believe they will lose the war unless she burns... she may end up just like the people in the past who could speak to fire.
What I love about this book is that even though fire seems like the must destructive language you can learn, it isn’t. Once again, the most dangerous language is shown and the beauty of fire and air is revealed.
Enna is a phenomenal protagonist. She isn’t the fearful Isi from the last book (though I love Isi and everything she overcame in the last book. That girl does not give up), but she has spunk. And don’t even get me started on Finn and Razzo. I want to be everyone’s best friend and go on all these adventures with them!!
I love this whole world that Shannon Hale has dreamed up. It isn’t dark but it isn’t light and fluffy. It kind of reads like a fairytale itself. It’s very much a middle-grade read, but still enjoyable when you are older if you like to dream pretty things and wish that you could hear and understand the languages of the elements and animals around you.
---
I feel like I'm in middle school again. I love this series so much <3
June 2, 2007
This book was much less complex than the Goose Girl, Hale's earlier novel in the series... It had one recurring theme that ran tediously throughout. I felt the whole piece was rushed--that the language not nearly as creative as I know Hale is capable of; there was the constant description of how Enna felt when the fire overwhelmed her; and I can't say there were many twists of plot... Just one wildfire, raging through Enna and her forest, til it hit the shore.
April 13, 2009
I was very excited to read more by Shannon Hale because I LOVEd Goose Girl. I was pretty disappointed in Enna Burning. Maybe I couldn't relate to Enna as well, but I didnt' sympathize with her and was annoyed by all the talk for 3/4 of the book about the fire and the consuming desire of it etc etc. I just wanted to get on with a good love story and not hear about how she was trying to deal with this weird overpowering urge to burn things. I also didn't like how Isi became an almost weak, needy character. Finn was adorable and too good to be true, but there wasnt' much romance between them. If it wasn't meant to be a love story, then it was also very disappointing as an adventure story as really not much happens til you're 3/4 of the way through, and then even that adventure is very short-lived and not very exciting.
i thought the remedy was kind of a lame scape goat that just amazingly solves both Isi's and Enna's problems in one fell swoop. Seemed a little too easy and cheesy to me.
i thought the remedy was kind of a lame scape goat that just amazingly solves both Isi's and Enna's problems in one fell swoop. Seemed a little too easy and cheesy to me.
February 9, 2020
I enjoyed this book, but definitely didn't like it as much as The Goose Girl. I found it a bit repetitive and kind of slow, even though there was a lot of action. Still plan on finishing the series though.
April 13, 2023
All I ever wanted was to be near you...
✿ ✿ ✿
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH THAT WAS AMAZING!!!
ngl, the beginning was kind of slow, but after that I could barely put it down! I'm so happy Enna got her own book, she deserved it, and her character arc was jus perfect. 🤭🫶🏻
And don't get me started on her and Finn. 🥺🥺🥺 Sileph can go die in a hole bc NOTHING can stop true love!!! Also why is Finn so much better in Enna's pov then Ani's!? I guess it is because Ani isn't in love with him lol. 😉😉😉
The characters were fun and entertaining, the plot was captivating, the writing was perfection (I want to be Shannon Hale when I grow up!) but the beginning didn't do it for me! Shannon actually admitted in the author q&a in the back that beginnings are not her strong point. I didn't get those feels during The Goose Girl but with Enna Burning I was lowkey bored and overwhelmed for the first 130 pages. 🤨🤨🤨 I also felt like the writing style didn't quite click until after those pages as well.
Besides that, I LOVED it! Yippee I can't wait to read the next one! (good thing I have it 😏)
(This one was about as clean as the first one, but there was a brief assault attempt and heavier violence (with people being burned alive...(not detailed)))
mwah! 👋🥰
✿ ✿ ✿
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH THAT WAS AMAZING!!!
ngl, the beginning was kind of slow, but after that I could barely put it down! I'm so happy Enna got her own book, she deserved it, and her character arc was jus perfect. 🤭🫶🏻
And don't get me started on her and Finn. 🥺🥺🥺 Sileph can go die in a hole bc NOTHING can stop true love!!! Also why is Finn so much better in Enna's pov then Ani's!? I guess it is because Ani isn't in love with him lol. 😉😉😉
The characters were fun and entertaining, the plot was captivating, the writing was perfection (I want to be Shannon Hale when I grow up!) but the beginning didn't do it for me! Shannon actually admitted in the author q&a in the back that beginnings are not her strong point. I didn't get those feels during The Goose Girl but with Enna Burning I was lowkey bored and overwhelmed for the first 130 pages. 🤨🤨🤨 I also felt like the writing style didn't quite click until after those pages as well.
