Winter of Fire

by Sherryl Jordan

In a grim future world where the sun has vanished from the sky, people glean what warmth and light they can from the firestones mined by an untouchable caste known as the Quelled. Countless taboos are shattered when Elsha, an idealistic and rebellious Quelled girl, is chosen to be handmaid to the Firelord—the man revered by those calling themselves the Chosen. Traveling in the privileged class, Elsha encounters ugly, unthinking prejudice; she also meets a few relatively enlightened Chosen men, who cannot help falling in love with the feisty maid. Spurred on by a hatred of injustice, Elsha battles against sexism, improves life for the Quelled, and even (it seems) hastens the return of the sun to her world.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Dystopia, Young Adult Fantasy, Strong Female, Science Fiction Fantasy

321 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 28, 1992

About the author

Award-winning New Zealand author Sherryl Rose Jordan (née Brogden) (1949-2023) began her writing career with picture books, but soon moved on to novels for older readers. Her breakthrough came with Rocco, published in the United States as A Time of Darkness, and since that time she has gone on to pen many more titles for young adult and juvenile readers that have been published both in her native New Zealand and throughout the world.

The recipient of a 1993 fellowship to the prestigious writing program at the University of Iowa, Jordan used her time in the United States to speak widely at schools and conferences about her books, which blend fantasy with bits of science fiction and romantic realism. "All my young adult novels have been gifts," she noted in the St. James Guide to Children's Writers. "I don't think them up. They hit me over the head when I least expect them; overwhelm me with impressions, sights, and sounds of their new worlds; enchant me with their characters; and dare me to write them."

Reviews

[Jls · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this when I was in 7th grade. The only book I have read multiple times. When my house burned down three years later, and I lost the only copy I had ever been able to find I was very upset. In an effort to find a copy I wrote the author, Sherryl Jordan, asking if she knew where I could find one. Two months later I recieved a package from New Zealand with an autographed copy from her library and a signed drawing she had done of the characters in the book. I still converse with her to this day.

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

Few YA novels are are well-written enough to be just as compelling when read as an adult - much less read as an adult for the first time, and not just revisiting a loved story from one's youth, with all the fond memories and nostalgia we bring to a re-read. But that is how I've just read this book, and I was extremely impressed.

The parable of slavery and repression is a familiar one; whether we consider the idea of women being subservient to men, or one people enslaving another - both of which are present in the novel - the struggle for freedom and equality rings just as true. The world as described by the author isn't burdened with complex illustration, which might have been a detraction under a lesser-skilled pen. Here, though, the simple facts of Elsha's world are strongly felt without the need for complicated geography, history, or socioeconomic structures (as is often the case in novels even like this one, where the element of fantasy is very slight). We see the harsh inequalities in the world as presented, and feel vividly the fire in Elsha's heart to remake that world and lead her people to a better place. And yet the richness of character and the importance of the relationships she forms in the course of her journey is never neglected, and often does more to compel us to her story than the forces and long-standing beliefs arrayed against her.

That this YA novel is out of print is a damn shame, as this story really deserves to be known more than simply via those who loan out their cherished, hard-to-find and hard-to-replace copies.

[Nomes · Rating 5 out of 5]

dystopia/post-apocalyptic fantasy (less fantasy, reads more like an alternate world)

This book was so good I am finding it hard to talk about it.

To say I loved it is an understatement. I felt incredibly moved right from the beginning. And by the end I felt like I had emerged from reading the book somehow changed.

*wipes tear away* That's all I have for this review for now.

[Julie Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the signs of a good book is its ability to grow with the reader. I read this book a long time ago and was caught up in the characters, emotion and the energy of the story, but it has been one of the few novels that has moved with me as I have changed. It couples simple entertainment with thought provoking themes seamlessly. There is something in the soul of this book that resonates with who I am.

