Library of Clean Reads: Neoglyphic Entertainment

It is clear that this book is a labour of love. From the illustrations to the themes of friendship, sacrifice and team work, Sunborn Rising is a beautiful book.

Book Details:

Book Title: Sunborn Rising: Beneath the Fall by Aaron Safronoff
Category: YA fiction, 385 pages
Genre: Fantasy Adventure
Publisher: Neoglyphic Entertainment
Release date: May 2016
Content Rating: PG (No sexual content, drugs or bad language. Some mild violence, and there is a death in the book.)

Book Description:

"Sunborn Rising: Beneath the Fall is the best vivid fantasy YA book of the year." --Entrada Publishing

On a distant world of forests floating on an ocean around a star,
a blight threatens to plunge all life into darkness.
But three friends seek the light.
Together, they will Fall and be lost.
And at the very Root of darkness, they will find themselves.
But will it be enough to help them find their way home?

The world of Cerulean

Light and water flow from the ocean into the roots of the Great Trees, up through the boughs, and out over the lush canopy. But the once vibrant treescape has grown dim over generations of arboreal life, and the creatures of the forest have forgotten the light.

Barra, a young, willful Listlespur, finds her late father's hidden journal, and reads about the old world and the mysterious plague her father believed destroyed it. He wrote that he warned the Elders. He urged them to take action. Those were his last words.

Together with her two best friends, Barra will explore every bark, wood, and leaf of the Great Forest to relight her world and complete her father's story, even if she has to travel beneath the Fall.

Buy the book: Amazon ~ Author Website

Our Review

Reviewed by Laura Fabiani and Son

The first thing I do when I come across a middle-grade book for review is to ask my 12-year old son if he would read it. After seeing the gorgeous book cover, book trailer and interactive website for Sunborn Rising, my son was very interested in reading this book with me. After all, he is the intended audience, so I was pleased, mostly because he is also a reluctant reader.

Sunborn Rising is the story of three friends in a fantasy adventure that takes place in the incredible world of Cerulean. There are three things that truly stand out about this novel: 1) the wonderful imagination of the author who created a fantastical world (both forest and ocean) that would translate beautifully to the big screen (thing Avatar and Finding Nemo); 2) the stunning illustrations that bring it all to life for the reader; and 3) the well-written text that challenge the young mind with new words and terminology.

My son and I eagerly dug into this book and we quickly became enamoured with Barra, the main character in the novel. My son thought Plicks was simply adorable. I loved Barra's relationship with her mom, too. As a parent I found the scenes with Barra and her mom resonated with me. Toward the end of the novel we also get to see Plicks and Tory with their family members. Kid-lit books that include family scenes and relationships always get an extra thumbs up from me. They are also perfect books to read with one's child, something I've been doing for years.

As you can see from the image above, all three characters are unique and the Cerulean world is mystical and beautifully imagined. Not only are the characters unique in physical appearance but they are also well-developed. Barra is courageous, stubborn and curious. Plicks is clumsy, funny and cute. Tory is patient, level-headed and loyal. The three friends embark on a journey as they try to uncover what is causing their world to go dark. Never did they think they would discover another world beneath the fall.

About one third into the book, my son began to point a few things that were making it difficult for him to follow the storyline. Because this is a fantasy novel, the reader's mind is introduced to strange new places, names and species. It becomes like a new language. This is the beauty of fantasy novels, but it can be a lot to take in for a child all at once. There are many characters in this book and they are introduced with new names and unique features and attributes that are at times laboriously described. This broke the pace of the story and sometimes bogged down the story.

Because the world building is truly unique, we think it would have been a good idea to include a glossary and a character list with all the characters in the book with a short description of who they are, including all the new places introduced, perhaps even a diagram showing the levels in the Cerulean world.