Besides that, I LOVED it! Yippee I can't wait to read the next one! (good thing I have it 😏)
(This one was about as clean as the first one, but there was a brief assault attempt and heavier violence (with people being burned alive...(not detailed)))
mwah! 👋🥰
May 8, 2023
4.5 ⭐️
The only right way to start this review would be to say how amazing and lovable Finn is😘❤️❤️
All I ever wanted was to be near you...
Like what?!? 🥺He is simply the best boy ever, and there's no doubt about it. Sileph can leave and never come back, but Finn is 100% staying. Okay, now on to the real review lol...
I think Shannon Hale is officially one of my favorite authors! She writes stories that are easy to read but still draw me in and don't let me go. I've seen some reviews comparing Enna Burning and The Goose Girl, but I couldn't make myself compare the two because they're so different and I love both of them very much. The plot was intriguing, the characters were funny and likeable, and as I already said, Shannon Hale’s writing is AMAZING.
The little bits of romance that are in these books are the best. It literally had me reading and rereading sentences because of how cute it was!!! The love triangle was really interesting also, and I usually hate love triangles. Proof that Shannon Hale can write anything and I'll love it🤣🤣
Content Review:
Violence: Enna Burning was much darker than The Goose Girl, so there’s a lot more violence. And while it isn’t always graphic, it is there. Killing, burning, and pain are mentioned often. Two men fight to the death (not graphic) and a character burns people multiple times.
Sexual: Attraction and longing are mentioned. Characters kiss and hold each other, but the romance isn't heavy. 3 characters (one girl and 2 boys) share a tent when they're traveling (not inappropriate.) There is one attempted assault, where a character has just had a bath and is wrapped in only a blanket and a man comes in and threatens her, but nothing more than that.
Language: none.
Age rating: 13+
The only right way to start this review would be to say how amazing and lovable Finn is😘❤️❤️
All I ever wanted was to be near you...
Like what?!? 🥺He is simply the best boy ever, and there's no doubt about it. Sileph can leave and never come back, but Finn is 100% staying. Okay, now on to the real review lol...
I think Shannon Hale is officially one of my favorite authors! She writes stories that are easy to read but still draw me in and don't let me go. I've seen some reviews comparing Enna Burning and The Goose Girl, but I couldn't make myself compare the two because they're so different and I love both of them very much. The plot was intriguing, the characters were funny and likeable, and as I already said, Shannon Hale’s writing is AMAZING.
The little bits of romance that are in these books are the best. It literally had me reading and rereading sentences because of how cute it was!!! The love triangle was really interesting also, and I usually hate love triangles. Proof that Shannon Hale can write anything and I'll love it🤣🤣
Content Review:
Violence: Enna Burning was much darker than The Goose Girl, so there’s a lot more violence. And while it isn’t always graphic, it is there. Killing, burning, and pain are mentioned often. Two men fight to the death (not graphic) and a character burns people multiple times.
Sexual: Attraction and longing are mentioned. Characters kiss and hold each other, but the romance isn't heavy. 3 characters (one girl and 2 boys) share a tent when they're traveling (not inappropriate.) There is one attempted assault, where a character has just had a bath and is wrapped in only a blanket and a man comes in and threatens her, but nothing more than that.
Language: none.
Age rating: 13+
July 7, 2010
My least favorite Shannon Hale book. I mostly only kept going because I knew I had to in order to get to the third book, and also because I'm kind of in love with Finn. But for a book in which a ton of things happen, it was really quite boring.
Each of the Books of Bayern features a hero struggling with a major character flaw. Enna's is her need to stand out and do something special, which drives her to learn fire-speaking in spite of the dangers, and the need to burn almost kills her. If you read it as a metaphor for addiction, it's more interesting and makes Enna a little more sympathetic, but it still makes for a boring book and my least favorite Hale heroine. (That said, I should point out that if I were like her in a desire to stand out and be noticed, I might have identified with her more and liked the book better.) I mean, most characters with flaws go through ups and downs that are interesting to read, but Enna is just in a tailspin towards doom the entire book, and it's frustrating and a little boring to watch. And all the talking about fire! I understand that this was Enna's conflict, but I was dead sick of the unbearably long descriptions of how much she wanted to light things on fire by halfway through the book.
It was fun to see the characters from the first book reappear, and I do love me some Finn, but mostly this book is just sort of a necessary step to get to the third book in the series, which I love.
Each of the Books of Bayern features a hero struggling with a major character flaw. Enna's is her need to stand out and do something special, which drives her to learn fire-speaking in spite of the dangers, and the need to burn almost kills her. If you read it as a metaphor for addiction, it's more interesting and makes Enna a little more sympathetic, but it still makes for a boring book and my least favorite Hale heroine. (That said, I should point out that if I were like her in a desire to stand out and be noticed, I might have identified with her more and liked the book better.) I mean, most characters with flaws go through ups and downs that are interesting to read, but Enna is just in a tailspin towards doom the entire book, and it's frustrating and a little boring to watch. And all the talking about fire! I understand that this was Enna's conflict, but I was dead sick of the unbearably long descriptions of how much she wanted to light things on fire by halfway through the book.
