I don’t often have the privilege to blog about a book by an author I know, so this is a real pleasure. Ms. Shannon Rohrer is a fellow Wattpad author, one I had the privilege of meeting very early on in my writing career. She was one of the first people to read Talon the Black in its raw, unfinished form. It’s been wonderful seeing her progress and success over the years in publishing her work.
Whispers of Nowhere is a fantasy story with tons of Greek mythology mixed in. I’ve read this book twice. The first time was on Wattpad. Reading it the second time after purchasing the published Kindle ebook was even better than the first. I caught all kinds of stuff that I missed before, and feel further in love with its characters, especially the firebird himself, Phenex.
Whispers of Nowhere is YA fantasy that follows Gwen, a teenager who gets tangled up in a fight to reclaim mythological artifacts that act as “seals” to Nowhere. Nowhere is a place where really, really bad guys go. Think of it as a world for criminals. Gwen must work with the guardian of the artifacts, Forneus, and one of his good friends, Phenex, to reclaim the artifacts before the bad guys do. This way they can close up the portal to Nowhere before the monsters coming out wreak irrevocable damage upon the world. But it seems there is something much deeper and more sinister going on than just closing up Nowhere. Thus begins a quest for truth.
This is an action packed story full of monsters, quests, and friendship. I love the way the Ms. Rohrer allows her readers to get into the minds of all the characters, including the antagonist, Reeves. She does a wonderful job adding dimension to each character, and making them relatable. If you like multi-dimensional stories that jump into other POVs to see what everyone is thinking and feeling, you’ll definitely like this one.
I appreciated the avoidance of the cliche romance that often happens in young adult stories. Gwen could have fallen in love with either Forneus or Phenex. Rather, they seem to be more like brothers to her, and that was really sweet and refreshing. Some stories need romance to be interesting, but this one is plenty exciting without it. I tend to be a huge romantic, and often gravitate away from stories that don’t have it. Honestly, this story didn’t need it. So don’t be scared away by that.
I also really like the transformation Gwen’s character undergoes. No one likes a stagnant character, and Ms. Rohrer delivers some great character transformations. When Gwen first gets tangled up in the story, she has a very realistic reaction of complete disbelief. I would have reacted the same, quite honestly. Gwen especially struggles to accept what is going on even after getting sucked into the world of the gods. As the story progresses, she begins to accept her position. She suppresses her fear, sucks it up, and does the best she can in the situations she is placed into. By the end, we see a much stronger heroine who would do just about anything for those she cares for. I really appreciated this aspect of the story.
Finally, I’d like to make one more comment about Ms. Roher’s writing. Her descriptions and attention to detail is beautiful. One of my favorite aspects of this story is the Spectrum. This is a place where the gods live, a place Gwen gets to visit, and live for a time while she’s helping reclaim the artifacts. Ms. Rohrer’s descriptions of this setting are spectacular. She layers on descriptions throughout the story, so that we learn more and more about the Spectrum as we go. I think that’s one of my favorite aspects of this story.
I highly recommend this book, and look forward to reading the sequel. Ms. Rohrer can be found on Wattpad if you’re interested in reading what she’s posted there. You can also obtain her book on Amazon via the link I’ve provided. Enjoy!!
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