Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini

Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini
Series: Worldwalker #1
Publisher: Macmillan Childrens Books
Publication Date: 28th August 2014
Source: Publisher & Won

Love burns. Worlds collide. Magic reigns.

This world is trying to kill Lily Proctor. Her life-threatening allergies keep her from enjoying many of the experiences that other teenagers take for granted...which is why she is determined to enjoy her first (and perhaps only) high-school party. But Lily's life never goes according to plan, and 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 cruellest of all the Crucibles is Lillian . . . Lily's identical other self in this alternate universe. This new version of her world is terrifyingly sensual, and Lily is soon overwhelmed by new experiences.

Lily realizes that what makes her weak at home is exactly what makes her extraordinary in New Salem. It also puts her life in danger. Thrown into a world she doesn't understand, Lily is torn between responsibilities she can't hope to shoulder alone, and a love she never expected.

But how can Lily be the saviour of this world when she is literally her own worst enemy?

I'm a massive fan of Josephine Angelini's Starcrossed trilogy, so when I heard she had a new series coming out about witches, I was sold. Trial by Fire is set in Salem with Salem witches, magic and multiple worlds which made it awesome. The wonderful MyKindaBook were hosting a competition and I was lucky enough to win a copy of the book and my very own willstone!

Lily was an extremely weak character and I couldn't connect with her at all. In fact, I actually didn't really like her that much. She was naive and annoyed me most of the time. But she did grow and learn a lot through the book. She also had to adapt to a lot of new situations - which she did surprisingly well.

There were three main guys in Lily's life: Rowan, Tristan & Caleb. Rowan is Lillian's ex-mechanic/lover. He's a very cautious and guarded character. He's suspects that Lily isn't telling him the truth and keeps her at arms length for most of the book. Tristan was exactly the same as the Tristan in Lily's world - easy to get along with, trustworthy and hilarious. Caleb was the only one that didn't make much of an impact on me. He's a sweet guy, but I don't know much about him. 

Lillian was the most interesting character and we didn't get to know her that well. Lillian is hiding something and something happened to cause such a drastic change in her, but we don't know exactly what that was. And I'm desperate to know!

The storyline was extremely interesting. It was full of witches; multiple worlds; spirit walking; willstones and so much more that completely pulls you in. I was hooked and couldn't put this book down.

The writing was only thing I had a slight problem with. It felt slightly juvenile to me and a lot different from the writing I'm used to from Angelini. Some of the dialogue had me rolling my eyes and cringing, but that being said, I still couldn't put the book down because I wanted to know more about the world and what was going to happen.

Overall, while I didn't love this as much as Angelini's previous series, I still really enjoyed it. There's so much more to be explored in this series and I honestly can't wait for the next book.