It was fun to see the characters from the first book reappear, and I do love me some Finn, but mostly this book is just sort of a necessary step to get to the third book in the series, which I love.
May 1, 2014
At this moment, I'm still debating whether I like this book better than The Goose Girl...I certainly love them both, but 5 minutes after finishing this book, I'm thinking that I might like this one a little bit more. The Goose Girl was mostly a fairytale retelling; this book is a continuation of Bayern, but it does not revolve around a specific fairytale, and I think that enabled Shannon Hale to write with more artistic and creative freedom. Yes, this is still a "fairytale" book: as in, characters are complex and well-rounded, but not vice-like as you may find in "grown up fiction" or a lot of other YA-books out there. So once again, if you wrinkle your nose at love stories or happy endings, go find something else, because you may not like this story.
Have we rooted out all the anti-happy people? Okay, good, on with the review! So there's a whole lot of what I would call "natural magic" in this series: powers of wind, fire, water, etc., and the ability to communicate with them. The main character of The Goose Girl, Ani/Isi, switches out with Enna, who becomes the main (and titular) character in this story. Central to the plot is Enna's firespeaking ability, a gift/curse that threatens to destroy her if she cannot learn to master it. I really thought that was such an interesting premise, and one that has an obvious theme we readers can take away and apply to our own lives. There are actually many themes that are so easily spotted in Shannon's writing, and I think that is one of the many things I admire about her. She's not one of these authors who spends the whole book trying to point a finger at some societal issue, and she never goes "after school special" either; instead, her story and characters reinforce themes: messages we as the readers can take away and apply to our own lives.
And yes, I agree with other reviews: this book is "darker" than the first one. Enna has an urge to burn. The fire has a life of its own, and it starts to feed off of Enna's life (reminds me very much of The Ring!!!! Remember how the Ring had seemed to be "alive"? Remember how the Ring "wanted to be found"?!?! It's just like that!) The story was intense, in my opinion, but not inappropriate. I'll expand on that later. But one thing I want to ask all the criticizers: have you ever heard of siege warfare? Well, thoughout history (as in, REAL LIFE: not the stuff of fairytales) armies used fire at their enemies: fireballs, flamethrowers, Greek fire, lighted arrows... In other words, people got set on fire in real life...that is not something Shannon Hale just thought up. But I mean, from some of these reviews you'd mistake Enna for Bellatrix Lestrange! She's not particularly happy about setting people on fire... it stinks and everything, but yes, that happens. It's not presented in a graphic way: if anything, it's presented in a blunt, dull way. I kept thinking, "umm, these people are on fire, why is she not *screaming*?" But anyway... Okay and Sileph... wow. I have to admit, I really didnt think he'd be Book #2's "Designated Bad Guy." Yeah, he has one those cocky personalities, and he's a bit on the manipulative side, but I kept waiting for him to redeem himself, somehow... but then...well, I wont say anything. I just didnt expect him to actually be bad. So that was a shocker.
Oh, back to why Shannon Hale is Not Inappropriate: she's pretty much the only author I can think of who can take an otherwise provacative situation and make it perfectly tame. Here's a scenario: a girl and a guy sleeping next to each other in a tent. And. Nothing. Happens. At. All. I just want to fax her scenes to some of these other YA authors out there, goodness gracious! Parents, Shannon Hale does not need to be on your Hit List. She's okay. And when two characters who are *actually* in love with each other camp together at night, nothing happens either. Don't you just love that? Nice, sweet romances with no content issues. In fact, the only content issues in this book relate to scenes of war. I didnt find them that disturbing, actually, but IMO this should probably be a Middle School and Older series (YA).
But I found book so much harder to put down than the first one...and I really loved the first one, too :D I like the conflict in this book: Enna's a great character: strong and spunky, yet still human enough to need others. And I loved the struggles she endured: she was relatable and human, but never self-pitying. Cant wait to read #3!
Have we rooted out all the anti-happy people? Okay, good, on with the review! So there's a whole lot of what I would call "natural magic" in this series: powers of wind, fire, water, etc., and the ability to communicate with them. The main character of The Goose Girl, Ani/Isi, switches out with Enna, who becomes the main (and titular) character in this story. Central to the plot is Enna's firespeaking ability, a gift/curse that threatens to destroy her if she cannot learn to master it. I really thought that was such an interesting premise, and one that has an obvious theme we readers can take away and apply to our own lives. There are actually many themes that are so easily spotted in Shannon's writing, and I think that is one of the many things I admire about her. She's not one of these authors who spends the whole book trying to point a finger at some societal issue, and she never goes "after school special" either; instead, her story and characters reinforce themes: messages we as the readers can take away and apply to our own lives.
