Air Awakens is a fantasy series written by Elise Kova. The story follows Vhalla Yarl, a library apprentice at the royal palace, who was taught to fear the mysterious mages living in the Tower. With the Solaris empire at war, the servants in the library receive an urgent message with the news that the Prince has been harmed. Vhalla thinking that it was the heartthrob Prince Bladair she rushes to his aid, but little did she know it was his mage brother Aldrik. During her frantic rush to send written help, Vhalla awakens a power deep inside her (something that I will not expand on because no one likes a spoiler).
In the world of ‘Air Awakens’ there are four magical affinities; Groundbreaker, Waterrunner, Firebearer and Windwalker (click on each affinity to learn more). There are mages and non-mages, all who are fighting in the war effort for the Solaris empire.
The first thing that I need to say this series is how stunning the front covers are and I know they say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but I did and wow did it pay off. I hate to admit it but I am the type of person who is drawn into a book based on its cover (shallow I know) but I think a lot of people would agree that the covers are absolutely stunning and definitely drew them into the series.
Before discovering ‘Air Awakens’ I had not heard of Elise Kova, but she very quickly became a favourite of mine. This series had me hooked from book one, it is not very often that I will read an entire series in one go but I just couldn’t help it, I found myself wanting to know more and more about the characters and where the story was going to go next.
Vhalla has a major development arc across all five books, going from a quiet almost damsel in distress to a fierce warrior learning to hone her awakening power. Although at times she makes some questionable choices, these mistakes are what leads to the twists and turns that make this series a fun and enticing read.
I have read a lot of books about magic in my time and really liked them but this series is in a league of its own for me. The characters are endearing and authentic, the storyline goes from one plot twist to the next (never a boring moment) and the world-building is something that I am in awe of.
This series has been on my TBR for so long!!