The Girl of Fire and Thorns - by Rae Carson (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

"Rae Carson has proved she's a master and has shaken up the YA genre."--USAToday.com

The first book in Rae Carson's award-winning and New York Times-bestselling trilogy! The Girl of Fire and Thorns is a sweeping journey full of adventure, sorcery, heartbreak, and power. Fans of Shadow & Bone and Game of Thrones, will devour this fantasy series.

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.

Elisa is the chosen one. But she has always felt powerless, useless. Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king--a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs her to be the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.

And he's not the only one who seeks her. Fierce enemies, seething with dark magic, are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people's savior. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn't die young. Most of the chosen do.

William C. Morris YA Debut Award Finalist

YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Top Ten Pick

Andre Norton Award Finalist

A Texas Tayshas Selection

Ohioana Book Award YA winner

Don't miss The Empire of Dreams, Rae Carson's action-packed return to the world of The Girl of Fire and Thorns!

From the Back Cover

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.

Elisa has always felt powerless, useless. Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king--a king who needs her to be the chosen one, not a failure of a princess. And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies, seething with dark magic, are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could save his people. And he looks at her in a way no man has ever looked at her before. Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn't die young.

Most of the chosen do.

Review Quotes

"With The Girl of Fire and Thorns, Carson joins the ranks of writers like Kristin Cashore, Megan Whalen Turner, and Tamora Pierce as one of YA's best writers of high fantasy." -- Locus

"Intoxicating . . . Readers will find themselves immersed in this world and believing it." -- Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

"Elisa is a wonderful, believable hero, the kind that every reader can imagine as herself. I charged through the book in two days, savoring Elisa's realness and her unique, wonderful world! Engrossing." -- Tamora Pierce, author of New York Times bestseller Bloodhound

"I stayed up until 2AM reading this last night. Intense, unique. . . . Definitely recommended." -- Veronica Roth, author of the best-selling Divergent

"I LOVED this book! It's a transformation story that both teens and adults can believe in. Rae Carson has delivered a unique magical system and built a world with strong series potential." -- Cinda Williams Chima, author of the best-selling Seven Realms series

"Rae Carson's heroine is a perfect blend of the ordinary and the extraordinary. I loved her." -- Megan Whalen Turner, author of the Newbery Honor Book, THE THIEF

"Set in intrigue-filled courts, battlefields, and windswept deserts, this riveting fantasy tests its heroine's limits as she struggles to fulfill a destiny wrapped in an ancient mystery. A breathtaking adventure in a fascinating, richly-drawn world." -- Leah Cypess, author of Mistwood

"A delicious debut." -- Paolo Bacigalupi, Printz Award-winning author of Ship Breaker

"Distinctive for its luminous prose, its hint of romance, and Elisa, a strong, smart heroine that readers will truly fall in love with." -- Sarah Prineas, author of The Magic Thief