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Ascension
Having reached the age of decision, Gwendolin Ahlgren finds she has no viable choices, or at least none her family will agree to let her pursue. She's resigned that her life will be anything but what she'd hoped it would be. When a traveling circus passes through her village, a fortune teller predicts a mysterious destiny Gwen could never have imagined and roundly rejects. Against her will, she leaves home for life in a monastery and meets the love of her life. Life and love aren't always what one expects, and neither is destiny. Gwen will have to stretch beyond herself and understand the true meaning of love if she's to fulfill her destiny through a task that only an unimaginable ascension can accomplish.
- GenresFantasy
230 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 27, 2016
6 people are currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Morgen Rich
9 books8 followersI spend my days writing, editing, and learning. I currently live in Pennsylvania (and sometimes in Lincoln, England). I have a shady past, so . . . don’t ask.
Just kidding!
Mo to my friends, I wear a lot of hats because it takes that many to match my energy level. I’m wife to a bass guitarist with incredible (and I do mean incredible) rhythm, mom to a slew of very cool people, and “grahnmahmah” to five adorable wee ones. I think dogs (especially BIG ones) are the coolest living thing on the planet, love to garden, have traveled to all kinds of neat places, and have lived in around a dozen cities in the U.S. and Europe. I consider family and friends the true treasures of life. Oh, and I dig cowboy boots!
I’ll read just about anything that’s well-written, including cereal boxes. My writing heroes, like my hats, are wide-ranging, from John Milton to Edward Bellamy to Octavia E. Butler. My blog’s name comes from Andrew Marvell’s To His Coy Mistress because I think writing muses (oh yes, I have more than one!) are just that–coy mistresses.
In my “other life,” I teach an occasional college English, Women's Studies, or Communications class. In the past, I was a professional writer and helped manage a team of medical writers, so I know first-hand what it’s like to try to herd cats. In February 2013, I established Bookmite Press, a publishing house specializing in serial fiction. I’ve been writing non-fiction, fiction, and poetry for almost as long as I can remember.
My most recent writing project is an epic science fantasy series set in the Shifting Worlds universe. The first three books of the series (The Staves of Warrant trilogy) are being published in 2013/2014 by Bookmite Press.
You’ll find me at all the usual haunts for writers–coffee shops, bookstores, libraries, cons, online roleplaying, and bars! I’d love it if you followed my blog (e-mail or follow through WordPress) and joined in the conversation about science fiction, fantasy, and all that’s in-between.
I love to connect with readers and anyone interested in publishing. You can e-mail me (morgenrich57@gmail.com), friend me on Facebook, and follow me on Twitter.
Favorite quote: Awake. Arise. Or be forever fallen! – Satan in Paradise Lost by John Milton.
Just kidding!
Mo to my friends, I wear a lot of hats because it takes that many to match my energy level. I’m wife to a bass guitarist with incredible (and I do mean incredible) rhythm, mom to a slew of very cool people, and “grahnmahmah” to five adorable wee ones. I think dogs (especially BIG ones) are the coolest living thing on the planet, love to garden, have traveled to all kinds of neat places, and have lived in around a dozen cities in the U.S. and Europe. I consider family and friends the true treasures of life. Oh, and I dig cowboy boots!
I’ll read just about anything that’s well-written, including cereal boxes. My writing heroes, like my hats, are wide-ranging, from John Milton to Edward Bellamy to Octavia E. Butler. My blog’s name comes from Andrew Marvell’s To His Coy Mistress because I think writing muses (oh yes, I have more than one!) are just that–coy mistresses.
In my “other life,” I teach an occasional college English, Women's Studies, or Communications class. In the past, I was a professional writer and helped manage a team of medical writers, so I know first-hand what it’s like to try to herd cats. In February 2013, I established Bookmite Press, a publishing house specializing in serial fiction. I’ve been writing non-fiction, fiction, and poetry for almost as long as I can remember.
My most recent writing project is an epic science fantasy series set in the Shifting Worlds universe. The first three books of the series (The Staves of Warrant trilogy) are being published in 2013/2014 by Bookmite Press.
You’ll find me at all the usual haunts for writers–coffee shops, bookstores, libraries, cons, online roleplaying, and bars! I’d love it if you followed my blog (e-mail or follow through WordPress) and joined in the conversation about science fiction, fantasy, and all that’s in-between.
