Book Review: A Thousand Pieces of You (Firebird Trilogy, #1)

I am so sorry that I missed the review date in December for Hype or Like Friday! I was out of town that weekend and due to the holiday, was lazy as hell and didn’t get anything posted. That’s also my excuse as to know updates for January Hype or Like Friday. Don’t worry though, I will have the BOTM and weekly topics posted by the end of the day! If you want a little heads up, the January BOTM is going to be The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner. I’ve heard amazing things about this novel and cannot wait to dive in and more than likely, bawl my bloody eyes out. Oh yes, I expect much emotional turmoil from this book. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Anyways, back to the topic at hand… I really did enjoy A Thousand Pieces of You (Firebired Trilogy, #1) by Claudia Gray. I’ve been reading tons of fantasy lately, so it was nice to get back to my other love, science fiction.

Cloud Atlas meets Orphan Black in this epic dimension-bending trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray about a girl who must chase her father’s killer through multiple dimensions.

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their groundbreaking achievements. Their most astonishing invention, called the Firebird, allows users to jump into multiple universes—and promises to revolutionize science forever. But then Marguerite’s father is murdered, and the killer—her parent’s handsome, enigmatic assistant Paul— escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite refuses to let the man who destroyed her family go free. So she races after Paul through different universes, always leaping into another version of herself. But she also meets alternate versions of the people she knows—including Paul, whose life entangles with hers in increasingly familiar ways. Before long she begins to question Paul’s guilt—as well as her own heart. And soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is far more sinister than she expected.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores an amazingly intricate multi-universe where fate is unavoidable, the truth elusive, and love the greatest mystery of all.

The Good

• OPENING!!! – I just want to rave a little about the opening of this book for a moment. From the very first page, your attention is grabbed and you are immediately sucked into this adventure. It had me completely hooked as soon as I read it! There is nothing more satisfying to me, than coming across a book that is able to grab you right from the start. I hate having to wait 50,100, or even sometimes 200 pages before anything happens. Pacing is a very big thing for me and I need excitement. Luckily, this book did not have any problems there!
• My Beautiful Little Cupcake, Paul – I’m a sucker for a good swoon worthy character. I mean, come on, I’m a woman! But there was something about Paul that had me fanning myself even more than usual. I don’t know if it was his intensity or what, but I’m a little obsessed now. Haha! I found his character to be so intriguing. He was mysterious, intense, stoic, basically a total babe. I would have preferred him to maybe have been a little less protective and more willing to let Marguerite be independent, but she was kind of a dud so I understand his reasoning.
• Unique Plot – I loved the story. I thought it was so unique and compelling. It was really interesting to see how Gray explained the interdimensional traveling and how it worked. I loved how we get to experience and see the different dimensions that our group is involved with and they all come together in each one. My favorite was definitely the throwback Russian monarchy one. As a history buff, that one just spoke to me. I think it helps that we view Russia pre-Revolution as some fantasy world full of opulence, which this book was able to really bring to life. Can I please go there, like right now?!
• Family Love! – How often do we complain about how there are never strong family units represented in YA literature? All of the time! Well luckily, this book is all about family. The entire storyline revolves around the Caine’s trying to protect, save, and revenge each other. It’s nice to see a complete family actually having a presence in a YA story, especially such a cool one like the Caine’s.

The Bad

• Marguerite – It wasn’t that Marguerite was just an awful character, it was more like she was too overshadowed by everyone else. Her personality wasn’t one that sticks out or really catches your attention. She’s just kind of bland, you know? I’m hoping that we see a little bit more personality from her as the series goes along.
• That Certain Problematic Scene – So as to not to give away too many spoilers involving plot (I really hate when people do that!), I’m going to be intentionally a little vague here. There is a scene in the book that, while given a brief acknowledgment as an issue by the main character, is not really recognized and given enough thought to for some readers, including myself. Now whether this was done intentionally in this book for the repercussions to make a bigger statement later on in the series, I can’t say because I haven’t read them yet. However, I found it to be handled a little too nonchalant by the MC and frankly by the author for writing it this way. I’d like to think that Gray wrote it to purposefully show the reader that using the Firebird to take over another body is inherently wrong, that you’ve basically kidnapped a person and used them for your own selfish gain, but I doubt it was used that way. If you would like to know more about the situation that I am talking about, you can visit a post that Liam & Hey Ashers! wrote HERE. He is very thorough in his thoughts and explanations on the issue with this scene.

All in all, I thought was this was a fun book. I was never bored nor found myself struggling on whether or not I actually wanted to read. It grabbed my attention and never let it go! I got wound up in the romance and found myself fangirling over Paul. While that one scene was uncomfortable and unsettling in how it was handled, I still enjoyed the book overall. I do plan on finishing the series and seeing whether the repercussions of Marguerite’s adventure come back to bite her in the ass… And oh man, do I hope they do.

Final Verdict: 4/5 Stars

Have you read A Thousand Pieces of You? What did you think of it? Is the series worth finishing?