The Girl Who Fell Into Myth (The Arisen Worlds, #1)

by Kay Kenyon

[Metaphorosis Reviews]

2.5 stars, Metaphorosis reviews

Summary
Liesa, living in the Midwest with her father, knows he's an envoy to the ordinary world from the worlds of myth that are derived from it. But, as his health and mind deteriorate, she suddenly finds herself ordered back to a homeworld she knows nothing about, and where her status is uncertain at best.

Review
I’ve read one of Kay Kenyon’s other books, Bright of the Sky, which also kicks of a tetralogy. I wasn’t a fan, but when I saw this for free, I thought I’d give it a try. I’m sorry to say that, while I like it better than the other, I don’t actually like it.

The book has a rocky start. It wants to plunge into the action, but somehow takes its time to do so, doesn’t really build much rapport with the characters, and almost immediately runs into the book’s largest problem – credibility. I just never really believed that the characters would do what they’re required to do by the plot. That last sentence encapsulates much of the issue – that characters act for plot purposes rather than organically.

While the story warms up a bit between, say, pages 50 and 150, after that it loses its way again. For one thing, it can’t seem to decide whether it’s a straight fantasy or a romance, and fails at both. There’s very little attempt to create circumstances where characters fall for each other – they just do, because … they’re primary characters, I guess. Throughout, characters act in ways I just couldn’t swallow – going so far as to write ‘ridiculous’ in the margin at one point. To take just one major example: (show spoiler)[a key character is kidnapped, insulted, kept captive, disregarded, rejected, tortured, and threatened. But when given a chance to live in a beautiful place with a character they’re attracted to and who has only been kind to them, they suddenly say, “Nah, I think I’ll go back.”] (hide spoiler) Romantically, the protagonist can’t seem to decide whom she’s attracted to and why, but not in a tension-building, ‘will they, won’t they way’. She just seems flaky.

Kenyon’s done some interesting foundation laying for her world, but I just couldn’t get over how little sense and logic there was to so many of the events. And unfortunately, several of the details of the worldbuilding (such as what exactly an arcana is, how aligns work, etc.) felt both opaque and underdeveloped. The hero, on, as far as I can tell, no basis at all, makes some pretty startling guesses as to her own power. I just found it all illogical. Maybe if you go in expecting a Harlequin romance rather than serious fantasy, it works better.

Overall, I just didn’t find this satisfying.