Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Hero archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
"Set in the world of Niven's The Magic Goes Away, The Burning City transports readers to an enchanted ancient city that often bears a provocative resemblance to our own modern society. Here Yagen-Atep, the volatile and voracious god of fire, holds sway, alternately protecting and destroying the city's denizens. In Tep's Town, nothing can burn indoors and no fire can start by accident - except when the Burning comes upon the city. Then the people, possessed by Yagen-Atep, set their own town ablaze in a riotous orgy of destruction that often comes without warning." "Whandall Placehold has lived with the Burning all his life. Fighting his way to adulthood in the mean-but-magical streets of the city's most blighted neighborhoods, Whandall alone dreams of escaping the god's wrath to find a new and better life. But his best hope for freedom may lie with Morth of Atlantis, the enigmatic sorcerer who killed his father."--BOOK JACKET.
Is The burning city appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 16 and up.
This adult fantasy contains strong violence including mass destruction and fire-related deaths, descriptions of poverty and harsh street life, and a volatile god who possesses citizens to burn their own city. The protagonist witnesses and experiences violence from childhood while seeking escape from a brutal environment.
What to know going in
This book has strong violence, mild sexual content, and moderate language. Content notes include child harm, death, and grief (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Readers who love gritty coming-of-age fantasies with unique magical systems and ancient world-building will be drawn to Whandall's desperate quest to escape a cursed city ruled by a destructive fire god.