[Mariel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boy cockatiels will freeze out a girl cockatiel if she sings. I find that to be the most depressing thing ever (I'm shooting dirty looks at my cocky buddies Lester the Molestor and Hey Jude as I type this. They never even attempted to do a Lauren Bacall whistling lesson for me!). There's a scene in the film Clueless when Breckin Meyer (can't believe I just mentioned THAT name) tells Brittany Murphy (or that one) that boys do those dangerous stunts and girls don't so they'll have something to impress them with. That's bullshit. They can fan out peacock feathers, if need be. Singing is for the birds.
The society in Sheryll Jordan's Winter of Fire is the dystopian society for women. They are at the bottom of the rock pile. Ever play "When and where?" I always have to ask "Do I have to be a woman?" (And it gets tougher from there.) The quelled have to mine in caves for fire rocks to keep the special people warm. It's a world that Kevin Costner never dreamed of. Jordan's world is as good as any seen in Suzanne Collins' wildly popular The Hunger Games series. The society rules are believable enough to give pause in a world where natural resources are increasingly running out (neighboring states hate Florida over water, while our officials screwed us over, etc. It's all over). I wouldn't be surprised either if Sharon Shinn had read this book. I was strongly reminded of her Archangel book, in particular (great book). The later books are better because it isn't all about the men. Archangel is one of my favorite love stories ever because it's about freedom. They are enslaved in Winter of Fire. It pretty much sucks hard (as a rock! Flint, Michigan never had it so bad).
I wish that the relationships with the many different men didn't go on and on. This could have been an even better book. Let the girls sing.
I loved the underlying desperation to live a good life offset by the need for something more personal. It is a shame that this is out of print. Jordan's The Raging Quiet is still my favorite of hers, though.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I re-read this book to fulfill the "book from your childhood" category of the 2015 Reading Challenge as it was my favorite book for many years as I was growing up. I have a very clear memory of finishing it when I was a kid and then flipping back to the beginning to start it again right away. I was nervous to read it as an adult as I was afraid it wouldn't stand the test of time. While it wasn't good enough to flip back to page one and read again when I finished it, I'm happy to say I wasn't disappointed. This book tells the story of a dystopian society in which the which the world has become cold and in order to have enough firestones for humanity to survive, there is an enslaved class, the Quelled who mines for the firestones and a master class, the Chosen, who benefit from the enslavement of the Quelled. Throw in some myths and legends and a Firelord with the ability to divine for the firestones and you've got a pretty well developed dystopian society. And then there is Elsha, a young Quelled woman who is the heroine of the story. With the bigger themes of social justice, equality, gender dynamics, theology, and a strong female lead, I'm pretty proud of my young self for loving such a book.

I gave this book 5 stars when I originally entered it into goodreads, based only on my memory of it. If I read it now for the first time, it might not be a 5 star book, but I'm sticking with that rating because I loved it so much as a kid and liked it a lot as an adult. And there was one line that I remembered almost word for word that I think made me cheer when I was a kid and brought a tear to my eye as an adult. If that doesn't deserve 5 stars, I don't know what does.

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down one of my favourites of all time. OF ALL TIME.
Everyone needs to read this book forever.

[Mel Anie · Rating 5 out of 5]

RTC

[skein]

Affecting. Haven't read it for years, but I remember:
On her birthday, Elsha stopped working in the mines for a moment and was punished for it. When her father asked her why she would be so stupid as to stop working, she said - To have a minute for myself; to think; to feel joy.
"God, Elsha!" he said. "For joy?"

[Renae · Rating 2 out of 5]

Winter of Fire is an unconventional middle grade (or very juvenile YA) novel. In it, Sherryl Jordan tells the story of a special girl who overcomes her own slavery and strives to make the world a better place. This is fantasy with hints of post-apocalyptic fiction, and the set-up and idea worked well for me. However, I was troubled with some parts of Jordan’s execution, and in the end I didn’t love this book.

Our protagonist, Elsha, is a Chosen One. She was born not only a slave, but is considered to be a soulless, brainless animal. When the Firelord sends his henchman to kidnap her so she can be the Firelord’s handmaid, she steps into her destiny. I have to say that Elsha is a strong female character—she’s tough, stubborn, speaks her mind, and isn’t afraid of much. At the same time, she’s also a Special Snowflake, which is why I really hate the Chosen One character type. And, of course, she’s a total boy magnet. For most of Winter of Fire, Elsha travels around, stopping in various towns. And in every single town, there’s some guy who falls in love with her, swears his eternal devotion, and kissing ensues. And by the way, Elsha is very “ugly”, making her Special Snowflake status even more annoying. Naturally, all of Elsha’s man-candy was very helpful in the Big Battle Scene—all her boyfriends just lined up to fight for her. Woohoo!

