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The Cocoon Within
Ever since finding the book in the attic, strange things have been happening to seventeen-year-old Ariana. She dare not tell her beloved grandfather, ‘Granpey’, for fear of making him worry. After all, he is more like a father to her, having raised her single handedly after her parents died in a car crash when she was just a few years old.
The only person Ariana can tell is her best friend and confidant, Jack. Though surprisingly, romantic sparks are beginning to emerge in their friendship, but Ariana can’t be sure, as Jack has always had a schoolboy crush on the stunningly beautiful Jessica.
As Ariana grapples with strange visions and appearances, one thing becomes apparent, she isn’t the only one who sees them. Finding the book has triggered events which lead Jack, Ariana, and her unlikely new-found friend, Jessica, through a portal into a new and magnificent world, where her arch enemy, the all-powerful Destroyer thwarts her every move. Ariana’s little rescue dog, Leo, is a Godsend and she can’t help but believe that his arrival is no coincidence. But what is in store for Ariana, Jack and Jessica as they launch into an adventure with a seemingly impossible goal? Will Ariana discover her true identity and prevent the forces of evil from changing the world forever or will the powerful Destroyer triumph over this brave but vulnerable young woman and her friends?
The only person Ariana can tell is her best friend and confidant, Jack. Though surprisingly, romantic sparks are beginning to emerge in their friendship, but Ariana can’t be sure, as Jack has always had a schoolboy crush on the stunningly beautiful Jessica.
As Ariana grapples with strange visions and appearances, one thing becomes apparent, she isn’t the only one who sees them. Finding the book has triggered events which lead Jack, Ariana, and her unlikely new-found friend, Jessica, through a portal into a new and magnificent world, where her arch enemy, the all-powerful Destroyer thwarts her every move. Ariana’s little rescue dog, Leo, is a Godsend and she can’t help but believe that his arrival is no coincidence. But what is in store for Ariana, Jack and Jessica as they launch into an adventure with a seemingly impossible goal? Will Ariana discover her true identity and prevent the forces of evil from changing the world forever or will the powerful Destroyer triumph over this brave but vulnerable young woman and her friends?
326 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 29, 2024
About the author
Liisa Sabah
3 books5 followersLiisa is an award winning author, having won the Readers Choice award from The Open Book Awards for her debut novel The Cocoon Within.
Liisa lives in the UK and has a background in corporate leadership, she loves animals, travel, too much coffee and journaling! Liisa is the author of The Five-fold Chronicles series, and she takes her inspiration from the world around her, and also her Christian faith.
Liisa grew up reading stories, she just loved adventure stories, and read every book in the Narnia series and The Hobbit was an all-time childhood favourite. English was her favourite subject at school as she loved to write stories, and reading was a pastime that she just could not do without. Life without books is unimaginable to Liisa.
When she was ten years old, her family emigrated to West Africa and there, she spent the next four years growing up, not without some unusual family challenges and as she adapted to the change, she found that books became a real solace for her. Liisa would escape into a world of fantasy, adventure, and intrigue. It was there that her love of reading gave birth to a dream to one day write and publish a book of her own.
The Cocoon Within is Liisa's debut fantasy adventure novel published in 2024 and book 2 in the series, an Odyssey of Shields: secrets revealed, was published in June 2025.
Liisa is currently writing book 3 of the Five-fold Chronicles series, which she describes as an exciting and adventurous backstory that follows on nicely from what is revealed in book 2.
Book I: The Cocoon Within
Book II: An Odyssey of Shields; secrets revealed
You can purchase a copy of book 1: The Cocoon Within & book 2: An Odyssey of Shields directly from Amazon or if you prefer you can order a physical copy from Waterstones.
Liisa regularly exhibits her work at various bookfairs around the UK such as the Oxford Indie Book Fair, held at the Oxford University halls, the Marlow Book Fair and the Milton Keynes book fair, where you can purchase signed copies of her books.
Liisa also runs live streaming shows on the Whatnot app and you can purchase signed copies of her books there too if you are unable to attend an in person event. For details of Liisa's upcoming events, check out her social media pages below:
You can follow Liisa on facebook
https://www.facebook.com/share/S632GM...
You can follow Liisa on Tiktok and Insta:
@liisasabahauthor
Liisa lives in the UK and has a background in corporate leadership, she loves animals, travel, too much coffee and journaling! Liisa is the author of The Five-fold Chronicles series, and she takes her inspiration from the world around her, and also her Christian faith.
Liisa grew up reading stories, she just loved adventure stories, and read every book in the Narnia series and The Hobbit was an all-time childhood favourite. English was her favourite subject at school as she loved to write stories, and reading was a pastime that she just could not do without. Life without books is unimaginable to Liisa.
