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Laws of Summoning #1
Summoner Rising
Excerpt from, The Book of Summoning:
Law One: A summoner is responsible for all creatures it lets through from the netherworld.
Dacie Cantar wishes someone had explained the Laws of Summoning to her before she watched a shadowy creature crawl out of a painting at the local arcade. At least it explains the strange things she's witnessed since moving in with her great-aunt, after her mother’s untimely death. But who wants to be followed by shadows the rest of their life? Add that to being stalked by a strange boy at school, who just might be her Tovaros (aka soulmate), it’s about all Dacie can handle in her new life.
As she nears her seventeenth birthday, will she be ready for her new responsibilities, or will the shadows that stalked her mother until her death, finally consume Dacie, too? And then there’s Law Two…
Law One: A summoner is responsible for all creatures it lets through from the netherworld.
Dacie Cantar wishes someone had explained the Laws of Summoning to her before she watched a shadowy creature crawl out of a painting at the local arcade. At least it explains the strange things she's witnessed since moving in with her great-aunt, after her mother’s untimely death. But who wants to be followed by shadows the rest of their life? Add that to being stalked by a strange boy at school, who just might be her Tovaros (aka soulmate), it’s about all Dacie can handle in her new life.
As she nears her seventeenth birthday, will she be ready for her new responsibilities, or will the shadows that stalked her mother until her death, finally consume Dacie, too? And then there’s Law Two…
264 pages, Paperback
First published March 28, 2017
7 people are currently reading
1317 people want to read
About the author
Melanie McFarlane
12 books152 followersWhether it’s uncovering the corruption of the future, or traveling to other worlds to save the universe, Melanie McFarlane jumps in with both hands on her keyboard. Though she can be found obsessing over zombies from time to time, Melanie focuses her powers on writing young adult stories to keep the rest of the world up reading all night.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
January 16, 2016
I will start off by saying, that I received a free copy for a honest review, so here it is people!
I was a little skeptical about the book, when I read the synopsis, because of the genre of the book (not my normal choice of genre to read), and the age of the characters, BUT I loved it! The writing flowed beautifully! I was captured right from the beginning of the book, with well developed characters, their interactions and relationships, and in-depth description of the paranormal (shadows/demons, summoners, etc..). I really enjoyed reading how Daci and Tryan's relationship develop through out the book, from the crush to.... well i won't spoil what happens between them by posting about it, you will have to read what happens with them! ;) . I laughed at the witty banter, I was heartbroken in sections, and even wanted to strangle a couple of the characters (Not a fan Liana ;) ). so in my books, that made this book fantastic! The only downside: I have to now wait for the second book ;)
I was a little skeptical about the book, when I read the synopsis, because of the genre of the book (not my normal choice of genre to read), and the age of the characters, BUT I loved it! The writing flowed beautifully! I was captured right from the beginning of the book, with well developed characters, their interactions and relationships, and in-depth description of the paranormal (shadows/demons, summoners, etc..). I really enjoyed reading how Daci and Tryan's relationship develop through out the book, from the crush to.... well i won't spoil what happens between them by posting about it, you will have to read what happens with them! ;) . I laughed at the witty banter, I was heartbroken in sections, and even wanted to strangle a couple of the characters (Not a fan Liana ;) ). so in my books, that made this book fantastic! The only downside: I have to now wait for the second book ;)
March 22, 2017
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review! Once again, Melanie had created an astounding story full of twists and turns and I am completely and utterly in love. I love Dacie and Tryan! You're immediately swept into this giant world of Summoners who are to keep the balance by controlling demons, and it feels so much bigger than you. Also reminiscent of Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments world! Just a wonderful story that I couldn't get through fast enough! And can I PLEASE have the next one?! I hate waiting!
April 10, 2017
4.5 stars! I loved this book! I love the world that was created, and the character development! Melanie has done it again with this novel! I'm ready for the second one already!
March 30, 2017
** I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review. This in no way affected my opinion of the book or my review. **
When I first read the book description, I was a little intrigued, but yet a little thrown off not knowing yet what a summoner was. Melanie McFarlane really sets the book up nicely and really goes into detail what the back story of everything is. So that makes the story flow together great!