Sherryl Jordan’s constant message throughout Winter of Fire is that slavery is bad. And that’s an awesome message to have. I fully applaud her for that. Except, the society in this book condones not only slavery, but blatant sexism. And Jordan never attempted to portray that sexism is wrong. In this world, women serve men. At meals, they eat only the leftovers, and basically they’re slaves themselves (even the non-slave women). Even the “enlightened” people are disturbingly hypocritical. “Slavery is bad,” they say, “but oh, Elsha, how could you stop slavery? You’re only a woman.” Barf.

I’m also pretty upset by the fact that the only female character in Winter of Fire worth mentioning is…Elsha. That’s it. Otherwise she’s surrounded by her doting male admirers, drawn in by the power of their love for her. Uh…no. That’s great. One woman with extraordinary abilities gains acceptance, but what about the rest of them? Even Elsha didn’t seem to care too much about the legions of oppressed women right underneath her nose.

So. Winter of Fire is really great in the areas of strong female protagonist, totally engrossing story, and interesting set-up. It’s really awful in portraying women as powerful (I mean, the book pretty much hinges on the fact that Elsha uses her sex appeal and power over men to do her bidding—which is fine, but why couldn’t she do her own fighting?), and Jordan manages to portray slavery as bad all while saying sexism is okay, as long as the Special Snowflake protagonist gains equality for herself. Uh, no.

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[Fantasy Literature · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars from Katie, read the full review at FANTASY LITERATURE

Sherryl Jordan is a New Zealand-based author of young adult and children’s fantasy fiction. In Winter of Fire (1993) she tells the story of Elsha, a sixteen year old girl born into the enslaved underclass called the Quelled. As the sun has disappeared from the world, a memory only alive in mythology, the Quelled are forced to mine for the firestones that are the people’s only source of warmth. But Elsha has a rebellious spirit and is often in trouble with the brutal overseers at the mine. They are from the upper class, the people known as the Chosen.

Elsha’s life is changed forever when she is chosen to be the handmaid of the legendary Firelord. The Firelord is the most important man in the world as he possesses the power to divine for firestones, the life fuel of every person alive. The Firelord’s choice is remarkable; never before has he selected a Quelled girl and the ramifications for the established way of life are huge. Elsha travels with the Firelord through the frozen villages where he divines for the firestones. She faces unbearable prejudice and open animosity from the Chosen people who have been brought up to believe that she is stupid and filthy, not even capable of speech. Elsha remains defiant and dedicated in her service to the Firelord and soon begins to learn that her affinity for the firestones may mean more than she ever realised. As her abilities heighten and her relationship with the Firelord develops she realises that it is her mission to bring hope back to the Quelled and help them rise up from slavery. ...read the full review at FANTASY LITERATURE

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm starting a new shelf in honor of this book. It will be called "deep sigh upon ending." I felt so many different emotions while reading Winter of Fire. I was not among the many that read this already when they were a young adult. I'm reading now as a 45 young adult.

I was moved by the strength and drive that Elsha (the main character) showed as she played handmaid to the Firelord. She never backed down, but was never disrespectful about disobeying the Firelord. She was fiery and passionate about her cause, but also showed a level of emotional maturity that today's young female characters might see as a weakness. I feel like today's dystopia/post-apocalyptic / fantasy / other worldly books, the female characters are lacking a bit in integrity. They break rules / laws, take advantage of others weaknesses, and don't listen to those with more experience. We praise these young women and call them brave, headstrong, and independent. Elsha was strong and smart, but knew when to follow the laws and keep her mouth shut (and face covered), and still succeeded in the end.

This is a fantastic read, especially for juvenile readers just moving into YA and interested in dystopia and post-apocalyptic. It isn't in your face dystopia and post-apocalyptic like current blockbuster hits. It's imaginative and clever in how the new world is revealed to the reader.

