Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling

Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling
Buy Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: Teens
Reviewer: Robert James
Summary: Building on the impressive Finding Sky, the second novel about the Benedict family of savants is a must-read – exciting, romantic, and with brilliant characters. High recommendation!
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 272	Date: September 2011
Publisher: OUP
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 978-0192756589
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Phoenix is a thief. She's a very good one, thanks to having some rather useful psychic abilities. Working for the cruel and dominating Seer, she's forced to follow his instructions to bring him whatever he wants – just as the rest of their community of savants are. Then she's told to get something from Yves Benedict, and for the first time in her life, fails to take what she wants. Yves has powers of his own… and he may be the one who's stolen her heart. Can Yves and his family rescue her from the Seer?

Readers of Finding Sky, Joss Stirling's assured debut novel, will be familiar with the characters of the Benedicts and the way the world of the savants works. It's that familiarity which allows Stirling to get this book off to a scorching start – literally, as Yves causes the things Phoenix is trying to steal from him to go up in smoke! The blistering pace continues and it's hard to put down, with the stakes high, the villains really nasty, and the heroes just wonderful. I said when reviewing Finding Sky that it was engaging and intriguing without being completely required reading, but this is a step better again and moves firmly into 'must-read' territory for all fans of paranormal romances.

As she did with Sky in the first book – who makes a welcome return here and is a great companion for Phoenix when they meet – Stirling creates a compelling central character who knows very little about herself and then introduces us, and her, to more and more of her background as we go through the novel. It's all done in a believable way and it really made me care about her. I also think the dynamic of friendly rivalry between the Benedict brothers is fantastic, and I certainly won't complain if the other five get a book each focusing on them as well! High recommendation to all fans of this genre as a book to savour and a really talented author to watch out for in the future.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.

Further reading suggestion: No shortage of wonderful paranormal romances out there at the moment – the obvious one to recommend is the first in this series, Finding Sky by Joss Stirling, but I also absolutely love Beautiful Creatures and Beautiful Darkness, both by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, and By Midnight by Mia James.

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