And yes, I agree with other reviews: this book is "darker" than the first one. Enna has an urge to burn. The fire has a life of its own, and it starts to feed off of Enna's life (reminds me very much of The Ring!!!! Remember how the Ring had seemed to be "alive"? Remember how the Ring "wanted to be found"?!?! It's just like that!) The story was intense, in my opinion, but not inappropriate. I'll expand on that later. But one thing I want to ask all the criticizers: have you ever heard of siege warfare? Well, thoughout history (as in, REAL LIFE: not the stuff of fairytales) armies used fire at their enemies: fireballs, flamethrowers, Greek fire, lighted arrows... In other words, people got set on fire in real life...that is not something Shannon Hale just thought up. But I mean, from some of these reviews you'd mistake Enna for Bellatrix Lestrange! She's not particularly happy about setting people on fire... it stinks and everything, but yes, that happens. It's not presented in a graphic way: if anything, it's presented in a blunt, dull way. I kept thinking, "umm, these people are on fire, why is she not *screaming*?" But anyway... Okay and Sileph... wow. I have to admit, I really didnt think he'd be Book #2's "Designated Bad Guy." Yeah, he has one those cocky personalities, and he's a bit on the manipulative side, but I kept waiting for him to redeem himself, somehow... but then...well, I wont say anything. I just didnt expect him to actually be bad. So that was a shocker.
Oh, back to why Shannon Hale is Not Inappropriate: she's pretty much the only author I can think of who can take an otherwise provacative situation and make it perfectly tame. Here's a scenario: a girl and a guy sleeping next to each other in a tent. And. Nothing. Happens. At. All. I just want to fax her scenes to some of these other YA authors out there, goodness gracious! Parents, Shannon Hale does not need to be on your Hit List. She's okay. And when two characters who are *actually* in love with each other camp together at night, nothing happens either. Don't you just love that? Nice, sweet romances with no content issues. In fact, the only content issues in this book relate to scenes of war. I didnt find them that disturbing, actually, but IMO this should probably be a Middle School and Older series (YA).
But I found book so much harder to put down than the first one...and I really loved the first one, too :D I like the conflict in this book: Enna's a great character: strong and spunky, yet still human enough to need others. And I loved the struggles she endured: she was relatable and human, but never self-pitying. Cant wait to read #3!
January 13, 2016
I absolutely love this book. Enna is my favorite character. Her story is so very different from the others in the Books of Bayern, and that's why it stands out to me. But even though Enna is Hale's "black sheep", the book still fits in nicely with the rest of the series. Hale's beautiful and vivid descriptions and writing style haven't changed, and her characters are so deep and profound, that they come alive.
Normally I don't post spoilers in reviews, but this is a exception-
I read this book for the first time when I was 15 years old. I was struggling with a lot of emotional issues at the time. I had a mentally abusive family member, and two lying and abusive friends I didn't think I could get away from. My life seemed hopeless, and I was so consumed by depression that I thought my only options were to stay in this impossible situation forever (because no one would come rescue me), or to commit suicide to escape the pain and suffering.
Emma's story about being trapped in a foreign camp and being so manipulated by Sileph connected with me on such a deep level. She was stuck in an impossible and desperately painful situation, but she stuck it out. She never gave up.
But Isi's story about the trapped Prince and the dragon helped me and Enna to both actively make changes and alter our seemingly impossible to escape lives. When Enna chose to rescue herself, I decided I had to do the same and I got rid of the abusive and manipulative people in my life so I could save myself. I felt that I lived Enna's story, without the magic.
When Isi and Enna are traveling to Yasid and they run into Sileph again, Enna's ability to laugh in his face and free herself from his control gave me the strength to laugh in the faces of my tormentors when they repeatedly came back into my lives. Because of Enna, I saved myself. This will always be my favorite book.
Normally I don't post spoilers in reviews, but this is a exception-
I read this book for the first time when I was 15 years old. I was struggling with a lot of emotional issues at the time. I had a mentally abusive family member, and two lying and abusive friends I didn't think I could get away from. My life seemed hopeless, and I was so consumed by depression that I thought my only options were to stay in this impossible situation forever (because no one would come rescue me), or to commit suicide to escape the pain and suffering.
Emma's story about being trapped in a foreign camp and being so manipulated by Sileph connected with me on such a deep level. She was stuck in an impossible and desperately painful situation, but she stuck it out. She never gave up.
But Isi's story about the trapped Prince and the dragon helped me and Enna to both actively make changes and alter our seemingly impossible to escape lives. When Enna chose to rescue herself, I decided I had to do the same and I got rid of the abusive and manipulative people in my life so I could save myself. I felt that I lived Enna's story, without the magic.