[Autumn Kalquist · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I guess I really connected with Elsha and still do. It's the one book I've read over and over since I got it at a school book sale when I was 11. (I'm almost 29, so it's been my favorite for a long time!)

I remember all my classmates being scandalized during lunch when I shared the scene of Elsha dancing around the fire. The cover of my original copy has nearly fallen off, but I bought a replacement hardcover a few years ago. I'd love to see this come out on Kindle. It's apparently a rare book now, but I think it needs to be available forever. ;)

[Keri Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written by New Zealand author Sherryl Jordan, this book feels like a combo of C.S. Lewis’s Till We Have Faces and Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness, but geared toward young adults.

Elsha is one of the Quelled, a group of people who have been enslaved by another group of people called the Chosen. The Quelled labor tirelessly in the mines under horrific conditions. What they’re mining for is called firestone, and it provides both the Quelled and Chosen with a light source as well as a life-giving source of heat. Without firestone everyone would perish because, due to mysterious circumstances, they are no longer able to see the sun anymore. The Firelord, who leads the Chosen and is able to divine the location of the firestones, unexpectedly selects Elsha to be his handmaiden. She leaves the mines where she grew up and travels with the Firelord into the unknown.
The story focuses on topics such as misogyny, slavery, equality and disability, and handles them with sensitivity and care.

I could write an actual book of my own on how much I loved this book! I bought a copy of it when I was only half way through reading it, because I was so moved by it. I saw that another reviewer lost her copy in a fire (and the author was lovely enough to send the reviewer a replacement copy from her own personal library!). I’ll be storing my copy in something fireproof! Too precious to take any chances with it.

The way that several male characters throughout the course of the story declare their allegiance to Elsha was deeply moving to me. As in, made me cry several times. Again and again, the book provides powerful examples of men recognizing Elsha as a true leader. I see that a handful of reviewers didn’t like that so many male characters developed feelings for Elsha, and felt it was unrealistic. But that was actually one of my favorite aspects of the book! Fighting to protect people who can’t protect themselves is one of the most attractive and most admirable things that a person can do. Elsha’s actions make her beautiful, so it makes sense that male characters would develop feelings for her.

As someone who grew up in a church where women were often not allowed to lead in any capacity, I recognized and appreciated the wealth of biblical imagery Sherryl Jordan wove into this book. Jordan draws from those biblical stories and puts a powerful spin on it - instead of a man at the helm, it is Elsha who is the true leader! This is the book I wish I could go back in time to give to my younger self. Everything that Elsha felt, as a character determined to be a leader in a world that refused to accept her leadership, I have felt before. If my past self had a character like her as my guide, it would’ve meant everything to me. Such a powerful book! If I could give it 6 stars, I would.

[Nelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t think I can do justice to how dear this book is to me. I paid 50¢ for a battered copy at a secondhand shop when I was a tween because I liked the cover. I think I read it the first time in less than a day, and possibly a hundred times since. The authorial voice, the diversity and richness of the characters, the fundamental belief in human goodness (while acknowledging our follies and failures), all still fill my cup every time I go to this well.

The themes in this book of cultural myths, “necessary evil” and how we justify/perpetuate oppression and violence against others, fundamentally changed how I saw my own world and the people around me.
The depictions of large and small acts of violence, as well as of sexuality and romance, are handled with honesty that has been tempered with respect for the intelligence and empathy for tween/teen readers - I have such admiration for the author and her choices.

It is worth mentioning that magical realism, informed by a deep belief in the divine is a strong current in this book. So anyone with an aversion to mentions of God or faith would probably struggle with some aspects of the plot. But frankly this depiction of a universal goodness, beyond us and also underpinning everything, is possibly as close as I get myself to religious fervor.

In the end, it is still the actions of people, working together and with inspiration, that move the book forward and lead to a revolution I can believe in against the backdrop of what feels like a very possibly far future of humanity in its current state.

Highly recommended.

P.S. this book has YA genre typical flaws re: the beauty and charisma of the main character (and possibly some age gap issues) but I feel these can be overlooked by a generous older reader.

[Grace*dnfing books since 2022* · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and wavered on four or five stars to rate it. The reason I enjoyed it so much was that it felt completely fresh and trope-free from the recent books I've waded through. I never was completely sure where the story would take me, and that kept me reading long after the time I usually would DNF a book.

At one point I side-eyed the fact that every single male Elsha came across seemed to fall in love with her but realized that it was a plot device and a prophecy of her eventual status in life and was able to forgive that usual sign of a Mary Sue-esque MC.

Some things I found interesting was the apparent juxtaposition of the roles. We see a blond MC on the cover and think that it's just one of those YA books, but the oppressors here were described as dark or bronze-skinned. This is the first of Jordan's books I've read, but I've read other blurbs of hers before and it seems to be a commentary or speculation rather than an intention to slight. Certain things, given the fact that this was written in the 90s, continue to be relevant today, and as a speculative fiction set in medieval times, that's extremely rare and novel. The look at the gender inequality, the differences between how the two groups were treated are all so relevant given the BLM and the MeToo movements. At the very end, there's a glimpse into why the world turned cold and dark, and I thought that was also extremely relevant for today as well.

A story that will probably continue to stay with me. I recommend. Thanks to Linda for reccing this author!

[Jamie Dacyczyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

2025 reread: Still deeply nostalgic for me. I needed a familiar book to get me out of my postpartum reading rut. Still took me an appalling ten days to read, but I'm getting there!

2020 reread: Have you heard about that book where a teen girl living in impoverished circumstances suddenly gets whisked away to a live among the privileged people, and then ends up leading a rebellion against her dystopian society? And oh yeah, maybe she has a couple of love interests. Yeah, sounds like The Hunger Games and its dozens of copycats, doesn't it? Someone could read THIS and think "been there, done that".....except THIS is the been-there-done-that more than 15 years BEFORE The Hunger Games. So there.

I first came across this book in middle school (mid-90s) and have read it a zillion times. This was my first glimpse at the whole dystopian-rebellion genre, and I loved it. Elsha isn't the badass kind of protagonist that we see a lot of nowadays who's amazing at archery or parkour or whatever. She IS gifted with some magical-ish powers, but ultimately revolts using words and simple defiance.

My main beef with this book has always been the religious undertones (the author is a devote Christian). This is probably the most overtly-religious book I own, but it's not bad. For the most part, I just look at it in a mythological sense, the same way "gods" are interacted with in Greek tales. Here, there's lots of talk about the privileged Chosen being selected by God to be the rulers, while the "Quelled" are beasts of burden placed there by God to be ruled over by the Chosen. So...lots of those kinds of mentions. Elsha does also have a vision at one point that I'm sure is supposed to be her seeing this god.....but she also just witnessed a devastating loss and is wandering through the snow without adequate clothing and only one boot. It's well documented that grief and hypothermia are both situations that lead to hallucinations, so I can let the vision slide. Overall, the god talk doesn't get to the point where is hampers the story, and it's never expressly stated which god they're talking about...so again, I just treat it the same as mythology used in other stories.

As I mentioned before, there are a few love interests in this story. But none bog down the plot or derail the protagonist's quest. Only one is a true romantic interest. The others are just a flirtation and an admiration. She's never stuck in a true love triangle, trapped by indecision. I do have to note that although things never go too far, in middle school I was slightly scandalized by an implied make-out scene where half of their clothes come off. Whoa.

This isn't a perfect book by any means, and teens today might wish this were more action packed like the gazillions of other dystopian books that have been published in the last dozen years or so. But, it holds a special place in my reading heart, partly from nostalgia but mostly because I think it's just an enjoyable book.

2014: I've probably read this book dozen of times. Re-reading it now after a gap of a few years, and glad to see it still stands the test of time and age. :)

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sherryl Jordan's young adult books don't condescend to the reader, and that really attracted me when I was young. They're less "fantasy" and more "kinda-supernatural-alternative-world-fiction." Her female characters are strong without that annoying "Young girl comes of age in X culture" feminism that is sooooo overdone in young adult fiction. Definitely for teens.

This was one of my absolute favorite books as a kid. I must have read it once a week for at least two years. I even wrote the author once and was elated when she wrote back.