When she was ten years old, her family emigrated to West Africa and there, she spent the next four years growing up, not without some unusual family challenges and as she adapted to the change, she found that books became a real solace for her. Liisa would escape into a world of fantasy, adventure, and intrigue. It was there that her love of reading gave birth to a dream to one day write and publish a book of her own.
The Cocoon Within is Liisa's debut fantasy adventure novel published in 2024 and book 2 in the series, an Odyssey of Shields: secrets revealed, was published in June 2025.
Liisa is currently writing book 3 of the Five-fold Chronicles series, which she describes as an exciting and adventurous backstory that follows on nicely from what is revealed in book 2.
Book I: The Cocoon Within
Book II: An Odyssey of Shields; secrets revealed
You can purchase a copy of book 1: The Cocoon Within & book 2: An Odyssey of Shields directly from Amazon or if you prefer you can order a physical copy from Waterstones.
Liisa regularly exhibits her work at various bookfairs around the UK such as the Oxford Indie Book Fair, held at the Oxford University halls, the Marlow Book Fair and the Milton Keynes book fair, where you can purchase signed copies of her books.
Liisa also runs live streaming shows on the Whatnot app and you can purchase signed copies of her books there too if you are unable to attend an in person event. For details of Liisa's upcoming events, check out her social media pages below:
You can follow Liisa on facebook
https://www.facebook.com/share/S632GM...
You can follow Liisa on Tiktok and Insta:
@liisasabahauthor
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 23, 2025
What a fun fantasy adventure! I really enjoyed the storyline of this book, it had me leaning into the actual book.
The world building is strong and the characters are well written, each with their on personalities and qwerks.
I found it hard to put aside as I just was deep within its pages and away on the adventure.
I will be awaiting patiently for the next book too, to see where the adventure takes next!
The world building is strong and the characters are well written, each with their on personalities and qwerks.
I found it hard to put aside as I just was deep within its pages and away on the adventure.
I will be awaiting patiently for the next book too, to see where the adventure takes next!
September 29, 2025
This is the first book in this brilliant new (to me) series, The Five Fold Chronicles.
There are currently already two books released in this series and with more to come, I was excited to see what this was all about.
I'm always saying that I'm not the biggest fantasy reader, but I just couldn't resist this stunning front cover - that lion image looked gorgeous and with the book below, just really intrigued me.
I found this book so easy to read and I think that I've found my gateway into fantasy reads by going for the more YA targeted books as these tend to be not quite so long and chunky.
The world building was beautifully woven into this storyline and this meant that this never felt sluggish or made me feel bogged down by great big reams of text.
Our main characters were really easy to relate to and I think would make great role models for any of the younger readers.
The friendship between Ariana and Jack was really well presented and developed through the story - with just that hint of a potential something more.
I also adored Granpey and of course, Leo too!
This was an exciting read and I really liked that with this being the first in the series, we see a lot of events build up, but maybe not all conclude nicely just yet.
This leaves us hanging at the very end and made me really crave just grabbing the next book in the series to carry on along the journey.
This was a really enjoyable read and really well written, especially for a debut!
I can't wait to get me hands on book 2 and dive back in!
There are currently already two books released in this series and with more to come, I was excited to see what this was all about.
I'm always saying that I'm not the biggest fantasy reader, but I just couldn't resist this stunning front cover - that lion image looked gorgeous and with the book below, just really intrigued me.
I found this book so easy to read and I think that I've found my gateway into fantasy reads by going for the more YA targeted books as these tend to be not quite so long and chunky.
The world building was beautifully woven into this storyline and this meant that this never felt sluggish or made me feel bogged down by great big reams of text.
Our main characters were really easy to relate to and I think would make great role models for any of the younger readers.
The friendship between Ariana and Jack was really well presented and developed through the story - with just that hint of a potential something more.
I also adored Granpey and of course, Leo too!
This was an exciting read and I really liked that with this being the first in the series, we see a lot of events build up, but maybe not all conclude nicely just yet.
This leaves us hanging at the very end and made me really crave just grabbing the next book in the series to carry on along the journey.
This was a really enjoyable read and really well written, especially for a debut!
I can't wait to get me hands on book 2 and dive back in!
September 24, 2025
Ariana stumbles upon a mysterious book in her attic, setting off a captivating adventure with her friend Jack and a new friend, Jessica. What is the meaning of the visions she is seeing and is she the only one?
This delightful fantasy story is beautifully written with intricate world-building, hinting at a budding romance between Jack and Ariana. I am a fan of pet sidekicks and loved Leo, who lives up to the role.
