Review of Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini

Title/Author: Trial by Fire (The Worldwalker Trilogy #1) by Josephine Angelini
Publisher/Date published: Feiwel & Friends, September 2nd 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: This world is trying to kill Lily Proctor. Her life-threatening allergies keep her from enjoying experiences that others in her hometown of Salem take for granted, which is why she is determined to enjoy her first high school party with her best friend and longtime crush, Tristan. But after a humiliating incident in front of half her graduating class, Lily wishes she could just disappear.

Suddenly, Lily is in a different Salem — one overrun with horrifying creatures and ruled by powerful women called Crucibles. Strongest and cruelest of them all is Lillian... Lily's other self in this alternate universe.

What makes Lily weak at home is what makes her extraordinary in New Salem. In this confusing world, Lily is torn between responsibilities she can't hope to shoulder alone and a love she never expected.

Guys, I'm always down for a parallel world kind of story and if it also includes magic, I'm double in.

And Trial by Fire did not disappoint me! Josephine Angelini has created a lush world for me to fall into and to figure out what the heck is actually going on! I liked that we begin in 'our' world, where Lily Proctor is pretty much severely incapacitated by her allergies, that are threathening to actually kill her. Medical side note: most people with allergies don't get this bad a reaction to them, but it's possible.
I really liked Lily, I was a bit hesitant at first if she had her priorities straight if she's willing to get an allergic reaction just so she can go to a party with the guy she likes, but after that I was fully supportive of her, cause she's strong and smart and just someone I can root for. She grows so much throughout Trial by Fire and it's awesome to see.

So I really liked the magic system and how Lily's allergies are connected to her magic and just the whole thing is one big YES in my book. The only thing I had a slight problem with is that it's a little too easy for Lily to control her magic and to do all these advanced things with it that most witches who have been training for YEARS haven't been able to do. She does one thing so effortlessly that it was a bit hard to believe no one else in the world but Lillian could do it as well, I mean, someone should have figured it out as well right? She pretty much did it on her own without instruction. But otherwise I was one pretty happy reader with the whole witchy goodness.

And then there's the romance. There's a tiny bit of a love triangle, but mostly there's not, because Tristan in Lily's world is a douche and I really wanted to smack him for being an awful person. But enough about him, let's talk about ROWAN. Because Rowan is my guy. He's a good guy who has a hard time trusting Lily after what Lillian did to him and I could get that. Even though it made him act not-so-nice because of it, I can understand where he's coming from and how difficult it must be to trust a girl who looks just like Lillian, the evil witch in his world. But know that the romance is awesome.

So basically once Lily gets to this new world, the plot takes off and I was happily turning the pages to know what would happen next and UGH! WHY do I have to wait this long for the sequel?? Trial by Fire is a very promising start to this series and I can't wait to see how it will all unfold!

My rating: 4,5 stars