When Isi and Enna are traveling to Yasid and they run into Sileph again, Enna's ability to laugh in his face and free herself from his control gave me the strength to laugh in the faces of my tormentors when they repeatedly came back into my lives. Because of Enna, I saved myself. This will always be my favorite book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 27, 2024
After re-reading The Goose Girl, I was excited to pick up Enna Burning, which used to be my favorite in the series. But as I’ve returned to as an adult, the pacing felt off. I still thoroughly enjoyed it, and I deeply appreciate the way Shannon Hale portrays toxic relationships and emotional abuse - there’s no glorification of that kind of romance here. That said, the overall plot felt disjointed between the beginning, middle, and especially the end. I don’t remember that bothering me as a kid, but as an adult, the plot shift at about the 75% mark was more jarring. It makes sense but it felt rushed at best. I also found it intriguing that after 10 years, I don’t relate to Enna’s character the same way I did as a kid and instead, I see myself far in Isi’s character than I ever did in my earlier years. Strange how time can change our perception of the same characters!
November 27, 2013
As another reviewer wisely said, "2/3 of this book are the words 'burn', 'fire', and 'heat'." If you remove these words, there is next to nothing. I LOVED Goose Girl and am so far enjoying River Secrets (the third book), but this was terrible.
Enna, one of my favorite characters from Goose Girl, is replaced by some person I don't know. Her thoughts and feelings are hollow, so the book is very boring.
WHAT DOES THE FIRE SAY?! BURN BURN BURN BE-BURNY BURNYBURNY, BURN BURN BURN BE-BURNY BURNY BURNY (If you don't get the song reference, I apologize)
So I am sorry to say that this book burned wore out my patience. The others are worth it, but this one was so disappointing. Forgive me for any and all typos and for venting all of this onto you innocent people.
Enna, one of my favorite characters from Goose Girl, is replaced by some person I don't know. Her thoughts and feelings are hollow, so the book is very boring.
WHAT DOES THE FIRE SAY?! BURN BURN BURN BE-BURNY BURNYBURNY, BURN BURN BURN BE-BURNY BURNY BURNY (If you don't get the song reference, I apologize)
So I am sorry to say that this book
March 1, 2008
Somewhere along the line, I had gotten the impression that Shannon Hale wrote children's books - middle reader or so. But this book falls so squarely into Young Adult Books For Adults As Well that I'd say the cover I have is a bit misleading; it looks like a kids book to me.
But it's good. It's darker and scarier than Princess Academy, but very satisfying. I had a bit more trouble getting into it than the first Hale I read, and I have some issues with it that I'll address in a minute, but it was a great story about limits and loyalty. Hale has been dead on with themes so far.
First, I'll acknowledge that it's the second if not the third book in The Books of Bayern. (I'm not sure how defined the storyline/chronology is between this one and River of Secrets.) There was background that Hale just brushed over, giving me enough to figure out who the characters were, but leaving me unclear as to exactly how they all knew each other. And that's a compliment, really, because it drives me nuts when authors recap too much from previous books - if I'm reading the third in a series, it's generally because I read and liked the first two, so you don't need to remind me of everything. I just wish I'd either managed to get a hold of the first two or control myself until I had. But no.
However: the beginning felt slow and a little disconnected from the rest of the story, and it felt like Leifer was just dropped from the story; other than a couple name checks and a quick moment or two of "my brother is dead!", there wasn't much closure. I kept expecting something more definite.
I didn't like Isi. I found her creepy and a little patronizing and completely batshit. And seeing as Enna loved her, I'm pretty sure I was supposed to love her too. But, really, creepy.
Sileph: now that is a character I can get behind. I was half hoping Hale would have Enna turn traitor and marry Sileph and have ruthless little babies, because he was fantastic. Smart and evil and, oh right, ruthless and evil.
That said, I had nothing against Finn, and their little moment in the tent, with his hand on her head and "All I've ever wanted was to be near you" seemed so very adult to me, and helped push the book towards the adult end of the spectrum. It's the Gilbert Blythe fangirl in me that makes me love the sweet, steady childhood friend turned lover.
The ending was very rushed and convenient, and I would have loved to see a more complicated and ambiguous solution to Enna and Isi's problems - but this solution pushed it safely back into the young adult section, I think.
But these are the good kinds of issues, and they didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book. I don't like Hale as much as I like Gail Carson Levine, but the comparison certainly works; Hale is Levine minus a coat of gloss, and dealing with a lower class, but the heart is the same.
But it's good. It's darker and scarier than Princess Academy, but very satisfying. I had a bit more trouble getting into it than the first Hale I read, and I have some issues with it that I'll address in a minute, but it was a great story about limits and loyalty. Hale has been dead on with themes so far.