And I know you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but a nod to this one as it’s stunning.
This delightful fantasy story is beautifully written with intricate world-building, hinting at a budding romance between Jack and Ariana. I am a fan of pet sidekicks and loved Leo, who lives up to the role.
And I know you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but a nod to this one as it’s stunning.
September 23, 2025
I was drawn to reading The Cocoon Within by the absolutely gorgeous front cover. The premise and that stunning lion imagery reminded me of the Narnia stories I got lost in reading as a child.
I found the book a really enjoyable read, and I think that is largely because of the down to earth, highly likeable characters. Ariana and Jack in particular felt realistic and I loved the friendship between them and with Granpey and new dog, Leo.
The descriptions were amazing throughout the book. I felt like I was through the portal, experiencing everything with them all. The story was exciting all the way through and the ending left so much in upheaval, I really want to find out what happens next in the series.
I found the book a really enjoyable read, and I think that is largely because of the down to earth, highly likeable characters. Ariana and Jack in particular felt realistic and I loved the friendship between them and with Granpey and new dog, Leo.
The descriptions were amazing throughout the book. I felt like I was through the portal, experiencing everything with them all. The story was exciting all the way through and the ending left so much in upheaval, I really want to find out what happens next in the series.
September 24, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5)
The Cocoon Within is the first book in The Five-fold Chronicles, and it’s full of magic, adventure, and heart.
Ariana’s discovery of a mysterious attic book instantly gave me The Neverending Story vibes, and a talking lion reminded me of Narnia. Her bond with her grandfather is sweet and relatable, and her little rescue dog Leo adds charm, while friendships with Jack and Jessica bring tension and fun.
At times though the story did feel overwhelming, with so much happening so quickly, but readers who love layered, fast-paced fantasy adventures may find this exactly their cup of tea.
The Cocoon Within is the first book in The Five-fold Chronicles, and it’s full of magic, adventure, and heart.
Ariana’s discovery of a mysterious attic book instantly gave me The Neverending Story vibes, and a talking lion reminded me of Narnia. Her bond with her grandfather is sweet and relatable, and her little rescue dog Leo adds charm, while friendships with Jack and Jessica bring tension and fun.
At times though the story did feel overwhelming, with so much happening so quickly, but readers who love layered, fast-paced fantasy adventures may find this exactly their cup of tea.
March 27, 2025
I loved this book, great work from a new author
The descriptions of the characters and surroundings where vibrant and everything I love from a fantasy novel.
Looking forward to the next part
The descriptions of the characters and surroundings where vibrant and everything I love from a fantasy novel.
Looking forward to the next part
April 21, 2026
The Five Fold Chronicles Book I is a fantasy adventure that blends portal world building with personal stakes and emotional storytelling.
The story begins with Ariana discovering a mysterious book, which quickly becomes the catalyst for a series of strange and escalating events. This setup creates a strong sense of intrigue and draws the reader into the unfolding mystery.
Ariana is a grounded and relatable protagonist, especially through her connection with her grandfather and her hesitation to share what she is experiencing. This emotional layer adds depth to the narrative and keeps the story anchored.
The relationships between Ariana, Jack, and Jessica introduce both tension and complexity. These dynamics help balance the fantasy elements with character driven development.
The transition into a new world raises the stakes significantly, introducing a larger conflict involving a powerful antagonist and a sense of destiny that shapes the journey ahead.
A strong choice for readers who enjoy portal fantasy, coming of age elements, and stories that combine emotional depth with adventure and world building.
The story begins with Ariana discovering a mysterious book, which quickly becomes the catalyst for a series of strange and escalating events. This setup creates a strong sense of intrigue and draws the reader into the unfolding mystery.
Ariana is a grounded and relatable protagonist, especially through her connection with her grandfather and her hesitation to share what she is experiencing. This emotional layer adds depth to the narrative and keeps the story anchored.
The relationships between Ariana, Jack, and Jessica introduce both tension and complexity. These dynamics help balance the fantasy elements with character driven development.
The transition into a new world raises the stakes significantly, introducing a larger conflict involving a powerful antagonist and a sense of destiny that shapes the journey ahead.
A strong choice for readers who enjoy portal fantasy, coming of age elements, and stories that combine emotional depth with adventure and world building.
November 25, 2024
What sets “The Cocoon Within” apart is its ability to resonate with readers on a deeply personal level. The author’s insightful prose and vivid imagery create an immersive experience, inviting readers to reflect on their own journey of self-discovery. Each chapter is a testament to the power of resilience and the transformative nature of self-awareness.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews