“A fast-paced adventure brimming with romance, mythology, and dangerous secrets. I was hooked!” -Elly Blake, New York Times and international bestselling author of the Frostblood Saga When a stranger gives Analiese Jordan a list of names before he dies, the last thing she expects to see is her own on it. Not. Cool. Her search for answers leads to the man’s grandson, Marek, who has dangerous … grandson, Marek, who has dangerous secrets of his own. Both are determined to unlock the mystery of the list.
But the truth is deadly. Analiese is a descendant of the God of Death, known as a Riser, with the power to raise the dead and control them. Finding out she has hidden powers? Cool. Finding out she turns corpses into killers? No, thank you.
Now the trail plants her and Marek in the middle of a war between gods who apparently want to raise an army of the Risen, and Analiese must figure out how to save the world–from herself.
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Just when Analiese gets her life back on track, she witnesses a brutal car accident. The dying man thrusts his leather bag into her hands and insists he take it to his grandson. Ditching grief camp (who knew that was a thing), she goes on a road trip upstate to return the bag. Marek and her uncover his grandfather’s true identity. Banding together, they go on an epic journey following clues Marek’s grandfather left behind. The more they uncover, the more danger they’re in. All that Analiese thinks she knows about her life is wiped clean and she discovers the horrifying truth. She’s a descendent of the God of Death and has the power to raise the dead. With gods and goddesses on both sides vying for her allegiance, which side will she choose?
Analiese Rising grabbed me from the first page and didn’t let go until I read the last word. Not only is it brilliantly written with intense action, a little romance and more gods/goddesses than you can shake a stick at, its unexpected originality made me an instant fan.
Analiese is a sympathetic character and one who’s experienced great loss. Her emotions are stark as is her propensity to get into trouble. Marek is a mystery to the reader but the more I read, the more I like him. The attraction between Analiese and Marek balances the intensity of the plot.
I love reading Brenda Drake stories for their ability to escape my hum-drum life. She weaves fantasy one brushstroke at a time, and I can’t get enough. I couldn’t stop reading Analiese and can’t wait for the next one in the series. Highly recommend!
Disclaimer: I received an ARC from Entangled Publishing via Netgalley in the hopes I’d review it.
My Rating: 5 stars
Will Analiese and Marek stop a war of the gods?
Analiese Rising by Brenda Drake is an excellent book about two mortals being in the middle of a bunch of immortals. We follow the main character Analiese Jordan as she goes through having her whole life be turned upside down when a man dies near her. This book is in the first person point of view, and it’s fabulously different than others that I have read.
What I like:
• Analiese Jordan is a fascinating main character.
• The slow love story between Analiese and Marek is so believable.
• Mentions of the LGBTQ community but not having it forced on you.
• The mythology and how it’s not just one but several of them. It makes for an exciting story
• That the main character has panic attacks and the way that the author deals with them is brilliant.
What I didn’t like:
I didn’t find anything that I disliked. If I did, I was so engrossed I didn’t register it.
Five Star
Analiese Rising is my first book by Brenda Drake and definitely not my last. Ms. Drake has a fabulous writing style, and I loved the way she ended this story. She created a beautiful world combining the different gods and goddesses of multiple religions into one world where we humans live. I can’t express how much I adored this book. Let’s just say that everyone in our house including our cockatoo has heard my praises. This book is incredible, and I highly recommend it.
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First off, there was a LOT of stuff going on in this book. So many different gods and goddesses from different mythologies from all over the world. Some I recognized, some I did not. But this was really cool! I love when I hear about things I don’t know, and then the story makes me want to go learn more about them. And that is what this story did. There was a lot of adventure, a lot of history, a lot of action, and a little romance thrown in, all together these made for a good teenage story. As I read, I was totally thinking about how I’d love to visit all these places mentioned, the Coliseum, the Louvre, etc. I’m guessing that if there are more books after this, which it sounds like there will be, we will get to go to even more exciting places. For one, I’d love to see some time spent in Egypt, or over in Asia with their mythology as well. Another thing I really liked about the story was how Analiese had been taken in by her uncle, and that she’d grown up with him as her dad. I think it is nice to once in awhile see a healthy step-parent situation, when so often there is not. Although I wasn’t sure I liked her step-mother, Jane. By the end of the book I still was unsure about her. Although I haven’t read Antigoddess, all of the other books this is compared to in the summary are exactly right. Definitely there is the feel of solving a puzzle like in The Da Vinci Code. You’ve got all these different gods just wandering around, getting in trouble, or even just being a part of the world, like what little I remember from reading American Gods. And you get the teen angst and fighting monsters that is a bit similar to one of my favorite series books, Half-Blood. Definitely a recommended title for anyone who enjoys paranormal romance, or mythology of all kinds.
