Title: Phoenix Rising
Author: Ryk E. Spoor
Publication Date: November 6, 2012
Genres: Fantasy
Protagonist Gender: Female/Male
I discovered fantasy in high-school, back in the late 80s/early 90s, so my fondness for the genre is firmly rooted in the likes of Weis, Hickman, Feist, Rawn, Lackey, Brooks, Jordan, Eddings, Donaldson, and others. I grew up with sprawling epics of magic and monsters, wizardry and wonder, where hope (and humor) tipped the balance of horror. I love its familiar tropes and its cliches, and its tried-and-true themes of heroism and sacrifice.
Sadly, stories that like have become the exception on shelves dominated by grimdark and historical fantasy, so when I find a book like Phoenix Rising, my heart swells and my imagination squeals like a teenager once again.
I was hooked by this from the first chapter. It has the settings, the mythologies, the characters, and the creatures that I so fondly remember. Ryk E. Spoor doesn’t just nod and wink to the reader, he welcomes us with open arms, giving us things like adventurer’s guilds and quests that are the stuff of roleplaying games. The stakes are cataclysmic, betrayal is everywhere, but you know from the start that goodness will prevail – it will struggle, there will setbacks and sacrifices, but goodness will win out.
By the end of this book we have our classic heroic trio fully formed: a highborn young woman imbued with the power of a magical knight, a noble questing prince from across the world, and a kick-ass intelligent toad who only fools underestimate. Quests are completed and villains vanquished, but the fate of the world still hangs in the balance, with two more books waiting to be devoured.
Rating: ♀ ♀ ♀ ♀
Sally Bend 
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