It’s 1941 and accomplished flight instructor, Anastasia Nabokova, Nastia to her friends, is one of the only female pilots in her group. With more flying time than her colleagues she is devastated when she is not called up to serve her country. Left to take up the role of her chief’s wing man, Nastia watches as her beloved Leningrad prepares for war and wonders if she will ever see her friends again.
Within days war is declared and Nastia follows the Chief high into the sky above, chasing enemies and fighting off danger with every twist and turn of her aircraft. Losing not only her family but her way of life, she looks on as the city of her birth is ruined, beyond recognition.
Having grown up on the stories of the violent deaths of Czsar Nicholas II and his daughters, Nastia begins to realise that perhaps those around her are more connected to the infamous family than she first thought.
Torn between loyalty to the war cause and protecting the Chief who taught her everything she knows, Nastia has to make the right decision in order to survive.
Elizabeth Wein’s Firebird, set in Russia during World War II, is a fast-paced work of historical genius.
The dramatic flight scenes are told alongside the intricate path Nastia must take in order to learn more about her past as well as her future. This amazing edition for Barrington Stoke will leave the reader desperate to know what happens next but at the same time long for the story never to end.
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