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An Heir Comes to Rise #1
La nascita di un erede
Nel villaggio esterno di un regno in cui i Fae sovrastano gli umani, Faythe, un’orfana con un talento per la spada, sa quanto sia importante tenere la testa bassa di fronte alle pattuglie Fae. Lei e il suo migliore amico Jakon aspirano a una vita migliore, e il suo desiderio di fendere la spada in combattimento potrebbe offrirle uno scopo e il denaro che brama così tanto. Quando attira l’attenzione della guardia reale Nik, scopre ben presto che la sua natura mortale non è l’unica ragione per cui deve passare inosservata. Nik è un Notturno, un silenzioso assassino della mente con il potere di penetrare nei sogni altrui e, che lei si fidi o no, sta per risvegliare in Faythe abilità che un’umana non dovrebbe possedere. Abilità da Notturno. Abilità pericolose. Abilità che insegneranno a Faythe che il sangue scorre più denso dell’acqua… e se non imparerà presto a fidarsi dei poteri superiori, il sangue scorrerà davvero.
430 pages, Paperback
First published February 25, 2021
2520 people are currently reading
70419 people want to read
About the author
C.C. Peñaranda
6 books2,110 followersC.C. PEÑARANDA is the Scottish author of the epic fantasy series An Heir Comes to Rise.
A lifelong avid reader and writer, Chloe discovered her passion for storytelling in her early teens. An Heir Comes to Rise has been built upon from years’ worth of creating fictional characters and exploring Tolkien-like quests in made up worlds. During her time at the University of the West of Scotland, Chloe immersed herself in writing for short film, producing animations, and spending class time dreaming of far off lands.
In her spare time from writing in her home in scenic Scotland, Chloe enjoys digital art, graphic design, and down time with her three furry companions. When the real world calls...she rarely listens.
A lifelong avid reader and writer, Chloe discovered her passion for storytelling in her early teens. An Heir Comes to Rise has been built upon from years’ worth of creating fictional characters and exploring Tolkien-like quests in made up worlds. During her time at the University of the West of Scotland, Chloe immersed herself in writing for short film, producing animations, and spending class time dreaming of far off lands.
In her spare time from writing in her home in scenic Scotland, Chloe enjoys digital art, graphic design, and down time with her three furry companions. When the real world calls...she rarely listens.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,822 reviews
March 25, 2025
The whole series (5 books) is free on Amazon (Canada) today (03/25/2025). 🙂
🎶Oops I did it again
I bought a new book
Because of its cover
Magic, Faes, assassins
You had such potentiiiaaaaaaaal
But I’m disappointed🎶 😖
✅ Interesting world-building and society
✅ Magic (kind of)
🆗 Boring and annoying main character
🆗 Very ordinary secondary characters
❌ Plot that drags on and takes a long time to appear
❌ Cliché and predictable romance
Faythe lives a very normal life with her best friend Jakon, until the night she realizes that she has Nightwalker abilities, which is not normal since only Faes can be Nightwalkers, and she is a human. Thankfully, Nik (a fellow Nightwalker) is there to help Faythe, and he seems to quickly grow attached to her. I find it a little weird how quickly they trusted each other when Faes have always been indifferent, if not cruel, towards humans. I’m not saying that Nik can’t be different, I just think that Faythe trusted him too easily.
Faythe ends up being the typical special girl with a unique talent that she manages to control way too easily. The Nightwalkers are faes that possess the telepathic ability to access someone’s unconscious mind when they are sleeping, allowing them to see their thoughts, their memories, to spy on them, and even to kill them from within. It's a lot of new things to learn about and control, yet, in the span of one night, Faythe managed to expand her powers and learn to control them almost completely. She went from using it without meaning too during stressful or intense moments to using it whenever she wishes to, even being able to be precise and nuanced in what she does with her power. There is no struggle, no growing, it just happens overnight. Literally.
The world-building and the organization of the society reminded me of Red Queen. The humans are living in miserable dwellings outside the city, and only the ones deemed worthy enough (meaning they have a rare and special skill) can enter the city to work for the condescending faes.
The plot is weak, not to say non-existent. Honestly, I didn’t know what the main character’s goal was until the very last part of the book, and even then, she gets into a kind of quest, but I never really knew why it was so important to her and to the rest of the world. Basically, she just spent her time working, training with Nik, or secretly fighting to gain more money. The was no endgame, no villain to defeat, it was just about Faythe’s everyday life, until the weird quest that she just happened to stumble upon…
It also bothered me how she is an amazing swordswoman, she beats everyone and gets super arrogant about it, yet she’s had no real training except in the last few weeks when she met with Nik. She is also super afraid that someone will recognize her, but she still uses her quite unique sword during her fights and shows her quite unique gold eyes, and nobody makes a connection for the first few weeks. It’s all very easy and convenient for Faythe, and even when she was under duress, I didn't feel her panic and anxiety, because she would freak out one minute, and be super arrogant and snarky the next minute (but not a good arrogant and snarky, she just got on my nerves).
There is also the cliché romance that was not very well developed. It was predictable, and I didn't really see the evolution of Faythe and Nik's feelings, it was just suddenly there. So yeah, I did not enjoy the romance part that much because of the poor execution, and also because I did not care about either character.
Sadly this book was not a good fit for me. The beginning is interesting and there are good ideas in the book, but it takes way too long for the semblance of a plot to appear. By the time the storyline started to get more interesting and we started to see a goal for the main character, there were only 100 pages left and I just felt like skimming the rest of the book, because I didn't care about Faythe at all and I still didn't fully understand the endgame, or the arc-plot of the series.
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🎶Oops I did it again
I bought a new book
Because of its cover
Magic, Faes, assassins
You had such potentiiiaaaaaaaal
But I’m disappointed🎶 😖
✅ Interesting world-building and society
✅ Magic (kind of)
🆗 Boring and annoying main character
🆗 Very ordinary secondary characters
❌ Plot that drags on and takes a long time to appear
❌ Cliché and predictable romance
Faythe lives a very normal life with her best friend Jakon, until the night she realizes that she has Nightwalker abilities, which is not normal since only Faes can be Nightwalkers, and she is a human. Thankfully, Nik (a fellow Nightwalker) is there to help Faythe, and he seems to quickly grow attached to her. I find it a little weird how quickly they trusted each other when Faes have always been indifferent, if not cruel, towards humans. I’m not saying that Nik can’t be different, I just think that Faythe trusted him too easily.
Faythe ends up being the typical special girl with a unique talent that she manages to control way too easily. The Nightwalkers are faes that possess the telepathic ability to access someone’s unconscious mind when they are sleeping, allowing them to see their thoughts, their memories, to spy on them, and even to kill them from within. It's a lot of new things to learn about and control, yet, in the span of one night, Faythe managed to expand her powers and learn to control them almost completely. She went from using it without meaning too during stressful or intense moments to using it whenever she wishes to, even being able to be precise and nuanced in what she does with her power. There is no struggle, no growing, it just happens overnight. Literally.
The world-building and the organization of the society reminded me of Red Queen. The humans are living in miserable dwellings outside the city, and only the ones deemed worthy enough (meaning they have a rare and special skill) can enter the city to work for the condescending faes.
The plot is weak, not to say non-existent. Honestly, I didn’t know what the main character’s goal was until the very last part of the book, and even then, she gets into a kind of quest, but I never really knew why it was so important to her and to the rest of the world. Basically, she just spent her time working, training with Nik, or secretly fighting to gain more money. The was no endgame, no villain to defeat, it was just about Faythe’s everyday life, until the weird quest that she just happened to stumble upon…
It also bothered me how she is an amazing swordswoman, she beats everyone and gets super arrogant about it, yet she’s had no real training except in the last few weeks when she met with Nik. She is also super afraid that someone will recognize her, but she still uses her quite unique sword during her fights and shows her quite unique gold eyes, and nobody makes a connection for the first few weeks. It’s all very easy and convenient for Faythe, and even when she was under duress, I didn't feel her panic and anxiety, because she would freak out one minute, and be super arrogant and snarky the next minute (but not a good arrogant and snarky, she just got on my nerves).
There is also the cliché romance that was not very well developed. It was predictable, and I didn't really see the evolution of Faythe and Nik's feelings, it was just suddenly there. So yeah, I did not enjoy the romance part that much because of the poor execution, and also because I did not care about either character.
Sadly this book was not a good fit for me. The beginning is interesting and there are good ideas in the book, but it takes way too long for the semblance of a plot to appear. By the time the storyline started to get more interesting and we started to see a goal for the main character, there were only 100 pages left and I just felt like skimming the rest of the book, because I didn't care about Faythe at all and I still didn't fully understand the endgame, or the arc-plot of the series.
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July 8, 2023Hello! I wouldn’t have put my heart and soul onto pages and pursued the publication of this book if I didn’t believe it to be five stars. :)
This book came from a thought, formed into a dream, and became a reality. An Heir Comes to Rise is only the very surface of what’s to come in this series and this world. It follows Faythe, an impoverished human orphan with an affinity for swordplay, who discovers the notorious fae ability she harbours is only the beginning of the impossible. It’s a journey about self discovery, acceptance, and love for found family. In this book we learn who she is as a person with the help of her best friend Jakon, new friend Marlowe, and fae guard Nik. And we catch a glimpse of overarching conflicts going on in the world of Ungardia to come.
Faythe’s character is very close to my heart and she grows so much throughout the trials and tribulations of this series. While An Heir Comes to Rise as its own book is suitable for YA audience, this series as a whole I would categorise as New Adult, as to come, you can expect more character POVs, darker themes, secrets and twists, and mature themes.
Thanks for reading and I can’t wait to see you along for this journey!
Book two– ‘A Queen Comes to Power’ is out August 10th 2021. :)
C.C. Peñaranda x
This book came from a thought, formed into a dream, and became a reality. An Heir Comes to Rise is only the very surface of what’s to come in this series and this world. It follows Faythe, an impoverished human orphan with an affinity for swordplay, who discovers the notorious fae ability she harbours is only the beginning of the impossible. It’s a journey about self discovery, acceptance, and love for found family. In this book we learn who she is as a person with the help of her best friend Jakon, new friend Marlowe, and fae guard Nik. And we catch a glimpse of overarching conflicts going on in the world of Ungardia to come.
Faythe’s character is very close to my heart and she grows so much throughout the trials and tribulations of this series. While An Heir Comes to Rise as its own book is suitable for YA audience, this series as a whole I would categorise as New Adult, as to come, you can expect more character POVs, darker themes, secrets and twists, and mature themes.
Thanks for reading and I can’t wait to see you along for this journey!
Book two– ‘A Queen Comes to Power’ is out August 10th 2021. :)
C.C. Peñaranda x
October 24, 2023
4/ 5⭐
1/5 🌶️
This is an incredible book series that combines all the elements of fantasy and adventure that fans of Fae/Human fantasy love. Chloe C. Peñaranda's expertise in crafting a captivating magic system, immersive world, compelling character arcs, and engaging action sequences adds an extra layer of excitement to the story. The mixture of a slow-burn romance, magical woods, mind-altering abilities, and formidable villains is a recipe for an enthralling narrative. The presence of stags and the inclusion of two love stories further enhance the depth and complexity of the story. With forbidden romance, political intrigue, and betrayal, this series promises an exciting and emotional journey for readers. Can't wait to see how the story unfolds in the upcoming books!
Quotes:
“Everyone has skeletons in the closet, and those who claimed otherwise were usually the ones with the most to hide.”
“Trust built on the foundation of a lie is always doomed to fall.”
“Knowledge is mightier than the sword sometimes, but it's also nice to escape the possible and travel to another world for a while.”
“I live with it by never forgetting any of them. By remembering who I am and what I’ve done, owning it, and never letting the dark part consume me.”
“Your heroism is not admirable; it’s reckless.”
⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️
1/5 🌶️
This is an incredible book series that combines all the elements of fantasy and adventure that fans of Fae/Human fantasy love. Chloe C. Peñaranda's expertise in crafting a captivating magic system, immersive world, compelling character arcs, and engaging action sequences adds an extra layer of excitement to the story. The mixture of a slow-burn romance, magical woods, mind-altering abilities, and formidable villains is a recipe for an enthralling narrative. The presence of stags and the inclusion of two love stories further enhance the depth and complexity of the story. With forbidden romance, political intrigue, and betrayal, this series promises an exciting and emotional journey for readers. Can't wait to see how the story unfolds in the upcoming books!
Quotes:
“Everyone has skeletons in the closet, and those who claimed otherwise were usually the ones with the most to hide.”
“Trust built on the foundation of a lie is always doomed to fall.”
“Knowledge is mightier than the sword sometimes, but it's also nice to escape the possible and travel to another world for a while.”
“I live with it by never forgetting any of them. By remembering who I am and what I’ve done, owning it, and never letting the dark part consume me.”
“Your heroism is not admirable; it’s reckless.”
⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️🗡️⚔️
July 20, 2022
I'm lowering my rating from 3 stars to 1. It isn't worth it.
-----------------------
2.5 stars? 3 stars? 3.25 stars? 3.5 stars because I’m feeling way too generous? I don’t even know.
I’ll keep my star rating at 3 stars, but you should know this review might turn into a rant that doesn’t reflect the given star rating.
The book.
The blurb pretty much summarizes what the book is about or, better yet, what the book was supposed to be about. To me it seemed like your basic YA fantasy romance, with the girl-finds-out-she-has-powers-and-is-special plotline. I didn’t really mind it kept the standard recipe all those other YA books use nowadays, but I’m not going to lie, I expected a little more.
It felt like a lot was happening and at the same time nothing essential was happening at all - with the exception of the last 20-10% of the book. That’s where things got way more interesting and intriguing, but unfortunately the book ended.
So, in my opinion, this book was just an introduction to the FMC and her life and some of the side characters. In all honesty, 75% of the book could’ve been condensed into just 25-30% and it could’ve turned into an introductory novella, instead of a full length novel. It felt too dragged out at times, with some world-building and clues (foreshadowing?) thrown in there for good measure. While reading this, I honest to God had no idea who the real villain is or what is happening for that matter and I still don’t. The ending just left me with more questions and not in a good way,
I have to say, though, that I read it pretty fast and I liked the author’s writing style. But it also messed with my head a little, because sometimes it felt like the writing used in the majority of YA books and other times it felt like it was trying to become more adult-y. I don’t know if you know what I mean or if anyone else felt that way, but yeah, I found it weird.
The Characters.
Faythe
She is the protagonist and we are in her head for 98% of the book. The fact that 3rd person narration was used, instead of 1st person, was the sole reason I managed to continue reading everything happening through her POV. If it was written in 1st person and I had to constantly read I, I, I instead of she, she, she, I would’ve clawed my eyes and brain out. She was annoying. Like, a lot. Seriously, the choice of narrating person is the only thing that didn’t make me outright hate her and it also saved my sanity.
I don’t even know where to start with her, so let the chaotic thoughts begin.
1. She found out that she had powers only the fae possessed, plus that her powers might actually be a lot stronger than theirs. She, then, met a fae guard, Nik, who long story short decided to help her navigate and control it. And she did. Quite easily and with no real problems, which didn’t feel natural, because she only just discovered what she could do and there wasn’t much of a training going on in the book either. Just telling and not much showing. It just felt convenient.
2. She is 19 years old, if I remember correctly, but it felt like she was 13-14. She was very childish at times, naive, selfish and overall kind of whiny. I know that 19 year-olds aren’t the most mature people, but given her backstory I expected a little more from her since she’s technically an adult. She made so many rush and dumb decisions. In one sentence she would think the rational thing she was supposed to do and in the next she would instantly contradict herself and proceed to do something stupid. It was pretty obvious all of that was happening for the sake of the plot and it annoyed the hell out of me.
Also, don’t even get me started on how she constantly whined to herself about lying to her friends. I get what the purpose of this whole lying thing was, but it got boring and frustrating fast. Now that I think about it, it didn’t have any point or impact to the story, so while I understand what the author wanted to do, I don’t think it was accomplished.
3. She felt too much like a wannabe Celaena Sardothien groupie, with all the swaggering instead of simple walking and how good she was at swordplay. Which is another thing I don’t get. How is it possible to become so skilled at wielding a sword and beating grown men, with no real training and just your sparring sessions with your best friend at the town square? Someone, please, explain.
Oh, and while we’re on the subject, why did the fae patrolling the town even allowed her and her friends to do that? Why did they continue to allow it even after she got a real steel sword? I’ll add that to the list of things that didn’t make sense. We were told the humans are under the control of the fae and that the fae rule is somewhat tyrannical/dictatorial. Wouldn’t they ban that sort of thing?
I have so much more to say about her, but I’d spend days putting everything into words so I’ll just stop here.
Nik
The fae guard with a secret, that helped train Faythe. I don’t have a lot to say about him. He had two chapters told from his POV and I don’t really understand why.They didn’t offer anything to the grander plot. The twist about him was predictable to say the least, but I think he has potential to grow into an interesting character. He was also Faythe’s love interest in this book, but I don’t think he’s endgame material. Also, he feels like the Dorian of this world.
I’m not going to talk about the other side characters, because I don’t know who is relevant to the story and who isn’t, with the exception of Marlowe, the blacksmith/oracle, and Jakon, Faythe’s best friend. They didn’t have much of a role in the story to be honest. Well, Marlowe did, but it didn’t have the impact it could’ve had. It kind of fell flat.
The Romance.
Faythe and Nik
As I said, they were a thing in this book. A thing that took time to develop but felt insta-lovey at the same time. There’s not much to say about them as a couple either, since (spoiler alert) a silver/white-haired dude appears in the next book and I think he’s the true love interest for Faythe. Plus, it was obvious the author didn’t put too much effort into the romantic relationship between Faythe and Nik and I think that’s a big giveaway.
Conclusion.
From this review you may think that I didn’t like the book or that I won’t be continuing the series. You’re wrong. I neither loved nor hated this book. I found it to be just ok, with room for improvement in the next ones. I will read the rest of the books, because this does have potential to be a great series and the ending of it felt like the real story was about to begin. I’m hoping the next books are better in plot-focus, world-building and characters. I really, really want a very good and satisfying character development, especially for Faythe. Fingers crossed I won’t be disappointed.
-----------------------
2.5 stars? 3 stars? 3.25 stars? 3.5 stars because I’m feeling way too generous? I don’t even know.
I’ll keep my star rating at 3 stars, but you should know this review might turn into a rant that doesn’t reflect the given star rating.
The book.
The blurb pretty much summarizes what the book is about or, better yet, what the book was supposed to be about. To me it seemed like your basic YA fantasy romance, with the girl-finds-out-she-has-powers-and-is-special plotline. I didn’t really mind it kept the standard recipe all those other YA books use nowadays, but I’m not going to lie, I expected a little more.
It felt like a lot was happening and at the same time nothing essential was happening at all - with the exception of the last 20-10% of the book. That’s where things got way more interesting and intriguing, but unfortunately the book ended.
So, in my opinion, this book was just an introduction to the FMC and her life and some of the side characters. In all honesty, 75% of the book could’ve been condensed into just 25-30% and it could’ve turned into an introductory novella, instead of a full length novel. It felt too dragged out at times, with some world-building and clues (foreshadowing?) thrown in there for good measure. While reading this, I honest to God had no idea who the real villain is or what is happening for that matter and I still don’t. The ending just left me with more questions and not in a good way,
I have to say, though, that I read it pretty fast and I liked the author’s writing style. But it also messed with my head a little, because sometimes it felt like the writing used in the majority of YA books and other times it felt like it was trying to become more adult-y. I don’t know if you know what I mean or if anyone else felt that way, but yeah, I found it weird.
The Characters.
Faythe
She is the protagonist and we are in her head for 98% of the book. The fact that 3rd person narration was used, instead of 1st person, was the sole reason I managed to continue reading everything happening through her POV. If it was written in 1st person and I had to constantly read I, I, I instead of she, she, she, I would’ve clawed my eyes and brain out. She was annoying. Like, a lot. Seriously, the choice of narrating person is the only thing that didn’t make me outright hate her and it also saved my sanity.
I don’t even know where to start with her, so let the chaotic thoughts begin.
1. She found out that she had powers only the fae possessed, plus that her powers might actually be a lot stronger than theirs. She, then, met a fae guard, Nik, who long story short decided to help her navigate and control it. And she did. Quite easily and with no real problems, which didn’t feel natural, because she only just discovered what she could do and there wasn’t much of a training going on in the book either. Just telling and not much showing. It just felt convenient.
2. She is 19 years old, if I remember correctly, but it felt like she was 13-14. She was very childish at times, naive, selfish and overall kind of whiny. I know that 19 year-olds aren’t the most mature people, but given her backstory I expected a little more from her since she’s technically an adult. She made so many rush and dumb decisions. In one sentence she would think the rational thing she was supposed to do and in the next she would instantly contradict herself and proceed to do something stupid. It was pretty obvious all of that was happening for the sake of the plot and it annoyed the hell out of me.
Also, don’t even get me started on how she constantly whined to herself about lying to her friends. I get what the purpose of this whole lying thing was, but it got boring and frustrating fast. Now that I think about it, it didn’t have any point or impact to the story, so while I understand what the author wanted to do, I don’t think it was accomplished.
3. She felt too much like a wannabe Celaena Sardothien groupie, with all the swaggering instead of simple walking and how good she was at swordplay. Which is another thing I don’t get. How is it possible to become so skilled at wielding a sword and beating grown men, with no real training and just your sparring sessions with your best friend at the town square? Someone, please, explain.
Oh, and while we’re on the subject, why did the fae patrolling the town even allowed her and her friends to do that? Why did they continue to allow it even after she got a real steel sword? I’ll add that to the list of things that didn’t make sense. We were told the humans are under the control of the fae and that the fae rule is somewhat tyrannical/dictatorial. Wouldn’t they ban that sort of thing?
I have so much more to say about her, but I’d spend days putting everything into words so I’ll just stop here.
Nik
The fae guard with a secret, that helped train Faythe. I don’t have a lot to say about him. He had two chapters told from his POV and I don’t really understand why.They didn’t offer anything to the grander plot. The twist about him was predictable to say the least, but I think he has potential to grow into an interesting character. He was also Faythe’s love interest in this book, but I don’t think he’s endgame material. Also, he feels like the Dorian of this world.
I’m not going to talk about the other side characters, because I don’t know who is relevant to the story and who isn’t, with the exception of Marlowe, the blacksmith/oracle, and Jakon, Faythe’s best friend. They didn’t have much of a role in the story to be honest. Well, Marlowe did, but it didn’t have the impact it could’ve had. It kind of fell flat.
The Romance.
Faythe and Nik
As I said, they were a thing in this book. A thing that took time to develop but felt insta-lovey at the same time. There’s not much to say about them as a couple either, since (spoiler alert) a silver/white-haired dude appears in the next book and I think he’s the true love interest for Faythe. Plus, it was obvious the author didn’t put too much effort into the romantic relationship between Faythe and Nik and I think that’s a big giveaway.
Conclusion.
From this review you may think that I didn’t like the book or that I won’t be continuing the series. You’re wrong. I neither loved nor hated this book. I found it to be just ok, with room for improvement in the next ones. I will read the rest of the books, because this does have potential to be a great series and the ending of it felt like the real story was about to begin. I’m hoping the next books are better in plot-focus, world-building and characters. I really, really want a very good and satisfying character development, especially for Faythe. Fingers crossed I won’t be disappointed.
