Ascendant (The Made Ones Saga, #3) by Vicki Stiefel – Review

Tags

5 stars, birds, fantasy, feature, parallel universe, romance, scifi, series, trees, Vicki Stiefel

Review of Ascendant

The Made Ones Saga has been on my favorites list since I read Altered in 2019.  This sci-fi/ fantasy/ romance mashup is perfect for any reader that likes these genres presented in an imaginative setting with compelling characters who overcome traumatic life changes, prejudice and world-ending evil scientists.

Sybelle joins her sisters Bree and Kit (see Changed and Altered) in the earth-parallel world of Eleutia.  This new world presents many challenges and much joy for Sybelle who now lives amount the CastOuts.  The clan leader, Kestrel, is a man of many mysteries. 

At the heart of the story, and indeed the entire series, is the struggle against the Alchemics, who have dire things planned for Eleutia and for Earth.  Sybelle and Kestrel may be key in overcoming the Alchemics.  They will also have help from Sybelle’s sisters, their mates, and their animal symbionts.

Highlights from Ascendant: 1) Sybelle’s ties to nature – she communicates easily with trees, especially Mother Tree, 2) Kestrel’s ability to communicate with birds, 3) the slowly evolving romance between Sybelle and Kestrel 4) Ohtli, the CastOut girl with unusual gifts, and 5) the climactic made-for-the-movies battle scene.    

This conclusion to The Made Ones Saga is epic!  With an extraordinary world, the author has brought together fantastic beings, heroic deeds, and legendary battles. 

Thanks to the author who provided a copy of her book.  My review is my honest opinion.

About Ascendant by Vicki Stiefel

What if you could be young again? Would it be a dream come true or truly a nightmare? For Sybelle, the youngest of the Balazova sisters, awakening on the parallel world of Eleutia is no delight. From experiencing near suffocation to changes in her flesh, Eleutia seems a strange and hostile place, though the world itself feels oddly familiar. Her resonance with The Kestrel, the mysterious leader of the CastOuts, only increases her bewilderment, as does the appearance of Mother Tree.

As Mother pulls Sybi into her orbit, the controlling Alchemics tighten their noose on Eleutia. War is brewing—no longer will Eleutia’s symbiotic animal clans tolerate the Alchemic strictures.

Could Sybelle be the fulcrum fated to avoid destruction and save this strange world? Or is she merely a pawn to be used by the Alchemics in their battle for supremacy? Worse, will Sybi’s tug-of-war ultimately destroy her, the sisters she adores, and the man who has come to mean the world to her.. Or will she ascend, triumphant, and save all she holds dear?

Links

Add Ascendant to your Goodreads shelf:

Purchase Ascendant:

If you are new to the series, you may want to go for omnibus that includes all three books in the series (releases May 15):

Razor Strike by Lee Sarpel – Feature with Excerpt

Tags

excerpt, feature, Lee Sarpel, romance, scifi

Debut author Lee Sarpel’s Razor Strike released on May 15. SciFi Romance readers might want to check this out. I’m looking forward to reading this one soon!

About Razor Strike by Lee Sarpel

Eight years ago, Harbor Corporation hired Trez as one of its Strikers, cybernetically outfitted commandos who carry out high-risk missions to advance the company’s semi-public corporate wars. It should have been the perfect job for an adrenaline junkie: break into the opposition’s building, dispatch the guards, find the target, do whatever the higher-ups demand. But Trez can’t cope with the violence anymore.

She also can’t afford to retire any time soon. Her hapless father owes money to the Makos, the most powerful crime ring in the city-state of Portland. If Trez can’t pay off his debt, the Makos will expose Trez’s carefully hidden past misdeeds to her employer. Forget being out of a job: she’ll be jailed for life if Harbor doesn’t eliminate her first.

Luckily, her longtime friend, colleague, and onetime fling Eric is determined to help her fix her problems. Can Trez swallow her pride, navigate mob politics, evade a colony of robot iguanas, and face down an anarchist cell before the life she’s built for herself crumbles?

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Razor Strike – Excerpt

A sudden screeching noise made Eric’s danger sense flare. What could be …his eyes widened. That was one pimped out dirtcycle headed his way. It careened hard into a nearby storefront with a loud crunch, throwing the rider a few meters down the road. Eric ran toward the cyclist even as the other pedestrians gave the bike some distance. Dirtcycles spruced up like that often had some crazy volatiles in their tanks. You never knew what could explode when.

“You all right?” He checked the crumpled figure for obvious injury. The rider was breathing and conscious. The half helmet, now dented in near the right ear, had taken some of the impact. He wore a suit with a sharktooth motif. Mako member then. Probably suffering massive road burn under there. Maybe even broken bones.

“Ugh,” said the cyclist. He shook his head as if there were an object in there he needed to jar loose. “What the … Shit …” His face turned toward his bike, now embedded in the cement next to the front door of a building signed ANUPAM’S SYNTH SWEETS. “Well, fuck me.” He grimaced, and braced his hands on the road to get back on his feet. He failed to push himself up then he collapsed.

A beat-up truck swerved onto their street, and two goons wearing flannel bandannas to cover the lower half of their faces came out. They didn’t sport any Mako symbols, and red-and-green plaid was definitely not a Mako color combo. One of them had a baton attached to their belt. Eric’s metal detector didn’t pick up any other weapons.

He hadn’t acquitted himself well in the earlier fight today. Here was a chance to impress the Makos. Never hurt to be in good graces with the mob.

Eric’s heartbeat sped up. He had been tired, but he could feel a second wind coming on. This could be more fun than he’d expected. He turned to face the thugs, angling his body and putting one foot forward. His farther hand made a fist. “Looking for something?”

The two figures stopped short. One tilted their head at the other’s. “This isn’t your business.”

The words came easy. “Sure it is.” Come and get it. He smiled, not kindly.

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Purchase Razor Strike:

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Ascendant (The Made Ones Saga, #3) by Vicki Stiefel – Feature

Tags

fantasy, feature, romance, scifi, series, Vicki Stiefel

I’m looking forward to the release of Ascendant by Vicki Stiefel. I’ve enjoyed books 1 and 2 in the Made Ones series, so I’m sure this will be a good one!

About Ascendant by Vicki Stiefel

What if you could be young again? Would it be a dream come true or truly a nightmare? For Sybelle, the youngest of the Balazova sisters, awakening on the parallel world of Eleutia is no delight. From experiencing near suffocation to changes in her flesh, Eleutia seems a strange and hostile place, though the world itself feels oddly familiar. Her resonance with The Kestrel, the mysterious leader of the CastOuts, only increases her bewilderment, as does the appearance of Mother Tree.

As Mother pulls Sybi into her orbit, the controlling Alchemics tighten their noose on Eleutia. War is brewing—no longer will Eleutia’s symbiotic animal clans tolerate the Alchemic strictures.

Could Sybelle be the fulcrum fated to avoid destruction and save this strange world? Or is she merely a pawn to be used by the Alchemics in their battle for supremacy? Worse, will Sybi’s tug-of-war ultimately destroy her, the sisters she adores, and the man who has come to mean the world to her.. Or will she ascend, triumphant, and save all she holds dear?

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Want to get a taste of this story. You can read chapter 1 here: http://www.vickistiefel.net/ascendant.

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To celebrate her new release, Vicki Stiefel is running a giveaway. The prizes include:

A new Kindle (giving away 2)

$25 Amazon Gift Cert. (giving away 2)

Eleutian Earrings, gold over sterling silver

Eleutian Bee Pendant, gold over sterling silver

Paperbacks of ASCENDANT (giving away 2)

5 eBooks, ASCENDANT

To enter the giveway, head over to Vicki’s website: http://www.vickistiefel.net/.

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Pre-order Ascendant (releases May 15):

If you are new to the series, you may want to go for omnibus that includes all three books in the series (releases May 15):