Have you been swooning as hard as we have this week? Well, keep those pearls clutched, my darlings; Marissa Meyer, YA sci-fi author of Cinder and Scarlet (not to mention creator of the seriously swoontastic Wolf) is sharing her favorite scene from one of my personal favorites.
Caution: here be spoilers!
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Marissa Meyer's Favorite Romantic Book
There are so many heart-wrenching, uber-romantic moments in YA fiction that it's hard to choose a favorite, but when asked, I find myself always returning to FIRE by Kristin Cashore.
In this book, Fire, the main character, is a "monster," meaning she's astoundingly beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that she can manipulate people and animals with her beauty. (If you've read my books, you know this is a concept that fascinates me!) But Fire's beauty causes more problems than it solves, especially when it comes to Prince Brigan, who doesn't trust monsters and does everything he can to keep distance between himself and Fire. After all, how can he ever be sure he isn't being manipulated by her?
Affection and trust are a constant up-hill battle between these two, so when we finally reach the romantic pay-off, when Fire is admitted into Brigan's tent on the battlefield, for the first time Brigan takes comfort in seeing her. And while he comments on how beautiful she is, we know that he's seeing not only her physical beauty but everything that he loves about her - courage, compassion, and all.
I swoon just thinking about it.
"Did you say my name?" she whispered, remembering what had woken her.
"Yes."
"Will you come to bed?"
"Fire," he said. "Will you forgive me if your beauty is a comfort?"
She propped herself on an elbow, looking back at him, astonished. "Will you forgive me if I take my strength from yours?"
"You may always have whatever strength I have. But you're the strong one, Fire. Right now, I don't feel strong."
"I think," she said, "that sometimes we don't feel the things we are. But others can feel them. I feel your strength."
I'm so glad Marissa chose this as her swoony scene! Fire is a fantastic read, full of intrigue and espionage, and the love that can bloom between two people while they learn to love themselves.
About the Author
Marissa Meyer is the author of CINDER and The Lunar Chronicles, which continues with Book 2: SCARLET (out now). Come geek out with her on her blog or Twitter: @marissa_meyer.
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Check out the rest of the Literary Swoon series & win a box of romance!
Jessica Spotswood
Amy Garvey
Sarah Rees Brennan
Sarah Fine
Marissa Meyer
And join us tomorrow, when The Midnight Garden bloggers will share their favorite romantic scenes. Talk to us about what you think of the romantic choices daily--we'll choose our favorite comment every day on each post, and the 6 finalists will be entered into a drawing to receive a box filled with romantic books! The box will includes recent releases featuring love-struck couples.
Posts
I love that so many of these authors' favorite "romantic" scenes are not about anything physical or a more shallow types of attraction that are all over so many YA books these days, and I love that Marissa Meyer chose this scene from Fire. There is so much emotion and history underneath the dialogue that makes these ordinary words spoken by extraordinary characters so much more meaningful!
ReplyDeleteI agree! Although when choosing my own scene, I realized how hard it was to find a quote that would convey the swoon out of context. So much of what makes me sigh is developed throughout the book and can't be summed up in one scene.
DeleteThe whole Graceling series is fantastic and I definitely adore FIRE. So much awesome in one book. The byplay between Fire and the prince is enthralling, too. Fab pick, Marissa!
ReplyDeleteI love it too! Kristin Cashore knows how to write good, well-developed swoon.
DeleteI've only read Graceling in this series, but now I'm desperate to find the time to read Fire! I love Marissa Meyer's books, and I was definitely swooning over Wolf...and Captain Thorne, too! :P I'm thoroughly enjoying these posts...but it's making me want to go back and read JUST the swoony scenes from all my faves. That's okay, right? :D
ReplyDeleteMe too! I've gone through my kindle and read my highlighted passages from several of these picks. I wish I had time to do a massive reread of all my favorite swoony books.
DeleteOooh, yes, trust Marissa Meyer to pick a scene I love! Fire is wonderful. Kristin Cashore can write some good, emotional swoon!
ReplyDeleteYes, she can! Love all the complicated emotions she's able to infuse into her romance.
DeleteI completely agree that all the romances in Kristen Cashore's books are 100% swoonworthy.
ReplyDeleteAnd I picked Marissa's book Scarlet as one of MY swoonworthy choices in a giveaway hop that goes up on the blog later today. I love Thorne! More Thorne, please!
