I picked this book up because it had a dragon on its cover, but I stayed for the badass lead. It’s essentially the story of mulan, girl goes to war for her family so her dad (and brother) don’t have to and then brings honor to her family. But it’s a fresh take on that story and I enjoyed it a lot. ( )

DNF 15%

I just know when I can't stop arguing with a book long enough to enjoy it, I should just stop.

This is the second book I've read recently that basically took a historical setting (geography and political activity both) whole cloth and just renamed things. I currently prefer my fantasy to have more distance. ( )

I don’t know about Twelfth Night vibes, but Stormrise definitely channels its inner Mulan. In fact, it’s fair to say that this is pretty much a retelling of that story, with dragon lore involved. If that seems like your cup of tea, then let me tell you right now that you’re going to love this book. I had a ton of fun with it!

Rain is my favorite kind of character. Brave, loyal, and kind to a fault. She’s the type of girl who is more than willing to throw herself in harms way, if it means protecting the people that she loves. More than that though, is the fact that she’s willing to sacrifice everything for what she believes in. It’s tough not to love a character like that, and I promise that you’ll willingly follow her into every fray. She’s that charismatic.

The dragon lore in this book is also wonderful. I thought that Boehme did an excellent job of laying out why Rain’s link to these great beasts was so important. I would have loved a little more background, but we’ll get to that in a minute. For now, I’ll just say that the majesty and terror of dragon kind definitely comes through on these pages. Like I said above, this is basically Mulan with epic dragons involved.

Now to the part that made me rate this book lower than I expected. This is a very flimsy story overall. Sure, Rain is a fabulous character. Yes, her training is exciting and the addition of dragons is fantastic. However there’s really no depth to this book. It lacked world building, and actually a lot of character building as well. The story ran on the rails of a very thinly described world, and I missed that connection. I wanted to sink deeper, but there was nowhere to go.

So why did I still give this four stars? Truth be told, it was a lot of fun to read. I’ve been needing an escape and, for better of for worse, this was there for me when I needed it most. If you’re looking for a book that is an easy read, with plenty of nostalgia vibes to see you through, this is what you’re looking for. Trust me. ( )

Stormrise delivers the classic girl-warrior-in-disguise story...with dragons. Rain is confident and conscientious, and her story is brought to life through quiet world-building. Anyone familiar with Mulan won't be surprised by the story arc, but that's small potatoes. ( )

Stormrise by Jillian Boehme is a magical reweaving of Mulan, twined with Twelfth Night. Rain is her family's second daughter. She is one half of a set of twins and despite looking eerily alike, Storm is her brother. When a childhood fever attacks both, it stunts Storm's mental growth. Now, as a teen, he is still very much a child. In a culture that prizes sons, this has left Rain feeling that he should have been the one to come out of the fever unscathed. When war is declared, and a conscription is being raised, Storm must go, and their father with him, in case he cannot adjust.

Trained as a Neshu warrior by her father, Rain decides to steal away and take Storm's place in the army so she can protect her twin, and father both. But if she is discovered, it means certain death. With the help of a special powder containing dragon magick that will stop her moontime, Rain blends in with the other recruits and befriends a young man named Forest. She makes enemies as well, in the form of Sedge, an arrogant misogynistic boy. Rain excels at her training, and is soon enough placed in an elite unit with a mission to take the high king to a secure location. But through it all, Rain is hearing voices, triggered by taking the dragon powder. A voice, that is. Nuaga, mate of the last great dragon-king T'Gonnen, and Nuaga wants Rain to wake the other dragons slumbering beneath the land. Can Rain keep both secrets safe or will she be discovered?

OMC, I devoured this book! I loved the Mulan reweaving elements. Hidden girl goes off to war to keep family safe, ends up a hero. The twin angle was new. I felt so bad for Storm, for how he ended up, and for Rain too, because she thought if she hadn't been born, maybe Storm wouldn't have ended up as he did. And maybe he wouldn't have. Or maybe something worse would have happened. When Rain finally learns the truth behind which of the two siblings got the only dose of fever medicine, it was so sad, and yet it helped Rain heal from the inner beliefs she had over it.

I adored Forest, the first friend Rain-as-Storm makes. He turns out to be a very good friend indeed, even though he needed a sound thwacking a few times. As much as I adored Forest, I loathed Sedge. He became Rain's rival for no real good reason other than he needed a person to bully in order to bolster his own self esteem. This story is first person POV, and it was hilarious at times as Rain tried to learn to be a boy, and adjust to being around males acting as males. Then there were the dragons! These six-legged beasties have to be some of the more unusual dragons I've read about recently.

The ending felt a little rushed and a little deus ex machina. Like, I knew where things were headed, and it still felt that way, with the final defeat of the invading nomad army. That's just in the last little bit of the book though, and not too bad. It also felt like things between Forest and Rain changed too fast on his part. It would have been interesting to see if there was a subconscious attraction the entire time, but we don't get his perspective.

Highly recommended!

*****Many thanks to Netgalley & and MacMillan-Tor/Forge for providing a copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. Reviewed for FFBC Tours. ( )