REVIEW: Fire and Flood by Victoria Scott

Time is slipping away.... Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race. The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

I received a finished copy of this book from the publisher Scholastic for free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

4 of 5 stars (please see my rating system further below. 

To everyone who is comparing this book to The Hunger Games and saying it's not worth the read: Yes, this book does have similar aspects and definitely has a "The Hunger Games vibe", but overall, Fire and Flood is so different. First, I absolutely loved how Tella was just a normal girl who loved her brother; she wasn't a trained girl who had experienced hardships and knew what the "Games/Brimstone Bleed" would be like. Her biggest challenges in life at the time was not being able to listen to the radio, not being starved to death. The fact that she wasn't going through such hardships made me really admire on how well she adjusted to the Brimstone Bleed and its challenges. I adored all of the characters in this book, they all seemed so real to me; I loved how relatable they were; They were human; real. Victoria Scott's writing style is so easy to read and flowed so well. I read this book in a straight 2 hour sitting; I wouldn't stop reading until I was finished. My only complaint is how vague the book is on the actual world and government. From the little information there was, Fire and Flood takes place in the modern world, but there is something very wrong with the government because of the high quantities of diseased people. Hopefully there will be more explanation in the next book! Expect me to read it as soon as it comes out. 

My rating system: (I do use half stars.) 

5 - I do not use the 5 star. Not because a book might not be worthy, but because a book is never perfect. 

4 - I loved it! There weren't too many flaws, and I had no trouble getting through it. (A 4 star rating is the highest rating I've ever given a book.) 

3 - I enjoyed the book, but there we're flaws that made me enjoy it less. 

2 - I finished the book, but there were too many flaws for me to enjoy it. 

1 - I could not finish the book, and I probably did not finish it....

Reviewer:

Grace