[Diana Sandberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m afraid I just can’t quite warm up to Jordan. We read her Juniper Game a few months ago and I had a similar feeling about it. She has some good ideas, but I find myself wrinkling my nose at the characters: too self-consciously fey, too clever, too talented, too unreal. This was a read-aloud (daughters 10 and 13) and by the end we were all snickering at the main character’s talent for attracting gorgeous, devoted men.

[Mookie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhere in my childhood, I mentally classified this book in the 'perfect-for-me' category, despite never remembering a thing about it except scenes of darkness and bleak mountains, dim hearths and hushed voices. The fact that such a sooted landscape could stay so rooted in my brain speaks volumes about Sherryl Jordan's writing. People often criticize descriptive writing; Jordan knows how to do it right. I've only read this book a couple times in my life and each time I vividly recall an 'ahh, damn' moment, upon closing that last page. And still, my memories of the plot and the characters remain dim. So this summer I decided to reread it, study its impact on me, and see if it holds up and understand why I loved it so much, despite how fleeting it lives in my memory. I learned that 'Winter of Fire' both exceeded and failed my expectations, this time around.

This book is evocatively elemental. It's about a world that has become dependent on coal (Firestone) that the earth has become so polluted it has blocked out the sun. (I think). In a place without sun, warmth means everything. Firestones are the lifeblood of the Chosen people, and in order to maintain free and constant labour, they have re-written history to subject a less powerful group of people (The Quelled) into slavery. Went the sun, and so did human morality.

I felt totally enraged at the injustices experienced by Elsha and The Quelled. Jordan depicted slavery so poignantly and viscerally. She wonderfully drew out Elsha, throughout the journey, as the young woman began to realize herself the need for change. I liked this girl. She played the social games with as much aloof politeness as anyone could be able to, while simmering with her own matter-of-fact opinions and beliefs. I HATED the Chosen, but to her they were never enemies. She saw them as ignorant and misguided, with an unfortunate amount of power. Jordan has created an excellent wise woman.

Unfortunately it was Jordan's characters that ultimately made the book fall terribly flat for me. Outside of Elsha and the Firelord, and perhaps some enraging prejudiced Chosen, everybody was terrible boring. Yes you had a couple flirts here, a healing saint there, but you never really got a sense of people's personalities. There was something weirdly one-dimensional about the people, which was so stark against the all-encompassing dimensions of the beautifully described landscape. Lesharo was something of a useless figure; was he supposed to represent her past? He's a symbol for something, I just can't figure it out. Maybe he represents her beginning, and Teraj her end. I didn't appreciate the Firelord's pithy undermining of her Quelled status, especially considering his own relationships with the Quelled. (I.e. wife). Do all the single young men need to fall in love with her? That said, I SO appreciated Jordan's scene with her picnicking with Alejandro (or was it Amasai? I forget), where Elsha realises that though she can see Alejandro admiring her and SAYING he respects her, he still follows the custom of eating first and making her wait. Elsha quietly realizes he will never see them as equals, and mentally writes him off. This scene was an unusually subtle way of describing hypocrisy in terms of respect. A really subversive, interesting moment.

This book also bit off a lot more than it could chew upon the battlefield. It was hard to imagine such a loner character, constantly cast out into bleak terrains, could conjure up a winning army. Amasai might command a great army, but the soldiers in that army are men who share the same prejudices as all the other Chosen. I don't understand how they would be willing to lay down their lives for a Quelled, considering how denigrated Jordan wrote this relationship to be. The politics in this book was clumsy.

Still, I love the story. I love the scenes. I'm not overly believing the personal dynamics of Elsha and her relationships, as it's a bit shallow, but I will for sure read it again. Maybe in another 10 years, when I've forgotten all of this again and can only think of a coal-darkened world with bits of flickering fire to illuminate life. The book, and ubiquitously the earth and humankind, rely on hearths (of a sort). When I say this book is elemental, I mean so in the both the human and the geographical sense. People need light and warmth, especially in Elsha's dark world, and it's interesting to see civilizations resort to their barest power grabs in order to survive and capture the warmth. I say geogrpahically, because Jordan describes such a viscerally dead and living atmosphere, connected by currents of water and coal. Like Mars or dinosaur vistas, she writes a world so fundamentally base, tectonically stolid yet moving, groaning and lifeless, all of the little existences on its surfaces getting swallowed up as it slips under the surface. Through Elsha, I see a people, roaming Earth's craggy body for millenia.

Some particular lines that had me closing my eyes:

"Rocks stood like spectres in the gloom, silent sentinels to the dawn." (110)
"He was cold, locked in lonely cold." (187)
"We came to the edge of a ravine, so deep and vast that the river below was a distant thunder, its turbulence lost in haze, and the white rage of the wind. There were strange booming echoes in the depths, sounds strangled by the wind, cries and voices and distant, wasted howls. (218)

[Stormy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Winter of Fire for the first time in sixth grade ten years ago. I devoured the story, and it never really left me. Unfortunately, Winter of Fire is out of print, but every time I went to a used book sale I searched for it, until I finally found it for cheap on Amazon a few years ago. This was my third time reading Winter of Fire, and I have to say, it never gets old.

Winter of Fire is definitely a middle-grade book, which was a little hard to get used to after reading so many young adult books lately, but I quickly slipped back in to the story. Elsha is one of the most fiery characters I’ve ever come across in any type of literature, and she won’t leave you without a fight. She’s defiant, strong, and ruthless in her pursuit of justice and ending oppression for her people. She knows there’s more to life than what she’s been given, and she doesn’t let obstacles get in her way easily. In many ways, she's Katniss before Katniss existed.

Every time I read Winter of Fire, I see more of the themes of feminism and justice than I did during my initial sixth grade reading, but even then, I could tell that part of Elsha’s character was about deliberately being a strong female. In Elsha’s society, the female Quelled people are the lowest class of citizens, barely better than animals. They’re not even granted the title of woman–instead, they’re called “Harsha”. It may be her lot in life, but Elsha refuses to submit quietly, and I love her for it.

This story is actually less action-oriented than I remember. Elsha does have adventures and dangers ahead of her, but what’s more important is the people she comes in to contact with on said adventures. She encounters an entire spectrum of reactions. Some accept her more readily, while others look at her in contempt, and through each character, the world around Elsha is built a little more. It’s an amazing, bleak world. Sherryl Jordan isn’t the type to spend an entire paragraph describing the world around Elsha, but in just a simple sentence I was transported to the dark land where it’s always cold and firestones are the only source of warmth and life.

This is one of my most-recommended books of all time, and after another re-reading, I remember why. It’s out of print, but you can find used copies on amazon, and I highly recommend doing so. It has such powerful themes about oppression and gender equality, all the while being cloaked in an amazing story with one of my favorite protagonists ever.

Final Impression: Just an amazing, amazing book with some of my favorite characters ever. I’m so sad this book is out of print, and it is easily one of my top ten favorite books of all time. Few books have competition with it on my bookshelf. Read it if you can, whether that’s buying a used copy or checking it out from the library!

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite things in the world is finding a good book that I've never heard of, and Winter of Fire defiantly filled those requirements. Even after finishing it this afternoon, I am still finding myself thinking about the amazing world and wonderful characters that Mrs. Jordan created. The main character is Elsha, one of the enslaved race called the Quelled. She is chosen by The Firelord to be his handmaiden and Elsha begins on a quest to bring equality to her world. While the whole 'slave turned hero' type of thing is nothing new, Winter of Fire pulls it off while feeling completely original. Elsha also seems to be as real as you or I (in fact, she reminds me of a friend of mine), which is a hard thing to pull of. The story was well crafted and well thought out, and at times I felt as if I were with Elsha and the Firelord in their brumal future. My only complaint is that it seemed all of the male characters fell deeply in love with Elsha, as if they had nothing else to do. While there were some real jerks, it just seemed that too many people just loved her, and I felt that the number was a little ridiculous. Overall I did truly enjoy Mrs. Jordan's work in Winter of Fire, and I would recommend it to anyone who is in for a good fantasy.

[LauraW · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was actually slightly disappointed in this book. I liked the spunk of the main character, Elsha, but all of the other females in the book seemed to be just tacked on so that the male to female character ratio wouldn't be so overwhelmingly male. None of the other female characters had anywhere near the level of interest that the surrounding male characters did.

And, the ending seemed almost like a Deus ex machine - where everything was wrapped up almost too neatly by the people learning how to "think warm". Yes, I know that there were all of these other powers exhibited during the course of the story, and Elsha gradually learned that she was powerful in ways she hadn't known before, but that particular power seemed to just be summoned up so that the story could end with a satisfactory conclusion.

On the other hand, the book WAS good enough that I read the whole thing. I can't always say that lately.

I just checked and see that Sherryl Jordan also wrote The Raging Quiet. I thought that one was a stronger book, but it doesn't seem to be rated as highly.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book. The journey of Elsha of the Quelled blends relevant social commentary with allegory while remaining absolutely age appropriate. It tickles the dystopic-future itch but stays a wonderful fantasy with a fully-developed world.

I especially appreciate the way Jordan approaches romance. Unlike so many YA novels, "Winter of Fire" doesn't throw Elsha into a love triangle between two dark princes. Instead, she meets a variety of men who all mean something to her in the various stages of her life. None are perfect, and I don't think any of them are ever defined as "god-like" (authors, let's never do that again, okay?). She does ultimately meet her perfect match, but she does so without throwing aside her past relationships. This seems so much more reflective of real-life relationships to me, and I was surprised to find that in a Scholastic novel from 1992.

[Deirdre · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, and I'm so sorry it's out of print! I thought Elsha was an amazing character, and I had a lot of sympathy for her. It's true, one reviewer said, that she's very reckless sometimes, and does some stupid things. But, to me, that made her character more vivid and believable.

The book does have one or two problems. Definitely, Elsha relies a little too much on men, and I can see how her relationships with them might bother some readers -- though I think they are very true-to-life, for a young woman in her situation.

On the whole, the book has interesting, vivid characters, a well-worked out plot, a unique setting, and some beautiful writing -- evocative, sometimes even poetic, but not overblown. It is one of my favorites among Sherryl Jordan's novels.

[Naomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sherryl Jordan wrote one of my all time favorite works, The Raging Quiet. Having not read much else from her, I wanted to read this book and some of her others. This book, had I read it ten years ago, would have been deeply important to tender preteen Naomi. However, as an adult and a writer, there was several aspects of this work that I found somewhat problematic. The largest concern I would cite is the super-female esque overdevelopment of Elsha's powers. She's only sixteen, folks, but she's defiant! All powerful! Can make five (5) men love her all at once even though she's really only a girl! She can divine! She's a born leader even though she's barely had any reading, writing, or speaking training! All that being said, better an over strong female character than a weak one.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elsha is one of the Quelled, a race of slaves who are branded with marks on their foreheads, marked forever as those who will mine coal for a frozen world. The coal warms those of the privileged race. Elsha, however, has a gift that may lead not only to her own salvation, but that of her people, and even the world.

I read this book when I was in junior high, and I adored it. I tracked it down recently and bought a copy to read again. Although as an adult I saw the plot as a little more obvious, I love this book. The lands feel harsh and real, and Elsha is a really lovely woman. Winter of Fire is a book I will re-read for many years to come, and enjoy each time.

[Neon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Winter of fire has been one of my most favourite books since I was 9 years old. Sherryl Jordan is one of my favourite writers - it helps that she's a talented kiwi like myself. I always wanted to meet her and learn more about writing so I can write my own books. She's such an inspiration.

This is a story of slavery, survival and segregation.

Elsha is a child of the Quelled - a branded people, doomed always to mine Firestones (similar to coal) to warm the ruling class, the Chosen.

Born lionhearted and spirited, Elsha walks a road that leads to changes for all the people, both the Chosen and the Quelled.

[Storm · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite childhood book. I first read it in 6th or 7th grade when I stumbled upon it in the school library. I love the main character Elsha and she gave me courage during my middle school years. It's a really good read and I recommend that everyone should at least give it a chance! It teaches important life lessons and values all the while getting you hooked into a good story that has you non-stop reading until the very end!

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome. I cannot praise it enough. I have read and re-read this book. What are you waiting for?!