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The Last Dragon Chronicles #6
Fire World
After destroying a trace of dark fire, David, Zanna, and the Pennykettle dragons vanished. In a brand-new world, Co:per:nica, which runs parallel to that of Crescent Lane, firebirds roam the ancient librarium, a museum for books. But when 12-year-old David and Rosanna accidentally injure one of the firebirds, they are suddenly thrust into a remarkable adventure. The evil Ix have taken over one of the firebirds, turning it to the side of darkness, but the birds have a secret: They know about the existence of dragons. And from across the universe, one may come to their aid....
576 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
186 people are currently reading
6079 people want to read
About the author
Chris d'Lacey
87 books1,112 followersHe was born in Valetta, Malta, but as a child moved first to Leicester and then to Bolton. After gaining a degree in biology from the University of York, he returned to Leicester and got a job at the University of Leicester in their Pre-Clinical Sciences department.
Originally his writing was confined to songs and he didn't turn to fiction until he was 32. His first piece of work was a 250,000 word story about polar bears for his wife, Jay, to accompany a stuffed polar bear he had bought her as a Christmas present.
He didn't write another story for seven years, until he heard about a competition to write a story for young children with a prize of £2,000. The resulting book, A Hole at the Pole, also about polar bears, didn't win - but he sent it off to a publisher, who accepted it.
His first children's novel, Fly, Cherokee, Fly, was published in 1998 and subsequently shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. It was inspired by the time he found an injured pigeon in Victoria Park and nursed it back to health at home. It became a family pet and lived for 14 years in a birdbox attached to the back of the house. All of its offspring were given the names of different Native American tribes, which is where the title of the book comes from.)
He has since written over twenty children's books, including Pawnee Warrior (a sequel to Fly, Cherokee, Fly), a collaborative novel with fellow children's author Linda Newbery (From E To You), and the best-selling, award-winning The Last Dragon Chronicles. His books often contain environmental themes, and events based on things that have happened to him.
In July 2002 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Leicester for his contributions to children's literature. Although writing is now his main source of income, he still works at the university as the operator of the confocal microscope.
His favourite children's books are the Paddington Bear series and The Hobbit, and his favourite children's authors are Allan Ahlberg and Roald Dahl. Chris D'Lacey has written many books like Ice Fire and Fire Star, but his most famous book was Dark Fire, the fifth book in The Last Dragon Chronicles.
Originally his writing was confined to songs and he didn't turn to fiction until he was 32. His first piece of work was a 250,000 word story about polar bears for his wife, Jay, to accompany a stuffed polar bear he had bought her as a Christmas present.
He didn't write another story for seven years, until he heard about a competition to write a story for young children with a prize of £2,000. The resulting book, A Hole at the Pole, also about polar bears, didn't win - but he sent it off to a publisher, who accepted it.
His first children's novel, Fly, Cherokee, Fly, was published in 1998 and subsequently shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. It was inspired by the time he found an injured pigeon in Victoria Park and nursed it back to health at home. It became a family pet and lived for 14 years in a birdbox attached to the back of the house. All of its offspring were given the names of different Native American tribes, which is where the title of the book comes from.)
He has since written over twenty children's books, including Pawnee Warrior (a sequel to Fly, Cherokee, Fly), a collaborative novel with fellow children's author Linda Newbery (From E To You), and the best-selling, award-winning The Last Dragon Chronicles. His books often contain environmental themes, and events based on things that have happened to him.
In July 2002 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Leicester for his contributions to children's literature. Although writing is now his main source of income, he still works at the university as the operator of the confocal microscope.
His favourite children's books are the Paddington Bear series and The Hobbit, and his favourite children's authors are Allan Ahlberg and Roald Dahl. Chris D'Lacey has written many books like Ice Fire and Fire Star, but his most famous book was Dark Fire, the fifth book in The Last Dragon Chronicles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 264 reviews
November 13, 2011
For one of the few times in my life I am actually nearly at a loss for words. Expressing the boundless veneration I have for Fire World and its author seems daunting and nearly impossible. This was one of those rare times where I actually chewed a book before swallowing it, instead of devouring it outright. I cannot pretend to do justice to this book through a review, but as I am a writer, I am compelled to make the attempt.
Fire World is the sixth and most recent installment of the Last Dragon Chronicles, ingeniously written by Chris D'Lacey. Throughout the previous books of the series, the storyline has evolved greatly, but generally retained the same overall character or essence. Amazingly, Fire World takes a drastic turn away from what readers would consider familiar about the story. Firstly, just understanding the fact that the events in the sixth installment are taking place in an alternate reality tells readers not to expect the ordinary.
Co:pernica is an alternate universe version of Earth, where all the familiar characters of the series appear – but not quite as they’ve been before. As the book starts out, readers of the previous novels may be confused. They may even say, "What the heck is going on?" I certainly had a similar reaction upon opening the book. There are several peculiarities throughout the novel that may also strike readers as odd or intriguing, including the return of Gwillana (known as Aunt Gwyneth on Co:pernica). The death of Gwillana in Dark Fire was one of the highlights of the series and to see her return, to me was an intense moment. Totally awesome, to say in modern teen words.
I have deduced that Fire World is by far the epitome of the series' greatness, even if it borders on confusing at times. For that reason only, I cannot give the series a perfect 100/100 rating. Certain readers may find the novel a bit too "out there" and too dissimilar from the remainder of the series. I, myself found it superbly fantastic and worthy of being remembered and revered throughout the ages. Chris D'Lacey is truly a genius, hands down, and an excellent writer. I hope many young readers discover this series, as it can truly change someone's perspective on fantasy.
Fire World is the sixth and most recent installment of the Last Dragon Chronicles, ingeniously written by Chris D'Lacey. Throughout the previous books of the series, the storyline has evolved greatly, but generally retained the same overall character or essence. Amazingly, Fire World takes a drastic turn away from what readers would consider familiar about the story. Firstly, just understanding the fact that the events in the sixth installment are taking place in an alternate reality tells readers not to expect the ordinary.