First, I'll acknowledge that it's the second if not the third book in The Books of Bayern. (I'm not sure how defined the storyline/chronology is between this one and River of Secrets.) There was background that Hale just brushed over, giving me enough to figure out who the characters were, but leaving me unclear as to exactly how they all knew each other. And that's a compliment, really, because it drives me nuts when authors recap too much from previous books - if I'm reading the third in a series, it's generally because I read and liked the first two, so you don't need to remind me of everything. I just wish I'd either managed to get a hold of the first two or control myself until I had. But no.
However: the beginning felt slow and a little disconnected from the rest of the story, and it felt like Leifer was just dropped from the story; other than a couple name checks and a quick moment or two of "my brother is dead!", there wasn't much closure. I kept expecting something more definite.
I didn't like Isi. I found her creepy and a little patronizing and completely batshit. And seeing as Enna loved her, I'm pretty sure I was supposed to love her too. But, really, creepy.
Sileph: now that is a character I can get behind. I was half hoping Hale would have Enna turn traitor and marry Sileph and have ruthless little babies, because he was fantastic. Smart and evil and, oh right, ruthless and evil.
That said, I had nothing against Finn, and their little moment in the tent, with his hand on her head and "All I've ever wanted was to be near you" seemed so very adult to me, and helped push the book towards the adult end of the spectrum. It's the Gilbert Blythe fangirl in me that makes me love the sweet, steady childhood friend turned lover.
The ending was very rushed and convenient, and I would have loved to see a more complicated and ambiguous solution to Enna and Isi's problems - but this solution pushed it safely back into the young adult section, I think.
But these are the good kinds of issues, and they didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book. I don't like Hale as much as I like Gail Carson Levine, but the comparison certainly works; Hale is Levine minus a coat of gloss, and dealing with a lower class, but the heart is the same.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2018
LOVE this second book in the series about Enna. Enna is a strong sassy girl who is a little torn between what she wants. It is hard to have a best friend with super powers and when she finds a bit of power in herself it goes to her head. Loved the growing friendship and danger and adventure in this book. I have read this 3 or 4 times and to my daughters. It is a little more violent then Goose girl. For sure a good teen read.
March 2, 2017
I went into this book expecting a cute read, like all of the other Shannon Hale books I've read, but was very disappointed.
Enna was almost disturbing with the over powering urge to burn. I did not even finish the book because I skipped through the rest of the book and was rather disturbed by what I saw there. Especially
Overall I was very disappointed and will not continue to read this series.
Enna was almost disturbing with the over powering urge to burn. I did not even finish the book because I skipped through the rest of the book and was rather disturbed by what I saw there. Especially
Overall I was very disappointed and will not continue to read this series.
September 14, 2012
Originally reviewed here @ Angieville.
So I had another one of those uncomfortable realizations while musing on which book to review. It came to my attention that the only Shannon Hale book I've actually reviewed is The Actor and the Housewife. That's the only one! As Grover would say, "How embarrassing . . ." I read and loved Hale's Books of Bayern long before that ill-fated meeting between myself and the Book That Shall Not Be Named (even though it just was). It's high time I went back and shared my thoughts on those first books. Because they are so good. I remember passing by the original hardcover of The Goose Girl in the bookstore and doing a double take, halting in my tracks over that cover. That unbelievably gorgeous Alison Jay cover. It was the perfect face for that story and I took it home with me that day, cradled gently in my hands. I was unfamiliar with the Goose Girl fairy tale, and it was a delight to discover it as well as Hale's unique writing. I could not wait to see what she would write next. Little did I know her sophomore novel would turn out to surpass its predecessor (at least for me) and give me a heroine who would take up residence in my mind and heart for many long years to come. At some point, I'll go back and review the first book. But for now we'll go with my favorite.
Enna has gone back home. After the escapades of the year before and the marriage of her best friend Isi to the prince, Enna is ready for a measure of normalcy. And she intends to find it among the familiar trees and hollows of home. But fate seems to have a different story in mind for the chicken girl. Just as neighboring Tira flexes its muscles, intent on war with her homeland of Bayern, Enna stumbles upon a frightening ability. Fire laps at her fingertips. With the flick of her wrist she can set whole cottages ablaze. With every good intention in her heart, Enna sets out to do her part in the war effort, spying on Tiran enemy camps and using her new-found power to burn to help her people. She is joined by her old friends Finn and Razo as all three take on new (sometimes uncomfortable) roles in the name of defending their homes. But fire is insatiable. And soon Enna can no longer keep it contained within her own fragile frame. The battle turns inward as the once carefree girl becomes a conduit of flames. And when she is captured by a charismatic captain in the Tiran army, the line between right and wrong blurs amid the swirling smoke and haze.