Scarlet was so swoony! I hope Thorne has a romantic role moving forward. (I didn't catch any chemistry between him and Cinder, but I'd love to see him with someone else!)
DeleteThank you for choosing Fire! I loved Fire and Brigan's cerebral, romantic and swoon-worthy relationship.
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, yes. Fire's and Brigan's relationship was so quiet, so much of it happening in their own heads. And yet, still so impactful.
DeleteAh Fire how I loved the book :) Such a great romance . I am loving these author sharing their book loves too :) I still need to read Scarlett
ReplyDeleteFire is a great pick! I love that we got some lesser known scenes, too. And you do need to read Scarlet. So much swoon!
DeleteBrilliant choice of scene! I loved so many things about this book, Brigan and Fire's relationship among them. :) Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWasn't it? I was so glad Marissa picked this. One of my very favorites.
DeleteAnd Kristin Cashore shows up again!
ReplyDeleteBut this is an awesome quote. I like that it shows that Fire and Brigan both bring things to the relationship, and that physical attraction is there but it's not the most important thing.
Agreed! And I would even argue that their relationship was DESPITE their physical attraction, in this case.
DeleteI haven't read that book, but that scene is very swoon worthy. I have been really enjoying seeing what romances the authors you are hosting have chosen.
ReplyDeleteMe too. It's so interesting to see which books / scenes authors draw their inspiration from. I can definitely see Fire's influence in Meyers' writing.
DeleteThanks for the fun post! These are both books that I'm desperate to read :) I'm with the other commentors who pointed out that part of the reason that these scenes are so fabulous and draw us in, is that they center on the emotional connections and I think that really resonates more w/ me as a reader than the physical.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely! It's so hard to get that across in one little scene, though, with no additional context, but I think Marissa did a great job with it.
DeleteI really need to get my hands onto Fire since I read Graceling and adored it. I have yet to read Fire. Still, it sounds awesome and swoony!
ReplyDeleteAnd Cinder is another book that I'm looking forward to.
Great scene! :)
I love how Graceling, Fire, and Bitterblue are all their own stories, with that thread of connection running through them. Love how they all come together.
DeleteI hope you love Fire as much as Graceling!
Marissa chose the perfect scene! I adore those two characters, and the slow nature of their romance :)
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. I was so excited to see she'd picked this.
DeleteAlright, I don't care anymore if Marissa Meyer doesn't have an inch of world-building in her books, SHE LOVES FIRE AND BRIGAN! :D I just about squealed because these two are my favorite literary couple EVER and THIS BOOK. It's my favorite. I think I'd let LotR and Harry Potter burn in a fire, but not this one. Anyway, thanks for sharing! I am enjoying this feature so much! :)
ReplyDeleteHahahaha! It's amazing how common swoonage can build bridges. ;)
DeleteAh, this was a nice scene to choose. I loved Graceling and Fire - I have a hard time choosing between Katsa and Po or Fire and Brigan. Kristen Cashore writes such awesome characters. And I just got Scarlet!
ReplyDeleteAck! Choosing between them is painful, but I think I might have to go with Fire and Brigan. *sigh*
DeleteAww, a scene from Fire too! Loved this choice so much. Great series. I haven't read Bitterblue yet but I'm hoping to enjoy it as much as I did Graceling and Fire. :)
ReplyDeleteI liked Bitterblue much less than I did Fire or Graceling, but it's still a great culmination of the series. I hope you enjoy it!
DeleteI adore fire! It's a great book and great romance!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree! Brigan is lovely. <3
DeleteAwww that is a swoony scene from Fire. Makes me want to read it again!
ReplyDeleteMe too! In fact, I went through and read all my highlights after I saw Marissa's pick. *swoon*
DeleteThe way Meyer described the story sounded so wonderful. I really am getting excited about Fire and the Prince! She sounds so much like Aphrodite which makes her like her more just because I like Greek Mythology so much. I'm kind of conflicted by the scene I didn't like him saying "Will you forgive me if your beauty is a comfort?" It makes her sound like an object which I don't appreciate is but I like her response. She sounds strong and wise.
ReplyDeleteI think you will understand the impact of that line much more once you read the story and know the background. I agree it's kind of weird out of context, but it can be hard to get across the emotions of an entire book's development in one scene!