Co:pernica is an alternate universe version of Earth, where all the familiar characters of the series appear – but not quite as they’ve been before. As the book starts out, readers of the previous novels may be confused. They may even say, "What the heck is going on?" I certainly had a similar reaction upon opening the book. There are several peculiarities throughout the novel that may also strike readers as odd or intriguing, including the return of Gwillana (known as Aunt Gwyneth on Co:pernica). The death of Gwillana in Dark Fire was one of the highlights of the series and to see her return, to me was an intense moment. Totally awesome, to say in modern teen words.
I have deduced that Fire World is by far the epitome of the series' greatness, even if it borders on confusing at times. For that reason only, I cannot give the series a perfect 100/100 rating. Certain readers may find the novel a bit too "out there" and too dissimilar from the remainder of the series. I, myself found it superbly fantastic and worthy of being remembered and revered throughout the ages. Chris D'Lacey is truly a genius, hands down, and an excellent writer. I hope many young readers discover this series, as it can truly change someone's perspective on fantasy.
August 13, 2018
This series has definitely taken a turn for the strange, although in a good way. My thought still stands that this book is not a children's book like it is often advertised. The first book and possibly the second were, but the subsequent ones are not. The idea of an alternate universe that is probable is a big concept to wrap the mind around. While it may be confusing at first, it all ties together by the end.
But seriously, what drugs was d'Lacey on?
But seriously, what drugs was d'Lacey on?
August 26, 2012
This is more of a review of the entire series but oh well. Personally I found the first two book intriguing and interesting I found myself liking very much david and Zanna as well as the family and the quirky dragons. The first book was most definetly my favourite because it was kept simple whilst still having a readable storyline, the second I liked to apart from having to read all that junk from the bears point of view which whilst yes I see as necessary was boring and lengthy.
After that in my opinion the series went seriously downhill it became overly complicated and within that missed the original story which was replaced with complicated storylines about bears and the edge of the world floating in space or whatever it was. I don't know whether I am just too stupid to understand it or whether it's just too complicated.
I mean David starts as a simple normal character progresses, dies, comes back as a bear and a human, has an angel child, turns out everything he writes comes true and that hes some sort of mystical creature that they dont know where he came from or who he is. If you ask me that's an overkill.
As for the last one whilst it was fun to guess who all the different characters were supposed to be to me it seemed incredibly pointless I read It reluctantly determined that at the end that would all go back to there own world refreshed and improved but it just ended with a cheesy quote 'there will always be fire' or something like that and left me with a feeling like why did I even bother. I found it wasn't even linked particularly to the series and lacked structure.
Overall I think the books started with lots of potential and became overkill with complication.
After that in my opinion the series went seriously downhill it became overly complicated and within that missed the original story which was replaced with complicated storylines about bears and the edge of the world floating in space or whatever it was. I don't know whether I am just too stupid to understand it or whether it's just too complicated.
I mean David starts as a simple normal character progresses, dies, comes back as a bear and a human, has an angel child, turns out everything he writes comes true and that hes some sort of mystical creature that they dont know where he came from or who he is. If you ask me that's an overkill.
As for the last one whilst it was fun to guess who all the different characters were supposed to be to me it seemed incredibly pointless I read It reluctantly determined that at the end that would all go back to there own world refreshed and improved but it just ended with a cheesy quote 'there will always be fire' or something like that and left me with a feeling like why did I even bother. I found it wasn't even linked particularly to the series and lacked structure.
Overall I think the books started with lots of potential and became overkill with complication.
June 15, 2011
This book, 'Fire World', is the 6th in a series by Chris D'lacey. In this book, 12-year-old David (not the one from the other books) and friend Rosanna (also not the same one) acidently injure a magical firebird, triggering a chain reaction, that ends up distorting time. Through a time rift, a cluster of evil ix emerges, and they plot to take over David's homeworld, Co:pern:ica. With the help of the fire birds, David and Rosanna must stop the ix from taking over.
Originally, I thought this book was just going to be a money-grabbing sequel. But when I started reading I found it was a pretty good book. Although it follows the whole 'Last Dragon Chronicles' theme, it is almost like the start of a whole other series. The only real drawback to this book is that you really need to read the other books to understand this book fully. I didn't even really get parts of it because I haven't read the previous book in a while.
Originally, I thought this book was just going to be a money-grabbing sequel. But when I started reading I found it was a pretty good book. Although it follows the whole 'Last Dragon Chronicles' theme, it is almost like the start of a whole other series. The only real drawback to this book is that you really need to read the other books to understand this book fully. I didn't even really get parts of it because I haven't read the previous book in a while.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 8, 2021
4 stars!
Woah this was so so good!! I can't believe it really because the previous 2 in this series has been a disappointment (& a bit of a bore). But this was a different book as the story was about the characters but in another dimension. So I guess this could be a prequel to the series? It's kinda hard to explain, but it was the characters from the series, but they were different characters. You could tell usually who was who because they kept the same names (for the most part).
It was very sci-fi but in a really good way. The ix or fain (that I'm sick and bored of) weren't even mention until about page 350.
Unfortunately though, the last 70-ish pages were, once again, a bore (I've said that a few times now haven't I). But this is why this book is 4 stars and not 5. Anyway, I can't decide if this book is my favourite in the series or if it's still book 1.
I'm really interested in how book 7 goes so I'm off to read that one now. I really hope it's as good as this one.
Woah this was so so good!! I can't believe it really because the previous 2 in this series has been a disappointment (& a bit of a bore). But this was a different book as the story was about the characters but in another dimension. So I guess this could be a prequel to the series? It's kinda hard to explain, but it was the characters from the series, but they were different characters. You could tell usually who was who because they kept the same names (for the most part).
It was very sci-fi but in a really good way. The ix or fain (that I'm sick and bored of) weren't even mention until about page 350.
Unfortunately though, the last 70-ish pages were, once again, a bore (I've said that a few times now haven't I). But this is why this book is 4 stars and not 5. Anyway, I can't decide if this book is my favourite in the series or if it's still book 1.
I'm really interested in how book 7 goes so I'm off to read that one now. I really hope it's as good as this one.
November 29, 2011
I have just been more and more disappointed in this series, it has gotten so convoluted. We don’t pick up where Dark Fire left off. Instead this story follows a little boy named David on the world of Co:per:nica. There are vague parallels to the characters in all the previous books. Eventually there is some explanation of why we are following the characters in this world and how they connect to the characters in the other world, but it wasn’t enough to save this story especially at almost 600 pages. I kept finding myself thinking What is going on? and Why do I care about this David and Rosanna? I started this series because of the dragons. As it has progressed the dragons have been involved less and less. Now there is this mixed up parallel world and I find myself very inclined to not bother finishing this series.
July 19, 2011
I truly LOVED this book!!!!!!!! Chris D'Lacey is a downright GENIUS!!!!!!! This is my favorite book in the "Last Dragon Chronicles" so far!!!!! I can't wait for the next book!- Mr D'Lacey, if you're reading this, PLEASE hurry up with the next book!!!!!!!!!!!!
July 10, 2012
This fantasy's summary made me want to read it to find out more about the firebirds, dragons, and the future world the characters inhabit, but I was very disappointed. I almost stopped reading it twice and should have. The author, Chris d'Lacey) had to explain too many times what was going on or had gone on. I don't think that would be necessary if the writing were better. It's unfortunate, too, because of the interesting ideas involved, such as the people of Copernica not reproducimg the traditional way. Humans have evolved to be able to imagine (or what d'Lacey termed "imagineer") whatever they need, including children, which raises biological and ethical questions. This ability causes the natural world to become almost extinct, because humankind doesn't particularly need it anymore. It can be read as a warning for our current culture to not be so focused on progress with disregard for nature, human contact, and even books.
June 6, 2022
Excellent. With a mixture of fantasy and science fiction I thoroughly enjoyed this book with many twists and turns. We've read it out of sequence with the other books but shall now go to book 1 and so should have an interesting insight on the characters as they are on Earth.
September 13, 2024
This book resembles nothing so much as that section of every long essay where it's obvious that the student hasn't hit the word count yet and is just throwing in random ideas hoping no one will notice they have nothing to do with the thesis.
January 7, 2020
4.5/5 stars. I liked the firebirds. I didn't like how the author made the firebird attack 12-year-old David.
March 11, 2021
This book is weird. I don’t love reading about my favorite characters that aren’t really my favorite characters. Plus the cliffhanger ending drives me bonkers.
April 17, 2022
Star 1: -as always for finishing the book
Star 2: -because the over-arching plot of this series is so well interwoven that the randomness all actually fits into it.
Star 3: -because of all the surprises. I love books that are unpredictable enough to give me a surprise.
Why I didn't give it more stars:
1) I reached the point with this series a couple books back where I started floundering. I have been thinking to myself since I started... book 4 I think it was, 'what the h*** is this author doing? Where the h*** is this author going with this? What the f*** is with all this random nonsense?' Now, normally, I'm all for complex, heavily interwoven story-lines, and unpredictability. (i.e. why I gave Star 2). But I'm having a negative reaction to this. Seriously, it started getting weird after book 1 and just progressively got more so. (see my review for Book 3 for a long rant about some ways it got weird ----and it got weirder after that).
2) I struggled so bad to finish this book. It felt like effort to pick it up and read it. There were times I only read a chapter. A single, single-digit page count, chapter. That's something I rarely ever do. The only thing that got me to keep picking it up was the knowledge that it's book 6/7 and I'm almost done the series (and I very much like completing things). The pure incredulous-ness I feel towards this series made me want to see where the h*** this book was going. And I have a feeling the last book (7) is going to go the same way for me.
3) I actually came to the conclusion while reading this series that I would probably not recommend this series to anyone I know. That being said, I'm sure there are people out there that would very much enjoy this series - because it does have a complex plot (if you can be patient with the randomness), and twisty surprises (if you can ignore some of the ones that come out of left field long enough (maybe even a book or two long enough) for the author to explain it / interweave it into the story). It took a Christian fiction turn with the "God" dragon, a character who died but came back special, and some other stuff somewhere along the way. This book Overall, this far in, I'd say this series is probably meant for Christian children in the middle school age area. I think for anyone older, or less Christian, I wouldn't recommend this for.
What I thought of the overall plot of this book (including some plot summary):
Overall everything tied back in, in a complex, subversion kind of way. I definitely recommend if you read this series to read them back to back. Because, like in Supernatural, random s*** comes back into relevance and EVERYTHING has meaning. Well, mostly. I still spent like 400+ pages of this book going, 'how the h*** does this relate to the other books?'
Star 2: -because the over-arching plot of this series is so well interwoven that the randomness all actually fits into it.
Star 3: -because of all the surprises. I love books that are unpredictable enough to give me a surprise.
Why I didn't give it more stars:
1) I reached the point with this series a couple books back where I started floundering. I have been thinking to myself since I started... book 4 I think it was, 'what the h*** is this author doing? Where the h*** is this author going with this? What the f*** is with all this random nonsense?' Now, normally, I'm all for complex, heavily interwoven story-lines, and unpredictability. (i.e. why I gave Star 2). But I'm having a negative reaction to this. Seriously, it started getting weird after book 1 and just progressively got more so. (see my review for Book 3 for a long rant about some ways it got weird ----and it got weirder after that).
2) I struggled so bad to finish this book. It felt like effort to pick it up and read it. There were times I only read a chapter. A single, single-digit page count, chapter. That's something I rarely ever do. The only thing that got me to keep picking it up was the knowledge that it's book 6/7 and I'm almost done the series (and I very much like completing things). The pure incredulous-ness I feel towards this series made me want to see where the h*** this book was going. And I have a feeling the last book (7) is going to go the same way for me.
3) I actually came to the conclusion while reading this series that I would probably not recommend this series to anyone I know. That being said, I'm sure there are people out there that would very much enjoy this series - because it does have a complex plot (if you can be patient with the randomness), and twisty surprises (if you can ignore some of the ones that come out of left field long enough (maybe even a book or two long enough) for the author to explain it / interweave it into the story). It took a Christian fiction turn with the "God" dragon, a character who died but came back special, and some other stuff somewhere along the way. This book Overall, this far in, I'd say this series is probably meant for Christian children in the middle school age area. I think for anyone older, or less Christian, I wouldn't recommend this for.
What I thought of the overall plot of this book (including some plot summary):
Overall everything tied back in, in a complex, subversion kind of way. I definitely recommend if you read this series to read them back to back. Because, like in Supernatural, random s*** comes back into relevance and EVERYTHING has meaning. Well, mostly. I still spent like 400+ pages of this book going, 'how the h*** does this relate to the other books?'
December 7, 2017
5
Fireworld is quite different from the other books of the series, it is tied in distantly to the other books. This book takes place in a world somewhere between the ki:merra (ki:merra is a world of thought) and earth. David is a twelve year old boy and is having trouble in his sleep and they send him to a librarium so he can sleep better. The library is home to the director and Rosa. Over time David and Rosa are best friends, one day they're chasing each other over a book and when Rosa finally gets cornered she throws the book out the window and accidentally kills a firebird, and they run down. David is the first to get there he tries to save the bird but another bird flames him and he goes into a coma. When he finally wakes up he is 8 years older because his dad was trying to open a portal and eventually creates a time lapse. Which gets him arrested. Which you’ll have to read about because I won’t tell you. This book was really good if you don’t think about how the previous book ended, RHHH! They story line was super exciting because you learned a lot of different things about that world. It is funny because by a slightly different name like, Aunt Gwyneth, you know that she is the bad person in the story so you want to tell the characters but you couldn’t. It was kind of interesting because the characters are the same people but different names, with their personalities are slightly different, and different settings, but it is more or less the same plus a little bit more. This story had a bunch of moving points and when I had finally pieced them together I was so happy it was kind of funny to be honest. The theme of this book would be not everything goes the way as planned. Like when Aunt Gwyneth tries to kill david his fain interrupts that and when the black firebird dies and the Ix gets enslaved it definitely did not plan that. All in all it was a 4 out of 5.
Fireworld is quite different from the other books of the series, it is tied in distantly to the other books. This book takes place in a world somewhere between the ki:merra (ki:merra is a world of thought) and earth. David is a twelve year old boy and is having trouble in his sleep and they send him to a librarium so he can sleep better. The library is home to the director and Rosa. Over time David and Rosa are best friends, one day they're chasing each other over a book and when Rosa finally gets cornered she throws the book out the window and accidentally kills a firebird, and they run down. David is the first to get there he tries to save the bird but another bird flames him and he goes into a coma. When he finally wakes up he is 8 years older because his dad was trying to open a portal and eventually creates a time lapse. Which gets him arrested. Which you’ll have to read about because I won’t tell you. This book was really good if you don’t think about how the previous book ended, RHHH! They story line was super exciting because you learned a lot of different things about that world. It is funny because by a slightly different name like, Aunt Gwyneth, you know that she is the bad person in the story so you want to tell the characters but you couldn’t. It was kind of interesting because the characters are the same people but different names, with their personalities are slightly different, and different settings, but it is more or less the same plus a little bit more. This story had a bunch of moving points and when I had finally pieced them together I was so happy it was kind of funny to be honest. The theme of this book would be not everything goes the way as planned. Like when Aunt Gwyneth tries to kill david his fain interrupts that and when the black firebird dies and the Ix gets enslaved it definitely did not plan that. All in all it was a 4 out of 5.
October 15, 2020
On its own this book would have been only okay, but as the sixth book in a series it was bad. This book is completely disconnected from the other books of the series, it introduces a new world and new-ish characters.
As far as world building goes it starts out okay, you can manage to suspend your disbelief and enjoy getting to know this new place. But as the book progresses it gets crazier and more convoluted, especially when it tries to tie in to the rest of the series.
The characters are similar but separate (or are they? It is still not clear) from the others in the series, which leaves you guessing the entire time about who is who and what they will do and how this is all connected. The whole time I was waiting for the characters from the other books to show up, because of how the last book ended, but it never happened. Also there was a time jump where the characters aged suddenly, and somehow this also made them mature even though they had just been children, which made no sense to me. It seemed like a cheap trick used by the author to get them to the age he needed them without going through any of the trouble of writing about those years.
By the end of the book I was done, it was a mess. As I reflected on the book I realized I had no emotion attachment to the characters, I just didn't care what happened to them anymore. And the story line has become so crazy I can no longer suspend disbelief. I will read the last book, but it seems like the series has dug its own grave already for me.
As far as world building goes it starts out okay, you can manage to suspend your disbelief and enjoy getting to know this new place. But as the book progresses it gets crazier and more convoluted, especially when it tries to tie in to the rest of the series.
The characters are similar but separate (or are they? It is still not clear) from the others in the series, which leaves you guessing the entire time about who is who and what they will do and how this is all connected. The whole time I was waiting for the characters from the other books to show up, because of how the last book ended, but it never happened. Also there was a time jump where the characters aged suddenly, and somehow this also made them mature even though they had just been children, which made no sense to me. It seemed like a cheap trick used by the author to get them to the age he needed them without going through any of the trouble of writing about those years.
