I enjoyed the initial saga of the Rise of the Fifth Order fantasy series, Born of Water.

            In the magic-filled world of Myrrah, the Priests and Priestesses of the Church of the Four Elements can control earth, wind, water, and air. The Church maintains its position of power by “adopting” (kidnapping, was my impression) and training any children who show the power to control the elements. The story begins when a disillusioned Priestess of the Church, Niri, goes rogue. Niri refuses to report and “recruit” a teenage girl, Ria, who shows the potential to perform magic, an ability which could get Ria killed by the Church. In a danger-filled quest reminiscent of the Lord of the Rings, Niri, Ria, plus two other young adults, Lavinia, and her brother ,Ty, begin a worldwide search for a method to save Ria’s life from the Church’s Curse. This is also a story of personal discovery, growth, and developing relationships between young adults. As should be with any good fantasy series, the story comes with maps and detailed descriptions of the different races, their cultures and languages. Both fantasy and young adult readers won’t be left wanting—except for more.

            The story follows the logical order of the characters’ journey without backtracking to explain events. However, the pace can seem uneven at times, since the story often slows to develop the characters. The action scenes are exciting, short, and concise. But I was surprised, and sometimes disappointed, when characters suddenly discovered powers they didn’t know they possessed just in time to save the day. This distracted from the suspense for me, since the characters became almost god-like and undefeatable.

            I thought the characters were as well-developed as can be with growing young adults who still don’t know their own motivations and desires. Niri remained the thoughtful leader, struggling with her own fears and self-confidence. Lavinia is a budding young woman, battling the relationship with her brother, Ty, and learning to love for the first time. I found Ria the most interesting character. She struck me as a spoiled teen full of insecurity and fear. While Ria has most potential to perform magic, she’s also the most immature. I kept waiting for her to make some disastrous mistake. Ty is the most confusing character—as are most young men at his age. His guilt and anger often seem misplaced or ill-timed.

            The writing style flows smoothly. Although there are some edit problems, they weren’t bad enough to be distracting. I did have problems when characters switched to a foreign language. No translation was provided, leaving the reader to decipher what was being said. This came at a critical junction in the story when the characters learned important information about their abilities.

            I’m not a fantasy reader, certainly not a reader of YA fantasy. My limited experience with this genre left me making comparisons with the only YA novel I’ve read in recent years, Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I enjoyed Born of Water more than Hunger Games. I felt the characters were better developed. The mythical world was better described. I bought Rule of Fire, the second book in the Rise of the Fifth Order series. I didn’t buy the sequel to Hunger Games or see the movies. I did, however, have the same problem with both Born of Water and Hunger Games. Whenever the characters were faced with certain death, they were suddenly saved by sources previously unannounced or explained. This fault distracts from the story and its credibility.

            I recommend Born of Water to both young adult and adult fantasy readers.

            Author: Autumn M. Birt

            Twitter: @Weifarer

            Website: AutumnWriting.com