a good continuation after book 1. It was nice to see the characters grow and develop in this story as well. There were some pacing issues, but honestly it was not that bad. I really liked this book a lot.

Such a great sequel to book one. The romance was so much better in here omggg it was amazing.
The plot and the tension was all chef’s kiss

So……I loved the interactions between talasyn and alaric but it felt like something was missing. I still love them tho. I love their growth together and as individuals. While this book felt like it was kinda slow at times I really enjoyed it, although not as much I enjoyed the first book. Definitely a solid sequel and I can not wait for the next one.

I’m on my second read and I enjoyed it just as much. The narrators do such a great job that I honestly think I may prefer the audio.

4.5⭐️s

Thank you NetGalley and HarperAudio for the eAudiobook ARC! Monsoon Rising continues the push-pull story of Alaric and Talasyn who share a deep passion for one another, but also feel they must betray one another for the sake of their respective kingdoms. Monsoon Rising is full of threats, battles, passion, and lack of communication. While progress lacks with actual betrayal, the storm is certainly brewing around them. The book suffers a bit from "middle book syndrome," but the characters and action will keep readers engaged and looking forward to the next book. The audiobook is expertly narrated by Kaleo Griffith and Jeanne Syquia, who build the world and bring the characters to life with their voices.

I'm a huge Star Wars fan and am intrigued by any Reylo-inspired stories. My favorite aspect of this book (and its predecessor) is the romance and blossoming relationship between Alaric and Talasyn. I love the concept of balacing light and shadow. Two stories in, though, and I'm still trying to reconcile the different aspects of the worldbuilding (aethermancy, airships, but also... dragons). Additionally, I feel like how the voidfell plot point played out was a little anticlimatic considering it was a main driver of the first book.

I've now listened to this audiobook twice and am still getting a little confused about the supporting characters' roles, perhaps because some of them are called by different names/titles and make brief appearances in the story. I recommend reading (or re-reading) The Hurricane Wars right before diving into this one to minimize confusion.

All that being said, I enjoyed the story and am looking forward to the next installment!

Title: A Monsoon Rising
Author: Thea Guanzon
Series: A Hurricane Wars Book #2
Format: 🎧
Narrators: Kateo Griffin and Jeanne Syquia
Publisher: Harper Audio Adult/Harper Audio
Genre: Multicultural, Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy
Pub Date: December 10, 2024
My Rating: 2.6 Stars
Pages 400

I love to read but also enjoy a great audiobook. I have many books on my TBR shelf but was all caught up with my audiobooks. As I was searching this story kept popping up. In fact this was my third search in the past few weeks and I thought okay I’ll try it.

The main characters are Alaric and Talasyn (the audiobook narrators did a great job in performing. I didn’t read Book One "Hurricane Wars" however I felt I knew these two.
Together they are out to save the world. However, I found their romance a bit strange for a second book. A bit of enemies to lovers, but they still love/hate each other. There are some very romantic scenes but Alaric states it meant nothing to him and Talasyn found it anticlimactic - oh wait or was that the food? Anyway Talasyn seems to still hate Alaric.

I hung in there but was disappointed that it wasn’t the big WOW or the ‘best book ever’ I was expecting.

Want to thank NetGalley and Harper Adult/Harper Audio for granting me this audiobook.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for December 10, 2024.

Overall I thought this was a decent book! It's more romance than political so if you are looking for that this is the book for you! There was a lot of steamy moments that I enjoyed and overall the story was good. It did have my hated trope of miscommunication. It never makes sense to me why they don't say the things that mean to say. The second book goes away from enemies to lovers and feels more like forbidden love? In both POV's you can see that they want each other but don't act on it to keep up appearances and so their country's still think they will turn on one another. The ending was a bit of a surprise too! I thought the audio narrators were great! They showed more emotions than most so it felt more like acting that just reading the book out loud.

The audiobook for A Monsoon Rising by Thea Guanzon was absolutely fantastic! It was entertaining, enthralling and quite the adventure. I really did enjoy my time listening to the audiobook for this fantastic series. It was very satisfying and I cannot wait for the next book in the series. The narration was great and I was so into the story because of it. I highly recommend checking out this series and it would be a great series to listen to on audiobook.

That ending, the betrayal on her emotions AND the mic drop style of information. This one had a lot more of the romance (building?) than the first but still some action and a lot of the political aspects of the first.

This was a great edition to the original story which I loved so much. Very satisfying.

Books definitely came out a bit far apart and with book 1 being so information dense, it feels like I forgot a lot of important characters and plot points. Book 2 does an okay job at reminding the reader, but it's still a lot and very information dense.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of A Monsoon Rising! I was so excited to read this and it absolutely did not disappoint. I don’t know how I’m going to be able to wait for the next installment!!!!

I enjoyed this follow up to the Hurricane Wars. I loved the creative worldbuilding, the politics, scheming, angsty romance and the magic. Excellent cliff hanger!

This was EXCELLENT! Guazon's ability to craft lore for her world is just astounding! The world-building and character development had be absolutely riveted! Dying to read book three!

It was everything I wanted but not enough! Dying to get to the third book to find out what happens next!

Wow, just wow! I honestly couldn’t put this book down. From start to finish, A Monsoon Rising had me on the edge of my seat. The tension between Alaric and Talasyn is dialed up to a whole new level in this installment—Thea really knows how to build that slow burn and chemistry between them! It’s impossible not to be totally invested in their dynamic.

And let’s talk about the side characters for a moment—Severin was such a fun addition! He brought a lot of energy to the story and I loved how he added some extra humor to the world. Honestly, the character development across the board was stellar, but the real showstopper? The spice. *fans self* The romance in this book is next-level, and it’s not just about the tension but the way everything unfolds in such a satisfying way.

The worldbuilding that Thea set up in book one only gets richer and more complex here. I was so drawn into the setting, the politics, the magic—everything. The stakes feel higher, and the depth of the world just pulls you deeper in. And that cliffhanger?! Oh my goodness, I’m dying to see how it all wraps up.

I’m already counting down the days for the final book in this trilogy. If you haven’t started this series yet, get on it now—you won’t regret it!

Good grief, this novel was absolutely outstanding! As much as I loved The Hurricane Wars — which I truly, deeply did — A Monsoon Rising has surpassed it in every way.

The world-building, character development, and intricate lore drew me in completely. The journey this story took me on was nothing short of captivating, and I’m on the edge of my seat, dying to know what comes next.

I wholeheartedly and enthusiastically recommend this series to anyone who loves immersive and compelling fantasy fiction.