Everyone loved The Goose Girl. And so did I. How can you not love Isi--the princess who becomes a goose girl and learns how to fight and save her own life? That said, much like Finn, I was even more captivated by Isi's best friend Enna. So naturally Enna Burning became my favorite of the two books. I mean, the title alone . . . Upon subsequent rereadings, I have to say The Goose Girl improved the second time around (and I truly did love it the first time, truly). But Enna Burning, on the other hand, was just as I remembered it. Strong and painful, fiery and deep. Like Enna herself. Razo describes her best,
For some reason, I just love that description. It tells me everything I need to know, from the voice of a friend who goes way back. I can see, taste, and feel Enna through Razo's words. And she is truly a heroine made for me. She burns. Literally. Enna can set whole armies on fire. And does. Several times. Not perfect and not a princess, she's just a girl. A girl who loves to laugh and fights for her country. And this girl, this girl I would be friends with, goes through a lot of pain before coming to terms with the consequences of burning. But when she does, she comes to terms with a vengeance. And, when she is literally on the brink of losing control and burning herself up, Enna proves her mettle by forcing herself to harness the fire in order to help Isi. It is her friend that reaches her and the two of them risk their lives for each other. This friendship between these two young women is so much of what seals Enna Burning's place in my heart. It's there in the first book, but it comes to fruition here. I remember listening to Ms. Hale speak about these two books and the reactions she got to them. She spoke of how many people who loved The Goose Girl (including her mother!) were disappointed with Enna Burning because Enna makes some big mistakes. She is not always firmly on the side of right. She struggles, is attracted to the fire and the darkness, in short she has layers. As for me, give me protagonists like Enna every day of the week. Because she's like me. Her days are hard. She wants so much. She's reckless and afraid and well-meaning and full of messy, glorious life. It is these wonderful gray areas that explain why the book resides on my Beloved Bookshelf. I love her relationship with Finn. I love how it dances back and forth, how Finn forces Enna to see him, and how she must make the choice in the end. In that way, their friendship echoes Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe to me. I love Sileph and the twisted, painful thing that grows between them and how much Hale made me ache for a character I could just as easily have hated. And she does it in such exquisite words. Hale manages to imbue the tiniest inanimate object with a wealth of emotion and movement, with the result that her worlds feel so tangible and real, you forget they're not. That you don't live there. That you haven't all your life. Every time I return to it, Enna and Finn are there. Razo's hair is spiky as ever. And it is so good to be back.
So I had another one of those uncomfortable realizations while musing on which book to review. It came to my attention that the only Shannon Hale book I've actually reviewed is The Actor and the Housewife. That's the only one! As Grover would say, "How embarrassing . . ." I read and loved Hale's Books of Bayern long before that ill-fated meeting between myself and the Book That Shall Not Be Named (even though it just was). It's high time I went back and shared my thoughts on those first books. Because they are so good. I remember passing by the original hardcover of The Goose Girl in the bookstore and doing a double take, halting in my tracks over that cover. That unbelievably gorgeous Alison Jay cover. It was the perfect face for that story and I took it home with me that day, cradled gently in my hands. I was unfamiliar with the Goose Girl fairy tale, and it was a delight to discover it as well as Hale's unique writing. I could not wait to see what she would write next. Little did I know her sophomore novel would turn out to surpass its predecessor (at least for me) and give me a heroine who would take up residence in my mind and heart for many long years to come. At some point, I'll go back and review the first book. But for now we'll go with my favorite.
Enna has gone back home. After the escapades of the year before and the marriage of her best friend Isi to the prince, Enna is ready for a measure of normalcy. And she intends to find it among the familiar trees and hollows of home. But fate seems to have a different story in mind for the chicken girl. Just as neighboring Tira flexes its muscles, intent on war with her homeland of Bayern, Enna stumbles upon a frightening ability. Fire laps at her fingertips. With the flick of her wrist she can set whole cottages ablaze. With every good intention in her heart, Enna sets out to do her part in the war effort, spying on Tiran enemy camps and using her new-found power to burn to help her people. She is joined by her old friends Finn and Razo as all three take on new (sometimes uncomfortable) roles in the name of defending their homes. But fire is insatiable. And soon Enna can no longer keep it contained within her own fragile frame. The battle turns inward as the once carefree girl becomes a conduit of flames. And when she is captured by a charismatic captain in the Tiran army, the line between right and wrong blurs amid the swirling smoke and haze.
Everyone loved The Goose Girl. And so did I. How can you not love Isi--the princess who becomes a goose girl and learns how to fight and save her own life? That said, much like Finn, I was even more captivated by Isi's best friend Enna. So naturally Enna Burning became my favorite of the two books. I mean, the title alone . . . Upon subsequent rereadings, I have to say The Goose Girl improved the second time around (and I truly did love it the first time, truly). But Enna Burning, on the other hand, was just as I remembered it. Strong and painful, fiery and deep. Like Enna herself. Razo describes her best,
She hated it when her hair touched her neck. She also hated having dry fingertips, music without drums, and potatoes without salt.
