I picked up this book on an impulse. I’d seen it on a few Instagrams and had it on my radar for a bit before being overwhelmed by the amount of new releases I wanted to read and promptly forgetting about it. For once I’m glad I have poor impulse control.

Marguerite is a likable and driven protagonist who launches herself into other dimensions chasing her father’s murderer. She has spunk, which I appreciate in a female character. She is surprisingly dynamic. She has her own goals set and works to see her journey through. This book is a love story, but Marguerite does not lose herself in the pursuit of a man’s love, nor does she let it distract from finding out what happened to her father, which is so, so nice.

This book begins very slowly. In fact, it doesn’t really pick up until about a third of the way in, when Marguerite reaches an alternate universe in Russia. Caludia Gray does a good job of juggling characters and creating likable relationships, both romantic and familial. Her characters are all interesting and real. Her concept is also fascinating; a girl hopping through different dimensions to track down her father’s killer and get revenge? It’s a wicked idea. Gray doesn’t really explain a lot of the science behind the Firebird machine or the way Marguerite and Theo travel through dimensions, which was a bit disappointing. However, as it is the first book of a trilogy there is some wiggle room for expansion. She does however consider the darkness within different people and characters, allowing both the male protagonists and Marguerite to show some dimensions you don’t normally see in YA. (Plus there was sex, and it was done decently!)

The romance between Marguerite and Paul develops slowly and nicely. It is nice and real, not overtaking the main storyline. Marguerite keeps her own character despite the two guys in her storyline, which is wonderful. The overall crafting of the story could have had some more fleshing out, but I was still very surprised by how good the books was. So bravo to Gray for an interesting and lovable read. I’ll definitely be picking up the next instalment of the Firebird trilogy.

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