Amasai Rising

A Coming of Age Fantasy (The Amasai Rising Trilogy, Book 1)

By: Stevie Rae Causey

Narrated by: Brenda Scott Wlazlo

Finding out you’re a princess destined to stop a war sounds great, until it actually happens.

Amasai Rising is an enchanting young-adult coming-of-age fantasy novel set in the Kingdom of Aythia. Azlana is a half-human, half-elf princess on the run, forced from the only home she has ever known and shouldered with the responsibility of uniting men and mystics. But an ancient darkness has taken hold of Azlana’s mind, flooding her thoughts that horrify her.

Can Azlana defeat the darkness? Or will its hold on her prove fatal for magic and mankind alike?

Previously published as Anhedonia.

©2018 Stevie Rae Causey (P)2021 Stevie Rae Causey

Fantastic worldbuilding

This author and book were both new to me, and I am glad that I listened to Amasai Rising by Stevie Ray Causey. I enjoyed the book a great deal. It did take a little getting used to the POV being a little whiny, like a young child, but I think that was a purposeful choice and soon became a non-issue. The storyline has a lot of background and history woven in, sometimes done with different character’s POV, but it is skillfully woven in with the action to make a compelling story. The character development, which can make or break a story for me, was well written. 
It’s interesting that the narrator is able to do such a good job of sounding like a whining child. I look forward to reading more.
This is clearly written as Book one in a series as there is a lot of building in this story. We quickly start to develop an understanding of the main character but the mother is a slower build. Stevie Ray Causey does a great job of giving a us a quick amount of background to locate us in a setting, but then steadily world builds with more history and greater understanding of society. 
I absolutely recommend this as YA fantasy and would feel comfortable offering it in my middle school classroom or any public library.

Great for young readers new to fantasy.

Being an outcast among even your own people, being raised by somebody who isn’t your birth father, and being mixed race. These are not only aspects of this book, but aspects of my own life. I found a certain level of kinship with the character Amasai.

The story is mostly just world-building and foundation. It had me hooked until the end. It ends abruptly on a cliffhanger ending, which I truly despise.

I think this story would be suitable for younger readers, teenagers, and the like who have a budding interest in fantasy. The story is short and as I said previously, would allow them to dip their toe into the genre to see if it’s something they’d like. Many fantasy series can be overly long and seen as too much of a commitment for half-interested readers.

I can’t deny that I’m interested and I will likely be following this trilogy. Both for my love of fantasy and how relatable I find the protagonist. Additionally, there’s a prequel companion story which I’ll be acquiring and reviewing, sooner or later.

The narrator does an excellent job. I wish I had more to say, but I don't have any complaints or additional thoughts on the performance.

NOTE: This copy was provided to me free of charge as a digital review copy. The opinions stated in this review are mine and mine alone, I was not paid or requested to give this book a certain rating, suggestion, or approval.

Interesting first book in the series!

This is the first book in the Amasai Rising Trilogy, a young-adult coming-of-age fantasy novel This is a great introduction to the series. The characters are well developed. Azlana is a half-human, half-elf princess. She is an interesting character. The world building set in the Kingdom of Aythia is original, and engaging. The storyline is fast-paced, filled with secrets and mystery. I liked to have both POV's, from Azlana and her mother. Brenda Scott Wlazlo did an excellent job with the narration. Looking forward to listening to the next book in the series, to know what happens next. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

keep listening

It took me to chapter 4 to become invested in the story, but it was worth it in the end. The story has a lot of character thinking vs action. Toward the end, it picked up.

I received a free code from Story Origin, but this is my own opinion and review.

So good!

This was my first exposure to this book series and it was well done. Very entertaining, the Pov of the female protagonist was well done. Can't wait do read or listen to the rest of the series! No spoilers from me, you're gonna have to listen/read. lol!