Review of Rise of the Savior

[Shivali Y]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Rise of the Savior" by Antoine Bonner.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Rise of the Savior: Acolyte of Truth by Antoine Bonner is a fast-paced fantasy novel. It serves as a comprehensive prequel to the same author’s Rise of the Hearts series but can be read as a standalone novel. It follows a few storylines, that eventually converge together, and are all interconnected with deities, kundalini and acolytes. After the main character’s powers are introduced, she is given the burden of saving the world - your classic ‘protector of the world’ trope. The other character’s storylines range from wanting to save their child from a life-threatening disease to being an emotionless six-year-old with her own deity.

The story is interspersed with various concepts that are intriguing, such as the kundalini realm, yin and yang powers. It is interesting to read about in a fantasy setup, and the author clearly has a depth of knowledge about it. It is a plot-driven story that is well-structured. Moreover, the author’s writing is quite descriptive, which causes our heartbeat to rise during the action scenes. It is written in the present tense, which is rather uncommon but gives the unique sense of experiencing the story alongside the characters. At the start, the family dynamic is heartwarming, with Amanda sharing a strong relationship with her parents.

There were aspects of the story that I did not enjoy. It starts with an information dump that was all tell and no show, and this continues throughout the book. While descriptions are appreciated, they are better in moderation, and preferably without the author directly informing us. While the plot has definitely been thought out thoroughly and fleshed out, there seems to be far too much happening to properly dedicate time to developing the storylines. Plus, the fast-paced nature leaves hardly any space for character development. Personally, I think Amanda seems far too childish, even by the end of the book.

There is not enough attention given to the emotions of the characters - they seem to accept their predicaments and new situations within the span of a paragraph. This is entirely unrealistic and makes the characters seem rather two-dimensional. The explanation of the plot points and backstory is given in large expanses of dialogue, and the reader is forced to go through it multiple times to comprehend it.

All in all, I give Rise of the Savior: Acolyte of Truth 2 out of 4 stars. I would gladly recommend it to young adult readers with a penchant for action-packed fantasy stories, as well as anime shows. Although it was overall a good read, it wasn’t really to my liking.

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Rise of the Savior
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[Nonso Ok]

I just read this book, the author has a lot to work on. You have an amazing review.

[markodim721]

It’s commendable how the author came up with the fantasy setup, but I still don’t think this is a book for me. Thanks for the good review.

[Saint Bruno]

The emotions of characters im fiction books are important for the reader to invest in them. Thank you for your insightful review.

[Akshi Porwal]

I tried reading this book but couldn't get through the first half. I agree with the unnecessary description parts. Thank you for the great review.