When a competitor from her country is removed from the team, Lana is is invited to participate in the Blazewrath Games. The games are a competition with sixteen countries competing for the World Cup. Think Hunger Games, mixed with Harry Potter's Quidditch, with dragons. As the games are about to start, Lana learns that one of her competitors and his dragon, who has been changed to human form, have been burning down dragon sanctuaries. They won't stop until they know the Blazewrath Games have been cancelled.  

Lana's strength as a fighter and her devotion to her dragon make this a book many teens and preteens would love. This book is a fantasy, YA adventure with a strong female Puerto Rican protagonist. The other teams favor diverse ethnicities and races and the author uses several Spanish phrases throughout.  While I'm not much of a fantasy lover, I thought the writing was fun and ferocious.

Really loved this unique and high octane YA fantasy! I'm also really looking forward to the sequel. The worldbuilding was engaging and made me want to continue on, and the main character was fun to follow!

This book was mind-blowing, so exciting, fun, and wonderful. Contemporary fantasy with sports, a story about identity, found family, and magic. Lana’s biggest dream has always been playing in the Blazewrath World Cup with Team Puerto Rico. When she gets a spot as the team’s Runner, she couldn’t be more excited to represent her country. But as Sire, a mysterious dragon cursed to human form, makes an appearance, Lana finds herself in a big conspiracy that could jeopardize the cup and her team’s lives. It one of my most anticipated releases of 2020 and I was not disappointed. Blazewrath Games have so many elements I enjoy; dragons, friendship, and celebration of identity. With a fascinating world-building and great cast of characters, this book won me over in the first chapter. Lana’s mother is white and her father Puerto Rican and throughout the book, Amparo explores her complicated feelings about identity, as she doesn’t feel Puerto Rican enough. And what does it mean? and why it’s so wrong to think about identity in terms of performing or accomplishing something? This book was so smart, fun, and such a delight. The friendship and found family aspect were one of my favorite things, my favorite being the dragons, of course. Lana makes such deep connections with her team and my heart feels so happy for her. Plus rivals to friends? The best trope on the planet. Amparo doesn’t shy away from throwing some punches, tho, and that ending me cried a little. Why am I lying? I cried okay! I can’t wait to come back to this wonderful world and for more of Amparo’s stories.

<p>Although I received an e-arc from the publisher through NetGalley, it wasn't until I purchased the audiobook that I started reading this book. I'm very glad that I listened to (most of) this book as the narrator did a fabulous job and I definitely would not have been pronouncing some of the names correctly if just reading the words on paper. Also, I loved hearing the Spanish phrases in the dialogue. I did say I only listened to most of the book and that's because toward the end I couldn't wait for my commute to make time to listen to the audiobook and pulled up the e-arc to finish reading on my lunch break at work. That's how sucked in I was by the end.</p>

<p>That being said, I do think the author did a great job with pacing throughout the whole story. There were few to no areas where I thought the slowness bogged the story down. We were given just enough space to breathe as readers while the characters took time to connect the dots before we were rushing into another scene full of action or fraught with emotional turmoil. I also think that the twists at the end had enough support that the reader could accept them as the final outcome without them being too obvious.</p>

<p>I hope we get more YA fantasy stories that explore other cultures that aren't just typical US white teenagers. I enjoyed the latinx element to this story as it defined our main character but didn't dominate the story. And I appreciated the inclusion of LGBTQA+ relationships at various age levels as normal. Quite refreshing!

It had some great elements to it, but there was too much going all at once. The main character arc wasn't realistic in some ways and the villain was unimpressive as the book continued. Subplots needed to be removed, there needed to be more world building, and I felt like her mom did what she did for the sake of a message and plot than what made sense for her character. A lot of things didn't connect or make sense, a lot of new writer mistakes were made, so this book was a disappointment for me because I really enjoyed the beginning. With that said, I may pick up another book by this author because I can see them become amazing with each novel they write.

Like almost everyone else, I first picked up BLAZEWRATH GAMES because of the dragons — and while it absolutely *more* than delivered the dragon content we were all holding our breath for, I found myself left with a bitter taste of disappointment upon finishing.

I want to start with what I didn't like — because there's only one thing: the main character, Lana Torres. It feels strange to admit this, but, truly? I just didn't vibe with her. Lana's voice is grating and obnoxious, and I found myself simply... not caring about the events in the book because of her narration. Part of this is my personal bias against the trope in which a young teen, for whatever reason, feels like it's their responsibility to go out of their way and solve the conflict in the book, and go against every single thing adults more qualified and aware than them suggest, simply because they think they know better. If that sounds oddly specific, it's because that's *exactly* how I viewed Lana and her actions throughout the book. 
I don't think Lana was supposed to come off like that — I think, instead, she was supposed to be the badass heroine who had a strong moral compass, and acted on it. Unfortunately, due to an almost obnoxious voice, Ortiz misses the mark with Lana. With a weird angle of saying the "woke" thing, having a moral superiority complex, an overdramatic mental monologue, and a vague woe-be-me attitude whenever something even slightly goes wrong, Lana became disgenuine to me. Her hurt and fears seemed pretentious and overreactions, and I just, truly, did not care — not about Lana, not about her dreams, and not about what would become of either of them.

That being said, nearly everything else is phenomenal. The rest of the cast of characters are all so much more likeable than Lana, and I found myself getting ridiculously attached and in love with every one of them. They're all genuinely family, and while things go awry once in a while, they're love and care for each other felt so palpable and sweet.

The worldbuilding and magic system itself is incredibly fun. There was something irresistably exciting about Blazewrath — it promises an adventure, and it more than delivers. At the start of my review, I said that BLAZEWRATH GAMES fulfilled all my dragon-related desires in my heart, and I wholly stand by that. And, paired with magic that's genuinely interesting — the concept of an "other place" and the idea of the "Black Island" still gets me excited like none other — BLAZEWRATH GAMES is *fun!* 

While the pacing was off a little — I had a hard time getting through the first half — the second half makes up for it with plot twist and unraveling threads and so. much. action. The gradual unveiling of the villain, and the way the book plays out is captivating in the second half, and I found myself devouring it all in one sitting.

And of course, as a diaspora teen, the conversation on what it means to be diaspora hit all the right notes.

So, as you can see, there is a LOT to love in BLAZEWRATH GAMES. I cannot emphasize enough that while my problems with BLAZEWRATH GAMES are aplenty — namely, the main character, and the writing, which gets old fast — I would still recommend it to every one else. I feel like my issues with the book are very me-things, and I hope that this review does not hinder anyone from picking BLAZEWRATH GAMES.

I'll be excited to pick up BLOODBATH RING, the sequel, come release date, and maybe, just maybe? I'll like Lana more?

It's been two or three days since I finished this book and I'm still awe of it. I'm in awe of how good and addictive it was. I'm in awe of how queer it is in an effortless way. I'm in awe of just how well done it truly is. I wish I had a longer review where I list all the reasons why this is amazing but I'm still processing my love for it. I'm not a fantasy lover especially YA fantasy but this is a new all time fave. Everything about this book is perfection and I can't wait for what's to come.

Blazewrath Games is a story about Lana Torres who’s dream is to compete in the competition and represent her country, Puerto Rico. The story is so much more than just that though. It takes you on a journey and it’s full of twists and fun moments and it is truly such a fun experience reading this book. It discusses many important themes and at the same time keeps it a story about a fun sports tournament and honestly, its amazing.

A Fictional Sports Tournament
Reading this book made me realise that I have not read many YA books based around sports and this one was so good! It was like watching a movie and I love books which make you feel that experience. I loved reading about Blazewrath Games and everything in this book is so detailed and at the same time not being too dense and keeping it interesting. It’s truly such a solid debut and I will definitely be looking forward to more of the author’s books after this.

Amazing Writing
The writing in this book is simple, effective and amazing right from page one. It goes well with the pace of the book and I feel the writing just tends to bring everything together really well, giving it the complete awesome feel. And in such happening books with action and sports, writing plays an important part and this one really does it well. There isn’t any info dump of any kind. I also loved how the start of every chapter started with a snippet about the history, moments or news about the Blazewrath Games.

Fast-Paced with lots of Action
As I mentioned before, that this book reads a lot like a movie. Its fast paced and there’s always something happening so there’s never a dull moment. I love fast paced books a lot and for this book especially the fast pace works well with the story and vibes of the book.

Diverse Set of Characters
The main character of this book is Lana, who lived in Puerto Rica and was whisked to the US by her white mother and we read about how she yearns for Puerto Rico and wants to represent the country. She is a character who goes through a lot of changes and as we get to know her more, you can’t help but like her.

This book also has a many amazing supporting characters and we get to see fleshed out relationships too. The supporting include trans woman, a bisexual girl, two gay boys, two gay men (married), the Russian Blazewrath team is entirely comprised of queer players.

Stunning World Building
The world building is stunning in this book. It has a magical world with a tournament and there’s history given about the tournaments and the world and its so intriguing. It also has magic and I love the magic system a lot as well. It was intricate while also not being too heavy at any point and this was amazing.

DRAGONS!!!
Honestly saved the best for the last. I love dragons and books featuring dragons are simply awesome! This book does an amazing job and the way dragons and portrayed and written about? Simply stunning. There are different types and all I kept thinking was how amazing it would be to see this on screen.

Overall, Blazewrath Games is a book I truly enjoyed and I highly recommend to all fans of contemporary fantasy with magic, sports tournaments, dragons and an enjoyable story. I definitely recommend this book!!

Thank you to Caffeine Book Tours and Page Street Publishing for making me a part of the tour and for providing me with a physical arc of the book. All opinions are my own.

Trigger Warnings: violence, murder, illness, alcoholism, mentions of homophobia

***4 STARS***
Review go live date: 1/8/2021 at 8AM EST

The 411...

“𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑢𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑤𝑎𝑦, 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑤𝑒’𝑑 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑢𝑠. 𝑊𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑠. 𝑊𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑎 𝑏𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑑𝑦 𝑚𝑎𝑝. 𝑆𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑠 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚. 𝑂𝑢𝑟 𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑖𝑠𝑒"

Blazewrath Games is described as “How to Train Your Dragons” meets “Quidditch through the Ages” and I’d say that’s about right with the exception that this book actually brings forth a ton of representation. It is the first Young Adult Fantasy I’ve seen hit the shelves with Latinx characters straight from the island of Puerto-Rico. The Spanish language is used all throughout, bringing the terms of endearment we use for one another as well as the pride we have for our Island to the page. The Blazewrath Games themselves are sort of like the Olympics with representation from all countries. One of the countries introduced has a team made up of ALL members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Within team Puerto-Rico we also have Queer rep which made my little heart very happy to see! Our MC Lana faces some challenges getting chosen as a Runner for the team since she has spent many years away from the island. She feels displaced & is met with some opposition along the way. Lana is passionate about Blazewrath & Puerto Rico, she sets out to prove she’s worthy of her place on the team. In this world dragons bond with the humans they choose to participate in the Blazewrath Games. The Dragons are full of personality & love for their Riders but there are also Unbonded Dragons. These dragons are deemed volatile to civilians and our villain who was a former dragon cursed into human form sees an opportunity to gain control. Dragon sanctuaries are being burned down in protest of the Blazewrath Games. Lana and her teammates are thrust into solving a complex conspiracy while also trying to win the Cup for their Island of Puerto Rico. If you’re looking to discover new diverse YA Fantasy with dragons, wizards, witches and adventure this is one worth giving a shot.

Content Warning: Mention of domestic violence, Cancer, death of a parent

WRITING & FINAL THOUGHTS

Blazewrath Games is Amparo Ortiz debut YA Fantasy, one that I was heavily looking forward to since seeing Ortiz speak on a panel earlier this year for Diversity in YA. Our MC Lana who was born in Puerto-Rico but has since relocated with her mother after their parents separation is experiencing a sense of displacement. She yearns to reconnect with her roots and also with her father who she maintains a close long distance relationship with. I've always had a soft spot for father/daughter stories since they take me back to my own and so I was hoping to see Lana's more fleshed out. Her dad seems to be someone she has a deep bond with but for the majority of the story he's M.I.A. Although his absence is explained on the page, I wished we'd seen more of him and less of what seemed to be a very tense relationship with her mom. Blazewrath is a fast paced adventure with a conspiracy at its core, if you're a fan of dragons and magical settings this is a solid read. Team Puerto-Rico is a tight knit crew we get to know as Lana interacts with them in her training. More focus however is placed on the dragons, their abilities which are developing and their personalities. I LOVED all of the dragons with a special place in my heart for Daga the youngest and easily excited of them all. I'm very curious to see where Ortiz takes this story next in Bloodbath Ring (Blazewrath Games #2) which doesn't have a release date yet but I've already added to my TBR.

"My dream coming true is the result of a cursed dragon wanting to use me for his master plan...This isn't my dream come true. This is his punishment for me."⁣
⁣
Lana Torres dreamed of playing for Team Puerto Rico in the Blazewrath Games. An international tournament that involves magic and dragons!
However, the games are interrupted by an evil magician, The Sire, that will do anything to gain power and rule over the games. He's been stealing dragons from sanctuaries around the world to exploit their magical powers for his advantage. Lana’s dad runs a sanctuary in Brazil, and she worries the Sire will attack his work. Lana desperately tries to figure out how to save herself in the Blazewrath Games from The Sire's master plan while trying to save the people she loves. ⁣
⁣
This is a great fantasy book with twists and turns and a bit of sleuth solving. Who is The Sire, and why does he want to take over the Blazewrath games? ⁣
⁣
Overall, the book, at its core, is for the love of Puerto Rico. Amparo Ortiz wrote a fantastic story about magic, dragons, adventure with a proud Puerto Rican main character. I felt so much pride in this story, and I hope every little Boriqua can find themselves in Team Puerto Rico!

A true delight, this book is perfect for any fantasy reader! The way the author interwove Puerto Rican culture into the pages made my heart swoon with joy. 10/10 read.

What a fantastic adventure! I LOVED all the different dragon breeds and the story felt incredibly unique and fresh!

I loved this book! Dragons are one of my favorite topics in fantasy. I adored the unique world building, and the Blazewrath Games themselves. It's high energy, charming, and absolutely magical. Highly recommend!

Quidditch meets The Hunger Games in this incredible take on magic and dragons in a modern world. Lana Torres has always loved dragons and the sport they compete in alongside their riders: Blazewrath. So when the chance to compete for Team Puerto Rico as their runner (the only non-dragon-bonded member of the team) is offered up, she jumps on the chance. But the circumstances that landed her there (an attack on a famous wand shop) are  more than a little suspicious. And with the Sire--a dragon turned human terrorist--threatening to burn the world if the games aren't stopped, her role in Blazewrath grows increasingly complicated. Especially when she learns the contract she signed hides deadly secrets. 

This is the book I've been wanting without even realizing it. I love stories that explore magic and modern technology and Blazewrath Games does maybe the best job of it I've ever seen. I love that witches co-exist alongside Regular humans and dragons. I loved the twists and turns (though I did see some coming). I loved the voice. I do think parts of the plot of this story could've been drawn out into a series really successfully, but I'm kind of hoping Oritz may have plans to continue this on as a series regardless. There is certainly a lot of set up for one otherwise. Blazewrath Games is YA fantasy at its best.

I came for Puerto Rican Dragons and I left the book with so much more. Blazewrath Games was such a good unique young adult fantasy read. It gave such a fresh new perspective to the genre and was overall masterfully written. Amparo Ortiz gives us a diverse set of characters that you feel invested in caring for. All of the character are pivotal to Lana’s [main character] story arc that you couldn’t help but also want to see them flourish and have their stories known. Ortiz’s writing is so descriptive, but it leaves room for the mind to fill in the blanks. The author also paid great attention to different parts of the story, especially when discussing the tournaments Let’s just say, if Dragons existed, I would 100% believe everything they wrote.

In regards to characters, Lana is such a strongly and well written protagonist. She is also someone you can relate to because she makes mistakes, has some doubts and keeps trying. Born in Puerto Rico, Lana is moved by her mother to the United states where she struggles to figure out if she is Boricua enough. As someone who has and sometimes still goes through that struggle, I felt the struggle was so well reflected in Lana. It resonated a lot with me and I felt more compelled to this book as I turned each page. The author did not only deliver such a great relatable protagonist, she also graced us with some really good supporting characters. As mentioned earlier, each supporting character like Lana’s best friend Samira who is just full of life. She created supporting characters that I could visualize having their own rich story, and that is something that I usually do not see often in books.

I appreciated that this story did not have a formulated focus on romance and focused more on the dragons and the sport itself. I was here for the dragons and I got the dragons and good friendship and just a fantastic storyline. She took the unconventional route by not adding a strong romance and it kept me reading. To be clear, I love romance, but I also love when an author takes a different approach and doesn’t have the story focus on a romance.

If you want a story full or originality, good Latinx representation as well as other identity representations, page turning storyline – then this is the book for you!

This wasn't what I expected, but wow did I enjoy it. I really want to know more about the dragons, and I know this is a standalone, but if Amparo Ortiz writes more books that link up to this one, I'll be very happy.

I loved this one! Amparo had me at every twist and turn. This story felt nostalgic and comfortable, and I was able to settle into the world very quickly and comfortably. Lana was a very relatable main character and it was almost hard to read about her at times because of the similarities I saw in her life/relationships and mine. This was such an enjoyable and adventurous story. Honestly, peak Latinx fantasy. I hope to read more from Amparo Ortiz very soon!

You had me at How to Train Your Dragon. And yes, the dragons were amazing, and the world building fascinating.  Love the representation and I think a lot of readers will relate to our main character Lana. Overall Blazewrath Games is a fun, thrilling fast paced read that many young and older readers will enjoy

What Ortiz has crafted with Blazewrath Games is an undeniably magical and fast-paced debut that burns through you with all the force of a Sol de Noche’s flames.

Undoubtedly, I went into Blazewrath Games for the dragons. I’m a simple soul that way. It doesn’t matter what they’re doing or how prominent they are. If there are dragons, I want to read it. And there were dragons, but also a whole lot more. The world of Blazewrath Games is one we know—yet also not—made fantastical and new.

The world-building is, in a word, incredible. There’s history adeptly woven throughout using epigraphs that inform the present without ever dragging down the pace of the story. I love that Ortiz gives us an altered contemporary world, taking the familiar and infusing it with just the right amount of magic: wands and spells, dragons and sporting events. The world functions as the perfect set-up for a plot that is jammed pack with action that once started, never lets up.

Without a doubt, the Blazewrath Games have become one of my new favourite fictional sports. A very large part of that has nothing to do with the sport itself (though that, by the way, is fabulous), but rather because of the teams—and the found families that come of them.

The heart of Blazewrath Games, for me, was Lana navigating her own identity, and her struggle to reconcile her conflicting feelings about Puerto Rico, and the impostor syndrome she faces once making the team as a result of growing up in the United States and not on the island. I loved watching Lana find her place, a family and a community, within her team as together they battle with false autonomy throughout the Games.

But again—the games! Ortiz is already a master when it comes to writing intricate, breakneck, action-heavy scenes that got my heart racing. I could so, so easily see Blazewrath Games adapted into a movie or TV series (especially an animated one!), and if that ever happens I will eat. it. up.

Unfortunately, this becomes somewhat of a double-edged sword. Those scenes from the book that I know will steal the show in a visual format—the ones that left me with chills not unlike the ones I felt during Avengers: Endgame when everyone comes popping out of the circles, or in How to Train Your Dragon 2 when Toothless takes on the Bewilderbeast trying to destroy Berk—didn’t have the same effect in text. They sometimes came off a little too…cheesy. Too predictable. The knowing that they were coming didn’t fill me with as much excitement on the page as they happened, because it felt too convenient in prose format. And those moments, when they happened, pulled me out of the story more than I would have liked.

That said, though, Blazewrath Games was still so much fun. I’m eager to see where the story goes and how it will ultimately conclude, and I cannot wait to see what Ortiz writes next.

A Super Enjoyable Story
Blazewrath Games is a story about Lana Torres who’s dream is to compete in the competition and represent her country, Puerto Rico. The story is so much more than just that though. It takes you on a journey and it’s full of twists and fun moments and it is truly such a fun experience reading this book. It discusses many important themes and at the same time keeps it a story about a fun sports tournament and honestly, its amazing.

A Fictional Sports Tournament
Reading this book made me realise that I have not read many YA books based around sports and this one was so good! It was like watching a movie and I love books which make you feel that experience. I loved reading about Blazewrath Games and everything in this book is so detailed and at the same time not being too dense and keeping it interesting. It’s truly such a solid debut and I will definitely be looking forward to more of the author’s books after this.

Amazing Writing
The writing in this book is simple, effective and amazing right from page one. It goes well with the pace of the book and I feel the writing just tends to bring everything together really well, giving it the complete awesome feel. And in such happening books with action and sports, writing plays an important part and this one really does it well. There isn’t any info dump of any kind. I also loved how the start of every chapter started with a snippet about the history, moments or news about the Blazewrath Games.

Fast-Paced with lots of Action
As I mentioned before, that this book reads a lot like a movie. Its fast paced and there’s always something happening so there’s never a dull moment. I love fast paced books a lot and for this book especially the fast pace works well with the story and vibes of the book.

Diverse Set of Characters
The main character of this book is Lana, who lived in Puerto Rica and was whisked to the US by her white mother and we read about how she yearns for Puerto Rico and wants to represent the country. She is a character who goes through a lot of changes and as we get to know her more, you can’t help but like her.

This book also has a many amazing supporting characters and we get to see fleshed out relationships too. The supporting include trans woman, a bisexual girl, two gay boys, two gay men (married), the Russian Blazewrath team is entirely comprised of queer players.

Stunning World Building
The world building is stunning in this book. It has a magical world with a tournament and there’s history given about the tournaments and the world and its so intriguing. It also has magic and I love the magic system a lot as well. It was intricate while also not being too heavy at any point and this was amazing.

DRAGONS!!!
Honestly saved the best for the last. I love dragons and books featuring dragons are simply awesome! This book does an amazing job and the way dragons and portrayed and written about? Simply stunning. There are different types and all I kept thinking was how amazing it would be to see this on screen.

Overall, Blazewrath Games is a book I truly enjoyed and I highly recommend to all fans of contemporary fantasy with magic, sports tournaments, dragons and an enjoyable story. I definitely recommend this book!!

Thank you to Caffeine Book Tours and Page Street Publishing for making me a part of the tour and for providing me with a physical arc of the book. All opinions are my own.