4 Stars
Elves!
This book takes place on Zora, where there were supposed to be only dragons. Not true, humans occupy part, along with Elves, seven different kinds of elves, each with their own specific gifts. As the book starts, we meet our FMC Yasmin, a human who was once held prisoner in Shaldron. She has taken charge of a group of children who have been abandoned, abused, or have run away from their caretakers. While Yasmin is trying to locate food for them, she is captured by the Elves policing force, the DIA. Here she meets the MMC, Ravi, a Sun Elf who dislikes everyone, especially humans. The Elf in charge of the DIA forces Yasmin to commit to working with Ravi to locate a weapon that is going to be used against the dragons, that will force the Dragon Kings to attack in return. This is where the main story starts. At this point the story seems to get slower and bogged down-this could be because a lot of backstories for both characters is given, along with descriptions of the other type of Elves. The final quarter of the book picks up the action, and more information is given on the ones who are working to tear apart the somewhat peaceful world that is presented in the book. This is Book 1 of Elven Kingdoms which is an offshoot of Donna Grants large Dark World/Universe series. Rising Sun could be read without having read any of the other series, as all information a reader needs is given in this book. I rated it 4 stars because of the lengthy start to middle of the book that seemed slow going to me. Last quarter was where the story shines. Donna Grant always writes a well-developed story with good characterization, and with logical premise.
I was given an ARC by the author through BookFunnel, and this is my honest opinion.