Firebug by Lish McBride tells the tale of Ava, a teenager with the natural ability to light things on fire. Known as a “firebug,” she works with her best friends to defy the head of a mob-like organization who “owns” her in order to bring down the organization and save her guardian.
Would I recommend it? Maaaaaybe? I can totally see why a YA would like this book. Snappy dialogue, self-deprecating humor, and cute guys are a winning formula for a teenager. As an adult, I’d point my peers in the direction of Lish McBride’s first two books, Hold Me Closer, Necromancer and its sequel, Necromancing the Stone instead.
Why?
It’s hard for me to separate my thoughts into what I liked and what made my mind wander on this one. This is a “hit the ground running” kind of book. There are a lot of characters immediately and it took me a while to get them all straight. I admit, I’m a read from the beginning of the series to the end in order kind of gal and the beginning of this book made me think I’d jumped right into the middle of an on-going story.
I liked the relationship between Ava and Cade, her guardian. It’s warm, loving and respectful, but her other relationships were too predictable to hold me. It’s obvious from the get go Ava is supposed to be with Lock. Plus, the way he’s written, you know Ryan, the current boyfriend, is up to something – doomed to be as slimy as you think he is. Ava is as volatile as her fiery ability, but Lock is too steadfast, too much a rock, just too perfect – or just the kind of guy a teenager would love, but the kind of character that caused this middle-aged mom to roll her eyes. That being said, I loved Lock’s family situation and the idea of Ezra, the shape-shifter, running around the forest “doing what a fox does.” And the were-hares made me smile.
The final battle sucked me in. It was just the right mix of strategy and trash talk and the focus was spot on.
I really liked Alastair and this caused me to realize how little I liked Venus, and I don’t mean in a bad gal kind of dislike. What I knew about Venus’ character was based on where she liked to sit in the club and what her henchman Owen was like more than anything else. I never connected with her which made her seem a little flat to me.
Did Ava grow and change from beginning to end? Much like the flames she created, Ava was angry and impulsive and driven by her emotions. Perhaps, as a firebug, this is who she is, but I still kept hoping to see more growth. She does break down when she comes to understand her mom and Cade, courtesy of Lock’s mom, but did this truly change her? I get the impression that change is yet to come.
What I would consider before giving this to a kid:
It’s another female assassin story – who knew?! Ava’s job is to hunt down and kill supernatural monsters. Shapeshifting naked men wrestle. Main characters visit a nightclub where underaged kids work with fake IDs. Underage drinking occurs. Ava is drugged in the club. Ezra is let loose in the forest with the dryads. After Venus feeds on her, Ava strangles Venus with chains then burns her.
Final Thoughts
There are some highlights in this book which are really well done, but in the end, I would tell a friend this is a story best left to the YA crowd.