Storm Rising

Author: Ronie Kendig

Series: Book of the Wars #1

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: July 2, 2019

Rating: 5 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

After years of serving under the command of someone else, Leif Metcalfe now has his own team to command, bringing his very own adventure more complicated than any he has faced before.

Leif Metcalfe has a difficult past and knows that it will be hard to push past all that to command his very own team. The time has come for him to step up and take charge. He and his team are tasked with finding the notorious Book of the Wars. They are not the only ones looking for it though. Iskra “Viorica” Todorova, a notorious Bulgarian operative gets to the book first. Iskra is being used by the man that kidnapped her, raped her and trained her to be a skilled assassin.  If she can bring the book back to him, she might be able to secure her freedom. As both Leif and Iskra work to secure the book, strange storms blow up around the world that foreshadow the wars described in the book. To get away and secure her freedom, Iskra will have to do the one thing she thought possible, trust someone. Leif doesn’t know if he can trust Iskra but he also knows it might be his only way to secure the book and stop the destruction before it is too late.

If you are a fan of Kendig’s Tox files, you will not want to miss Storm Rising. Many of the same characters are back with Leif including Mercy Maddox (one of my personal favorites in this and I can’t wait to see more with her). I loved the pace of this stor; it was very detailed but not so much so that it took me out of the story. The Tox Files got so deep with the archeology aspects that it can be hard to keep up with everything happening sometimes, still a great story though. Here we get a much lighter story that reads very smooth and will easily keep readers engaged throughout. Ronie Kendig has always had a way of weaving a story that is so rich in history, suspense, and characters that are drawn together in a way that feels natural and real. With each new novel she just gets better and better. This is by far her best work, especially with character development and a natural flow with the relationships and how they fit together smoothly. When dealing with a team like this, there are a lot of characters and at times it can seem like a few too many but as the story plays out readers discover the need for each one. With the next book, I hope to see even more development for these smaller roles.  As I said earlier, my favorite character in this book was Mercy, she is feisty, real and exhibits such energy that I can’t wait to see her further develop. She has so much potential as a lead character and I would love to see that for her. I recommend Storm Rising to fans of Kendig’s earlier work, but if this is your first time picking up a book by Ronie Kendig you won’t be lost. Even with the tie in to the previous series, new readers will be able to pick up and follow along with the story without a problem. Another great addition to my library.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher.  The views and opinions expressed within are my own.