For some reason, I just love that description. It tells me everything I need to know, from the voice of a friend who goes way back. I can see, taste, and feel Enna through Razo's words. And she is truly a heroine made for me. She burns. Literally. Enna can set whole armies on fire. And does. Several times. Not perfect and not a princess, she's just a girl. A girl who loves to laugh and fights for her country. And this girl, this girl I would be friends with, goes through a lot of pain before coming to terms with the consequences of burning. But when she does, she comes to terms with a vengeance. And, when she is literally on the brink of losing control and burning herself up, Enna proves her mettle by forcing herself to harness the fire in order to help Isi. It is her friend that reaches her and the two of them risk their lives for each other. This friendship between these two young women is so much of what seals Enna Burning's place in my heart. It's there in the first book, but it comes to fruition here. I remember listening to Ms. Hale speak about these two books and the reactions she got to them. She spoke of how many people who loved The Goose Girl (including her mother!) were disappointed with Enna Burning because Enna makes some big mistakes. She is not always firmly on the side of right. She struggles, is attracted to the fire and the darkness, in short she has layers. As for me, give me protagonists like Enna every day of the week. Because she's like me. Her days are hard. She wants so much. She's reckless and afraid and well-meaning and full of messy, glorious life. It is these wonderful gray areas that explain why the book resides on my Beloved Bookshelf. I love her relationship with Finn. I love how it dances back and forth, how Finn forces Enna to see him, and how she must make the choice in the end. In that way, their friendship echoes Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe to me. I love Sileph and the twisted, painful thing that grows between them and how much Hale made me ache for a character I could just as easily have hated. And she does it in such exquisite words. Hale manages to imbue the tiniest inanimate object with a wealth of emotion and movement, with the result that her worlds feel so tangible and real, you forget they're not. That you don't live there. That you haven't all your life. Every time I return to it, Enna and Finn are there. Razo's hair is spiky as ever. And it is so good to be back.
May 20, 2024
I read this series multiple times as a kid, and I am so impressed with how it's holding up for me as an adult! This book is darker than The Goose Girl. Much of the book is centered around war. Enna as a main character is really messy because she is in the throws of a kind of addiction with the fire, and she makes some really bad choices. We also see her in an emotionally abusive type of relationship, and it is painful to watch her lose herself. I love Enna throughout, but especially in the middle of the book she becomes a really complicated character. I love how Shannon Hale doesn't shy away from this. I also adore the friendship between Enna and Isi, especially in the last section. And Finn remains the sweetest boy alive.
March 2, 2014
This is WAY more intense and disturbing than the first book, Goose Girl. I would not recommend it for preteens or sensitive teens without a parent to preview it and discuss it with. Enna's struggle with her powers is an awful lot like a chemical addiction and/or burgeoning sexuality. The images of people burning to death are gruesome. The romantic relationship she develops with a dangerous seducer is disturbing. In the end there are good lessons learned about love and friendship and finding a balance between different "forces" in one's life, but much of the story is very dark. Stories can be a great way to introduce kids to big issues in life, but be warned that this is not your typical fairy-tale variant for young girls.
September 14, 2007
I had to bump this one to the top of my TBR pile, as it is the sequel to The Goose Girl. Enna Burning follows Enna, who befriended Princess Anidori when Ani (also called Isi) was disguised as a goose girl. In this book, Enna learns to talk to fire, as Ani/Isi talks to wind. Enna is another ordinary girl who finds incredible strength within herself and through her friends and does extraordinary things. After almost being consumed by the fire, Enna, with the help of two loyal friends, manages to find balance and live with her gift. This is a marvelous story, beautifully told. Two thumbs up!
April 20, 2009
I find it interesting that Shannon Hale said this was her least popular book. I liked it just as much as goose girl. I like her story telling. i wish the books were longer and had more detail because the world and characters she has created it enjoyable.
In both books there is magic. Their magic is being able to speak, whether to people of animal or elements. What I like about this is that there are consequences to the magic. There is a physical affect from using the gifts of speaking. It makes it more realistic for me
In both books there is magic. Their magic is being able to speak, whether to people of animal or elements. What I like about this is that there are consequences to the magic. There is a physical affect from using the gifts of speaking. It makes it more realistic for me
December 26, 2023
Phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal. Much darker than goose girl, but I also, I think I liked it better than goose girl? (Which is saying something). Shannon Hale might be my new favorite author of all time. Her writing style is so beautiful and unlike anything I've ever read.
July 4, 2008
I couldn't put it down! I loved it so much - probably a little scarier than the first, but the adventure kept me flipping pages. Shannon Hale continues to amaze me.
April 1, 2017
I liked it, but there was way too much repetition and focus on Enna's desire to burn and fire's powerful force. Enna's ability to fire-speak overpowered the story and there wasn't much balance. I liked the beginning and end couple of chapters the best. A bit of a letdown after The Goose Girl.
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