This story is about a soon to be 17 Dacie Cantar whose mother was recently killed and was taken in by her Romanian great-aunt Katya who Dacie thinks is crazy. But what Dacie doesn't tell people is that she thinks she is thinks she's going crazy because she keeps seeing shadow's, or so she thinks. Dacie isn't used to being around family because she never was around them her whole life. It was always just her and her mom. Now it was just Dacie (Daciana what her aunt calls her), her great-Aunt Katya, and Constantine the gardner in the family home in Maine when her aunt wants to go to Romania.
School starts and Dacie feels out of place but wants normal. When she runs into a boy in her art class that will forever stay on her mind. Dacie and this boy, Tryan, have electricity, literally. When out one evening, trying to be normal, something strange happens to Dacie. She learns things about her aunt, its too much. she goes home, and that's not much better.A Summoner has the ability to pull demons through paintings. But she she has the responsibility to police them and is responsible for their crimes is she doesn't try to get it back. It was all too much for her. So she runs, and She runs into Tryan and kisses him.
Dacie learns from Katya that she is a Summoner, just like her mother. But she shouldn't have her abilities until she is 17. Dacie learned that her mistake that night out would come back to haunt her due to the 3 rules of summoners. So when she had help the night of her first normal dance to get back her mistake it came in the form of Tryan. And her aunt let her know that he may be her "Tovaros" or soulmate. Dacie couldn't believe it. She was only 16, almost 17! But a tovaros is a companion to a summoner, and when together they are for life or until death.
Dacie and Tryan are at the house and she accidentally lets out an ogre and it hurts Tryan bad, only then it confirms to her aunt that Tryan is Dacie's tovaros because he was hurt so bad and then the next day he was pretty much healed. And that's the way it works with the bond of the summoner and tovaros.
Dacie starts to train with Constantine, and study the Book of Summoning. When Tryan goes out of town and comes back with a girl. Dacie gets a bit jealous. But Liana is his "babysitter" for helping an underage summoner bring demons through, even tough that's not how it happened.
When Dacie accidentally let's out a wendigo that eats people things get bad. But all the while Dacie is trying to be a normal teenager. But it doesn't look like that's going to happen. Dacie overhears Tryan saying something to Liana about her and of course she gets jealous and meets the wendigo and becomes hospitalized. This is where the relationship of Dacie and Tryan gets a bit rocky.
Dacie wants to prove herself as a summoner and Tryan is trying to protect her and he is getting frustrated with her. Especially since she was almost killed the last time she ran into the wendigo. So Dacie trains like crazy, meets new people. Works on her family tree paper. She meets Eli, a young boy who can bend light, and heal with the light. But he technically isn't supposed to be talking to Dacie, so says his father (haven't learned his name).
I don't want to say the end of the book. But I am looking forward to the next book! I want to know what happens with these characters and explore and see what different paths that they are going to go down. Melanie McFarlane really wrote a really good book here. As a reader you will not get lost one bit. Happy reading!
When I first read the book description, I was a little intrigued, but yet a little thrown off not knowing yet what a summoner was. Melanie McFarlane really sets the book up nicely and really goes into detail what the back story of everything is. So that makes the story flow together great!
This story is about a soon to be 17 Dacie Cantar whose mother was recently killed and was taken in by her Romanian great-aunt Katya who Dacie thinks is crazy. But what Dacie doesn't tell people is that she thinks she is thinks she's going crazy because she keeps seeing shadow's, or so she thinks. Dacie isn't used to being around family because she never was around them her whole life. It was always just her and her mom. Now it was just Dacie (Daciana what her aunt calls her), her great-Aunt Katya, and Constantine the gardner in the family home in Maine when her aunt wants to go to Romania.
