Firekeeper's Daughter

Really enjoyed this one. It really deals with some more serious issues than I expected and although those could've been explored much more. Some things felt very YA and if it weren't for those elements, this might be a 5 star. The story and characters felt very superficial at times but I was able to overlook this even though I had to cringe every single time and ask why?

Some things I didn't like: (no actual plot spoilers below)

- the protagonist being "not like other girls"- the narration/her inner monologues read like a teenager and not like an 18-year-old- the "romance", it wasn't really there for me. (story spoiler: Felt like it only happened because it was convenient, insta-love sort of. And she was practically drooling all over him from the moment they met but telling herself not to be that kind of girl... ugh. )- the comments on people's bodies/body shape (story spoiler: even the protagonist describing herself from a POV of a male character like it felt like she was objectifying herself, just to express how that person must not like what they're seeing. i thought we were long past this... like why do you have to emphasise how big your butt is but how tiny your boobs? There's nothing wrong with having small boobs?? )- we don't really get to know her family, the community as a whole or as individuals. We get snippets here and there but I wish there was more.- the not so YA content, and then just acceptance, no trauma, no grief? It didn't seem real and all that just came out of nowhere.. TW and CW warnings: rape, murder, drug abuse, death, bigotry Not too graphic luckily but it was still a lot... although I can also understand that this can be very much someone's reality. It just wasn't what I expected in a YA novel and a protagonist who sounds like a teenager.

Having said all this, I enjoyed the descriptions of the lands, their traditions, their experiences and everything new that I've been introduced to. And I honestly would love to read more books like this one but not YA. But I'm also aware that the adult books may include even more serious and heavy things, so I'd prefer something more like this novel actually.