Wildfire Rising

Skyfire Saga #1

by Rachel Rigsby

The sky is on fire, and I’m not talking poetic metaphor or artistic imagery fluff. No. That’s literal, not lyrical. Try to keep up.

It’s been 150 years since the end of mankind, or at least the almost-end. Bombs rained down, entire cities leveled, and biowarfare nearly erased every trace of us from the Earth. But the worst came after.

Stars fell from the sky, breaking every law of nature and every rule of physics. Then the Rip tore open. To where? Who the hell knows. But dragons came through, huge and vicious and scary enough to make a grown man shit his pants. That was the moment the old world died for good.

I’m just living life on the downlow, until this strange little stranger shows up and flips my whole life on its ass. Which is how I end up on a suicidal trip along the Northeast coast of destroyed America to the Rip—the epicenter of dragons and destruction.

But I don't plan on dying a martyr. I'm way too mean for that. I lie like a dog, don’t censor a damn thing, and my head might not be screwed on straight.

I’ve got my wits, a gun, and one fine-ass cowboy stupid enough to ride beside me. Is that enough to survive the Outlands and outlaws with our names on their bullets?

My name is Wren Deveraux. But the dragons say I’m Wildfire.

Genres: Fantasy

434 pages, Paperback

Published February 18, 2026

About the author

Rachel Rigsby is a small-town girl creating worlds far bigger than hers. Worlds filled with formidable women and their fiery romances. She lives in Virginia with her family and more dogs than she’ll admit to. When she isn’t writing, she’s in a bookstore feeding her very expensive book-buying habit. The rest of her time goes to hiking, traveling, and nurturing a growing houseplant collection she long ago ran out of space for.

Reviews

[Thais • tata.lifepages •]

Wow who knew cowboys with dragons in a dystopian setting were THIS GOOD? 😍

The banter in this book was incredible. The MMC is a cowboy who’s also a lovable brute. Basically a big teddy bear! And he’s completely obsessed with Wren, a highly educated & clever woman, with serious trust issues, that works in his farm. She’s the black cat and he’s the golden retriever. These two go at each other’s throats constantly and I found myself giggling like an idiot while reading.

Also mix in magical powers and a dystopian world where dragons fly around the sky, I was hooked! The slow burn romance was so good I couldn’t stop cheering for this gruff but gentle brute to win her heart.

What you can expect:
🐉 reverse grumpy sunshine
🐉 hidden powers
🐉 he’s obsessed
🐉 strong & clever FMC
🐉 MCs in their early 30s
🐉 he would burn the world for her
🐉 dragons!

[Kyleigh]

I really wanted to like this. I don't like to give one star ratings like this but I was so disappointed in this book that I need to express it in some way. The concept sounded so unique and promising but I had a lot of issues with the writing. I am going to keep my review very brief, but I could go on and on about all the issues I had. The main character is supposed to be 30 but she seems like a teenager in the way she acts and speaks. I also did not care for the relationship between Boone and Wren. Additionally, the intimate scenes were very cringe for me and I did not like a lot of the terminology that was used. I could list so many awful quotes from those scenes but I do not want to add anything that graphic to my review. Instead, I am going to end my review with an actual quote from one of those encounters that really solidified my 1 star rating : "That’ll make her third time tonight, and I can’t lie, it puts a little shine on a man.Makes me feel like I’m providing, even if all I’m providing is just a big Johnson and a good hard ride."

[Amber Lit Vibes]

Okay, I’m just gonna say it: Wren Deveraux is my favorite FMC. 😂

This woman is sarcastic as hell, has absolutely ZERO filter, and somehow manages to make being surrounded by dragons, death, destruction, and general end-of-the-world bullshit feel like she wandered into a cheesy 90s rom-com and decided she was going to roast the entire situation. And honestly? I was HERE FOR IT.

The relationship between Wren and the MMC was probably my favorite part of this book. Their chemistry, banter, and the way they play off each other had me grinning like an idiot. It has that “we absolutely should not be doing this, but here we are” energy, and I ate it UP. Their dynamic feels fun and natural, with just the right amount of tension and ridiculousness. And that cowboy? 👀 Yeah. I get it, Wren. I get it.

The whole world is completely bonkers in the best way. The sky is literally on fire, dragons are ripping through the world, civilization is basically a dumpster fire, and somehow Wren is still finding time to be sarcastic. Priorities. 😂

And the narration?? CHEF’S KISS. 🤌 The narrators absolutely killed it. Kate Klover and Richard Brock brought the characters to life and nailed the humor, attitude, chemistry, and emotional moments. You know when a narration makes you forget you’re listening to someone reading a book because you’re completely sucked into the story? Yeah. That.

I laughed. I swooned. I yelled at my headphones. I probably made some questionable facial expressions in public. No regrets.

If you like post-apocalyptic worlds, dragons, enemies-to-lovers-ish tension, sarcastic FMCs, cowboy MMCs, ridiculous banter, and romance that feels like a 90s rom-com got dropped into a dragon apocalypse and said “fuck it, let’s go”. . .

Listen or this damn book.

Wren Deveraux is Wildfire, and apparently I am now emotionally invested in her chaos. 🔥🐉❤️

[Heather Lachelle Fulmer]

Wildfire Rising completely pulled me in. A dystopian romantasy with dragons? Say less.

The world-building is unique, the tension keeps building, and Wren is the kind of heroine who doesn't make life easy for herself—or anyone else. She's sarcastic, damaged, and trying to survive, while Boone is the perfect balance to her chaos. Their banter and slow-burning chemistry kept me hooked.

The dragons may take a little while to make their full appearance, but once the story gets moving, it doesn't let up. Add in the emotional punches, the action, and that ending... I immediately need book two.

If you enjoy dystopian fantasy, dragon riders, slow-burn romance, found family, and emotionally scarred characters fighting for survival, this one deserves a spot on your TBR.

[Shannon Hicks lillard]

3.5 stars
I am uncertain if the was meant to be
Fantasy romance or A fantasy Rom Com. Because for me it really leaned towards rom com. I will also say I am typically not a slow burn girly which this was a little slow at times. The characters : Boone was likable enough. Wren was just laying it in too thick reminds me of violet from fourth wing. You just want her to shut up 🤐. I love the story line and dragon plot. The constant one liners and quips were getting to be a bit much which I why I questioned if was meant to be a rom com leaning. All in all I’d say great first book from a new author. I’m interested enough to see where it’s going to pick up the second one.

[Jennifer Collie]

I enjoyed Wildfire Rising, but I definitely had some moments where I was like, “Wut....". The chemistry was there and there were plenty of moments that had me invested enough to keep turning those pages. BUT… I also felt like some parts dragged a little and some of the character decisions had me staring into space I wanted just a little more from certain parts of the story to really make me emotionally feral about it.

The female narrator, Kate Clover, was outstanding! She's one to check out for sure.

Overall, I liked it! Was I blown away? No. Did I have a good time? Def. Would I recommend giving it a shot if it is calling your name? Yep.

[Raven Ophelia]

5⭐️
2🌶️
The narration was top tier! If you do audio books this is the book for it!
This book takes you on a magical ride of emotional trauma and healing. Magical secrets and found family.
The story is engaging and has multiple turns you don’t expect. The way the author brought the characters together was incredible.
The cliffhanger at the end was rude and I can’t wait for book 2! I need to know what happens.

[Hannah]

I’ve read a lot of fantasy and romantasy, and I can honestly say I’ve never read anything quite like this. The world feels completely original, and the characters don’t fit into the usual molds. They’re messy, funny, and real. The banter had me laughing out loud more than once, and the spice definitely delivers. I finished this book fully obsessed and I'm already impatient for the next one.

[Debbie]

i feel like this author could be a great writer, but this is not that book. It started out really well, but went downhill quickly into a long season of the protagonists in an endless loop of will we/won't we get in each others' pants. I read the whole thing, in the hopes that there would be a plot, a fantasy plot judging from the cover, but no plot ever developed.

[Ana]

Really enjoyed listening to this one, this characters gave a wonderful ride. It was narrated very good and I enjoyed how you can feel all the emotions from every part of the book. It has adventure, love, found family, dragons, end of the world and much much more.

[Ashlee Whitlock]

This book is legitimately insane in the best way. It's chonky! But I still flew thru it and wanted more!

[Barb]

ALC Review
Thank you to narrator Kate Clover for the ALC copy. I highly enjoyed Wildfire Rising. The witty banter from both Wren & Boon was great! Narrators Kate Clover & Richard Brock were great in bringing these characters to life! Romcom romances are a fav of mine & I don't read many fantasy books, but when I read that it was a dystopian fantasy romcom I had to check it out!

[Amber]

Loved this Audiobook. Rachel Rigsby, wrote a comedic dystopian world with a unique magic system, and a slow burn romance that's not lacking in spice. Kate Clover, and Richard Bock seamlessly shift between characters giving them each distinctive personalities resulting in an outstanding performance. Oh my go that last chapter!

[Jessica Hall]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD. The characters and the world building are so well done. Wren makes a lot of sarcastic and snarky comments which I really liked. Thoroughly enjoy the writing style.

The plot takes a while to get started. I feel like there’s a lot a lot of character development and repeated confirmation that Wren is deeply traumatized for the first like 100 pages. This might not be a compliment for another book but for this book I loved it. Ate it up.

Boone is an angel who must be protected at all costs. I really like him and Wren together even tho sometimes he’s too good for her and she’s too smart for him.

Wren is deeeeeeeeply traumatized and I didn’t have a problem being in her head (what does that say about me?) but her insanity might not be everyone’s favorite FMC.

I wouldn’t consider dystopian fantasy to be my favorite genre, but two of my favorite books this year are both dystopian soooooo…

This book was so good and so stressful. I had to alternate with a lighthearted romance when it got too much (like every 3 chapters).

This is the most interesting cliffhanger I’ve ever read. Literally don’t know what’s going to happen but also yes please to more dragons.

I CANNOT WAIT FOR BOOK 2.

🌶️🌶️/5
Wren made us all wait a really long time. Bless Boone’s heart. And his balls.

[Alexis Noble]

This book had a very interesting concept, and I had a hard time deciding what to rate it. For the first two-thirds I would've given it a 5 star... but then the last third was a bit of a letdown. It was so well-written, and the characters were all really interesting. But I had a hard time visualizing the world, and that got harder as the book went along. The main character was really cool until she started being a little too predictable in her reactions (constant bad mood, always insulting), and toward the end I was getting sick of her. It was funny, up until she started getting really unlikable. Boone is a golden retriever MMC, so although I enjoyed their dynamic I really didn't fall for him the way I fall for other book boyfriends. He just seemed kind of desperate in the end. Also, I found it really jarring when it starts being written in his POV toward the end. The whole book I was looking forward to when the dragons came in, and that too was a real letdown. There are a lot of ways this book could've gone to make it more unique and interesting. I gave it 4 stars because I really enjoyed reading it and I'll definitely pick up book 2. I hope Wren is regains some of her likability and Boone shows a lot more edge!

P.S. Scrap Crapper is my favorite

[Jade Bennett]

This book has a great plot line and is such an interesting concept for a dystopian fantasy (especially with dragons which we need more of!!!); however, the writing style feels very underdeveloped. The characters have great bones and some amazing traits that make each of them unique but their execution comes off very surface-level. It’s like I was given a character stats sheet for them yet rarely see it play out. There are moments when the author really hits the mark, like Boone facing down the dragon, or the scene at the gravesite, but most of time the characters feel like one dimensional sitcom characters that throw quip after quip for a studio audience chuckle. I could see this book being top tier if there was a better balance between the snark and world building. I hope to see more from this author’s clearly creative mind down the line!

[Hannah]

I’ve read a lot of fantasy and romantasy, and I can honestly say I’ve never read anything quite like this. The world feels completely original, and the characters don’t fit into the usual molds. They’re messy, funny, and real. The banter had me laughing out loud more than once, and the spice definitely delivers. I finished this book fully obsessed and I'm already impatient for the next one.

[Ashlee Whitlock]

This book is legitimately insane in the best way. It's chonky! But I still flew thru it and wanted more!