DeleteAwew, love this author. I wish I would of met her. My friend went to her signing the other night and got my books sign for me :))
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice friend! I had the luck to meet her at ALA last year, and she is so lovely in person. :)
DeleteAck this is so perfect! I actually JUST finished Fire this afternoon and it was... sigh <3 I absolutely agree with the assessment of Fire and Brigan's relationship, it was just a beautiful progression from start to finish. The contrast is that much more apparent when every other guy is gaping at her 24 hours a day and Brigan, while obviously still finding her beautiful, lets her hear about the other things he loves. *SIGH* Reading it 2x in 1 day is okay, right? *gazes longingly* Great post, Tonya, thanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's totally okay! I love the books that make me want to reread immediately. *sigh*
DeleteCashore seems to be a favourite, and rightfully so. Fire was a great read but I didn't like it as much as Graceling, mostly because Po and Katsa weren't in it.
ReplyDeletePo and Katsa. *sigh* So great. I think I like both Fire and Graceling equally, but found Fire much more romantic.
DeleteThis must be the higher ups telling me I NEED TO READ KRISTIN CASHORE'S BOOKS ALREADY. Yesterday was Graceling and today Fire? Wil tomorrow's be Bitter Blue? (or is it Bitterblue? Sorryyy I can't remember :/) I stand by what I said yesterday- the scene from yesterday's still my favourite so far :D
ReplyDeleteheheee
I loved that scene too! Cashore is so great at developing interesting and unique characters / relationships. And yes--you must read!
DeleteI absolutely love Marissa Meyer, so I was thrilled to see that she was one of your featured Literary Swoon authors. Kristin Cashore's books have been on my radar for a while but I have yet to get around to actually reading them. Since I love Cinder and Scarlet so much, though, Marissa's opinion holds a lot of weight. And that scene? To die for. Love this post!
ReplyDeleteYay! I'm glad we could swing you over to the Cashore side. ;) If you like fantasy, I think you'll really love her books. They're so unique.
DeleteWell now because of this I'll continue with Graceling series. I wasn't so thrilled by the first book but everyone keep saying it gets better. I'll trust you then :)
ReplyDeleteI think people who didn't enjoy Graceling much will like Fire much better. It's a bit more romantic. I hope you do give it a try!
DeleteThat's the best kind of 'monster'. I'm new to FIRE, so thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! I hope you give it a try. It's such an interesting story.
DeleteYES!! I loved Fire, and okay BRIGAN, soooooo much. I just started Scarlet and can't wait to meet the Wolf.
ReplyDelete-Maggie
Brigan. *SIGH* Love. And yes, read faster so you can get to glorious Wolf!
DeleteI just finished Scarlet last week! I absolutely loved it! I thought Scarlet was tough & loved the relationship between her and Wolf. Thorne was hilarious, I hope he sticks around for Cress & Winter.
ReplyDeleteFire had a very sweet romance. Brigan was so tender with her. Definitely had me swooning! :)
Thanks for the chance to win the box of books. I've really enjoyed this series.
I'm so glad you loved! I hope Thorne is in the next books too--and that he gets a love interest of his own. I see some serious swoon in our future, there.
DeleteI'm not sure what happned to my comment, so if this is a repeat sorry! :(
ReplyDeleteI just finished Scarlet last week. I thought she was a great character, very tough...and I thought Wolf was pretty swoon-worthy. I loved Thorne, I hope he is features in Cress & Winter.
I thought Brigan and Fire's relationship was so sweet. He was so tender with her. I've got Bitterblue on my shelf to read. I need to get to it!
Dang if this didn't make me want to go re-read Fire again! I love that whole series. It is truly swoon-worthy when you feel like you are going to have to reach into a book to show the characters that you feel so much for that they need to be together... And then they have that moment, it happens, and you can't wipe the smile off your face. I can really remember that happening for me when I first read that scene between Fire and Brigan. *Swoon*
ReplyDeleteYes, yes exactly! The whole time you're just tangled up in knots for them, and then when they're finally together you just feel so relieved and as in love as they are. *sigh* Dang, now I need a reread too. ;)
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read Marissa's series yet, but I've noticed it's getting a lot of love. I also LOVED Fire, I forget so much though. Must do a re-read soon. Great post ladies. :)
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Cinder and Scarlet. It's a fun, futuristic fantasy (haha, accidental alliteration... twice). Scarlet much improves on Cinder, in my opinion. :)
DeleteAnd I was thinking the same thing about Fire. Must do a reread soon.
Love the scene from Fire! Makes me want to yank it off my shelf and read it right now.
ReplyDeleteMe too! When Marissa told me which scene she was picking, I went through all my highlights in the book and fell in love all over again.
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