Rising Sun by Donna Grant is the first book in the Elven Kingdoms series. This is a fast paced action & adventure book that follows Yasmin, a human who is paired with Ravi, an elf as she must take him over Dangerous Peaks. This starts as a slow burn both Yasmin and Ravi don't want to be together however, they need each other to get into Shaldorn without being caught. As they they soon have feelings for each other but they don't share it . This is for fans of Katee Robert, Geneva Lee, Piper CJ, Mia Sheridan, and Penelope Barsetti. I would like to think both NetGalley and Tantor Audio for giving an advanced audio copy of this book.

***I would like to thank NetGalley, Author Donna Grant, and Audiobook Publisher Tantor Audio for this ARC. "Rising Sun" by Donna Grant release May 14, 2024.***

"Rising Sun" by Donna Grant is an enchanting journey into the world of the Elven Kingdoms, told through the dual perspectives of Yasmin and Ravi. As a reader, I was captivated by Yasmin’s strength and resilience in the face of past traumas, making her a truly empowering heroine and FMC. Grant's meticulous world-building drew me in, setting the stage for an epic series filled with romance, fantasy, and adventure.

I found myself rooting for Yasmin every step of the way as she navigated the complexities of the Elven Kingdoms and her evolving relationship with Ravi. Their enemies-to-lovers dynamic added depth and tension to the narrative, keeping me hooked until the very end. Even when the end of that relationship took a different turn.

While "Rising Sun" primarily focuses on establishing the intricate dynamics of the world and its characters, I appreciated the attention to detail and the promise of future developments. I sincerely look forward to seeing how the journey unfolds in the upcoming installments, as we delve deeper into the mysteries of the Elven Kingdoms and the characters who inhabit them.

I thoroughly enjoyed Shane East's narration, especially in bringing the male perspectives to life. However, I couldn't help but wish for a female narrator to accompany him, adding more depth to the characters' voices (Yasmin). While I understand that it's common to have one narrator for all characters, I believe it would have enriched the listening experience. Nonetheless, East did a fantastic job, and Tantor Audio remains one of my top choices for audiobooks.

Overall, "Rising Sun" is a captivating start to what promises to be an unforgettable series, leaving me eagerly anticipating the book in this creative new series.

You can also view my review via GoodReads and StoryGraph.

Thank you to NetGalley, Tantor Audio, and Donna Grant for the opportunity to listen to this ARC/ALC!

First of all, Shane East, as a narrator—excellent choice. I am really picky when it comes to narrator voices, but this one is a 10/10 for me. While I would have preferred a female voice for the FMC, I am not mad either that Shane narrated the whole book. It was easy to distinguish whose POV it was, and he narrated all the characters very well.

As the plot unfurls, listeners will find themselves drawn into a tapestry of intrigue and discovery, walking alongside characters whose journeys are as captivating as they are transformative. And for those who relish in the delicious tension of forced proximity, Rising Sun is for you!

Personally, I am in love with Dane (I hope I am spelling his name correctly, since I listened to the audiobook, I am not sure), and I wouldn't mind getting to know him more. Maybe a cute love story? (Also, please don't break my heart, he deserves a happy end!)

The end, with the foreshadowing for what's to come, left me excited for more. I can't wait for the next (audio) book!

For some reason I could not get into this audiobook. I don’t know if it was the story, which I did find lacking a little, or the narrator, or just the writing style. I just could not get into it. I felt like everything was random and the love scenes, idk, just didn’t like the description of everything and I’m far from a prude. I just couldn’t recommend this book.

I wanted to like this book so much. The description and genre are right up my alley and I should have LOVED this book. I listened to the book as an ARC from #netgalley. I struggled to pay attention and was just....bored. A lot of the pieces just didn't fit together and I kept asking myself questions in my head about what the heck was going on that just didn't make sense.
I know alot of others have highly rated this books so I think I still would recommend to give this book a try. Maybe my mind was just not in the right place at this time to enjoy this book.
Maybe this is an "It's me, not you" situation.

First I want to thank Tantor Audio for introducing me to Shane East. *Immediately adds all of his audiobooks to my TBR*

Second, the tension in this book. I am deceased. This was a seriously good slow burn with all the tension and stolen touches (my fav). I think this has the potential to be such a good series.

I also love the Elven magic and cannot wait to hear more about each sect of Elves and their capabilities.

Thank you again to Tantor, Donna Grant and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this title. I received an ARC of this book and I'm leaving my review voluntarily and honestly

I made it to 25% in this book and I just didn’t enjoy it. Ravi was an unlikeable MC: He was so whiny in his internal dialogue, which bothered me more than his judgmental attitude. So much of the writing was repetitive and it made the story drag.
The narrator was talented and if this book had some reworking it has potential as a story

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Rising Sun was a fantastic, enemies-to-loversbromance story that was full of suspense, anticipation, survival, sacrifices, honor, honesty, mystery, abuse, revenge, steamy scenes and more I  don't want to give anything away because I will definitely be recommending this book to all of my paranormal romance loving friends. There was never a dull moment in this story. It's a story worth reading as I loved everything about this story from beginning to end. Yazmin is one tough cookie and there's more to her than what meets the eyes. The more time Yas and Ravi spent together, the more they opened up to each other, and the more they opened up the more I fell in love with them. I was completely happy with the way this story ends with Yaz, Ravi and the kids, however, things are far from over as Gita wants revenge and she will not stop. I'm definitely looking forward to the next book in this series.

Key Tropes: 

☀️ Slow burn romance
☀️ Enemies to Lovers
☀️ Heist/High Stakes
☀️ Found Family
☀️ Forced Proximity
☀️ Opposites
☀️ Alpha hero
☀️ Different worlds
☀️ Redemption

The first book I have read by Donna Grant and so happy with the outcome. Right away you jump right into the world in Shecrish where we meet Ravi (MMC) and Durga as they both work for the Defense Intelligence Agency. They have been dealing with a looming battle that has been coming for the Elven kind that is killing them.

The FMC we meet right away, Yasmin, is strong and independent (love this) but comes from a traumatic past of experiences and scars. This plays into the divide more as she is forced to work alongside the Elf kind that she disdains with Ravi. Just makes the story even better for me!

The audio narration by Shane East was a pleasure as he does so well to separate our characters not only by voice, and tone but also by emotion. This only enhanced the story as he is so talented. I am looking forward to future books as I am hooked.

Huge thanks to NetGalley, Donna Grant, and Tantor Audio for the ARC!

This action packed fantsy was a thrilling read. I enjoyed the narration. The character depth was engaging and endeared the characters to my heart. This book contained it all, suspense, drama, intreague, romance, spicy, danger, etc.

Wow! This was such a great story! It had me wanting more. I couldn’t stop listening. The storyline was beyond amazing. The characters were great, the development of them was incredible. Highly recommend reading or listing to this one!!

I really enjoyed this new series! It was easy to love and cheer for the main characters, Ravi and Yasmin. The world-building was really slow, but once it got going, it was really hard to put down. I ended up finishing it in one weekend! I loved the enemies-to-lovers trope. The ending left an entrance for more, and I would definitely read the next part of the story.

I read the audiobook version and I really enjoyed the voice actor chosen for this series. It fit the storyline really well.

NetGalley provided me an advanced readers copy of this novel, but all opinions are my own.

Rising sun is an enemies-to-lovers romantacy by Donna Grant. It was my first Donna Grant book and it definitely won't be the last. It has all the elements of a good fantasy story- elves, humans, dragons and magic and with the slow burn romance it was a great read. The story building was great and the time line very well paced. The narrator did an amazing job bringing the characters to life. It ended on a cliff hanger and now I cannot wait to get my hands on the second book as soon as its out!

On a mission to help one of the many children she cares for in the human part of the city slums, Yasmin is caught and coerced into returning to the one place she’d never wanted to return, Shaldorn where she spent much of her life being used and abused by the Elvish elites. Paired with Ravi on his mission to Shaldorn to retrieve a new and horrible bomb and keep it out of the wrong hands. Their journey is hard and dangerous and they only had one tent to share and survive in. To learn more about the similarities of their races than the differences. This was a fast-paced and dark enemies to lovers adventure that I cannot wait to continue whenever the next book comes out!

Talk about a slow burn!!! This is my first Donna Grant book but I was not disappointed. I love romantacy and this has it all - elves, humans, dragons, magic and a slow burn enemies to lovers trope. And she jumps right into the world and story. She builds the world as she goes which I love. There’s no real downtime in the book, it just keeps moving. I can’t wait to see how the story progresses.
Also, not surprisingly, Shane East does an amazing job with the narration.

I've listened several books in Donna Grant's Dark World and was happy to have a chance to listen to this one in advance. This is a little slower then all of the other books in the world but still enjoyable. The dragons were mentioned a few times but never made an appearance which was a bit of a bummer. I was hoping to have at least one make a cameo appearance and was pleasantly surprised when I got what I wished for.. After this book, I'm looking forward to delving further into the elv's stories.. Shane East is always a pleasure to listen to.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for this audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun audiobook to listen to. The adventure Yasmin and Ravi went on to retrieve a device meant to start a war was pretty enthralling. They start out as enemies being forced to work together and the author did a great job of showing the gradual growth between these two characters. Hearing about the place Yasmin was held captive and then seeing the things happening when she is forced to go back there was appalling. I got so angry on the victims behalf that I need to see this place dismantled as badly as Yasmin does. It's safe to say I am hooked on the start of this series and I can't wait to see where it will go.

I unfortunately could not get into the audio, but I will be picking up and traditionally reading this book as I have never read a book with elves like this. I'm looking forward to trying this again!

This was just okay for me. I love Shane East as a narrator, so that’s really what got me through this audiobook. I like the idea of this story, but it just missed the mark. There wasn’t enough of anything to make me care about the characters and I was pretty confused on what was even supposed to be happening.

3.25/5⭐️
2/5🌶️
Narration 3.5/5

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Tantor audio for providing me with this audiobook!

Rising Sun was an emotional and action packed listen with tons of dramatics and one of my personal favorite tropes, naked cuddles for warmth 🔥
I liked that this was written mainly from the MMCs perspective because it’s less common In romance books and this MMC was so brudy and sweet. It had a little bit of enemies to lovers but they started catching feels pretty quick. I did feel like the feelings from the characters went from luke warm to burning hot love/lust very quickly and I wish we would have had a bit more build up and tension between them.
The plot in this was solid and interesting but the beginning was a bit of an info dump that I found hard to get through and I think we were lacking a bit of background/depth to the world and characters.
It gave big action/spy movie vibes but sadly I didn’t feel too invested in the storyline or characters hence my rating. For that reason I don’t think I will be continuing the series but I have a feeling I will be in the minority for this one since I can see a lot of things to love about this book!