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The Ways of Power #1
Power Rises: The Ways of Power Book One
**Includes a special sneak peak of Power Spreads: The Ways of Power Book Two, exclusively on the Kindle**
5,000 years after the Eugenics War a genetically engineered warlock named Rancoth unleashes a dark power that destroys his family and changes the very world in ways he can't possibly comprehend. Only 9 years old, he's adopted and raised by the Archmage Grecrum. When he reaches adulthood Rancoth is sent on a journey to repair the damage he has done.
He will have to battle demons, dragons, giants, and himself. He will fall in love with a beautiful shape-shifting princess, and he will be pursued by the last living vestiges of the human race. Their master bent on controlling the ancient technology Rancoth finds hidden in his parent's abandoned home.
5,000 years after the Eugenics War a genetically engineered warlock named Rancoth unleashes a dark power that destroys his family and changes the very world in ways he can't possibly comprehend. Only 9 years old, he's adopted and raised by the Archmage Grecrum. When he reaches adulthood Rancoth is sent on a journey to repair the damage he has done.
He will have to battle demons, dragons, giants, and himself. He will fall in love with a beautiful shape-shifting princess, and he will be pursued by the last living vestiges of the human race. Their master bent on controlling the ancient technology Rancoth finds hidden in his parent's abandoned home.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 7, 2015
7 people are currently reading
183 people want to read
About the author
R.M. Willis
2 books29 followersR. M. Willis‘ mother first introduced him to the speculative fiction world when he was still a small child. His understanding of the world around him grew through the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, Piers Anthony, and Robert Silverberg. At a very young age he knew he wanted to write. His first story was published by his second grade teacher, when he was 7; A rousing tale about how the Easter Bunny stole his carrot. His first book “Power Rises” was re-published by KnightLand Books in December 2015. He currently resides in Colorado with his wife and two children, where he is working on the second book in his "Ways of Power" series.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 12, 2015
A friend of mine insisted that I read this book. At first I was hesitant because it's not the kind of book I would normally pick up. Boy am I glad I did. It turned out to be a real page turner. I loved the characters, and it was refreshing to find a hero (Rancoth) that was unsure of himself and made mistakes. I do hope that Rancoth develops more in the second book but I am really looking forward to reading it!
April 13, 2015
What a great read! I was caught up in the story from the first page to the last. A definitely unique vision. Can't wait till the next instalment.
Keep up the good work R.M.
Keep up the good work R.M.
April 11, 2015
This authors first book is very easy to read. The storyline is emotional, and well thought out. I really enjoyed reading this book. Looking forward to the next one
February 12, 2021
Needs to be proof read for errors
The story was good but the typos were distracting. Proof read it and fix the errors to get a better rating.
The story was good but the typos were distracting. Proof read it and fix the errors to get a better rating.
June 5, 2016
I won a print copy of Power Rises by R. M. Willis in a Goodreads giveaway.
Power Rises is another of those books I have mixed reactions to.
First and foremost, as I always say; the main story is very good, I like the magical realm it is set in. The main characters are well developed and believable (at least as far as beings in a magical realm can be). Author Willis' descriptions are good, he paints a fine mental picture of the story.
Power Rises is the first installment in a series: The Ways of Power.
For me, the epilogue was so different from the overall mood of the book, it didn't work that well for me. There is nothing really wrong with it, and I can see how the continued story requires it, just an abrupt change for me.
Power Rises is an adult oriented story as demonstrated by some of the more racy dialogue and character descriptions. They were not graphic or obscene, but perhaps a little gratuitous. Not overly so, they did flow with the story, but I wouldn't let younger readers have this one. That is kind of sad because other than the sexual content, the story is very tame, too tame at times. Conflicts are worked out a little too easily, having an almost fairy tale quality. Everyone lives happily ever after when the day before things were absolutely bleak. I don't say this is either positive or negative, just my reaction.
The only real negative for me was the editing issue. They weren't horribly numerous, but they were egregious. Some times funny. For example page 200, second sentence: "Rancoth pushed the door open with a creek." Personally, I've never used a small stream of water to open a door. Does this ruin the story? Of course not, but it does disrupt the flow.
Over all, Power Rises by R. M. Willis is good introduction to the series, just needs good proofreaders. Enjoy!
Mike
Power Rises is another of those books I have mixed reactions to.
First and foremost, as I always say; the main story is very good, I like the magical realm it is set in. The main characters are well developed and believable (at least as far as beings in a magical realm can be). Author Willis' descriptions are good, he paints a fine mental picture of the story.
Power Rises is the first installment in a series: The Ways of Power.
For me, the epilogue was so different from the overall mood of the book, it didn't work that well for me. There is nothing really wrong with it, and I can see how the continued story requires it, just an abrupt change for me.
Power Rises is an adult oriented story as demonstrated by some of the more racy dialogue and character descriptions. They were not graphic or obscene, but perhaps a little gratuitous. Not overly so, they did flow with the story, but I wouldn't let younger readers have this one. That is kind of sad because other than the sexual content, the story is very tame, too tame at times. Conflicts are worked out a little too easily, having an almost fairy tale quality. Everyone lives happily ever after when the day before things were absolutely bleak. I don't say this is either positive or negative, just my reaction.
The only real negative for me was the editing issue. They weren't horribly numerous, but they were egregious. Some times funny. For example page 200, second sentence: "Rancoth pushed the door open with a creek." Personally, I've never used a small stream of water to open a door. Does this ruin the story? Of course not, but it does disrupt the flow.
Over all, Power Rises by R. M. Willis is good introduction to the series, just needs good proofreaders. Enjoy!
Mike
July 6, 2015
Good story. You're immersed into the world immediately without having to plow through dull initial characterization. Even zombie stories seem to drone on and on without a shambling corpse for a third of a novel these days, so kudos to the author for dragging us in from the start.
Though the characters seemed to meander and some scenes could have been cut altogether, the plot was smooth. Formulaic, but smooth. Characters were colorful. Their interactions were mechanical at times, however, and they often made me question their reactions to certain situations. And Rancoth's memory lapses heightened suspense but didn't seem to be a true character trait.
Some passages hinted at a hypnotizing literary style; unfortunately, they weren't prevalent throughout the work. Tons of errors jolted me out of the story: Missing apostrophes and commas, misplaced commas, incorrect spellings (homophones), run-on sentences, incorrect usage of sentence fragments (particularly with sentence tag/action combinations). This was an electronic copy, so it's hard to tell if the culprit was poor editing or formatting.
Despite all this, the demons and the magic and the plot pulled me along, and there was an interesting new direction in the epilogue. I plan to read the remainder of the series.
Though the characters seemed to meander and some scenes could have been cut altogether, the plot was smooth. Formulaic, but smooth. Characters were colorful. Their interactions were mechanical at times, however, and they often made me question their reactions to certain situations. And Rancoth's memory lapses heightened suspense but didn't seem to be a true character trait.
Some passages hinted at a hypnotizing literary style; unfortunately, they weren't prevalent throughout the work. Tons of errors jolted me out of the story: Missing apostrophes and commas, misplaced commas, incorrect spellings (homophones), run-on sentences, incorrect usage of sentence fragments (particularly with sentence tag/action combinations). This was an electronic copy, so it's hard to tell if the culprit was poor editing or formatting.
Despite all this, the demons and the magic and the plot pulled me along, and there was an interesting new direction in the epilogue. I plan to read the remainder of the series.
April 10, 2015
Needs work
Some editing needed. The 'accent' for Dorbin was more irritating than interesting. It felt formulaic a to b to c, and the spaces in between seemed more in depth than some of the major plot points (didn't flow well).
The protagonist has had 11 years to work with his power (somehow 8 to 10 years before magic manifests plus 11 years later equals 24 years of age), but with the downside doesn't use it often. It's so bad that his magic seems almost useless for most situations. I get that he doesn't like to use it, but coupled with his naïveté I just didn't care for him.
The hidden technological world (epilogue) seems a big stretch to try and tie them together with the nontechnical magical part of the world.
Some editing needed. The 'accent' for Dorbin was more irritating than interesting. It felt formulaic a to b to c, and the spaces in between seemed more in depth than some of the major plot points (didn't flow well).
The protagonist has had 11 years to work with his power (somehow 8 to 10 years before magic manifests plus 11 years later equals 24 years of age), but with the downside doesn't use it often. It's so bad that his magic seems almost useless for most situations. I get that he doesn't like to use it, but coupled with his naïveté I just didn't care for him.
The hidden technological world (epilogue) seems a big stretch to try and tie them together with the nontechnical magical part of the world.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews