Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Wednesday #Review - From the Ashes by Eliza Nolan #YALit #Fantasy

Series: The Phoenix # 2
Format: Kindle, 316 pages
Release Date: June 26, 2017
Publisher: E.N. Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

In this exciting sequel to Phoenix Awakens, Nolan whisks her readers off to Istanbul where the Legend of the Phoenix is the centerpiece in a centuries old battle for power.
It’s been three months since Julia Long discovered she’s a magical being called The Phoenix, and she still hasn’t mastered her ancestral powers. But when a mysterious visitor provides evidence that Julia’s birth mother has been kidnapped in Istanbul, Julia must try to save her.
Meeting her mother's family for the first time is wonderful, but discovering there are other kids her age with magic is better, even if one of them is infuriatingly dark and handsome.
But not everyone is happy letting kids be kids. Some seek to use these gifted youth as pawns in a game of power and intrigue. And just by the nature of who she is, Julia's now the most powerful piece on the board. But if she doesn’t play her part perfectly, she could lose everything, including her mother.



From the Ashes is the second installment in author Eliza Nolan's The Phoenix series. 18-year old protagonist Julia Long recently discovered that she is the fabled Phoenix. The Phoenix, in this world, is a sort of magical creature that lived a few hundred years ago. Unfortunately, Julia's knowledge of the full extent of her powers, and the book that explains what she needs to know, is currently locked up in a Charleston Police Station where it sits after the events of the previous installment.

Julia's issue, to begin with, is that her powers have gone silent since she healed five boys, including her current boyfriend Graham, who became her Beshi. Beshi, for the uninitiated, are those who gave themselves up in order for the Phoenix to rise. The second issue is the arrival of a strange woman with a packet of money, a passport, a one way ticket to Istanbul, as well as a letter supposedly written by her mother. Curious, especially since we previously learned that her mother apparently knew all along who Julia was and left a necklace to protect her from enemies that await her. 

Julia and Graham travel to Istanbul where an unexpected reunion with a family she knew nothing about happens. The struggle to find her mother, who she hasn't known her entire life, begins in earnest, but with plenty of twists and a bit of betrayal as well. To add insult to injury, the family is aghast at how little Julia understands about her role as the Phoenix. A role that can, as we find out, be taken away from her if she fails to understand what her destiny really is and does all she can to protect herself from enemies just waiting to surprise her.

Julia's hope is to return home to Charleston to retrieve the book that apparently holds all the answers, and unlock the key to her powersEspecially after discovering the so called Army of the Phoenix and the strange boy she finds a curious connection to Kele. Her connection to Kele will test her relationship with Graham to the limits on both ends of the spectrum. Will Julia survive her next test, or will the evil that is waiting for her finally bring down the Phoenix? Book # 3 has is being called The Fire Within. No further information is available at this time, but I will definitely be reading to see what happens next. 




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