Beneath the Fall
by Aaron Safronoff
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Barra’s father is missing, lost to the Fall, the vast expanse beneath the last habitable branches Great Forest’s canopy. She was very young when he vanished and is eager to learn about him. But her study of his journals and notes reveals the secret of a darkness eating away at the heart of the Great Forest.
Barra sets out with her friends to find answers, where their journey takes them to the lowest parts of the canopy, right to the edge of the Fall. What they find leads them on an exploration of the world of Cerulean. As they struggle to find a cure, they find themselves in a race against the ominous darkness eating away at their homes and their world.
Series: Single
Age Recommendation: 10+
Warning: Scenes of Mild Violence
Faith Based: No
ISBN: 978-19446-0601-5
Overall
Characters
Story/Plot
Writing
Setting
Consistency
THE BOTTOM LINE
This novel excels when it is permitted, but the introduction of an expansive fantasy world overwhelms it in many cases.
THOUGHTS…
Beneath the Fall is the first installment in the Sunborn Rising series. The outstanding feature of the novel is the world which was built around it. It is unique, well developed, and illustrated beautifully with over a dozen full-color pictures. The storyline was clearly written for a younger audience and provides a fun, fast-paced adventure for younger readers. Ironically, one of the strengths of the book is also its biggest weakness. While the world is truly amazing, the author’s desire to describe it can bog the story down in spots. The alien nature of the world also makes it difficult to become truly immersed in the book until you have enough background to fully understand the setting. All in all, though I found Beneath the Fall to be an enjoyable reading experience, it is clearly meant as a children’s book and would undoubtedly engross younger readers even more than it did me.
RANTS AND RAMBLES
When I originally wrote this review, Beneath the Fall had just come out and there were plans to expand the universe with books, games, and other media. Since that time, the author apparently gave up on this series, so this book is now listed on Amazon as a “1 Book Series.” Consequently, I have updated this in the book information section of the review but have left the review in its original text.
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