I love to connect with readers and anyone interested in publishing. You can e-mail me (morgenrich57@gmail.com), friend me on Facebook, and follow me on Twitter.
Favorite quote: Awake. Arise. Or be forever fallen! – Satan in Paradise Lost by John Milton.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 29, 2016
'Ascension' chronicles the life of a country girl, Gwendolin Ahlgren who rises above her humble origins and becomes a well-respected monk.
In the beginning Gwen's story is lighthearted, with the author depicting scenes in Gwen's and Gilly's lives and her decision to become a monk, when her interest to become hedge-witch are frowned upon . Their friendship with the miller's son and the hunter's son are touched upon. The story actually begins when the schoolmistress and her husband decide take the boys of the village to Sutherhold to train and Gwen goes along with them in order to meet a monk named Jacques who might ease her transition to monasticism. Thus the story continues with Gwen's visions helping her and the prophecy of her youth coming true. When a mistake committed in a fit of jealousy has far-reaching consequences, Gwen has to face the choice of a lifetime.
In the beginning Gwen's story is lighthearted, with the author depicting scenes in Gwen's and Gilly's lives and her decision to become a monk, when her interest to become hedge-witch are frowned upon . Their friendship with the miller's son and the hunter's son are touched upon. The story actually begins when the schoolmistress and her husband decide take the boys of the village to Sutherhold to train and Gwen goes along with them in order to meet a monk named Jacques who might ease her transition to monasticism. Thus the story continues with Gwen's visions helping her and the prophecy of her youth coming true. When a mistake committed in a fit of jealousy has far-reaching consequences, Gwen has to face the choice of a lifetime.
May 30, 2024
I hated this book. It was a huge waste of time.
I expected so much from it. I expected it to have a strong female lead, I expected it to have dragons, and I expected it to have some magic or her visions to lead to something. Nothing.
She follows the road laid out for her but never accomplishes anything. She broke Tomlin's leg for no reason.
I thought that something was going to happen. She wasn't even an important character in someone else's story, and it took so long to get her to the monastery that the author had to clump almost everything into a montage of her growing up, taking her place, and setting up the reveal from her earlier visions.
She never grew into any of the powers and abilities that it hinted she had access to. What was the point?
I want my time back. This wasn't even a blip on the map of a real story.
I expected so much from it. I expected it to have a strong female lead, I expected it to have dragons, and I expected it to have some magic or her visions to lead to something. Nothing.
She follows the road laid out for her but never accomplishes anything. She broke Tomlin's leg for no reason.
I thought that something was going to happen. She wasn't even an important character in someone else's story, and it took so long to get her to the monastery that the author had to clump almost everything into a montage of her growing up, taking her place, and setting up the reveal from her earlier visions.
She never grew into any of the powers and abilities that it hinted she had access to. What was the point?
I want my time back. This wasn't even a blip on the map of a real story.
January 31, 2020
I "read" this book as an audio book and at first I didn't know what was going on but soon the story captivated me. I didn't like the grandmother in the story and the book ended quite abruptly and felt there was a rush to end it. I would've liked to read a little more about the ending.
The person reading the story sat a little too close to the microphone, but was a good storyteller. All in all 4 stars!
The person reading the story sat a little too close to the microphone, but was a good storyteller. All in all 4 stars!
February 21, 2018
Great Prequel
This book really ties together a lot of the beginning of the Godsland series while adding some interesting information along the way. Highly recommend for fans of the series who have read at least the first book.
This book really ties together a lot of the beginning of the Godsland series while adding some interesting information along the way. Highly recommend for fans of the series who have read at least the first book.
January 11, 2020
The first half of the story is fantastic with interesting characters and a developed world. The second half of the books feels incredibly rushed. It feels like a prequel by the end of the story and I want sure how to feel about it.
July 11, 2016
**I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review**
This book had so much potential! The world building was absolutely amazing, but the plot was boring. Somehow the book had a lot happen, yet nothing happened. It was building up to what should've been an amazing “save the world” part, and then it ended. I'm not even sure how the world was saved.
This book had so much potential! The world building was absolutely amazing, but the plot was boring. Somehow the book had a lot happen, yet nothing happened. It was building up to what should've been an amazing “save the world” part, and then it ended. I'm not even sure how the world was saved.
June 1, 2016
I'm not really sure what I think about this book. It felt quite rushed. I liked some of the characters but the plot jumped about. A little strange.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews