FIRE STAR [Hardcover]

Chris D'Lacey (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Orchard Books First Edition; 1St Edition edition (2006)
• ASIN: B002K4RPY8
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Bestselling author Chris d'Lacey was born in Malta. He has published more than 20 books, including nine novels. His books have been widely translated and his first children's novel, Fly, Cherokee, Fly, was highly commended for the Carnegie Medal. Other titles include The Salt Pirates of Skegness, A Break in the Chain, and From E to You. Writing was not d'Lacey's first career choice. "I never had plans to be a writer," he says. "When I was in my teenage years my dream was to be a famous songwriter. It wasn't until my early thirties that I tried my hand at any sort of fiction. I kicked off with a gentle 'Christmassy' story that grew, alarmingly, into a 250,000 word adult saga about polar bears. I realized then I had the writing bug. "After he wrote his first story, he waited seven years to write another. "Then a friend told me about a competition to write a story for young children," states d'Lacey. "I wasn't going to have a go at first--until I found out the first prize was £2,000. So I started scribbling, fast!" The story, entitled A Hole at the Pole, didn't win the award, but he sent it to a publisher and they accepted it. The Fire Within is the magical story about mysterious hand-crafted clay dragons that have unusual powers. d'Lacey's inspiration was a craft shop that sold clay dragons. He fell in love with the dragons, but he didn't have enough money to buy one, so the owner pointed him to a section of the store reserved for dragons that have been chipped. "They were a bit cheaper than the other dragons but no less beautiful," says d'Lacey. "And it was there that I saw the most appealing creature in the whole shop. He had a slight chink out of one foot and his 'topknot' was missing (a 'topknot' is on the top of a dragon's head and looks a bit like a shark's fin) but I bought him in an instant." d'Lacey felt that he needed a magical name, so he called him Gadzooks. Chris alternates writing with full-time employment at Leicester University. He lives in Leicester with his wife, Jay.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant !, May 31, 2006

By 

C. Souter (Darlington,England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fire Star (Hardcover)

Really enjoyed reading this book and I am 37!(Researching books to read to my class) I had to 'steal' it off my daughter who was only on Ice Fire as she wanted to read it first and had hidden it from me! We both can't wait for book 4. If you like books that are not what they first appear to be and go between a fantasy world and the 'real' world then you'll enjoy this book however old you are.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, March 21, 2007

By 

K. Logan (Monroe, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fire Star (The Last Dragon Chro) (Hardcover)

This is the third book in the "fire" trilogy from author Chris D'Lacey. My 10 year old daughter and I loved it! But it really leaves you wanting more and fortunately we learned from his web site that he is working on book number four "Fire Eternal" which should be released soon. These stories are about the legend of the dragons' firetear;the story of Gawain and Gweneviere and the polar bears. There is magic and mystery and adventure. A very good read for kids and parents alike.

17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Fire Star is a darker tale, February 16, 2008

By 

K. Petersen "Book Mom" (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fire Star (The Last Dragon Chro) (Paperback)

Unlike the previous books in the series, Fire Star turns dark and deals with troubling issues including: torture, characters possessed by an evil alien (really), murder, and odd spiritual beliefs.

I'd recommend for parents to read this book first as the plot takes these darker turns after a dull section at about page 422. My 10-year-old, who loved the first two books, lost interest during the dull part and I will not be encouraging him to finish this book.