School starts and Dacie feels out of place but wants normal. When she runs into a boy in her art class that will forever stay on her mind. Dacie and this boy, Tryan, have electricity, literally. When out one evening, trying to be normal, something strange happens to Dacie. She learns things about her aunt, its too much. she goes home, and that's not much better.A Summoner has the ability to pull demons through paintings. But she she has the responsibility to police them and is responsible for their crimes is she doesn't try to get it back. It was all too much for her. So she runs, and She runs into Tryan and kisses him.
Dacie learns from Katya that she is a Summoner, just like her mother. But she shouldn't have her abilities until she is 17. Dacie learned that her mistake that night out would come back to haunt her due to the 3 rules of summoners. So when she had help the night of her first normal dance to get back her mistake it came in the form of Tryan. And her aunt let her know that he may be her "Tovaros" or soulmate. Dacie couldn't believe it. She was only 16, almost 17! But a tovaros is a companion to a summoner, and when together they are for life or until death.
Dacie and Tryan are at the house and she accidentally lets out an ogre and it hurts Tryan bad, only then it confirms to her aunt that Tryan is Dacie's tovaros because he was hurt so bad and then the next day he was pretty much healed. And that's the way it works with the bond of the summoner and tovaros.
Dacie starts to train with Constantine, and study the Book of Summoning. When Tryan goes out of town and comes back with a girl. Dacie gets a bit jealous. But Liana is his "babysitter" for helping an underage summoner bring demons through, even tough that's not how it happened.
When Dacie accidentally let's out a wendigo that eats people things get bad. But all the while Dacie is trying to be a normal teenager. But it doesn't look like that's going to happen. Dacie overhears Tryan saying something to Liana about her and of course she gets jealous and meets the wendigo and becomes hospitalized. This is where the relationship of Dacie and Tryan gets a bit rocky.
Dacie wants to prove herself as a summoner and Tryan is trying to protect her and he is getting frustrated with her. Especially since she was almost killed the last time she ran into the wendigo. So Dacie trains like crazy, meets new people. Works on her family tree paper. She meets Eli, a young boy who can bend light, and heal with the light. But he technically isn't supposed to be talking to Dacie, so says his father (haven't learned his name).
I don't want to say the end of the book. But I am looking forward to the next book! I want to know what happens with these characters and explore and see what different paths that they are going to go down. Melanie McFarlane really wrote a really good book here. As a reader you will not get lost one bit. Happy reading!
March 24, 2017
Set in Maine, USA, comes the tale of young Daciana (Dacie to friends), a sixteen year old with a unique and somewhat disturbing ability. Having just moved from California, Dacie is portrayed as an initially shy yet rebellious character, who pushes others away. As we learn more about her past, we begin to understand why.
This novel is a wonderful start to a series where secrets, teamwork and loss combine. The characters are a breath of fresh air and each have a distinct personality. You get a strong feel for Dacie's character through her story narration. She proves to be a determined individual that will do all she can to fix her mistakes.
I would recommend this to lovers of Paranormal and Fantasy novels. Highly addictive.
Rated 5/5 stars.
This novel is a wonderful start to a series where secrets, teamwork and loss combine. The characters are a breath of fresh air and each have a distinct personality. You get a strong feel for Dacie's character through her story narration. She proves to be a determined individual that will do all she can to fix her mistakes.
I would recommend this to lovers of Paranormal and Fantasy novels. Highly addictive.
Rated 5/5 stars.
December 21, 2016
Daciana lives with her Great Aunt Katya after tragedy struck and her mother died. The book begins with Dacie’s first day at her new school. She often sees shadows moving on their own in a way that makes no sense. Her first day immediately starts by her meeting a jock-ish boy named Brennan and then a couple minutes later literally running into a long haired boy with green eyes.
One thing that bothered me is how much of an attitude she had against the guy, who you later find out is named Tryan. I mean seriously I know you’re upset because your mom died, but he was being completely nice to you at every encounter in the beginning of the book and you were just a royal b*tch. I’m going to be honest, I didn’t really like Daciana. The whole time I wanted to reach through my kindle and smack her.
I feel like her attitude really spoils the book. At least in the beginning. After that it’s not so bad, but some things just feel forced. All in all this was not really my cup of tea but don’t let me discourage you from giving it a try.
One thing that bothered me is how much of an attitude she had against the guy, who you later find out is named Tryan. I mean seriously I know you’re upset because your mom died, but he was being completely nice to you at every encounter in the beginning of the book and you were just a royal b*tch. I’m going to be honest, I didn’t really like Daciana. The whole time I wanted to reach through my kindle and smack her.
I feel like her attitude really spoils the book. At least in the beginning. After that it’s not so bad, but some things just feel forced. All in all this was not really my cup of tea but don’t let me discourage you from giving it a try.
February 6, 2017
Review to come.
July 19, 2017
I liked this. I enjoyed the concept of demon summoners and how demons are brought to be and why. However, the one thing that kept throwing me off was Dacie's maturity level. I know that she is young and inexperienced but I feel that with the childhood she had and the little she has experienced she should be a little more cautious and more mature. Her relationship with Tryan is back and forth b/c she is immature and has a low self-esteem, at least in my opinion. She mentions how ridiculous it is that Chantal treats her badly b/c of her jealousy over Brannon but she herself does the same thing with Tryan and never even notices. She runs headfirst into danger, with NO plan, even after all she has experienced b/c of that lack of thought. She's like, "Oh look, there's a dark and imposing shadow of a person that I know is a demon that has been stalking me, let me go run after it with no plan whatsoever, no weapons, and no backup. Cuz thats just a Great idea". She constantly forgets to inform her Aunt or Tryan, when they aren't fighting, about importang details. Such as the issue with Ms.N. I believe that i could have enjoyed this book a lot more if the main character was just a tad bit more mature, or at least showed signs of maturing. But it is only the first book so hopefully the next one shows progress. I will give it a try. Please don't be discouraged by mostly negative review. It was a good book and the plot was nice, the main character just needs a bit more development that's all. If you're on the edge of deciding whether or not to read this, I say it doesnt hurt to give it a chance, it's not that bad and it's a relatively short read. Besides the main character, the rest seem to be well thought out and the detail about why there is demon summoners and the importance of their job was something I liked
May 6, 2017
Dropped.
May 6, 2017
Absolutely loved this book! I couldn't put it down and I want more. I'm hoping there will be a next book taking us to Romania. Please, please tell me there is more!
May 20, 2017
This was a great book , loved the story and idea. Cant wait for book 2 this fall.
October 2, 2019
I absolutely adored this novel! I was a bit skeptical at the beginning that I would not like this book at all, but that turned out to be false very quickly. The beginning was kind of slow for me, but it quickly turned into something that was beyond my expectations. I loved this book! The writing an excellently done and the characters.....I loved them! I really cannot wait until the next book comes out!
March 27, 2017
Spoilers!!
I really liked this book so much. I am into paranormal books and this one was just fantastic. I loved the characters of Daciana and Tryan. The story begins with Dacie moving in with her great aunt Katya because Dacie's mother died. Dacie starts to see shadows moving in her peripheral vision all the time, or so she thinks so. She makes a fast couple of friends. A boy takes a liking to Daciana, but she isn't really interested. She meets this other boy named Tyran and he seems mysterious. He kind of seems to always watch Daciana when she is not looking. Later in the book, Daciana looks at a painting in a bathroom while out with her friends and she notices that the painting moves. Then pops out a strange looking creature. Later she discovers that she is a Summoner and their job is to be a pathway for demons. She must use paintings and focus on them to release them and her responsibility is to let the creatures, monsters, etc into this world and then later paint them back into the paintings so they will be trapped in the paintings. She must monitor them and responsibility to put them back. There is a book of rules for Summoners and everything. Along with rules, there is a senate and people who will punish Summoners who don't follow through with the laws. Once Daciana turns 17 her Summoner training is supposed to begin, but somehow before her 17 birthday she summons an Ifrit. Dacie has a hard time believing her great aunt about all this and its such a new territory for Dacie. since she knows little about her family from Romania. Her aunt tells her that Summoners also have a Tavros which is supposed to help her in her journey as a Summoner. Later after discovering that Tyran is a Tavoros, Dacie learns that once a Summoner chooses a Tavros they are bonded for life. Dacie and Tryan become closer and after they hunt a demon down and Tryan gets hurt they discover that they are meant to be bonded and Tryan ends up healing faster because of her being so close to him. Later on, in the book, Daciana ends up letting out a Wendigo and it gets loose and it ends up catching up with Dacie and Tryan. This other summoner comes to town named Liana who came to town because the senate was punishing Tryan for other crimes. They all end up taking down the Wendigo. Lastly, throughout the book there is mention of a shadow that whispers Daciana's name and at the end, once she turns 17 she finally can see the shadows form into shapes now and she chases the shadow and it tells her that he killed her mother and now he will kill her. I really loved this book, it was an easy read. I will definitely be reading the next book!