By the end of the book I was done, it was a mess. As I reflected on the book I realized I had no emotion attachment to the characters, I just didn't care what happened to them anymore. And the story line has become so crazy I can no longer suspend disbelief. I will read the last book, but it seems like the series has dug its own grave already for me.
July 17, 2014
How do you wrap up a book like that in a paragraph or two?
We'll first it's awesome! It's thrilling in a way that isn't to fast. Like the characters handle everything amazingly. They twist and turn so smoothly, they never pull the rug out from under you.
And of course it takes place in the best setting ever!!! I mean come on a library that has a hundred and eight floors! I would love to live there. When we went to the library I said 'it's not the libraruim but it'll do.' And my sister asked me what a libraruim was. So I started to describe it to her. Half way through she said 'I think it's better if I don't ask you questions' some people just don't understand the gift of a good book. But if you read it (and you should) I hope you really enjoy it.
We'll first it's awesome! It's thrilling in a way that isn't to fast. Like the characters handle everything amazingly. They twist and turn so smoothly, they never pull the rug out from under you.
And of course it takes place in the best setting ever!!! I mean come on a library that has a hundred and eight floors! I would love to live there. When we went to the library I said 'it's not the libraruim but it'll do.' And my sister asked me what a libraruim was. So I started to describe it to her. Half way through she said 'I think it's better if I don't ask you questions' some people just don't understand the gift of a good book. But if you read it (and you should) I hope you really enjoy it.
May 14, 2019
Ugggh!! Oh my heavens, I didn’t know how ANNOYING putting random colons in the middle of words could possibly be to me. Seriously I don’t care what place/time it’s set in. It should be computer and not com:puter, end of story. That’s just one example though. I found it mind numbingly boring to reread similar events to ones I’ve already read. It’s just the first books but the characters have different names! It’s not interesting. Honestly I just wanted to know know what happened to Earth David. What ever happened to the story from the first two books? I feel like Chris D’lacey just has been shoving facts in my face just for the sake of making things more complicated! The last book better be amazing or I’m really gonna regret putting up with this series.
July 18, 2011
I LOVE this book!!!!!! In a world between Earth and Ki:mera, Co:pern:ica, David and Rosa(nna) are unknowingly the alternates of David and Zanna on Earth. Aunt Gwyneth, the alternate of the sybil Gwillanna is there as well. David's mother is the alternate of Elisabeth Pennykettle, and his sister, Penny, a younger alternate of Lucy, was born from an egg too. A version of Alexa, that calls herself "Angel", is made with the essence of David and Rosa. The biggest detail is, Gadzooks is there too, made by David's mother, but instead of a pencil and pad, he is holding a book...................
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 14, 2021
Fire World by Chris d'Lacey is incredibly thought provoking. The characters, though in an unfamiliar world, are familiar. David, named for his Earth counterpart, is a resident of Co:per:nica. He is defined as ec:centric. He goes to a "librarium" (library) and falls in love with the auma of the books. As David falls for the books, and a wild-child named Rosa, I fall for the world he lives in. Though imperfect, Co:per:nica feels like home. The Librarium has a heart of it's own, and though the character of Aunt Gwyneth is petulant and unlikable, she makes a very convincing villain.
September 15, 2015
Oh goodness this book hade so excited the whole time.. Being in another time plane and everything!!! I feel all time traveled in a sense.. This was wonderful and anytime it mentioned anything from earth or I noticed the relevance of things that weren't I squealed. I loved this book and I am so excited to see what happens in the next one!!!
July 12, 2011
I liked this book, but not as much as some others in the series. It was somewhat difficult to get used to the alternate reality and I kept expecting the characters to know things that they didn't. I would recommend this for anyone who has read and loved the series but it wasn't my favorite.
July 12, 2015
Not bad, but I think Chris d'lacey could have made little notes about the animals.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 8, 2013
[Jacob] I loved this book because the storyline was great and I loved the characters. 4 stars
August 16, 2023
At the time of this review, I would say that 'Fire World' is probably the second best book in this series; just behind 'Dark Fire'. I say this book is just a little worse than 'Dark Fire' because while it has similar amount of enjoyment; coming from the new direction it took with the setting, characters, and worldbuilding; it also contains a few plot structuring problems that some of the previous books had, as well as handful of just odd storytelling choices.
First off, let me discuss why the new direction this book takes is so good. In the previous stories I eventually found myself growing a little tired of them returning to same locations, characters, and lore bits with only short or minor shake-ups in those elements; but this story managed to take all those established things and flip them on their head. The way this story manages to shake-up the setting is by taking place in a parallel universe that mirrors the universe of Earth, where new and creative locations, as well as worldbuilding elements, can be developed and explored; such as the humans who have natural Fain powers that allow them to manifest physical constructs with thought and read each others minds; advanced tech that the humans use their Fain to interact with; firebirds that take the place of dragons in the universe; a library build that seems to have thought and life of its own; and a superficially utopian city that's surrounded by barren wasteland while it's being controlled by a group of Pure Fain called "The Higher". All of these new elements I find very fun and imaginative, but the characters are also shaken-up by the parallel universe as they're technically the same people we've been following before; they're just alternate variations of those people with slightly modified personalities and backstories, allowing them to feel like new and fresh characters. Now, one last thing I appreciate about the alternate universe direction is that it allows new bits of information and background to be added to the overall story's lore, like the legendary character Agawin and the revelation that this universe, Earth, and all the other dimensions are interconnected in a nexus.