January 1, 2023
I was interested in this because the author advertises the series with really cool aesthetic videos, but at the same time I was hesitant to pick this up, because 1, people say it's like an SJM book, and although I haven't read any of her works, based on the reviews I know I would despise them, and 2, the author of this book is young so I didn't know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised.
Both the romantic and platonic relationships were healthy, there were no toxic alpha men, the girls helped each other where they could, the characters had personality and I'm curious about the worldbuilding, to see more about the world, because for now we were only in one city. It felt like a first book, it was more of an introduction, and I want to see the action in the next book, so I ordered it the minute I finished this one.
I know that with book 4 the main character will change, and from what I've seen from her in this book, I can't wait to follow her on her journey.
Both the romantic and platonic relationships were healthy, there were no toxic alpha men, the girls helped each other where they could, the characters had personality and I'm curious about the worldbuilding, to see more about the world, because for now we were only in one city. It felt like a first book, it was more of an introduction, and I want to see the action in the next book, so I ordered it the minute I finished this one.
I know that with book 4 the main character will change, and from what I've seen from her in this book, I can't wait to follow her on her journey.
June 25, 2024
DISCLAIMER: All thoughts are my own and nobody is forcing me to say anything. Everything stated below is my own opinion and I just don't want to add "I think", or "I believe" in each and every sentence to emphasize that this review is not trying to be a source of information like the news or anything. These are all coming from my views and thoughts and opinions and beliefs. Details about the books I have stated below are from my own observations. I've read all of the books I have mentioned and the information I have disclosed about them came from the books which are the source material themselves. Please feel free to do your own responsible reading and investigation before deciding if you are going to be agreeing or disagreeing with me. Thank you!
Another author that gives the ick. Yikes.
Chloe C. Peñaranda will always be known to me as that one author who copies other author's works/content/original ideas, tries to rewrite them believing she was making them "better", when it was all just a result of lack of talent and creativity. There is AO3 and fanfiction.net for your fan fictions.
IMHO Chloe is not merely taking inspirations and writing her own unique stories.
She is rewriting other people's stories. She takes their ideas, their characters, their plot, everything, and produce a clunky book from all that "borrowed" material she then proudly calls her own.
Chloe derives so much from SJM that she doesn't have her own brand of writing, and all that was done is make a bland, boring diluted copy of the original.
This is my own personal honest thoughts, views, and opinions. I am not one of the SJM fanatics but since she is the one being copied the most by Chloe and this book has the most copied material, I have cited her and her works the most. Also, Chloe always gets so pissy whenever she's compared to SJM even in good faith, and I could only assume it was because she was guilty and wants to do everything in her power to distance herself from SJM. She was also perhaps jealous that SJM could come up with such amazing ideas that she needed to copy in order for her to be able to write something LOL
If imitation is the best form of flattery, Chloe C. Peñaranda must have been obsessed with Sarah J. Mass.
Now onto the main event...
BOOK REVIEW
An Heir Comes to Rise... Or AHCTR. Seriously? As in ACOTAR? SMH. But wait. There's more.
Remember Feyre Archeron (A Court of Thorns and Roses) and Aelin Ashryver Galathynius (Throne of Glass)? Well, now let me introduce you to this book's heroine, a mash up of these two original characters by Sarah J. Maas, Chloe C. Peñaranda's once favorite author until people realized she ripped off a lot of her books and characters and not just this once...
Faythe Ashfyre! 😬
See the play on names? Faythe as in Feyre? Ashfyre as in Ashryver? LMFAO I swear I'm not making this up. But of course all allegations were denied that Faythe was named after Feyre and there was even an attempt to salvage this by trying to make her name have an in-world meaning behind it (cringe and pathetic IMHO it's a yikes moment, really).
Sure. Whatever makes you fall asleep at night XD But we all know the truth. FFS even the Ashryver of Aelin's name. Ashfyre. Really? SMH.
That's not all, folks.
We also have a bastardized combination of Chaol Westfall and Dorian Havilliard, the captain of the guard and the prince heir to the throne from Throne of Glass... Nikalias Silvergriff! But this time he's both the captain of the guard and the prince! Two in one! Because it'd be too obvious to have two false love interests like in Throne of Glass, so now we only have one! And yes, there's also a false love interest before we meet the real love interest...
And this time, you guessed it, he's a mashed up version of Rowan Whitethorn and Rhysand: Reylan Arrowood! A silver-haired fae general from another kingdom who was not in good terms with Faythe at first, like Rowan and Rhys were to Aelin and Feyre. He's even got Rowan's tortured tattoos LMFAO the tattoos Rowan got because of his tortured past, is what I meant XD
Rowan, I mean Reylan, also lost his wife and had a heart to heart talk with Faythe about the loss of a loved one in a similar scene lifted off of Throne of Glass when Celaena was playing the piano in her room and Dorian came inside, and Celaena opened up about Sam Cortland. This time, to "spice" things up a little bit, Reylan was the one playing the piano. Ha! Now how can that be considered inappropriate? (Chloe C. Peñaranda, probably, while writing this Throne of Glass/ACOTAR ripped off series).
Tell me now, dear readers, are these similarities just "common fantasy tropes"? Could every fantasy, or could a lot of them, have this skeletal backbone that each of these characters have? Okay, okay. I feel like I need to add more. Let us go on to more history and relationships, shall we?
In this book, we also have an in-universe version of Sam, but he does not die LOL in the form of Jakon Kilnight. I am not even kidding when I say that this guy is so Sam coded from his looks to his forever pining for Faythe. They're also best friends like Celaena and Sam in Throne of Glass. Well, Celaena did not actually call Sam her best friend outright but it was understood since she had no any other close friends except him.
The character Tauria Stagknight from this book series is Nehemia Ytger from Throne of Glass, and her kingdom's insignia is a stag like Terrasen in Throne of Glass. They both have darker skin tone and wield a staff. Tauria is also Yrene Towers in a way that she gets her own book a la Tower of Dawn style with Nikalias Silvergriff. And to also make a tandem read with A Throne From the Ashes (book three) and A Clash of Three Courts (book four). Two books that happened at the same chronological time in-world, but focused on different characters... like what SJM did with Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn.
A Clash of Three Courts was focused on Tauria (Nehemia/Yrene) and Nik (Chaol/Dorian) while A Throne From the Ashes focused on the rest of the other characters. It was EXACTLY LIKE EMPIRE OF STORMS AND TOWER OF DAWN. No one can convince me that the idea didn't come from SJM no matter how many other books out there have this kind of structure (e.g., in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series). Everything copied adds up to what SJM did and wrote so no matter how much and how hard all allegations of ripping off or being inspired by SJM were denied.
It's all there staring us right between our eyes! You can keep on saying these comparisons are all common fantasy tropes but if you haven't read the VERY SPECIFIC THINGS copied, then I don't know how else can I do to make you see past the victimizing oneself, appearing all docile and sweet in socials when more often than not the true nature is shown.
This book AHCTR also had appearances of this magical stag like the Lord of the North in Throne of Glass. In the third book of this series, A Throne From the Ashes (getting ahead of myself here but since we're discussing borrowed characters, let me mention this as well), there are also character equivalents of Manon Blackbeak (also from Throne of Glass) and Nephele (that seraphim from ACOWAR which I will elaborate more on my review for the third book, just mentioning it here LOL).
Faythe also encounters a "spirit" in this book which is very much derived from Throne of Glass in the form of Elena's character, who guided Celaena and sort of gave her hints and clues all throughout her journey. There are also goddesses in AHCTR akin to Mab, Mora, and Maeve from Throne of Glass so tell me now, dear readers. All these characters and even tropes are some you could find in fantasy, right? One could argue that SJM was not the first one to write about a lost heir, or goddesses, or mind speaking. HOWEVER, with all of this elements being present in Throne of Glass and the way they were written and connected with each other IS ALSO THE SAME WAY THEY WERE COPIED in the book.
You would see fantasy elements of this and that particularly here and there but IN CONTEXT, looking at it this way, it is very much obvious that the book ripped off Throne of Glass and ACOTAR. I believe this is the main reason of the struggle to finish this series now. Because too many people have realized everything that was copied and now, everything planned to copy for the final books had to be scrapped off and it has to be written from scratch, finally having to come up with an original idea of and not "borrow" from others.
The names of places were all Throne of Glass coded, too LMFAO In this book AHCTR, there's a place called High Farrow and Fenstead... Taken from Throne of Glass's Fenharrow. While Throne of Glass has Illium, AHCTR replicates it with Ellium. Balruhn (ToG) became Dalrune (AHCTR). It's cringe LMFAO Even the "To Wendlyn" with an arrow in the ToG map, with "To Valgard" with the same arrow on the same exact unknown direction. I'm crying, this is just too much.
The "nightwalkers" were invented, fae who have the same mind abilities as Rhysand. But they are not totally derived from Rhysand because they can walk through dreams XD I'm laughing so hard now at the attempt at a semblance of originality.
An Heir Comes to Rise is perhaps what was thought would be the "The Assassin's Blade", since it focuses more on the origin of Aelin, I mean Feyre, I mean Faythe, and the real story begins in the second book. Still, AHCTR ends like how Throne of Glass ends with the female main character finding herself working for the king, the man who she despises the most, losing one potential love interest, and starting to live in the palace to actually begin her adventure.
As if all the other elements were not enough and she has to copy SJM character for character, plot for plot, scene for scene, ending for ending.
In this book, Faythe faced the king who instructed her to torture an innocent "mind to mind". Sounds familiar? Sounds like what Amarantha forced Rhys to do Under the Mountain? This was also done in a dramatic fashion like how SJM writes it in her books: with an entire audience and some of the main character's allies unable to do anything and just stand by the sidelines while they face this problem on their own. Similar to how Feyre was beat up by Amarantha at the end of ACOTAR and how Aelin faced Cain at the end of Throne of Glass. Faythe had no choice but to face the king of High Farrow and suffer the consequences of her actions.
The level of copying and replication LMFAO really. And the audacity to deny all of it as if people are blind and dumb, and would not notice T_T XD
I might have been too trigger happy in mentioning Reylan because he does not appear until book two LOL but I want to showcase as many ripped off material as possible and as much as it won't spoil the series LMFAO as I can to prove that the author was just in denial when she keeps on insisting that her books were only similar in the barest, most skeletal, way or form with the other books accused of copying.
Tell yourself that, if that will make your conscience lighter LOL the truth will come out one way or the other.
There are more ripped off scenes and characters/backgrounds in the next books. I'm going to try and see if I remember more from this book and add them here when I do.
This book is NOT EVEN GOOD. If you want to read a better book, then by all means READ THE ORIGINAL, READ THRONE OF GLASS. And that's saying something LOL An Heir Comes to Rise is so BORING. Nothing ever happens and the times when the plot picks up, it was all derived from Throne of Glass which is pathetic since the scenes that should be exciting were copied scenes. Even when the characters seem interesting, it was because their attributes were copied from existing SJM characters.
This is the MOST UNORIGINAL STORY I have ever read. READERS DO NOT BE FOOLED. If you read these books first and become interested in the story, DO YOUR RESEARCH AND READ THRONE OF GLASS FIRST. This book, this series, copied a lot from Throne of Glass and others who have not read Throne of Glass might think the author wrote an original and unique story but NO BECAUSE THIS IS NOT IT.
Also be wary because apparently, this is the modus operandi here. What was done is taking an original story and copy scenes and characters from them, even lines and dialogue, rewrite them in "their own words" because apparently it's the norm now: just authors copying each other and it's fine as long as you're not caught or you've paraphrased hard enough, as implied by the author of this book (who was also so good at throwing accusations at her to other authors and saying, "What about this author who was inspired by this thing and he/she copied from this author?" LOL IF ONLY there were authors who actually do what she does.). And then trash and disparage those same authors they copied from (just look at how they talk about SJM).
