Ignite the Sun

By: Hanna Howard

Narrated by: McKenzie Fetters

Once upon a time, there was something called the sun....

In a kingdom ruled by a witch, the sun is just part of a legend about Light-filled days of old. But now, Siria Nightingale is headed to the heart of the darkness to try and restore the Light - or lose everything trying.

Sixteen-year-old Siria Nightingale has never seen the sun. That’s because Queen Iyzabel shrouded the kingdom in shadow upon her ascent to the throne, with claims it would protect her subjects from the dangerous Light.

The Darkness has always left Siria uneasy, and part of her still longs for the stories of the Light-filled days she once listened to alongside her best friend, Linden, told in secret by Linden’s grandfather. But Siria’s need to please her strict and demanding parents means embracing the dark and heading to the royal city - the very center of Queen Izybel’s power - for a chance at a coveted placement at court. And what Siria discovers at the Choosing Ball sends her on a quest toward the last vestiges of Light, alongside a ragtag group of rebels who could help her restore the sun...or doom the kingdom to shadow forever.

Ignite the Sun is:

• A YA fantasy adventure that is exciting and unique
• An allegorical exploration of the struggle with anxiety and depression
• Perfect for listeners 13 and up

©2020 Hanna Howard (P)2020 Blink

Critic reviews

"Fantasy lovers will enjoy this tale of family, conflict, and finding out where in the world one might truly belong. Adventurers will also enjoy following redheaded Siria's travels as she finishes her fourth and last year at the Golden Brook school. It seems like yesterday she was home with her best friend, brown-skinned Linden, listening to old man Yarrow tell stories about the myth of the Sun, before the Queen enveloped the world in shadow. Tomorrow she'll go to the Queen's Court, hoping to be chosen and make her parents proud. But she is spirited away in the night, driven to the Court early with other girls who have brightly colored hair. The Queen will do anything to find the Sun Child so she can keep her from fulfilling the prophecy. Siria stands on the stage with the others, fighting the heat and dashing the hopes of her parents as she suddenly explodes in a blaze of light. Now she is on the run, fleeing an angry Queen and trying to survive being bright in a land of dark while learning how to become what she really is. Fans of Jeanne DuPrau's 'Books of Ember' series will appreciate the action and adventure, and readers of Scott Westerfeld's 'Uglies' series will enjoy the coming-of-age questing and questioning expressed so well by the main character.

VERDICT This well-paced fantasy will leave readers hoping for a second book to continue the saga; recommended for teen and older tween libraries." (School Library Journal, August 2020, Cathleen Ash, Manor H.S. Lib., TX)

"An original, deftly crafted, and fully entertaining fantasy fiction novel for ages 13 and older, Ignite the Sun by Hanna C. Howard is especially and unreservedly recommended for middle school, high school, and community library YA Fiction collections." (Midwest Book Review, September 2020)

good idea, okay story, blah narrator

the idea behind the story was good, but the narration almost made me not listen to it.

Dig Deep for the Allegories

I read listened to this book across one single car ride. Fiction is not really my jam (and especially not YA), but I found the strength of this book to be in its masterful writing. Howard does an exceptional job in painting this sun-ridden world: her descriptions are so vivid that even the least-creative readers won’t need to strain to imagine the colors and sounds around the characters at any given time. Howard’s vocabulary is vast and you can tell that each sentence was given utmost care and attention for an optimal experience for the reader, and she never seems to run out of similes or metaphors to help bring a sentence to life. I felt like Howard’s mastery of imagery rivaled some of the literary giants that I read in high school - Harper Lee, Chinua Achebe, William Golding. Yes, I’m serious.

As an aside, I should mention that I loved the theme of false narratives throughout this book. Without giving away any of the major plot points, our protagonist is faced early on with the reality that the history that is taught in schools isn’t completely true, and she also faces the idea that the narratives she was raised to believe might not be entirely accurate. For instance, she was indoctrinated with the idea that mages and nymphs had some ill-favored personality traits, which had led her to acquire some damaging prejudices against these races. As she goes on her journey throughout the story, the reader sees her ignorance get confronted and we watch as she has to deal with those consequences. This theme of “questioning the narratives we’ve all been hand-fed since birth” is one that is needed so badly in 2020.

More than anything, if you do choose to read this book (and I hope you give it a chance), please look for the beautiful allegories. Understand that what you’re reading on the surface - that is, a time-old take on good vs. evil and light vs. dark - isn’t all that’s available to you. This story gets better the deeper you go with it.

Great story read by a great narrator

I thoroughly enjoyed the Ignite the Sun story but enjoyed the reading of it even more. This narrator drew me in and made me feel like I was there as events unfolded. She was quite passionate and made each character come alive...what a voice! I’d recommend this to young adults and adults as well. I look forward to more books from this author.

Story lacks development; amateur narrator

The plot and characters were underdeveloped. This felt like an early draft plotting out the story and character arcs before the kind of revisions that add depth and nuance were made. The writer relied on short hand and clichéd conventions to indicate that the reader is supposed to care about this or that character or is meant to feel the significance of an event without actually putting in the work to make us care about the characters or make the event significant. Most of the story and character decisions lacked depth or impact beyond the page/scene they were written in.

The narrator wasn't much better. She sounds like your average elementary school teacher at reading hour. Scenes that should have been exciting fell flat thanks to the reader's too gentle and soft voice. Every time she attempted a male character's voice, I cringed inwardly. The best narrators in my opinion handle opposite gender characters by using a tone and cadence suggestive of a man/woman rather than dropping or raising their voice past their natural register.

Quite enjoyable

This was a very good book. Part of the ending was confusing and unsatisfying, but that's just because I'd become so attached to the characters and their growth through out the story, and the end left some loose ends untied. Still worth the listen, though.

Captivating, delightful

Captivating and enthralling from beginning to end. A heartwarming coming of age fairytale with themes of redemption, hope, and responsibility.

Ignited My Interest

I purchased this novel as a 2 for 1 deal that Audible had. I was not familiar with the author nor narrator. I previewed the sample which is what sold me on this title.

The narrator is why I purchased this novel. Even though the story is about a 16 year old girl her voice was not annoying or high pitched. She did a fabulous job reading for the female lead in this story. When is came to the other male characters sometimes it was difficult to discern which was the older male and which was the younger male.

Hanna Howard developed a wonderful story. I like that the female is unaware that she is special and yet has always felt out of place. All she wants is her parents approval and to be chosen as worthy by the Queen of darkness. Turns out she is the long lost sun child. The one who can bring light to the darkness. Now the need to escape is paramount. Her older mentor and childhood friend are there to help her.

The plot was good. I like the elements of the story line created. The concepts were unique. However, I felt that the female was naïve, which just drove me crazy. There were times that I just wanted to slap her for her ignorance. I mean, why is it so hard to understand that you are in danger? Why keep putting yourself in dangerous situations? By the end, I felt there was more that should have been said. It ended suddenly and left me less than satiated. It ignited my interest but left me wanting.