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A review by chelseaj91
Aerisia: Land Beyond the Sunset by Sarah Ashwood
4.0
In exchange for my review, I received a free copy from Griffineus Publications
The mystery of other worlds is not one Hannah Winters ever thought she'd solve. However, the day she spots a brown-robed stranger with a magical staff in a neighbor's field is the day she also discovers Aerisia, a magical land beyond Earth's sunset.
Here in Aerisia, Hannah is believed to be the Artan, a legendary heroine prophesied to deliver Aerisia from the Dark Powers. Plenty of people, including the Simathe, a race of immortal warriors, and the Moonkind, people of the Moon, are willing to help her discover her true identity, but Hannah's just an ordinary girl from Earth. She doesn't have any latent magical abilities and she's not the Artan. However, her allies aren't seeing it that way. Neither are her enemies. In fact, Hannah's life is in jeopardy nearly from the moment she arrives in Aerisia. And becoming the Artan may be the only way to survive...
I really liked this book! It's a great take on the whole prophecy theme that's going around and I really like that Hannah isn't as willing(?) to accept what's going on than some other heroes and heroines have been in other books.
I'll admit that I did have a bit of trouble getting hooked for the first couple chapters, it just wasn't...moving(?) for me. I think that it was moving so slowly though so that the reader could see things as Hannah was seeing them. However, once I really got into it, I devoured the rest of the book!
I do have to say there were some issues I had:
1. People, especially Hannah, responded wryly/dryly a lot. Sometimes two or three times within the same conversation. Maybe use a different adjective or let the reader determine the speaker's attitude next time?
2. I wasn't really sure of Hannah's age at the beginning. There wasn't anything she said until part-way through the book to give much of an indication.
3. Hannah doesn't really think anything through before she acts. Then because of this, she ends up in a lot of trouble. Granted if I were in her position I probably would react very similar just trying to find my way home, but I might give a little more thought to my actions (I still might go through with it but I'd probably think things through a little more)
4. I noticed typos/errors throughout the book. It wasn't a huge problem, but it was definitely noticeable.
Of course, the bad things are definitely out-weighed by the good:
1. The cover art is AMAZING! Hannah looks beautiful and warrior like and ready to take on anything. I LOVE her outfit! And the blues are so gorgeous!
2. Hannah's clothes! They all sounded so beautiful! I really wished I could actually see them, especially the gown she put on when she finally decided she wanted the Simathe to actually see her as a woman. It was blue and sounded just gorgeous! (Yes I will admit to having a particularly girly moment at that point in the book)
3. The mythology of Aerisia was wonderful. Sarah Ashwood has managed to come up with a beautiful, wonderful fantasy world. The characters, places, all of it stimulate your imagination and can put you right in the book with Hannah. I really liked the myth that Aerisia and Earth used to be connected, it was interesting and when you think about it, it just might explain some things
4. Ilgard was a wonderful character. It was interesting to see him as he changed throughout the story. He went from the basic Simathe to a man who doubted what he had been sent to do
5. The romance. There was romance in this story, but it wasn't what most people would think. Hannah really didn't have a romantic interest until partway through the story when she shared sort of a tender moment with Ilgard. Of course, I'm anxious to see how that plays out because Ilgard supposedly shouldn't fall in love and all that. I'm wondering what's going to change, but something tells me that there are some changes coming down the line and I can't wait!
6. Hannah's interaction(s) with Jonase. The first time in that room in Laytrii would have been terrifying on it's own, but then when she ran into him outside of Treygon, it was downright horrifying! I was glad that Hannah finally came to realize just why things were going as they were (Joining with Ilgard, staying inside Treygon, etc).
7. The ending! I want more! Please, please, PLEASE!!!!
The mystery of other worlds is not one Hannah Winters ever thought she'd solve. However, the day she spots a brown-robed stranger with a magical staff in a neighbor's field is the day she also discovers Aerisia, a magical land beyond Earth's sunset.
Here in Aerisia, Hannah is believed to be the Artan, a legendary heroine prophesied to deliver Aerisia from the Dark Powers. Plenty of people, including the Simathe, a race of immortal warriors, and the Moonkind, people of the Moon, are willing to help her discover her true identity, but Hannah's just an ordinary girl from Earth. She doesn't have any latent magical abilities and she's not the Artan. However, her allies aren't seeing it that way. Neither are her enemies. In fact, Hannah's life is in jeopardy nearly from the moment she arrives in Aerisia. And becoming the Artan may be the only way to survive...
I really liked this book! It's a great take on the whole prophecy theme that's going around and I really like that Hannah isn't as willing(?) to accept what's going on than some other heroes and heroines have been in other books.
I'll admit that I did have a bit of trouble getting hooked for the first couple chapters, it just wasn't...moving(?) for me. I think that it was moving so slowly though so that the reader could see things as Hannah was seeing them. However, once I really got into it, I devoured the rest of the book!
I do have to say there were some issues I had:
1. People, especially Hannah, responded wryly/dryly a lot. Sometimes two or three times within the same conversation. Maybe use a different adjective or let the reader determine the speaker's attitude next time?
2. I wasn't really sure of Hannah's age at the beginning. There wasn't anything she said until part-way through the book to give much of an indication.
3. Hannah doesn't really think anything through before she acts. Then because of this, she ends up in a lot of trouble. Granted if I were in her position I probably would react very similar just trying to find my way home, but I might give a little more thought to my actions (I still might go through with it but I'd probably think things through a little more)
4. I noticed typos/errors throughout the book. It wasn't a huge problem, but it was definitely noticeable.
Of course, the bad things are definitely out-weighed by the good:
1. The cover art is AMAZING! Hannah looks beautiful and warrior like and ready to take on anything. I LOVE her outfit! And the blues are so gorgeous!
2. Hannah's clothes! They all sounded so beautiful! I really wished I could actually see them, especially the gown she put on when she finally decided she wanted the Simathe to actually see her as a woman. It was blue and sounded just gorgeous! (Yes I will admit to having a particularly girly moment at that point in the book)
3. The mythology of Aerisia was wonderful. Sarah Ashwood has managed to come up with a beautiful, wonderful fantasy world. The characters, places, all of it stimulate your imagination and can put you right in the book with Hannah. I really liked the myth that Aerisia and Earth used to be connected, it was interesting and when you think about it, it just might explain some things
4. Ilgard was a wonderful character. It was interesting to see him as he changed throughout the story. He went from the basic Simathe to a man who doubted what he had been sent to do
5. The romance. There was romance in this story, but it wasn't what most people would think. Hannah really didn't have a romantic interest until partway through the story when she shared sort of a tender moment with Ilgard. Of course, I'm anxious to see how that plays out because Ilgard supposedly shouldn't fall in love and all that. I'm wondering what's going to change, but something tells me that there are some changes coming down the line and I can't wait!
6. Hannah's interaction(s) with Jonase. The first time in that room in Laytrii would have been terrifying on it's own, but then when she ran into him outside of Treygon, it was downright horrifying! I was glad that Hannah finally came to realize just why things were going as they were (Joining with Ilgard, staying inside Treygon, etc).
7. The ending! I want more! Please, please, PLEASE!!!!