I really liked this book so much. I am into paranormal books and this one was just fantastic. I loved the characters of Daciana and Tryan. The story begins with Dacie moving in with her great aunt Katya because Dacie's mother died. Dacie starts to see shadows moving in her peripheral vision all the time, or so she thinks so. She makes a fast couple of friends. A boy takes a liking to Daciana, but she isn't really interested. She meets this other boy named Tyran and he seems mysterious. He kind of seems to always watch Daciana when she is not looking. Later in the book, Daciana looks at a painting in a bathroom while out with her friends and she notices that the painting moves. Then pops out a strange looking creature. Later she discovers that she is a Summoner and their job is to be a pathway for demons. She must use paintings and focus on them to release them and her responsibility is to let the creatures, monsters, etc into this world and then later paint them back into the paintings so they will be trapped in the paintings. She must monitor them and responsibility to put them back. There is a book of rules for Summoners and everything. Along with rules, there is a senate and people who will punish Summoners who don't follow through with the laws. Once Daciana turns 17 her Summoner training is supposed to begin, but somehow before her 17 birthday she summons an Ifrit. Dacie has a hard time believing her great aunt about all this and its such a new territory for Dacie. since she knows little about her family from Romania. Her aunt tells her that Summoners also have a Tavros which is supposed to help her in her journey as a Summoner. Later after discovering that Tyran is a Tavoros, Dacie learns that once a Summoner chooses a Tavros they are bonded for life. Dacie and Tryan become closer and after they hunt a demon down and Tryan gets hurt they discover that they are meant to be bonded and Tryan ends up healing faster because of her being so close to him. Later on, in the book, Daciana ends up letting out a Wendigo and it gets loose and it ends up catching up with Dacie and Tryan. This other summoner comes to town named Liana who came to town because the senate was punishing Tryan for other crimes. They all end up taking down the Wendigo. Lastly, throughout the book there is mention of a shadow that whispers Daciana's name and at the end, once she turns 17 she finally can see the shadows form into shapes now and she chases the shadow and it tells her that he killed her mother and now he will kill her. I really loved this book, it was an easy read. I will definitely be reading the next book!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2017
Great book! I loved the unique take on demon summoning! Check out my full review here :)
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April 5, 2017
An original idea, finally. Summoner Rising was quite interesting and developed well. I did struggle at some points with the simple writing style but the action kept up the pace. What will happen in #2??
April 16, 2017
The protagonist is trying to fail HS. And the boy problems ugh! Nothing is really explained in this book it just has you asking "wtf is going on?" I shouldn't read any sequels but I probably will :/
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August 20, 2017Review to come.
dnf
June 13, 2018DNF 15%
This is written in first person, present tense. Nothing should ever, EVER be written in first person, present tense, as far as I'm concerned. I might have grit my teeth and stuck with it, but at about 15% the character started to learn her heritage and asking questions that required knowledge she couldn't yet have. I bailed. It's just not for me.
This is written in first person, present tense. Nothing should ever, EVER be written in first person, present tense, as far as I'm concerned. I might have grit my teeth and stuck with it, but at about 15% the character started to learn her heritage and asking questions that required knowledge she couldn't yet have. I bailed. It's just not for me.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews