Scion of Storms

Manifestation, Book 2

De: Samuel Hinton

Narrado por: Andrea Emmes

It's time for Raysha to embrace her power.

After an arduous journey to integrate an ancient spirit heart into her core, Raysha sets out to prove her worth in the Academy's tournament.

Raysha must find a path, forge her own techniques, and advance to the Initiate. As the clock ticks down to the start of the contest, will she be able to prepare and overcome the fierce competition from the student elite? Can she control the vast ocean of aeon with sheer stubbornness and claim victory?

Provided the tournament is a straightforward content of will and power, Raysha is determined to find a way. Political incidents, internal and international, are something she'd like to stay in her past.

©2023 Samuel Hinton (P)2023 Podium Audio

I love Rasyha

SCION OF STORMS by Samuel Hinton is the second of the Manifestations book series. Manifestations is a cultivation book, which is a type of fantasy that is about accumulating power through an Eastern-style magic system. Manifestations is no more Eastern than Avatar: The Last Airbender but has strong influences from it that set it apart from typical Western Medieval fantasy. I really enjoyed the first book, SOUL RELIC, and picked up the second audiobook as soon as I was finished.

The premise is that village girl, Raysha, has just enrolled in the Academy now that she’s managed to overcome her issue of being unable to regenerate aeon. Ironically, no sooner than she arrives, Raysha ditches all of her classes before focusing on the chance to win the school tournament. This has the opportunity of bestowing cash as well as physical prizes that could be the difference between poverty or great wealth.

There’s a lot of humor to be had in this story as Raysha is mono-focused on the competition to the point that she has no interest in the Academy whatsover. As an academic, I understand this attitude even as I find it deeply frustrating. Raysha would rather self-study or try to pry secrets out of her brother than try to get information from anyone who claims to be an authority figure.

Raysha is quite entertaining with the chip she’s carrying on her shoulder from her time in the village being condescended to. She instinctively hates the rich, nobility, and anyone who is above her. This actually gets her into trouble as she drives away both allies and creates enemies. It also leads her to ignore the fact the primary purpose of the tournament is to get the patronage of the noble houses that she despises on general principle.

There’s a lot of Harry Potter energy in this story but less of the whimsy. Raysha has to eat humble pie several times as while she has a lot of power to throw around, she doesn’t have nearly the experience or knowledge to wield it. Raysha learns to soften some of her views but hardens others and seeing which way she falls is always entertaining.

If you like magical combat, tournament arcs, and snarky heroines then this is definitely the book for you. Raysha can be annoying to anyone who thinks the rich might not automatically be scum and you might want to actually take advantage of classes if you’re attending a university but these are depicted as flaws she needs to overcome. The narrator, Andrea Emmes, does a fantastic job of bringing Raysha to life.