The Book of Fire by Christy Lefteri

 

Once upon a time there was a beautiful village that held a million stories of love and loss and peace and war, and it was swallowed up by a fire that blazed up to the sky. The fire ran all the way down to the sea where it met with its reflection.

A family from two nations, England and Greece, live a simple life in a tiny Greek village: Irini, Tasso and their daughter, lovely, sweet Chara, whose name means joy. Their life goes up in flames in a single day when one man starts a fire out of greed and indifference. Many are killed, homes are destroyed, and the region's natural beauty wiped out.

In the wake of the fire, Chara bears deep scars across her back and arms. Tasso is frozen in trauma, devastated that he wasn't there when his family most needed him. And Irini is crippled by guilt at her part in the fate of the man who started the fire.

But this family has survived, and slowly green shoots of hope and renewal will grow from the smouldering ruins of devastation.

Having read The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri I had high hopes for The Book of Fire and the author hasn’t disappointed with this latest book which with current events around the world the theme of this book could not be more apt.

The story has a desperate beginning as we watch a loving family Tasso, Irini and Chara in their harrowing attempt to escape the fire that was consuming the forest surrounding their home as they flee to safety the only place for them is the sea.

We watch over time the effect these devastating situations have on the family and their community and see how each survivor processes their grief and trauma, nursing their injuries both physical and psychologically. It is a powerful and poignant novel told in such a gentle and honest way with the authors writing style bringing everything to life so vividly.

The author uses a clever way of splitting the book between the story she is telling and then our character Irini telling things from her perspective in the form of a book as she writes her feelings and memories of the events down. I though this was a great idea and it kept my interest piqued in the storyline.

This was a wonderful thought provoking and insightful read that fans of Christy Lefteri will not be disappointed by, her writing style is simply beautiful and her storytelling holds such depth and purpose.

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