Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Review: THE LAST RISING by Rachel Firasek


Title: The Last Rising
Series: Curse of the Phoenix #1
Author: Rachel Firasek
Publisher: Entangled Publishing (September 3, 2011)
Format: eBook Novella
Source: Purchased from Amazon
Genre: Paranormal Romance

Description: After paying two millennia’s penance to Osiris, world-weary Phoenix Ice has had enough. Saving souls without any hope for her own redemption isn’t how she imagined spending eternity. Fed up, she decides her next death will be her last. But when she sacrifices her own life for a sexy Texan in a catastrophic plane crash, she has no idea the consequences will be so great…or that she’ll end up back in his life for her next assignment.

Now that Turner Alcott has survived the worst, finding a wife and mother for his son matters more than ever before. When the mysterious Ice comes into his life, Turner knows she’s the one—but love is the last thing Ice wants. If he wants to win her heart, Turner must teach Ice how to forgive herself, and prove that love is the ultimate sacrifice.

Review: Rachel Firasek’s The Last Rising sizzles in this new take on Egyptian mythology mixed with the modern day.

Once a goddess, now a phoenix, Ice must pay penance and hope for a chance for redemption. Yet she’s decided she has had enough of Osiris’s games. Yet when she saves Turner Alcott’s life, she may have to rethink her chances at redemption. Turner is arrogant, annoying, but she can’t stand to be away from him or his son Brodie. Ice must decide if Turner is her redemption or her newest curse.

The brilliant use of Egyptian mythology as well as the idea of the phoenix and redemption makes Firasek’s The Curse of the Phoenix series stand out. It is this idea that drew me to The Last Rising and into the series. Firasek knows how to create a slow burning romance. I kept wondering “will they” or “won’t they.” Turner is a bit of a weak link in this novella for me, though. I find his chauvinistic attitudes and brash behavior a bit off-putting, but Ice and Brodie won me over. Firasek creates strong characters. The pace moved quickly, only lulling during the latter half of the novel before picking up again. The characterizations of the other phoenixes make me want to read the next in the series.

The Last Rising by Rachel Firasek burns slowly and increases the tension between the romantic duo. Like a phoenix, I can’t wait to dust off the ashes and read the next in the series!

Four Bookworms = I really liked it!