Now, let me tell what ultimately holds this book back from being better than its predecessor, that being some of the plot structure and story beat choices. 'Fire World' has a similar structure problem to 'Fire Star', though mainly in its second half, where the story switch focus from one plotline to another and not return to the previous one for an exhausting amount of time. One particularly painful example of this is when the story is building up a group of characters that are preparing to fight these manlike machines in order to escape the wasteland, but then the story cuts away to the other characters in the library building and doesn't get back to those other characters until they've already escaped and met back up with the library characters, and the events of their escape are recapped later in a quick summary. This plot choice left the latter half of the book feeling a little disappointing and frustrating, but this isn't the only mistake made in the book. The other problem holding 'Fire World' back is a few frankly strange and confusing story events that kind of took me out of the story for a brief minute. The first of these weird story beats is when one of the characters is interrogating some evil henchwomen by tickling their feet, and while this happens a firebird apparently urinates on one of them, and both of these things happen in such a way that just leaves the whole scene feeling strange and bit creepy. The other weird story beat is when a rainstorm starts flooding the land and the library building transforms itself into a giant ark that's populated with a variety of exotic animals. This scene is specifically confusing because it seems to be an allusion to the biblical story of Noah's Ark in a story that had no real build-up to this kind of event, not to mention how near the vary end of the story the characters suddenly decide to start a library service in the ark, which again just left me confused and taken out of the story.
While the problems I mentioned might make it seem like this book is bad, it's still actually a very enjoyable read, it's just a little weaker when compared to the book that came before it. Overall, this is still one of the better installments in the series and I'm curious as to where the story will go from here, so don't be afraid to check this one out.
Also, one last quick note. In my review of the previous book I mentioned how I think d'Lacey could probably write decent sci-fi if he just tried. Well this book seems to just confirm that thought, given how well he builds up the technology and speculative aspects of the world in this book. Now I'm not saying d'Lacey should or will write sci-fi, just that I personally feel like he could do great work in that genre.
First off, let me discuss why the new direction this book takes is so good. In the previous stories I eventually found myself growing a little tired of them returning to same locations, characters, and lore bits with only short or minor shake-ups in those elements; but this story managed to take all those established things and flip them on their head. The way this story manages to shake-up the setting is by taking place in a parallel universe that mirrors the universe of Earth, where new and creative locations, as well as worldbuilding elements, can be developed and explored; such as the humans who have natural Fain powers that allow them to manifest physical constructs with thought and read each others minds; advanced tech that the humans use their Fain to interact with; firebirds that take the place of dragons in the universe; a library build that seems to have thought and life of its own; and a superficially utopian city that's surrounded by barren wasteland while it's being controlled by a group of Pure Fain called "The Higher". All of these new elements I find very fun and imaginative, but the characters are also shaken-up by the parallel universe as they're technically the same people we've been following before; they're just alternate variations of those people with slightly modified personalities and backstories, allowing them to feel like new and fresh characters. Now, one last thing I appreciate about the alternate universe direction is that it allows new bits of information and background to be added to the overall story's lore, like the legendary character Agawin and the revelation that this universe, Earth, and all the other dimensions are interconnected in a nexus.
Now, let me tell what ultimately holds this book back from being better than its predecessor, that being some of the plot structure and story beat choices. 'Fire World' has a similar structure problem to 'Fire Star', though mainly in its second half, where the story switch focus from one plotline to another and not return to the previous one for an exhausting amount of time. One particularly painful example of this is when the story is building up a group of characters that are preparing to fight these manlike machines in order to escape the wasteland, but then the story cuts away to the other characters in the library building and doesn't get back to those other characters until they've already escaped and met back up with the library characters, and the events of their escape are recapped later in a quick summary. This plot choice left the latter half of the book feeling a little disappointing and frustrating, but this isn't the only mistake made in the book. The other problem holding 'Fire World' back is a few frankly strange and confusing story events that kind of took me out of the story for a brief minute. The first of these weird story beats is when one of the characters is interrogating some evil henchwomen by tickling their feet, and while this happens a firebird apparently urinates on one of them, and both of these things happen in such a way that just leaves the whole scene feeling strange and bit creepy. The other weird story beat is when a rainstorm starts flooding the land and the library building transforms itself into a giant ark that's populated with a variety of exotic animals. This scene is specifically confusing because it seems to be an allusion to the biblical story of Noah's Ark in a story that had no real build-up to this kind of event, not to mention how near the vary end of the story the characters suddenly decide to start a library service in the ark, which again just left me confused and taken out of the story.
While the problems I mentioned might make it seem like this book is bad, it's still actually a very enjoyable read, it's just a little weaker when compared to the book that came before it. Overall, this is still one of the better installments in the series and I'm curious as to where the story will go from here, so don't be afraid to check this one out.
Also, one last quick note. In my review of the previous book I mentioned how I think d'Lacey could probably write decent sci-fi if he just tried. Well this book seems to just confirm that thought, given how well he builds up the technology and speculative aspects of the world in this book. Now I'm not saying d'Lacey should or will write sci-fi, just that I personally feel like he could do great work in that genre.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 23, 2023
So, every time I read the next book in this series I wanted to continue less and less. I think this book got me back. In terms of vibes, I would say it's similar to book 2. Basically, it's the same characters in a different dimension and it's really fun to read and see the similarities between the two dimensions, I really enjoyed that aspect of it. It is not exactly the same story as the other dimension, it's quite different, but you see that all the characters are still connected in some way. I would say I really liked it, other than the grievances I have with the series in general. To me, it gave what was becoming a tired story a new life.
There of course were things I didn't like. Most of those things happen throughout the series and are not exclusive to this specific book.
We get it, Rosa is beautiful. You don't have to mention it every time you talk about her character. I mean EVERY. TIME.
There of course were things I didn't like. Most of those things happen throughout the series and are not exclusive to this specific book.
We get it, Rosa is beautiful. You don't have to mention it every time you talk about her character. I mean EVERY. TIME.
March 21, 2018
Fire World kicks off with a distinct twist from the previous book with everything completely flipped and swirled around from the previous books! :D The cast of characters as you read through though are all broadly the same though wearing different faces and bodies which puts a different and unique twist on the events as they commingle (Lol) with the events in the other books! :D
At the same time this put the epic conflict that is the ongoing theme throughout onto a even broader canvas as we start to see how all this intermingling actually works out! :D Throughout Fire World though you can really see how David (who is still David in this world), Rosa/Zanna, Mathew, Tam etc all come through to some really out there differences! :D These changes vary from the subtle to the epic and you will find yourselves throughout trying to guess who is who! :D Some are little on nose compared to others but fitting them all in will keep you on your toes! :D
At the same time though we are also introduced to The Higher who are the Fain who turn out to be a evolved species of human who have evolved beyond the physical body! :D The are shrouded in intrigue for most of the book and add to the mysterious nature of the whole book! :D There are inklings throughout as to the who they really are! :D Also it is to be noted that in the world of Co:pern:ican David is actually Eliza's and Harlan's spawn as it was supposed to be on Earth with Penny/Lucy as his Davids sister! :D
Fire World has a degree of menace throughout the whole book with Aunt Gwyneth/Sibel Gwilanna up to her old tricks trying to confound Rosa and David at every turn! :D She is like a mole in a game of Bobbitt constantly popping up no matter how many times you hit her down! :D Fire World certainly sets things up brilliantly for the next book with Gwilanna somewhat triumphant in the book! :D
Fire world is a real roller coaster of a ride really twisting everything up but as the same time moving the plot forwards in leaps and bounds and really setting things up for an epic confrontation full of excellently crafted characters, mystery and battles and a literal Zoo! :D Fire World is epic in very way, sends a strong eco message, clever, full of action, adventure and breakneck scenes that will keep you up late go and get it! :D
At the same time this put the epic conflict that is the ongoing theme throughout onto a even broader canvas as we start to see how all this intermingling actually works out! :D Throughout Fire World though you can really see how David (who is still David in this world), Rosa/Zanna, Mathew, Tam etc all come through to some really out there differences! :D These changes vary from the subtle to the epic and you will find yourselves throughout trying to guess who is who! :D Some are little on nose compared to others but fitting them all in will keep you on your toes! :D
At the same time though we are also introduced to The Higher who are the Fain who turn out to be a evolved species of human who have evolved beyond the physical body! :D The are shrouded in intrigue for most of the book and add to the mysterious nature of the whole book! :D There are inklings throughout as to the who they really are! :D Also it is to be noted that in the world of Co:pern:ican David is actually Eliza's and Harlan's spawn as it was supposed to be on Earth with Penny/Lucy as his Davids sister! :D
Fire World has a degree of menace throughout the whole book with Aunt Gwyneth/Sibel Gwilanna up to her old tricks trying to confound Rosa and David at every turn! :D She is like a mole in a game of Bobbitt constantly popping up no matter how many times you hit her down! :D Fire World certainly sets things up brilliantly for the next book with Gwilanna somewhat triumphant in the book! :D
Fire world is a real roller coaster of a ride really twisting everything up but as the same time moving the plot forwards in leaps and bounds and really setting things up for an epic confrontation full of excellently crafted characters, mystery and battles and a literal Zoo! :D Fire World is epic in very way, sends a strong eco message, clever, full of action, adventure and breakneck scenes that will keep you up late go and get it! :D
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 19, 2019
This series started off great, but as it continued, it got too convoluted to truly enjoy, and before long, it went tonally awry from its beginnings.
Chris D’Lacey, an author who is great at plotting and outlining and weaving connections between the books, begins to develop a style that I can only describe as insufferable intellectual elitism. His books become vessels for a political agenda, and whereas he definitely has a love for books and libraries and such, he alludes to the idea that he may despise the fact that electronic books are popular (the auma pad).
Fire World starts off with an interesting aesthetic and concept, begins to develop it, but then goes off the rails with incoherent fictional philosophies on the creation of the world, the universe, consciousness, and spirituality, as if he’s dedicated to making this series “smart” and “deep”. In the end, it all comes across as arrogant. He even insults the readers’ intelligence at points by interjecting passages with parantheticals that explain the obvious.
Chris, you’re smart, we get it. And yes, you’re an extremely talented writer, and that’s made apparent in your large vocabulary and obvious ability to plot an overarching narrative that connects, but was it really necessary to turn from a quirky lovable story about a college student and his landlord’s dragons to an existential narrative? I find it exhausting and overdone. Also the future-jargon that uses colons gets overused.
Overall, Fire World is an okay read. You can see the connection it has to the previous books, and sets up a final battle, but the unnecessary philosophies and countless Deus Ex Machinas (thanks to auma and The Higher and stuff) lead it to become tedious and arrogant.
Let’s hope the last book lays off at least a little bit.
Chris D’Lacey, an author who is great at plotting and outlining and weaving connections between the books, begins to develop a style that I can only describe as insufferable intellectual elitism. His books become vessels for a political agenda, and whereas he definitely has a love for books and libraries and such, he alludes to the idea that he may despise the fact that electronic books are popular (the auma pad).
Fire World starts off with an interesting aesthetic and concept, begins to develop it, but then goes off the rails with incoherent fictional philosophies on the creation of the world, the universe, consciousness, and spirituality, as if he’s dedicated to making this series “smart” and “deep”. In the end, it all comes across as arrogant. He even insults the readers’ intelligence at points by interjecting passages with parantheticals that explain the obvious.
Chris, you’re smart, we get it. And yes, you’re an extremely talented writer, and that’s made apparent in your large vocabulary and obvious ability to plot an overarching narrative that connects, but was it really necessary to turn from a quirky lovable story about a college student and his landlord’s dragons to an existential narrative? I find it exhausting and overdone. Also the future-jargon that uses colons gets overused.
Overall, Fire World is an okay read. You can see the connection it has to the previous books, and sets up a final battle, but the unnecessary philosophies and countless Deus Ex Machinas (thanks to auma and The Higher and stuff) lead it to become tedious and arrogant.
Let’s hope the last book lays off at least a little bit.
July 7, 2019
I can’t tell you how ann:oying it is to ha:ve to read sen:tences where every other wo:rd is split in ha:lf by colons for some un:known rea:son.
Seriously, that stylistic choice has literally no reason or purpose and is never explained in any way.
This book isn’t unreadable or anything even though it was incredibly annoying and I’m gonna read the final book in this series out of my own need to be a completionist but jfc.
I don’t understand:
1) why this is like a parallel universe right but half the character’s names were changed and half weren’t. What is the point
2) why is there always so much sexist imagery surrounding specifically the Zannah/Rosa character
3) if Rosa said her and David were still technically 12 year olds just in adult bodies after the time jump why the fuck was she then immediately sexualized, why wasn’t penny like dumb as hell since she was an infant before the time jump, and why was David suddenly a galaxy brain. Even if they did all get eight years worth of life experience in the time jump, David was in a coma so at the very least he shouldn’t have. He should still act and think like his 12 year old self, technically speaking, going off what the writer himself established.
4) at first I thought oh maybe this parallel universe infinite universe space time continuum sciencey mumbo jumbo is just complicated as all hell (which is weird as hell since the first book in the series is like a YOUNG middle grade chapter book for like maybe 10ish year olds?) and that’s why I barely understand anything that’s happening but nah it’s definitely just the way it’s written being incomprehensible and entirely unexplained.
What age group is this series even for
Seriously, that stylistic choice has literally no reason or purpose and is never explained in any way.
This book isn’t unreadable or anything even though it was incredibly annoying and I’m gonna read the final book in this series out of my own need to be a completionist but jfc.
I don’t understand:
1) why this is like a parallel universe right but half the character’s names were changed and half weren’t. What is the point
2) why is there always so much sexist imagery surrounding specifically the Zannah/Rosa character
3) if Rosa said her and David were still technically 12 year olds just in adult bodies after the time jump why the fuck was she then immediately sexualized, why wasn’t penny like dumb as hell since she was an infant before the time jump, and why was David suddenly a galaxy brain. Even if they did all get eight years worth of life experience in the time jump, David was in a coma so at the very least he shouldn’t have. He should still act and think like his 12 year old self, technically speaking, going off what the writer himself established.
4) at first I thought oh maybe this parallel universe infinite universe space time continuum sciencey mumbo jumbo is just complicated as all hell (which is weird as hell since the first book in the series is like a YOUNG middle grade chapter book for like maybe 10ish year olds?) and that’s why I barely understand anything that’s happening but nah it’s definitely just the way it’s written being incomprehensible and entirely unexplained.
What age group is this series even for
June 2, 2020
I really enjoyed reading this book. I read it with quite a long time between this and the last one as I had got a little bored but I’m so glad I came back to the series.
To start with it was like reading a completely different novel which was so refreshing, learning about all the different characters and how they live a life using the fain to imagineer anything they want in an instant.
The librariaum was a really nice choice of location for the majority of the book to be set because your surrounded by the moving rooms and the birds which kept the action flowing quite well. Having the characters all be different versions of themselves in this new world made for an interesting and captivating read, especially having David and Zanna as children to start with and having the time jump to bring them back to the similar ages as the other world.
Aunt gwenyth made for a great villain again in this book, trying her best to claim all the power of the fain for herself, which failed. Towards the end of the book the action picks up rapidly with the appearance of penny who sets into motion the librarium turning into the arc and returning all the animals to the land for the world to start over again.
I’m now again excited to read the next book and see what the future holds for the battle of Isenifer and that aunt gwenyth has disturbed what the tapestry had for told!
To start with it was like reading a completely different novel which was so refreshing, learning about all the different characters and how they live a life using the fain to imagineer anything they want in an instant.
The librariaum was a really nice choice of location for the majority of the book to be set because your surrounded by the moving rooms and the birds which kept the action flowing quite well. Having the characters all be different versions of themselves in this new world made for an interesting and captivating read, especially having David and Zanna as children to start with and having the time jump to bring them back to the similar ages as the other world.
Aunt gwenyth made for a great villain again in this book, trying her best to claim all the power of the fain for herself, which failed. Towards the end of the book the action picks up rapidly with the appearance of penny who sets into motion the librarium turning into the arc and returning all the animals to the land for the world to start over again.
I’m now again excited to read the next book and see what the future holds for the battle of Isenifer and that aunt gwenyth has disturbed what the tapestry had for told!
February 14, 2024
When I initially read this, it was years after reading the previous ones and I was a little lost. Coming back to the series all in one go, I had a much easier time. It was fun picking out the alternate versions of characters, and seeing the return of some like Bergstrom/Strømberg and Bernard. There is something special about seeing the characters we know in a "what could have been" situation that most series never get. In some ways, I like this world better (Rosa and David in the library just hit differently). But there is a battle to get back to.
This book has a lot going on. Time rifts, fain, constructs, Agawin, firebirds, etc etc. Some elements felt forgotten (Boon), and some felt rushed at the end (rebirth of civilization). Like, entire conversations were suddenly happening in descriptive paragraphs rather than dialogue in the last half. But what I have come to appreciate in these books is that each one feels magical in a new way: the consequence being the way the world has felt like it drifted from the premise. I look forward to seeing if it will all tie together in the next one, and if we see the full importance of the Pennykettles, their little dragons, and the war of the Ix.
This book has a lot going on. Time rifts, fain, constructs, Agawin, firebirds, etc etc. Some elements felt forgotten (Boon), and some felt rushed at the end (rebirth of civilization). Like, entire conversations were suddenly happening in descriptive paragraphs rather than dialogue in the last half. But what I have come to appreciate in these books is that each one feels magical in a new way: the consequence being the way the world has felt like it drifted from the premise. I look forward to seeing if it will all tie together in the next one, and if we see the full importance of the Pennykettles, their little dragons, and the war of the Ix.
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