Rise Review

Blurb:
A long, long time ago, before the world was as we know it, Izanami and Izanagi came into being. Two of the first of the ancient gods of Japan, they crafted the world from ink and their own imaginations. Izanagi wants, more than anything, to be with Izanami—but one moment of pride could tear them apart forever.

Yuki and Tanaka have been friends for as long as they can remember, but lately deeper feelings have been bubbling beneath the surface. How do they navigate the transition from friendship to true love without destroying the powerful bond between them?

Set a millennia apart, can these two couples, living parallel love stories, find their happily-ever-afters?

Hi guys! It's been a while since I've done a review, hasn't it?

Book: Rise
Author: Amanda Sun
Series: Paper Gods Series
Standing: Book 2.5
POV: third person (by Izanami, Izanagi, Yuki, and Tanaka), past tense
Genre: YA paranormal, fantasy, history

Source: purchased (free ebook)
Reading: first time
Favorite line: "Where are you going?" 
                     "Where we all must. Forward."
Rating: 4 Stars





This is a short novella containing both a historical/mythological story, as well as one that takes place during the same time period as the book.

The historical/mythological part of this novella is about the very first kamis of the world, and seeing as kamis are really important in the series itself, it's a nice backdrop. You get to see from that from the beginning of time, love existed, as did pride and envy. It goes to say that pride and envy is ultimately the downfall of the story, and the ending is a little sad. But it probably does foreshadow the events to come in the next book...

With the modern story, the one about Yuki and Tanaka, we get to see exactly how Katie's choices in the last book are beginning to have an influence on the world. Bad things are happening, and to the ignorant person (such as Yuki and Tanaka), it's a simple matter of a new gang leaving its mark. But for the readers that actually know what's going on, it's actually a whole lot more complex and intriguing. Needless to say, I am in suspense as to what exactly is going on from Katie's side!

The romance aspect was nice, if what a little fluffy. I would have liked to see a bit more action in this, but as it's short, I guess I'll have to settle for small amounts. I also would have preferred it to have been two distinctly separate stories, one story after the other, rather than flipping back between stories every chapter. It got a little confusing and annoying, but that could be just me.

Storm, which is the final book to Amanda Sun's Paper Gods series, comes out June 30th, 2015. Take advantage of this free ebook and get your hands on the series!

Add it to your Goodreads here.