The plot drags on forever, the characters don't feel real at all and there was no real sense of danger. There was no gravity to the conflict because it was so lackluster and cringe-y. Character growth who? Plot development who? Faythe was so one dimensional and stale I'd be better off reading a book about a brick. That'd be more interesting.
This book has NO GRAVITAS. Chloe doesn't know how to write a compelling enough of a story that would make me care about anything at all. At least Sarah J. Maas knows how to write scenes with high stakes that apparently a lot of readers feel the weight of, making them care about the book and the characters. This book lacks that same purpose as to why it was written.
It first started with a hungry, impoverished girl who was striving to make ends meet, then she discovered she has hidden powers which she wanted to learn more of, but then she reverted back to wanting to earn money and she didn't even care about her origins at all? There is no big plot that would make the main character's actions matter. The blurb lies that this book was like Red Queen where there's power imbalance because the main character Faythe DOES NOT CARE about that at all. She did not help the weak, she did not use her power to save others or fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. She was only good at making stupid after stupid decision. The book revolves around her being what other characters said she was, which I call BS because she never exhibited those characteristics supporting characters spoke of. What a gratuitous self insert of a character who was made out to be as fierce as Celaena Sardothien and as meek as Feyre Archeron but failing to do so.
The story was bland enough and we have to follow this Mary Sue of a character who was written to make "some mistakes" so she wouldn't be cast off as a Mary Sue but those mistakes didn't hold much gravity to them or they were resolved so quickly the character still comes off as perfect. This is what happens when there was not one original thought or effort made and when the character was written purely based off of others without implementing your own take on it.
There. I said what I said and I might have forgotten other things that completely bugged me but honestly, I went on reading up to the fourth book for the sake of finding out if the author did better but all she did with the story was the same thing she did with this one, and continue doing so in her current books including her contemporary dark romance debut, which was Nothing Left to Lose by Kristen Moseley rewritten (aside from the many similarities again lifted from the original work and passed off as "regular contemporary romance tropes), there was also a scene from Moseley's book lifted off completely that made me DNF Chloe's rip off immediately. This was just too much. She's going after the stories of smaller relatively unknown authors now that more and more people are discovering how she rips off bigger authors.
Anyway...
I would like to end this with:
Dear author, would you please stay away from Goodreads now. Or Chloe's friends, stay away from negative reviews like this. This is not for you guys. Just a friendly reminder because all of Chloe's social media posts and even her untruthful replies on Threads (about how someone commented certain negative things in her publishing news announcements on Instagram when what she mentioned was verbatim what negative reviewers have written on this supposedly safe space for them) suggests she or perhaps one or two or a few of her flock casually lurk in reviewer spaces where they can gather intel about who reviews Chloe's books.
And also, one last thing: I know this review might be buried underneath all others but if you somehow saw this, I want to say, be careful. Not just with this author but other authors who exhibit the same attitude as well. CCP might not be the first or only one who does this but I only happen to have read her books and thus I can only speak of that about them.
REVIEWS ARE FOR READERS AND IN MINE AUTHORS ARE NEVER TAGGED NOR MENTIONED. I DO NOT SEND THEM MY REVIEWS OR EVEN INVITE THEM HERE IN MY SPACE.
READERS ARE SENTIENT HUMAN BEINGS WHO CAN DECIDE FOR THEMSELVES. THEY CAN READ AS MANY REVIEWS AS THEY WANT AND WHILE ONE NEGATIVE REVIEW SUCH AS MINE MAY OR MAY NOT INFLUENCE THEM IN READING THE BOOK, IT IS STILL UP TO THEM AND IT'S THEIR DISCRETION WHETHER THEY AGREE TO SOME POINTS OR NOT.
PEOPLE ARE ALLOWED TO HAVE OPINIONS NO MATTER HOW HEAVY THEY ARE. PEOPLE ARE NOT SO GULLIBLE AS TO JUST BELIEVE SOMEONE'S OPINIONS BLINDLY SO THIS REVIEW SHOULD BE TAKEN WITH A GRAIN OF SALT AND I INVITE EVERYONE WHO HAPPENS TO READ THIS TO DO THEIR OWN RESEARCH AND IF YOU DISAGREE WITH WHAT I HAVE SAID, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DO SO OR CORRECT ME IF I ERR ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE DISCUSSIONS AS WELL.
I SAY THIS BECAUSE NEGATIVE REVIEWS ARE OFTEN INVALIDATED JUST BECAUSE THE AUTHOR DOES NOT AGREE WITH THEM OR THEIR FRIENDS FEEL OFFENDED ON THEIE BEHALF (WHEN SAID FRIENDS ALSO REVIEW OTHER BOOKS NEGATIVELY). IT ONLY APPEARS TO BE THAT EITHER THE AUTHOR OR HER FLOCK DOES NOT WANT THESE THINGS DISCUSSED BECAUSE THEY WANT THEM KEPT HIDDEN FOR SOME HEAVY REASON THAT FORCES THEM TO EVEN REPORT AND HAVE COMMENTS AND ACCOUNTS DELETED.
READING A NEGATIVE REVIEW SHOULD NOT CONCERN THE AUTHORS BECAUSE THEY SHOULD NEVER EVEN READ REVIEWS THAT ARE NOT GIVEN TO THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE. I AM RESPECTING THEM AND THEIR PRIVACY SO I ONLY ASK THEY DO THE SAME TO ME.
Edit: spelling
Edit: grammar
Another author that gives the ick. Yikes.
Chloe C. Peñaranda will always be known to me as that one author who copies other author's works/content/original ideas, tries to rewrite them believing she was making them "better", when it was all just a result of lack of talent and creativity. There is AO3 and fanfiction.net for your fan fictions.
IMHO Chloe is not merely taking inspirations and writing her own unique stories.
She is rewriting other people's stories. She takes their ideas, their characters, their plot, everything, and produce a clunky book from all that "borrowed" material she then proudly calls her own.
Chloe derives so much from SJM that she doesn't have her own brand of writing, and all that was done is make a bland, boring diluted copy of the original.
This is my own personal honest thoughts, views, and opinions. I am not one of the SJM fanatics but since she is the one being copied the most by Chloe and this book has the most copied material, I have cited her and her works the most. Also, Chloe always gets so pissy whenever she's compared to SJM even in good faith, and I could only assume it was because she was guilty and wants to do everything in her power to distance herself from SJM. She was also perhaps jealous that SJM could come up with such amazing ideas that she needed to copy in order for her to be able to write something LOL
If imitation is the best form of flattery, Chloe C. Peñaranda must have been obsessed with Sarah J. Mass.
Now onto the main event...
BOOK REVIEW
An Heir Comes to Rise... Or AHCTR. Seriously? As in ACOTAR? SMH. But wait. There's more.
Remember Feyre Archeron (A Court of Thorns and Roses) and Aelin Ashryver Galathynius (Throne of Glass)? Well, now let me introduce you to this book's heroine, a mash up of these two original characters by Sarah J. Maas, Chloe C. Peñaranda's once favorite author until people realized she ripped off a lot of her books and characters and not just this once...
Faythe Ashfyre! 😬
See the play on names? Faythe as in Feyre? Ashfyre as in Ashryver? LMFAO I swear I'm not making this up. But of course all allegations were denied that Faythe was named after Feyre and there was even an attempt to salvage this by trying to make her name have an in-world meaning behind it (cringe and pathetic IMHO it's a yikes moment, really).
Sure. Whatever makes you fall asleep at night XD But we all know the truth. FFS even the Ashryver of Aelin's name. Ashfyre. Really? SMH.
That's not all, folks.
We also have a bastardized combination of Chaol Westfall and Dorian Havilliard, the captain of the guard and the prince heir to the throne from Throne of Glass... Nikalias Silvergriff! But this time he's both the captain of the guard and the prince! Two in one! Because it'd be too obvious to have two false love interests like in Throne of Glass, so now we only have one! And yes, there's also a false love interest before we meet the real love interest...
And this time, you guessed it, he's a mashed up version of Rowan Whitethorn and Rhysand: Reylan Arrowood! A silver-haired fae general from another kingdom who was not in good terms with Faythe at first, like Rowan and Rhys were to Aelin and Feyre. He's even got Rowan's tortured tattoos LMFAO the tattoos Rowan got because of his tortured past, is what I meant XD
Rowan, I mean Reylan, also lost his wife and had a heart to heart talk with Faythe about the loss of a loved one in a similar scene lifted off of Throne of Glass when Celaena was playing the piano in her room and Dorian came inside, and Celaena opened up about Sam Cortland. This time, to "spice" things up a little bit, Reylan was the one playing the piano. Ha! Now how can that be considered inappropriate? (Chloe C. Peñaranda, probably, while writing this Throne of Glass/ACOTAR ripped off series).
Tell me now, dear readers, are these similarities just "common fantasy tropes"? Could every fantasy, or could a lot of them, have this skeletal backbone that each of these characters have? Okay, okay. I feel like I need to add more. Let us go on to more history and relationships, shall we?
In this book, we also have an in-universe version of Sam, but he does not die LOL in the form of Jakon Kilnight. I am not even kidding when I say that this guy is so Sam coded from his looks to his forever pining for Faythe. They're also best friends like Celaena and Sam in Throne of Glass. Well, Celaena did not actually call Sam her best friend outright but it was understood since she had no any other close friends except him.
The character Tauria Stagknight from this book series is Nehemia Ytger from Throne of Glass, and her kingdom's insignia is a stag like Terrasen in Throne of Glass. They both have darker skin tone and wield a staff. Tauria is also Yrene Towers in a way that she gets her own book a la Tower of Dawn style with Nikalias Silvergriff. And to also make a tandem read with A Throne From the Ashes (book three) and A Clash of Three Courts (book four). Two books that happened at the same chronological time in-world, but focused on different characters... like what SJM did with Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn.
A Clash of Three Courts was focused on Tauria (Nehemia/Yrene) and Nik (Chaol/Dorian) while A Throne From the Ashes focused on the rest of the other characters. It was EXACTLY LIKE EMPIRE OF STORMS AND TOWER OF DAWN. No one can convince me that the idea didn't come from SJM no matter how many other books out there have this kind of structure (e.g., in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series). Everything copied adds up to what SJM did and wrote so no matter how much and how hard all allegations of ripping off or being inspired by SJM were denied.
It's all there staring us right between our eyes! You can keep on saying these comparisons are all common fantasy tropes but if you haven't read the VERY SPECIFIC THINGS copied, then I don't know how else can I do to make you see past the victimizing oneself, appearing all docile and sweet in socials when more often than not the true nature is shown.
This book AHCTR also had appearances of this magical stag like the Lord of the North in Throne of Glass. In the third book of this series, A Throne From the Ashes (getting ahead of myself here but since we're discussing borrowed characters, let me mention this as well), there are also character equivalents of Manon Blackbeak (also from Throne of Glass) and Nephele (that seraphim from ACOWAR which I will elaborate more on my review for the third book, just mentioning it here LOL).
Faythe also encounters a "spirit" in this book which is very much derived from Throne of Glass in the form of Elena's character, who guided Celaena and sort of gave her hints and clues all throughout her journey. There are also goddesses in AHCTR akin to Mab, Mora, and Maeve from Throne of Glass so tell me now, dear readers. All these characters and even tropes are some you could find in fantasy, right? One could argue that SJM was not the first one to write about a lost heir, or goddesses, or mind speaking. HOWEVER, with all of this elements being present in Throne of Glass and the way they were written and connected with each other IS ALSO THE SAME WAY THEY WERE COPIED in the book.
You would see fantasy elements of this and that particularly here and there but IN CONTEXT, looking at it this way, it is very much obvious that the book ripped off Throne of Glass and ACOTAR. I believe this is the main reason of the struggle to finish this series now. Because too many people have realized everything that was copied and now, everything planned to copy for the final books had to be scrapped off and it has to be written from scratch, finally having to come up with an original idea of and not "borrow" from others.
The names of places were all Throne of Glass coded, too LMFAO In this book AHCTR, there's a place called High Farrow and Fenstead... Taken from Throne of Glass's Fenharrow. While Throne of Glass has Illium, AHCTR replicates it with Ellium. Balruhn (ToG) became Dalrune (AHCTR). It's cringe LMFAO Even the "To Wendlyn" with an arrow in the ToG map, with "To Valgard" with the same arrow on the same exact unknown direction. I'm crying, this is just too much.
The "nightwalkers" were invented, fae who have the same mind abilities as Rhysand. But they are not totally derived from Rhysand because they can walk through dreams XD I'm laughing so hard now at the attempt at a semblance of originality.
An Heir Comes to Rise is perhaps what was thought would be the "The Assassin's Blade", since it focuses more on the origin of Aelin, I mean Feyre, I mean Faythe, and the real story begins in the second book. Still, AHCTR ends like how Throne of Glass ends with the female main character finding herself working for the king, the man who she despises the most, losing one potential love interest, and starting to live in the palace to actually begin her adventure.
As if all the other elements were not enough and she has to copy SJM character for character, plot for plot, scene for scene, ending for ending.
In this book, Faythe faced the king who instructed her to torture an innocent "mind to mind". Sounds familiar? Sounds like what Amarantha forced Rhys to do Under the Mountain? This was also done in a dramatic fashion like how SJM writes it in her books: with an entire audience and some of the main character's allies unable to do anything and just stand by the sidelines while they face this problem on their own. Similar to how Feyre was beat up by Amarantha at the end of ACOTAR and how Aelin faced Cain at the end of Throne of Glass. Faythe had no choice but to face the king of High Farrow and suffer the consequences of her actions.
The level of copying and replication LMFAO really. And the audacity to deny all of it as if people are blind and dumb, and would not notice T_T XD
I might have been too trigger happy in mentioning Reylan because he does not appear until book two LOL but I want to showcase as many ripped off material as possible and as much as it won't spoil the series LMFAO as I can to prove that the author was just in denial when she keeps on insisting that her books were only similar in the barest, most skeletal, way or form with the other books accused of copying.
Tell yourself that, if that will make your conscience lighter LOL the truth will come out one way or the other.
There are more ripped off scenes and characters/backgrounds in the next books. I'm going to try and see if I remember more from this book and add them here when I do.
This book is NOT EVEN GOOD. If you want to read a better book, then by all means READ THE ORIGINAL, READ THRONE OF GLASS. And that's saying something LOL An Heir Comes to Rise is so BORING. Nothing ever happens and the times when the plot picks up, it was all derived from Throne of Glass which is pathetic since the scenes that should be exciting were copied scenes. Even when the characters seem interesting, it was because their attributes were copied from existing SJM characters.
This is the MOST UNORIGINAL STORY I have ever read. READERS DO NOT BE FOOLED. If you read these books first and become interested in the story, DO YOUR RESEARCH AND READ THRONE OF GLASS FIRST. This book, this series, copied a lot from Throne of Glass and others who have not read Throne of Glass might think the author wrote an original and unique story but NO BECAUSE THIS IS NOT IT.
Also be wary because apparently, this is the modus operandi here. What was done is taking an original story and copy scenes and characters from them, even lines and dialogue, rewrite them in "their own words" because apparently it's the norm now: just authors copying each other and it's fine as long as you're not caught or you've paraphrased hard enough, as implied by the author of this book (who was also so good at throwing accusations at her to other authors and saying, "What about this author who was inspired by this thing and he/she copied from this author?" LOL IF ONLY there were authors who actually do what she does.). And then trash and disparage those same authors they copied from (just look at how they talk about SJM).
The plot drags on forever, the characters don't feel real at all and there was no real sense of danger. There was no gravity to the conflict because it was so lackluster and cringe-y. Character growth who? Plot development who? Faythe was so one dimensional and stale I'd be better off reading a book about a brick. That'd be more interesting.
This book has NO GRAVITAS. Chloe doesn't know how to write a compelling enough of a story that would make me care about anything at all. At least Sarah J. Maas knows how to write scenes with high stakes that apparently a lot of readers feel the weight of, making them care about the book and the characters. This book lacks that same purpose as to why it was written.
It first started with a hungry, impoverished girl who was striving to make ends meet, then she discovered she has hidden powers which she wanted to learn more of, but then she reverted back to wanting to earn money and she didn't even care about her origins at all? There is no big plot that would make the main character's actions matter. The blurb lies that this book was like Red Queen where there's power imbalance because the main character Faythe DOES NOT CARE about that at all. She did not help the weak, she did not use her power to save others or fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. She was only good at making stupid after stupid decision. The book revolves around her being what other characters said she was, which I call BS because she never exhibited those characteristics supporting characters spoke of. What a gratuitous self insert of a character who was made out to be as fierce as Celaena Sardothien and as meek as Feyre Archeron but failing to do so.
The story was bland enough and we have to follow this Mary Sue of a character who was written to make "some mistakes" so she wouldn't be cast off as a Mary Sue but those mistakes didn't hold much gravity to them or they were resolved so quickly the character still comes off as perfect. This is what happens when there was not one original thought or effort made and when the character was written purely based off of others without implementing your own take on it.
There. I said what I said and I might have forgotten other things that completely bugged me but honestly, I went on reading up to the fourth book for the sake of finding out if the author did better but all she did with the story was the same thing she did with this one, and continue doing so in her current books including her contemporary dark romance debut, which was Nothing Left to Lose by Kristen Moseley rewritten (aside from the many similarities again lifted from the original work and passed off as "regular contemporary romance tropes), there was also a scene from Moseley's book lifted off completely that made me DNF Chloe's rip off immediately. This was just too much. She's going after the stories of smaller relatively unknown authors now that more and more people are discovering how she rips off bigger authors.
Anyway...
I would like to end this with:
Dear author, would you please stay away from Goodreads now. Or Chloe's friends, stay away from negative reviews like this. This is not for you guys. Just a friendly reminder because all of Chloe's social media posts and even her untruthful replies on Threads (about how someone commented certain negative things in her publishing news announcements on Instagram when what she mentioned was verbatim what negative reviewers have written on this supposedly safe space for them) suggests she or perhaps one or two or a few of her flock casually lurk in reviewer spaces where they can gather intel about who reviews Chloe's books.
And also, one last thing: I know this review might be buried underneath all others but if you somehow saw this, I want to say, be careful. Not just with this author but other authors who exhibit the same attitude as well. CCP might not be the first or only one who does this but I only happen to have read her books and thus I can only speak of that about them.
REVIEWS ARE FOR READERS AND IN MINE AUTHORS ARE NEVER TAGGED NOR MENTIONED. I DO NOT SEND THEM MY REVIEWS OR EVEN INVITE THEM HERE IN MY SPACE.
READERS ARE SENTIENT HUMAN BEINGS WHO CAN DECIDE FOR THEMSELVES. THEY CAN READ AS MANY REVIEWS AS THEY WANT AND WHILE ONE NEGATIVE REVIEW SUCH AS MINE MAY OR MAY NOT INFLUENCE THEM IN READING THE BOOK, IT IS STILL UP TO THEM AND IT'S THEIR DISCRETION WHETHER THEY AGREE TO SOME POINTS OR NOT.
PEOPLE ARE ALLOWED TO HAVE OPINIONS NO MATTER HOW HEAVY THEY ARE. PEOPLE ARE NOT SO GULLIBLE AS TO JUST BELIEVE SOMEONE'S OPINIONS BLINDLY SO THIS REVIEW SHOULD BE TAKEN WITH A GRAIN OF SALT AND I INVITE EVERYONE WHO HAPPENS TO READ THIS TO DO THEIR OWN RESEARCH AND IF YOU DISAGREE WITH WHAT I HAVE SAID, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DO SO OR CORRECT ME IF I ERR ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE DISCUSSIONS AS WELL.
I SAY THIS BECAUSE NEGATIVE REVIEWS ARE OFTEN INVALIDATED JUST BECAUSE THE AUTHOR DOES NOT AGREE WITH THEM OR THEIR FRIENDS FEEL OFFENDED ON THEIE BEHALF (WHEN SAID FRIENDS ALSO REVIEW OTHER BOOKS NEGATIVELY). IT ONLY APPEARS TO BE THAT EITHER THE AUTHOR OR HER FLOCK DOES NOT WANT THESE THINGS DISCUSSED BECAUSE THEY WANT THEM KEPT HIDDEN FOR SOME HEAVY REASON THAT FORCES THEM TO EVEN REPORT AND HAVE COMMENTS AND ACCOUNTS DELETED.
READING A NEGATIVE REVIEW SHOULD NOT CONCERN THE AUTHORS BECAUSE THEY SHOULD NEVER EVEN READ REVIEWS THAT ARE NOT GIVEN TO THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE. I AM RESPECTING THEM AND THEIR PRIVACY SO I ONLY ASK THEY DO THE SAME TO ME.
Edit: spelling
Edit: grammar
September 20, 2021
4 - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“There will never be another like you, Faythe. Human, fae, highborn, commoner… Never another soul like yours.”
An Heir Comes to Rise is fantastic debut novel set in the fantastical world of Ungardia where human and Fae dwell and it's a reminiscent of Throne of Glass.
Despite the familiar TOG vibes, the author does a good job of making this story stand on its own. I was engrossed into the story from start to finish. I adored the characters so much and the story is promising.
Whenever I prepare myself to read a YA Fantasy novel, I automatically have a set of predictions in my head because the sad fact is YA Fantasy novels feel repetitive these days. I won't say this one introduces new tropes or concepts, but I felt like the author knew where and when to use those tropes. Also, I think the author recently announced that the next books will lean towards NA.
So, what to expect from this book:
• A fiesty heroine uncovering secrets of her own.
• Wholesome friendships.
• Fae
• An interesting magic system (I look forward to see more of it in the next books).
• Well-developed cast of characters.
• Promising world-building
• Slow-burn romance with a pinch of enemies-to-lovers.
I think what truly stood out in this book are the characters. I loved their friendship, their interactions, their heartfelt moments and also the fun banter going on.
I'm so interested in the magic system. There are special Fae abilities like the Nightwalkers who posses the ability to enter a person's unconscious mind and access their thoughts and memories which also gives them the ability to kill their victim from within. There are other magical abilities mentioned that we are yet to explore so I am excited to see more of it.
Although the pacing suffered a little midway but the writing is easy and immersive.
I was so excited for the second book A Queen Comes to Power that I had to push back my planned next read and as soon as I finished this book I took a break and then immediately jumped to the second book.
“There will never be another like you, Faythe. Human, fae, highborn, commoner… Never another soul like yours.”
An Heir Comes to Rise is fantastic debut novel set in the fantastical world of Ungardia where human and Fae dwell and it's a reminiscent of Throne of Glass.
Despite the familiar TOG vibes, the author does a good job of making this story stand on its own. I was engrossed into the story from start to finish. I adored the characters so much and the story is promising.
Whenever I prepare myself to read a YA Fantasy novel, I automatically have a set of predictions in my head because the sad fact is YA Fantasy novels feel repetitive these days. I won't say this one introduces new tropes or concepts, but I felt like the author knew where and when to use those tropes. Also, I think the author recently announced that the next books will lean towards NA.
So, what to expect from this book:
• A fiesty heroine uncovering secrets of her own.
• Wholesome friendships.
• Fae
• An interesting magic system (I look forward to see more of it in the next books).
• Well-developed cast of characters.
• Promising world-building
• Slow-burn romance with a pinch of enemies-to-lovers.
I think what truly stood out in this book are the characters. I loved their friendship, their interactions, their heartfelt moments and also the fun banter going on.
I'm so interested in the magic system. There are special Fae abilities like the Nightwalkers who posses the ability to enter a person's unconscious mind and access their thoughts and memories which also gives them the ability to kill their victim from within. There are other magical abilities mentioned that we are yet to explore so I am excited to see more of it.
Although the pacing suffered a little midway but the writing is easy and immersive.
I was so excited for the second book A Queen Comes to Power that I had to push back my planned next read and as soon as I finished this book I took a break and then immediately jumped to the second book.
Want to read
March 7, 2021hm, i'm having my doubts, but i'm adding it anyways bc yes
September 7, 2021
Bestie it's not you, it's me. Me being so bored.
2.5
2.5
January 12, 2022
2-2.5 stars.
Not going to lie, this book was a total cover read for me. I figured okay.. a fae story, who knows maybe it will surprise me. I expected some tropey goodness packaged in a YA fantasy (romance). The concept of the book seemed interesting to me, people who are able to invade dreams/ alter your thoughts.
In this book, Fae rule over the humans, who abuse their nightwalking abilities to stay in power. The MC Faythe is pretty bland. She's an orphan, who likes swordplay and really loves her friend Jakon. That's about it. The plot of the book is Faythe meeting Nik, training with her sword, meeting another friend (who becomes the gf of Jakon) then eventually joining a tournament to earn more money than she did before.. She finds out she also has Nightwalking abilities and she trains with Nik. At the end she makes a bargain which gets her in trouble and infiltrates the king's castle because of that.
First off.. this book pretty much copies SJM. She even uses female/male as noun instead of an adjective, you know, ''That female over there.'', which is both used in regards to Fae and humans. Also just felt like she tried to copy Aelins personality a bit with the swaggering walk when she was fighting. Looking into it, I learnt that the author likes SJM and her fav character is Aelin, so unsurprising.
This book doesn't really have a clear.. plot or goal. It just kind of.. goes on. Then at the end, it just suddenly gives out all this information about spirits/gods. This was sporadically given in between earlier on.
In terms of the relationship between Faythe and Nik, they went from hostile because of their position (Human/Fae) to friends to lovers to enemies. The thing is, they are enemies for like.. hmm 50 pages? It just feels like there arent really that many stakes in this book in terms of relationships or plot.
Not going to lie, this book was a total cover read for me. I figured okay.. a fae story, who knows maybe it will surprise me. I expected some tropey goodness packaged in a YA fantasy (romance). The concept of the book seemed interesting to me, people who are able to invade dreams/ alter your thoughts.
In this book, Fae rule over the humans, who abuse their nightwalking abilities to stay in power. The MC Faythe is pretty bland. She's an orphan, who likes swordplay and really loves her friend Jakon. That's about it. The plot of the book is Faythe meeting Nik, training with her sword, meeting another friend (who becomes the gf of Jakon) then eventually joining a tournament to earn more money than she did before.. She finds out she also has Nightwalking abilities and she trains with Nik. At the end she makes a bargain which gets her in trouble and infiltrates the king's castle because of that.
First off.. this book pretty much copies SJM. She even uses female/male as noun instead of an adjective, you know, ''That female over there.'', which is both used in regards to Fae and humans. Also just felt like she tried to copy Aelins personality a bit with the swaggering walk when she was fighting. Looking into it, I learnt that the author likes SJM and her fav character is Aelin, so unsurprising.
This book doesn't really have a clear.. plot or goal. It just kind of.. goes on. Then at the end, it just suddenly gives out all this information about spirits/gods. This was sporadically given in between earlier on.
In terms of the relationship between Faythe and Nik, they went from hostile because of their position (Human/Fae) to friends to lovers to enemies. The thing is, they are enemies for like.. hmm 50 pages? It just feels like there arent really that many stakes in this book in terms of relationships or plot.
August 8, 2021
Sadly, this book was terrible.
The actual writing was extremely elementary, so much so that I found it difficult to immerse myself in the story. A large portion of every scene was the author telling us, and rarely showing.
The entire story had small holes in it, that over the course of the book increased my frustrations. It genuinely felt as if the book hadn’t gone through enough rounds of editing.
Like for example, the yucolites. The first time we’re introduced to them, we’re told they’re near impossible to capture/touch. And then a few scenes later, Faythe is touched and healed by them, but THERES NOT A SINGLE LINE THAT SAYS THAT. Faythe goes from having her hand in the water, to her face being healed, and not a single sentence says the yucolites touched her, only that “they had returned to dodging her touch”. And down the line, Faythe needs the yucolites again, but THIS time she’s told that she has to give something in return because “there’s no give without take”. WELL WHAT DID SHE GIVE LAST TIME THEN??
Not only that, but it seems like the author makes a couple characters purposefully dim witted to make their job of writing easier, i.e Marlowe. At a certain point Marlowe discovers something about herself, something that she should have known considering she was described as spending heaps of time researching certain subjects that no doubt included that information. But she acts extremely shocked when she “discovers” that thing, and it makes no sense.
There’s also a period where Faythe needs to conceal her identity, and stupidly, she covers every part of her body except her most recognizable feature and her most noticeable weapon, it was laughable.
This entire book was poorly done, and the only good thing about it is that it was relatively short and I’m finally finished.
The actual writing was extremely elementary, so much so that I found it difficult to immerse myself in the story. A large portion of every scene was the author telling us, and rarely showing.
The entire story had small holes in it, that over the course of the book increased my frustrations. It genuinely felt as if the book hadn’t gone through enough rounds of editing.
Like for example, the yucolites. The first time we’re introduced to them, we’re told they’re near impossible to capture/touch. And then a few scenes later, Faythe is touched and healed by them, but THERES NOT A SINGLE LINE THAT SAYS THAT. Faythe goes from having her hand in the water, to her face being healed, and not a single sentence says the yucolites touched her, only that “they had returned to dodging her touch”. And down the line, Faythe needs the yucolites again, but THIS time she’s told that she has to give something in return because “there’s no give without take”. WELL WHAT DID SHE GIVE LAST TIME THEN??
Not only that, but it seems like the author makes a couple characters purposefully dim witted to make their job of writing easier, i.e Marlowe. At a certain point Marlowe discovers something about herself, something that she should have known considering she was described as spending heaps of time researching certain subjects that no doubt included that information. But she acts extremely shocked when she “discovers” that thing, and it makes no sense.
There’s also a period where Faythe needs to conceal her identity, and stupidly, she covers every part of her body except her most recognizable feature and her most noticeable weapon, it was laughable.
This entire book was poorly done, and the only good thing about it is that it was relatively short and I’m finally finished.
March 13, 2022
The review is a mess but so was the book…oh well .
The characters felt one dimensional
There was no depth between the relationships I felt no attachment between the characters even Jakob and Faythe and they had been friends since they were little kids.
They did not seem well developed, being more like cookie cutters of their respective stereotypes already established by previous fantasy books.
The whole thing could have used a lot of more editing, the writing was kinda bad (there were no memorable quotes or moments).
A lot of showing and not telling.
And a whole lot of nothing going on.
Faythe was horrible, she was selfish entitled and annoying.
The romance did not elicit a single thing out of my person (besides boredom).
Furthermore you cannot expect me to believe she is the best fighter in the pit with some lame training in the plaza and some occasional one to one sparing with a fae that took it easy on her (I have many issues with this specific trope in books from Alina in S&B or Nesta, Emerie and Gwyn in ACOSF all these characters got barely any training and still succeeded at impossible tasks against those with greater power and training. I believe in the power of spite but not that badly).
Plus how the heck do the Fae let her train in the square with an actual sword? They are the oppressors ain’t no way they would allow for such show of strength, one could argue they don’t see a treat in the puny humans. Well I tell you that all oppressors are afraid of the people they oppress, that is mainly the reason why they do it!
I was mad at Faythe 95% of the book but especially when all her friends said it was not prudent to fight a Fae (but never made any moves of stopping her). Our main character than proceeds to throw a very off putting tantrum :
“She was sick of everyone believing they knew what was best for her and what she was capable of. Sick of being treated like some delicate girl to be protected.”
I appreciate the sentiments because YES! Women are awesome and we don’t need to be coddled from doing what we want but literally no one treated her like this. I was getting sick of her whinnying I swear!
Nik trained her, Marlowe encouraged her to go on fights, Ferris bet on her abilities, Jarkon trained with her AND bought her a sword and even after he almost died because of her carelessness he did not forbid her to fight against the Fae.
When Nik said to her if she went was as good as a death sentence she got mad about everyone not believing her and belittling her abilities when NO ONE ever had. They are just pointing the obvious disadvantage she had even with her mind powers. Honestly just say you are tired of being a weak human and let it go, don’t make it about everyone else when it is about you!
I also would be worried if a friend went to fight a lion with a short stick. But since I don’t consider Faythe a friend OR a very likable character I was high key hoping her stick would break.
It didn’t. After a crash course on fighting immortal beings and 5 days of intensive training she managed to tie the fight.
Wow.
The Captain was an a-hole but he must have been crying and throwing up after it ended, if he only knew his centuries of training would be thrown out of the window by just one spiteful little girl who is the main character he would have stayed in more times and ate all the carbohydrates he wanted.
(You must be wondering why am I talking about these events so much, well it’s because in the 382 page book the temper tantrum, the fight and the ending are the only things that happened that elicited something from me- was it anger and regret? Yes but it was better that the nothingness consuming me).
In addition the “Gold-Eyed Shadow” persona… it made me think of gold eye shadow. It’s kinda of a really bad name. Me and dyslexia had a field day with that one.
Another point of conflict was when they tried entering the castle and got the information on how to do it from those men at the hallways, I wanted to scream at Faythe. She had been throwing her powers around in fights to check outermost thoughts and in the moment where she need to check the information inside someone’s head- SHE DIDN’T?
Of course you got thrown to the wolves, if anything this was a rather careless plot hole, and the worse part is that I think it was intentional!
And the ending? It was so anti-climatic. Just like that she was furious and then boom she forgave Nik in a heartbeat when 2 second ago she was telling him how she didn’t think it would be possible.
WHAT IN THE WORLD??
And gosh Reuben? At the end? I totally forgot about the kid and it seemed like the last chapter had something going on for him. Then again I don’t care about him because in the .5 seconds we got to meet him he was sort of a indecisive weakling and I had literally 0 connection with him.
I didn’t even know they were childhood friends until he mentioned because honestly he did not cross her mind not even once after she got rid of him, only when someone mentioned they killed his mother that she reminds herself he existed.
Something else that bothered me were 10,000 mentions of eye color in this book. Especially Marlowe’s in chapters 37 and 38.
There were 4 back-to back allusions to her “blue orbs”.
Like I get that eyes are important in this series but the foreshadowing felt forced and if it is THAT forced, is it even foreshadowing anymore?
I could not get out of my head that this felt like SJM fan fiction… and I know no work is 100% original since stories have multiple faces and have been told since the dawn of time but it felt like it and I can’t shake it off. It’s almost like a bad rip off. I have read so many better fanfics on AO3.
I kind of just want to see if I’m right and Faythe is going to get a mate that is not Nik, that she is the direct descendent of a god and that she is probably a long lost princess or something (the TOG formula I guess).
Idk if I should give this 1 star or 2 stars, heck I don’t even know if I should continue the series I’m curious if the author will improve, but like do I want to waste my time?
I truly don’t know.
1.5 stars ⭐️💫
The characters felt one dimensional
There was no depth between the relationships I felt no attachment between the characters even Jakob and Faythe and they had been friends since they were little kids.
They did not seem well developed, being more like cookie cutters of their respective stereotypes already established by previous fantasy books.
The whole thing could have used a lot of more editing, the writing was kinda bad (there were no memorable quotes or moments).
A lot of showing and not telling.
And a whole lot of nothing going on.
Faythe was horrible, she was selfish entitled and annoying.
The romance did not elicit a single thing out of my person (besides boredom).
Furthermore you cannot expect me to believe she is the best fighter in the pit with some lame training in the plaza and some occasional one to one sparing with a fae that took it easy on her (I have many issues with this specific trope in books from Alina in S&B or Nesta, Emerie and Gwyn in ACOSF all these characters got barely any training and still succeeded at impossible tasks against those with greater power and training. I believe in the power of spite but not that badly).
Plus how the heck do the Fae let her train in the square with an actual sword? They are the oppressors ain’t no way they would allow for such show of strength, one could argue they don’t see a treat in the puny humans. Well I tell you that all oppressors are afraid of the people they oppress, that is mainly the reason why they do it!
I was mad at Faythe 95% of the book but especially when all her friends said it was not prudent to fight a Fae (but never made any moves of stopping her). Our main character than proceeds to throw a very off putting tantrum :
“She was sick of everyone believing they knew what was best for her and what she was capable of. Sick of being treated like some delicate girl to be protected.”
I appreciate the sentiments because YES! Women are awesome and we don’t need to be coddled from doing what we want but literally no one treated her like this. I was getting sick of her whinnying I swear!
Nik trained her, Marlowe encouraged her to go on fights, Ferris bet on her abilities, Jarkon trained with her AND bought her a sword and even after he almost died because of her carelessness he did not forbid her to fight against the Fae.
When Nik said to her if she went was as good as a death sentence she got mad about everyone not believing her and belittling her abilities when NO ONE ever had. They are just pointing the obvious disadvantage she had even with her mind powers. Honestly just say you are tired of being a weak human and let it go, don’t make it about everyone else when it is about you!
I also would be worried if a friend went to fight a lion with a short stick. But since I don’t consider Faythe a friend OR a very likable character I was high key hoping her stick would break.
It didn’t. After a crash course on fighting immortal beings and 5 days of intensive training she managed to tie the fight.
Wow.
The Captain was an a-hole but he must have been crying and throwing up after it ended, if he only knew his centuries of training would be thrown out of the window by just one spiteful little girl who is the main character he would have stayed in more times and ate all the carbohydrates he wanted.
(You must be wondering why am I talking about these events so much, well it’s because in the 382 page book the temper tantrum, the fight and the ending are the only things that happened that elicited something from me- was it anger and regret? Yes but it was better that the nothingness consuming me).
In addition the “Gold-Eyed Shadow” persona… it made me think of gold eye shadow. It’s kinda of a really bad name. Me and dyslexia had a field day with that one.
Another point of conflict was when they tried entering the castle and got the information on how to do it from those men at the hallways, I wanted to scream at Faythe. She had been throwing her powers around in fights to check outermost thoughts and in the moment where she need to check the information inside someone’s head- SHE DIDN’T?
Of course you got thrown to the wolves, if anything this was a rather careless plot hole, and the worse part is that I think it was intentional!
And the ending? It was so anti-climatic. Just like that she was furious and then boom she forgave Nik in a heartbeat when 2 second ago she was telling him how she didn’t think it would be possible.
WHAT IN THE WORLD??
And gosh Reuben? At the end? I totally forgot about the kid and it seemed like the last chapter had something going on for him. Then again I don’t care about him because in the .5 seconds we got to meet him he was sort of a indecisive weakling and I had literally 0 connection with him.
I didn’t even know they were childhood friends until he mentioned because honestly he did not cross her mind not even once after she got rid of him, only when someone mentioned they killed his mother that she reminds herself he existed.
Something else that bothered me were 10,000 mentions of eye color in this book. Especially Marlowe’s in chapters 37 and 38.
There were 4 back-to back allusions to her “blue orbs”.
Like I get that eyes are important in this series but the foreshadowing felt forced and if it is THAT forced, is it even foreshadowing anymore?
I could not get out of my head that this felt like SJM fan fiction… and I know no work is 100% original since stories have multiple faces and have been told since the dawn of time but it felt like it and I can’t shake it off. It’s almost like a bad rip off. I have read so many better fanfics on AO3.
I kind of just want to see if I’m right and Faythe is going to get a mate that is not Nik, that she is the direct descendent of a god and that she is probably a long lost princess or something (the TOG formula I guess).
Idk if I should give this 1 star or 2 stars, heck I don’t even know if I should continue the series I’m curious if the author will improve, but like do I want to waste my time?
I truly don’t know.
1.5 stars ⭐️💫
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 29, 2021
I kept seeing this book on Instagram and the plot really intrigued me so I had to pick it up! I really enjoyed this book, the plot was different and interesting and it had some great tropes. It included; 'found family', 'heroine finds out she had powers', 'enemies/ kind of forbidden romance'.
The plot was a bit up and down, you see Faythe in the beginning figuring out she has powers then its a lot of her training, working and fighting to earn money. You didn't figure out her main quest and goal till the last chapters of the book. Which I can it setting up the rest of what I think could be an amazing series. This book defiantly gave me major vibes with the first Throne of Glass books and how that series started out.
The characters are defiantly what sold me on this book. I love the found family trope and it was a big part of this book. Faythe was the typical badass heroine who can use a sword but has some depth. She has a lot of guilt over past mistakes and just wants to support herself and her best friend and live a good life but she longs for more. Her journey from being a delivery girl to becoming a badass swordswoman with powers she didn't know she possessed. She always puts her loved ones above everything else, even if that means her death. I loved when she would fight in the underground ring it was just cool and badass, and again gave me Aelin vibes. Seeing her find out and learn about her powers was great and I enjoyed her relationship with Nik. Although I wish there was a bit more angst and maybe even hate between them. Nik's character was a little dull you don't know much about him until the end but I think we will truly see who he is in the next book. Jakon and Marlowe were great side characters and so cute, I defiantly think they'll have bigger roles to play.
The plot and all of the plot twists were so intricate and thought out. The magic system and world-building was different, I would have liked it to be a bit more detailed but I could see that happening in book 2 I liked the change of Fae not being the good guys and being above humans. Sometimes in high fantasy, you get hard to understand magic systems, but for AHCTR, this was never the case. I really liked the Nightwalkers powers, it's something I haven't read before and I found it really cool. Overall, this was a great read and I am excited for the second book and the rest of the series!
Want to read
December 21, 2020Dang do people know how to write a synopsis
March 13, 2023
4.5 ⭐️ - 🌶️ no (but it does in later books in the series)
The thing I love about this first books is it had such a natural progression. The first two 218 pages takes place over two months. I guess I just like it wasn’t like “BAM BOOM girls finds something out about herself and is now a queen blah blah blah.” - the whole plot moves so realistically to me… As if instead of the plot car crashing into the FMC she is moving to the plot… if that makes any sense?! For some that *might* make them feel like it’s slow pacing- but honestly it feels right to me- there are things we are uncovering along the way that makes you feel like your really long the ride with the MC, like a part of her found family.
To be honest I feel that this first book feels more like a Prequel to the rest of the series. It was all ground work for the actual plot moving into the second book.
All in all this was a coming home for me to the fantasy genre that I adore.
I’d been in a reading slump and this was the first book in a VERY (embarrassingly) LONG time that took me less than a week to read.
Now is it a *perfect* book - no but all my slight qualms about it I think can be brush off by noting this is this authors first book. And for a first books is PHENOMENAL.
As a tabber I had the TIME OF MY LIFE picking up all the little foreshadowings and hints - what we learn about one character in the end had me almost going back to see what else she hinted at - and I think that’s high praise.
The thing I love about this first books is it had such a natural progression. The first two 218 pages takes place over two months. I guess I just like it wasn’t like “BAM BOOM girls finds something out about herself and is now a queen blah blah blah.” - the whole plot moves so realistically to me… As if instead of the plot car crashing into the FMC she is moving to the plot… if that makes any sense?! For some that *might* make them feel like it’s slow pacing- but honestly it feels right to me- there are things we are uncovering along the way that makes you feel like your really long the ride with the MC, like a part of her found family.
To be honest I feel that this first book feels more like a Prequel to the rest of the series. It was all ground work for the actual plot moving into the second book.
All in all this was a coming home for me to the fantasy genre that I adore.
I’d been in a reading slump and this was the first book in a VERY (embarrassingly) LONG time that took me less than a week to read.
Now is it a *perfect* book - no but all my slight qualms about it I think can be brush off by noting this is this authors first book. And for a first books is PHENOMENAL.
As a tabber I had the TIME OF MY LIFE picking up all the little foreshadowings and hints - what we learn about one character in the end had me almost going back to see what else she hinted at - and I think that’s high praise.
March 8, 2022
The cover is so pretty, but at a certain point you have to accept you didn't write something inspired in someone else character (even if it's your favorite) but a straight up mediocre fanfiction about them. Faythe is a mix between Celaena and Feyre with none of the charm of the either. She is very special for some reason??? Has this cool powers that a convenient fae teaches her about it, has a redhead (Arobynn??) who motives her to fight in a pit and gives a leather black suit that has a lot of spaces for hidden knifes and stuff. And she swaggers but not really because she doesn't have that much of a personality. I also can't tell you much about the world building besides fae oppressing humans.
Also, there's no chemistry between the main couple (or the secondary one) and I know for a fact that Rowan (or a white haired dude) will appear in the next book but in the role of Chaol and by this point I'm mostly done whit the series.
Maybe I'll finish it someday, but honestly? If I want to read about Rowaelin there's much better fanfiction on AO3.
I added a second star just because the Nightwalking was a cool concept but very underdeveloped for a book this long 🤷🏻♀️
(I have no idea what are the similarities with Red Queen as I didn't like that book and never got pass book 1)
Also, there's no chemistry between the main couple (or the secondary one) and I know for a fact that Rowan (or a white haired dude) will appear in the next book but in the role of Chaol and by this point I'm mostly done whit the series.
Maybe I'll finish it someday, but honestly? If I want to read about Rowaelin there's much better fanfiction on AO3.
I added a second star just because the Nightwalking was a cool concept but very underdeveloped for a book this long 🤷🏻♀️
(I have no idea what are the similarities with Red Queen as I didn't like that book and never got pass book 1)
July 12, 2023
I didnt love this one but I'm intrigued to continue.
I just felt like it was pretty basic. It felt like every other fanro I had read before. Which I'm looking for something a little more interesting and unique then this gave me. But I heard from people who I trust that I should continue so I'm willing to read on in the series!!
More thoughts here https://youtu.be/HyRg_HCeZYM
I just felt like it was pretty basic. It felt like every other fanro I had read before. Which I'm looking for something a little more interesting and unique then this gave me. But I heard from people who I trust that I should continue so I'm willing to read on in the series!!
More thoughts here https://youtu.be/HyRg_HCeZYM
June 11, 2023
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An Heir Comes to Rise is a fantasy book that took me by surprise. It is a very creative story that has you invested within a few chapters of the book.
I love the world and the magic that is built into this story. Nightwalkers fae that can walk into your dreams and figure out everything about you? Yikes, but count me in.
Faythe is a human who has skills with a sword and has a secret that can get her and all she cares about killed. She has a kind of annoying tempter in this book but doesn’t get too carried away with it. She is a strong character and protects her friends with fierceness.
There is a ruler who is a fae king and ruler over the humans, that he deems lower than low to him. Would kill anyone who opposes him and send out his nightwalkers or his killer assassins after them.
One of those assassins is Nik, who is part of the king's guards and one of the best Nightwalkers the king has. He meets Faythe and is intrigued by her abilities and discovers her secret that no one knows about.
There are so many secrets to uncover from Faythe’s past as the plot develops. You get to know the magic and what it has to do with Faythe. Probably the one thing I really like about the book and how the story is progressing.
Though this first book focuses on the relationship between her friend Jakon and a female blacksmith, there is a small romance that develops. It is not heavily focused on, but I am looking forward to seeing how the romance comes around in full swing.
The ending was a bit weird, but I am curious to see how the book continues since this is the first book in the series.
BLOG ⟫ INSTAGRAM ⟫ PODCAST ⟫
An Heir Comes to Rise is a fantasy book that took me by surprise. It is a very creative story that has you invested within a few chapters of the book.
I love the world and the magic that is built into this story. Nightwalkers fae that can walk into your dreams and figure out everything about you? Yikes, but count me in.
Faythe is a human who has skills with a sword and has a secret that can get her and all she cares about killed. She has a kind of annoying tempter in this book but doesn’t get too carried away with it. She is a strong character and protects her friends with fierceness.
There is a ruler who is a fae king and ruler over the humans, that he deems lower than low to him. Would kill anyone who opposes him and send out his nightwalkers or his killer assassins after them.
One of those assassins is Nik, who is part of the king's guards and one of the best Nightwalkers the king has. He meets Faythe and is intrigued by her abilities and discovers her secret that no one knows about.
There are so many secrets to uncover from Faythe’s past as the plot develops. You get to know the magic and what it has to do with Faythe. Probably the one thing I really like about the book and how the story is progressing.
Though this first book focuses on the relationship between her friend Jakon and a female blacksmith, there is a small romance that develops. It is not heavily focused on, but I am looking forward to seeing how the romance comes around in full swing.
The ending was a bit weird, but I am curious to see how the book continues since this is the first book in the series.
May 19, 2023
No, Faythe. I will not pick you, choose you, or love you. Maybe one of the plentiful hot men who you swear are just your friends can do that instead.
(At least the author's writing is really good. Still, I just couldn't do it. I know too many pick me girls, and this is giving me terrible flashbacks.)
(At least the author's writing is really good. Still, I just couldn't do it. I know too many pick me girls, and this is giving me terrible flashbacks.)
April 28, 2024
note finale : 3,25
May 16, 2023
Update: 12-22-22
So, now I'm seriously into the next books 🤣🤣🤣 is this woman Faythe's mom or sister or aunt or grandmother??????
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2.5 stars
I have to say this book had –or has- a lot of potential, this world –even though I still don’t know a lot about it- seems to be pretty awesome, or at least worthy of knowing, in other words, the world building was good along with the main idea of the plot.
At first we have the main character –Faythe- a human girl that has nothing and no one beyond her best friend Jakon. We got an interesting enough start of them and their story, of the impossible power Faythe has and the big threat it poses to her and everyone around her, then the book shows her with the rather difficult decision of trusting a total stranger to train her and keep her and her secret save. That plot drags itself until 75ish percent of the book when the book finally shows the real main plot that is quickly overshadowed by an immediate threat the main characters are facing, leading us to discover –I’m being sarcastic here because it wasn’t a discovery- some secrets that one of our main characters had.
To be honest 75% of this book could have happened in 25% of the book, leading to more action, problems and a more interest plot or story to read. I sort of liked the relationship between Nik and Faythe –even though she fell for him not knowing nothing at all of him -again- it could have been an insta-love and then the last 20% of the book could have happen much earlier, saving time and even books along the way.
As I said before, this book has some potential but sadly that potential is no reached in this book. It also seemed extremely alike of some other two books I have read –Divine Blood by Beck Michaels and Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas- with the difference that those books are really, really, really amazing. Either way I think I’ll sit this one out and wait for the rest of the books to come out, then, I’ll think about reading them.
So, now I'm seriously into the next books 🤣🤣🤣 is this woman Faythe's mom or sister or aunt or grandmother??????
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2.5 stars
I have to say this book had –or has- a lot of potential, this world –even though I still don’t know a lot about it- seems to be pretty awesome, or at least worthy of knowing, in other words, the world building was good along with the main idea of the plot.
At first we have the main character –Faythe- a human girl that has nothing and no one beyond her best friend Jakon. We got an interesting enough start of them and their story, of the impossible power Faythe has and the big threat it poses to her and everyone around her, then the book shows her with the rather difficult decision of trusting a total stranger to train her and keep her and her secret save. That plot drags itself until 75ish percent of the book when the book finally shows the real main plot that is quickly overshadowed by an immediate threat the main characters are facing, leading us to discover –I’m being sarcastic here because it wasn’t a discovery- some secrets that one of our main characters had.
To be honest 75% of this book could have happened in 25% of the book, leading to more action, problems and a more interest plot or story to read. I sort of liked the relationship between Nik and Faythe –even though she fell for him not knowing nothing at all of him -again- it could have been an insta-love and then the last 20% of the book could have happen much earlier, saving time and even books along the way.
As I said before, this book has some potential but sadly that potential is no reached in this book. It also seemed extremely alike of some other two books I have read –Divine Blood by Beck Michaels and Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas- with the difference that those books are really, really, really amazing. Either way I think I’ll sit this one out and wait for the rest of the books to come out, then, I’ll think about reading them.
September 3, 2022
Update 08/2022: I have read the other 2 in the series and it is safe for me to say I won’t read any more of this series as it is as close to intellectual property infringement as you can get without getting sued. So so many things are taken from SJM books that I can no longer read her books without feeling uncomfortable.
I found this book on tiktok and truthfully I wouldn’t have read it if I had read the summary first but the author’s videos were quite enticing. It was such a good read, I cannot wait for the second book.
The premise of the book was similar to those I have read but the relationship between the MC & her love interest and also her friends unfolded in all the ways I love. I loved the strong female main character and her strong female side kick. The plot was amazing, let me tell you when I didn’t see half of the ending coming. The plot twist and the ending was spectacular.
This is why I love indie writers so much because their plot twists always get me and I ALWAYS on the edge of my seat.
I found this book on tiktok and truthfully I wouldn’t have read it if I had read the summary first but the author’s videos were quite enticing. It was such a good read, I cannot wait for the second book.
The premise of the book was similar to those I have read but the relationship between the MC & her love interest and also her friends unfolded in all the ways I love. I loved the strong female main character and her strong female side kick. The plot was amazing, let me tell you when I didn’t see half of the ending coming. The plot twist and the ending was spectacular.
This is why I love indie writers so much because their plot twists always get me and I ALWAYS on the edge of my seat.
January 4, 2024
I'm super sad I didn't enjoy this.
April 17, 2021
This book was SO good, you guys!! I loved everything about it! Kickass heroine, fae, humans, nightwalkers aka they can invade your consciousness while you're sleeping and more.. 👀 Awesome secondary characters and the element of friendship, but the one who stole the show for me? It was definitely Nik! He was such a shameless flirt, funny, a charmer and overall I really loved his personality!
I loved the world building on this one! The book was the perfect mix of suspense, twists, laughter and swoon worthy moments! Definitely recommend it!! Can't wait to see how the story will continue on the next books! I know I'll be looking forward to reading the next one 😍❤️
I loved the world building on this one! The book was the perfect mix of suspense, twists, laughter and swoon worthy moments! Definitely recommend it!! Can't wait to see how the story will continue on the next books! I know I'll be looking forward to reading the next one 😍❤️
January 2, 2021
I was lucky enough to be an early reader for this book and wanted to write a review while it's very fresh in my mind.
This is the first in what I hope is a long series - it was awesome. With tones of 'Throne of Glass' meant in the best possible way, for me this is the best type of fantasy. A story that keeps you interested and intrigued to see where it goes, strong supporting characters and dialogue - I loved the banter - and of course, romance! I thought I knew where the story was going, but I was genuinely surprised with one of the main twists which is hard to pull off.
I have read A LOT of books within this genre, typically YA fantasy, and whilst many are easy to read often it feels like something is missing. I'm pleased to say this isn't the case here and I can't wait for the sequel.
This is the first in what I hope is a long series - it was awesome. With tones of 'Throne of Glass' meant in the best possible way, for me this is the best type of fantasy. A story that keeps you interested and intrigued to see where it goes, strong supporting characters and dialogue - I loved the banter - and of course, romance! I thought I knew where the story was going, but I was genuinely surprised with one of the main twists which is hard to pull off.
I have read A LOT of books within this genre, typically YA fantasy, and whilst many are easy to read often it feels like something is missing. I'm pleased to say this isn't the case here and I can't wait for the sequel.
October 5, 2022
0 Spice
This was fun!! The beginning and end were very strong, the middle did drag a bit. But overall it was good! This book is definitely a world building book to help set up for whats to come. The ending was so exciting!
This was fun!! The beginning and end were very strong, the middle did drag a bit. But overall it was good! This book is definitely a world building book to help set up for whats to come. The ending was so exciting!
January 25, 2024
4 stars ✨✨✨
love. love. love.
this was such a quick and easyyyy fantasy read.
honestly, it throws you into the story straight away. with easy world building and just very likeable characters.
the story line and plot is something that i haven’t read before and i love it!!! i feel like with other fantasies (i have read) it’s all been the same kind of plot and with this book it just had me entertained the whole time. there were times it was a little bit slow, thus the 4 star rating. but honestly, such a great start to a series!!
also the ending had me shook and i just can’t wait to read the rest.
honestly i recommend and it’s on kindle unlimited!! 🩷🩷🩷
love. love. love.
this was such a quick and easyyyy fantasy read.
honestly, it throws you into the story straight away. with easy world building and just very likeable characters.
the story line and plot is something that i haven’t read before and i love it!!! i feel like with other fantasies (i have read) it’s all been the same kind of plot and with this book it just had me entertained the whole time. there were times it was a little bit slow, thus the 4 star rating. but honestly, such a great start to a series!!
also the ending had me shook and i just can’t wait to read the rest.
honestly i recommend and it’s on kindle unlimited!! 🩷🩷🩷
August 24, 2021
dnr at page 100. faythe is a mixture of feyre from ACOTAR and poppy of FBAA, and a poor knock off of both. she is your typical special snowflake character who has powers that no one has ever seen before. the plot is non-existent. there seems to be no drive to the story. read spoilers to see if it would pick up, and decided that the little action that seems to come at the end of the book werent worth suffering through another 200’pages. not for me!
May 6, 2023
Calling everybody who misses the nostalgia of getting sucked into a fantasy world with tons of characters and multiple plotlines, chosen one vibes, fae, found family, prophecies, spice. People who like fast-paced books and slow burns. This book had it all. I was hooked from the first chapter.
There are subtle similarities to throne of glass, acotar, and merlin, which I really enjoyed. You can tell the author put a lot of thought into the world and characters and is also a huge fantasy nerd. So if you started reading fantasy with those books, you're gonna really enjoy this one! It was such a wild ride, and I was so obsessed. I don't even think I took time to breathe. I literally inhaled this book, and I have no regrets.
This is the type of fantasy to make you fall in love with reading again.
I highly highly recommend I can't wait for the rest of the series!
There are subtle similarities to throne of glass, acotar, and merlin, which I really enjoyed. You can tell the author put a lot of thought into the world and characters and is also a huge fantasy nerd. So if you started reading fantasy with those books, you're gonna really enjoy this one! It was such a wild ride, and I was so obsessed. I don't even think I took time to breathe. I literally inhaled this book, and I have no regrets.
This is the type of fantasy to make you fall in love with reading again.
I highly highly recommend I can't wait for the rest of the series!
July 6, 2022
Well… I did a bad thing and googled (for some fanart) and ended up finding out that there is a love interest change in this series for the main character…. For some reason that made the book less enjoyable for me to read. I know the Queen, Sarah J Maas, can pull it off but I’ll read anything that woman writes.
A love interest change is too close to a love triangle for me and I hate a love triangle.
The book is good and the action and plot is well written but after finding out about the love interest change, I just couldn’t get past it. I’m going to give book two a try and hopefully I’ll enjoy that one more.
A love interest change is too close to a love triangle for me and I hate a love triangle.
The book is good and the action and plot is well written but after finding out about the love interest change, I just couldn’t get past it. I’m going to give book two a try and hopefully I’ll enjoy that one more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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