What if Atlantis really exists and only remains hidden, out of site from humans?  Open the pages of Alyssa Day’s book to see what happens with ATLANTIS RISING….

Conlan has escaped from the clutches of the evil vampire goddess, Anubisa, but not in time to stop a rebellion.  A traitor has escaped with the sacred Trident of Poseidon and Conlan is determined that he and his warriors will recover it.  However, an encounter with social worker and empath, Riley Dawson, sends Conlan reeling as he’s never felt this way about a woman before.  Will the attraction between them destroy Atlantis? 

Alyssa Day has created a complex but very entertaining world with ATLANTIS RISING.  The intricate details surrounding both the Warriors of Poseidon and their opponents are well fleshed out and provide a great deal of depth to the overall storyline.  Vampires are not the sexy good guys you find in many of the paranormal romances, but are instead vicious and quite brutal.  Some of the scenes are graphic, although entirely appropriate in the context of the plot.

The character development in ATLANTIS RISING is well done, and sets the stage for future books in the series.  I must admit, however, that Conlan was perhaps my least liked Atlantean.  This is not to say that he was a bad character but rather that several of the other Warriors of Poseidon were just that much more appealing!  I’m looking forward to stories for quite a few of them, particularly Alaric.  On the other hand, I adored the characterization of Riley!  Her quips about social workers perfectly demonstrated the sort of dark humor that is used to cope in such a tough field.  In fact, Riley’s reaction to the Atlanteans made the entire concept much more believable.

ATLANTIS RISING is a good start to the series.  There is some uneven pacing that hinders the progression of the storyline just a bit, but this is fairly common when first introducing such a vast world and cast of characters.  ATLANTIS RISING is well worth reading for paranormal fans and it will be interesting to see how this series develops over time.

Reviewed by Debbie

Rating:

Posted June 2007