My rating is 3.5 for Analise Rising. My reason is because I didnt like Ana because there was point where her fear got the better of her. My hope is that Brenda Drake finishes this series and gives more of the war between the gods. One of the positives of the book is that there is a lot of Back Story and it is rich in mythology. I would want to visit these characters again .
3.5/5 Stars
Disclaimer: I received an Advance Reader Copy at no cost from the publisher/author. This review MAY contain spoilers.
This was such an exciting book! I absolutely loved Brenda Drake’s Library Jumpers series so I knew that I had to pick up this book.
I absolutely adored this unique take on mythology. I think that the premise for this book is incredibly original and thought-provoking. The plotting was delightful. The suspense and the mystery that was unfolding as the story progressed was amazing. It definitely kept my interest. I couldn’t wait to see what was happening next.
The world building in this book was excellent. Analiese and Marek visit several European countries on their journey. I felt very much in the story because of the vivid descriptions and flawless detail of the well-known places in the book.
The romance in the book was adorable. I loved the slow-burn romance. Analiese and Marek definitely had chemistry, but it wasn’t over the top.
I really liked the representation for mental health and anxiety issues. I personally have an anxiety disorder and it was nice to see that in a character and see how it impacts their story.
I felt that the character development was a little stunted. I definitely enjoyed the story as a whole, but I realized as I was reading the book that I didn’t really know the main characters. Sure, I knew of their families but I didn’t really know their personalities. A few things were touched upon in terms of hobbies, but it didn’t feel real enough. Sure, Analiese liked going on hikes with her father and Marek liked to work out but those things didn’t really define them. And their passion for these things is lost on the reader since they are only seen or mentioned lightly. As to what any of their other hobbies, interests, or passions are, I couldn’t say. They didn’t feel like blank slates by any means, but they didn’t feel as real as they could have.
I am really on the fence about the ending. Things came to a close, but there was so much left open. The ending is structured in such a way that the reader expects a sequel, but I have no idea if there will be one. I have seen no mention of a second book or even that this is going to be a series of books instead of a stand-alone. I feel like this book needs a sequel. Having a sequel would very much benefit this story.
Overall, this is a compelling story with plenty of twists and turns. It has a fascinating take on mythology that will captivate readers. If you are looking for a fast-paced fantasy story with a lot of mystery and a scavenger hunt, then you’ll love this book! I so very much hope that there will be a second book to this story!
Analiese Rising was one of my highly anticipated books to read in January, and I was excited to read it after the publisher sent me a paperback copy of the book. I had already pre-ordered the Kindle version of the book before its release so that I could have it on my Kindle ahead of time.
The premise of the story was exciting and I was excited to read something different from other books I have been reading lately, especially in the YA Paranormal/Fantasy genre. A little bit about the book because the synopsis goes into detail about the story. The book is told from one point of view, which is Analiese Jordan. She’s a young teenage girl who lost both of her parents and her Uncle. She’s at school one day and ends up touching a frog during science class, which comes back to life briefly. She’s freaked out about it. She then runs into an older gentleman that warns her that someone wants her and he ends up dying. She goes to the older gentleman’s house since she has his bag and meets the grandson, Marek. She tells him what his grandfather told her. They end up going on an adventure together to discover what clues Marek’s grandfather left for them to find. Both characters are going to realize there is something bigger happening around them and they both play a role in it.
Unfortunately, this book did not grab my attention like I was hoping for when I was reading it. It took me a while to finish it because I kept having to put it down and read another book that would grab my attention. Do not get me wrong there were parts I enjoyed about the story.
I loved where the author was going with the story and the characters. I loved all the gods/goddesses that were introduced in the story, and I loved how there was so much adventure in the story for the characters. They did end up dealing with a lot of serious events though, especially Analiese. They were followed quite a bit in the story, which happened to be most of the book where they are running from so many people that they realize have their agenda.
I think the most disappointing part of the book was the very ending. It came so quickly. I was left hanging and felt confused. I hope and pray that Brenda Drake writes a second book because of the conclusion of Analiese Rising. I want to know who won the war or what happened at the end of the story.
Rating: 3 stars
Do I recommend this book? Although, this book did not grab my attention that does not mean other readers may not like it.
Will I read other books from the author? Yes, definitely.
Elements: Adventure (Travel with history elements due to traveling to Rome/Paris) and Mythology (Gods/Goddesses)