The Phoenix and the Witch (The Rise of the Light, #3) (2024)

I was fortunate to read this book while under development.

H.M. Gooden builds on the world created in her prior novels. Cat and Evelyn are sent to Edinburgh by Robin, their protector and leader, to fight the next leg of the war between good and evil. Vanessa, Cat's sister, and Mai follow them to Scotland, where the four are joined by Zahara in their quest to win the ultimate battle. Laced throughout with magic and energy, the story is energetic and imaginative. Unlike many fantasy novels, Gooden dives right into her story, and there is no lag at the beginning of the book. There is a steady stream of action and exciting "reveals" throughout the book, and the story culminates in an exciting and creative battle. Gooden has quite impressively woven in threads from the myths and religions of many cultures; I actually looked several of the characters up and learned something along the way. This is a quick and enjoyable read.

This book is most appropriate for late middle and YA readers e.g. 7th-11th grade.

A Great Continuation

The Phoenix and the Witch is another fun story involving our favorite characters Cat and her best friend, Evelyn. This time their adventure takes them across the pond to England and Scotland. Not only does this adventure open their eyes to the magic all around them, it also brings them closer together to face another challenge against the darkness. Their personal magic is stronger than ever, allowing them to feel confident in their ability to win this epic battle, yet the fear of failure looms as the days pass. I especially liked how the girls all get along so well, wanting to help one another in life, love, and magic. This is a really great YA adventure with fun elements of magic, transformation, and cooperation.

After defeating Dub in San Francisco, the girls are whisked away to a much bigger battle across the world in Ireland.

There, they learn of the legend of a dark and twisted tree that sits on the cliffs, high above caves where a family of cannibals lived. Upon learning more about this tree, they soon discover it is their mission to defeat it.

Ms. Gooden does a wonderful job weaving folklore into a modern day story, however, similar to the prior books, we have 180 pages filled with preparations and only 1 page to cover the big battle they are preparing for. I always feel a little cheated when this happens, but Evelyn’s self-discovery and Robin’s secret past does make up for it.

I first came across H.M. Gooden’s writing with the Legends of the Fallen series. Frankly, I probably only tried that series (separately reviewed, and highly recommended, by the way) because it was co-authored by a favorite author of mine, J.A. Culican. It was so good, though, that I had to try some other books by Gooden to see if they held up. Boy oh boy am I ever glad I did because wow is this a talented lady. I’m loving everything by her that I’ve read so far. That’s certainly true of Dream of Darkness, The Stone Dragon and The Phoenix and the Witch, the first three (but effectively their own trilogy) in her The Rise of the Light series. These really are fantastic books. Also totally fun. Each of them is a superbly written, with a great plot that flows into a great overarching story arc, a perfect cast from Cat (and Evelyn, Robin, Mai, Vanessa, Zahara, et. al.) on down and perfect world-building (be it set in the author’s version of San Francisco or Scotland, etc.). Just fantastic stuff. Just wow. No surprise that I was engrossed in these books, and probably would’ve done nothing but binge read them if my husband had not forced me to come up for air and do other things periodically. Definitely recommended.

The Phoenix and the Witch is a clever continuation the Rise of the Light book series. HM Gooden has created a clever world and story with characters that are easy to relate to and root for.

We find the girls picking up where the last book left off. Even though everything is getting back to normal Cat can’t help feeling that something is lurking. Soon we find that her gut was right and Robin sends the girls across to Scotland to face the next battle.

In this story we get more juicy treats revealed to us and we get to meet a few more lovely characters. The original circle has expanded to include another force if nature in Zahara.

This book was a very good continuation to the series and it’s a very quick and easy read. It did tickle the history nerd in me and led me to look up a few of the characters mentioned and I learned more about the old myths.

I really enjoyed this series. It was an easy read filled with friendship, magic and suspense. I loved how the plot grew and adapted from the first book. Intertwining auras, magical history, dragons, mythology and Celtic/Tuatha De Dananaan and ancient gods from all over the world and cultures. I loved how easily this story flowed and captivated me. I can't wait for her next series or even better a continuation of the story. I can imagine so much more for these characters as they continue to develop.

Magical

This time, the journey takes the girls to Edinburgh. Conquer the darkness. A tough ask, but the girls are growing stronger. They have to be brave, and they are. They have to work together, and they do.

This was another magical tale in this amazing trilogy! Well-written. Officially for YA readers, but I’ve passed that stage some years ago (ahum) and I loved it! Intriguing. Magical. In every sense of the word.

Girl power is awesome. The girls work together and support each other and all that jazz. I like seeing that. To see their magic developing so they are even stronger and more magical and all. I love that there is a mention of historical caracters and you can learn something out of this book when you google them. Amazing and thoughtful cause that doesn't happen often enough. So a good mix of myths and religions makes this book so worthy of your time reading it. Highly recommend!

I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. The story has been building on itself from small trouble to the big city and now on their way to Edinburgh Scotland. Cat and Evelyn are learning more about their magic and the magic that is in the world around them everyday. They are going to face another evil and something darker than anything they have face this far in their journey. This was excited and it wrapped up the trilogy pretty well. I want to ready more by this author.

Wow, what is left of this story. This story just keeps getting better and better. After this book, it will be hard to get any better. Add one more to the group with Zahara and now there are 5, oh make it 6 with Jake. But this is definitely girl power to the extreme. I am curious what the last installment of this series has in store.

Loved this adventure. The gang gets back together along with a new member Zahara. This time the battle is fought in the homeland of Scotland against Carmen. Each girl learns a bit more about their powers and abilities, but it is Evelyn who has the greatest awakening. As always the battle of good and evil never ends, looking forward to their next adventure.

I like this serial so far. I like that each story is connected but can also be read as a standalone. But it is great to read each character has their own story but they intertwine in to each other also. This is Vanessa's story and it is an intriguing one. I can't wait for the next one.

I really enjoyed reading this series and watching each of the girls grow. I loved the fact that in this one we get to learn more about Robin, meet a new girl and one of girls gets to learn more about herself. This is a fun read and very enjoyable

Great Book

Loved reading this book. Cat is a great character to follow. Didn’t want the book to end. Fantastic writing and plot. Great Job.

The Phoenix and the Witch by H.M. Gooden
So much love for this book.
I love it.
I won't say anything more because if I continue I will spoil everything 🙈