The last one third of the book was the most exciting, full of action and danger. It is clear that this book is a labour of love. From the illustrations to the themes of friendship, sacrifice and team work, Sunborn Rising is a beautiful book. There are a few unresolved plot threads, which I'm assuming are going to be addressed in the sequel to this book, which I look forward to reading. Kudos to the author and his team at Neoglyphic Entertainment for creating a fun adventure book suitable for the whole family along with its interactive website!

To read more reviews, please visit Aaron Safronoff's page on iRead Book Tours.

My son and I had the privilege of interviewing the author. You can read our interview with Aaron Safronoff here.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. I was not told how to rate or review this product.

The book trailer for this book is so well done!

You can also find more videos here:

http://www.sunbornrising.com/nav_media.cshtml

Meet the Author:

Aaron Safronoff is author of the Discovery Award winning science fiction novel, Spire. Since his debut, he's published a sequel, Fallen Spire, and a novella of literary fiction, Evening Breezes.

Safronoff's diverse background includes the formal study of computer science, bio-chemistry, and culinary arts. However, most of his career has been in the videogame industry in quality, production, and design.

Today, Safronoff is the co-founder and Chief Storyteller of Neoglyphic Entertainment, and is busy writing his fifth novel, the second installment of the Sunborn Rising series.

Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Enter the Giveaway!

Prizes:

1. Five winners will each receive a signed hardback copy of Sunborn Rising AND a free signed CD of the original musical soundtrack (open to USA only)

2. One winner will also win a 16’x20’ high quality (giclée) printed piece of the original art on canvas, signed by author Aaron Safronoff as well as Christopher Chamberlain the Art Director (valued at $100) – open to USA only

3. Ten winners will each get a gifted Kindle copy of Sunborn Rising with a $10 Amazon gift card AND a free digital download of the original musical soundtrack (open international)

Giveaway ends Aug 6, 2016.

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Today we kick off the virtual book tour for Sunborn Rising: Beneath the Fall by Aaron Saffonoff. My son Alessio and I are excited to be reading the book and our review will be posted later this month. We had the opportunity to interview the author, so read on to find out more about this beautiful fantasy book for middle-graders!

Read our fun interview with the author and enter the giveaway to win some awesome prizes!

Book Description:

"Sunborn Rising: Beneath the Fall is the best vivid fantasy YA book of the year." --Entrada Publishing

On a distant world of forests floating on an ocean around a star,

a blight threatens to plunge all life into darkness.

But three friends seek the light.

Together, they will Fall and be lost.

And at the very Root of darkness, they will find themselves.

But will it be enough to help them find their way home?

The world of Cerulean

Together with her two best friends, Barra will explore every bark, wood, and leaf of the Great Forest to relight her world and complete her father's story, even if she has to travel beneath the Fall.

Buy the book: Amazon ~ Author Website

Our Interview with Aaron Safronoff

Laura and Alessio: Hi Aaron, we are pleased that you are taking a few moments to answer our questions! We are happy to be reading Sunborn Rising together and we congratulate you on your launch's success and your recent Art Award. (Readers, scroll down to learn more about this.)

Aaron: Hello, Laura! Thank you for organizing this tour and for hosting the first stop at your Library of Clean Reads. The launch success, and the Into the Pixel award still have me over the moon. I’ll do my best to stay focused for you and your son’s questions :-P .

Laura: How would you describe your book in 20 words or less?

Aaron: A spirited girl carries the light left by her late father into the darkness to reignite her unique world.

Laura: As a parent, I'm always on the lookout for intelligent books in children's literature. There aren't many middle grade series that include interactive reading and video games. Do you feel that this is a good way to reach reluctant readers, especially reluctant boy readers?

Aaron: Video games used to require reading to play, and even scripting and math to get one to run on a PC, but now only a click separates the audience from the experience. Regardless, the same then as now, a video game will only inspire reading if it engages the audience beyond the mechanics, and causes them to seek more story. Once more is found in a book, he or she will be hooked. Games, webisodes, comics, are an opportunity to reach the reluctant readers, but the written story still needs to fulfill the promise of a unique and compelling experience to convince him or her to continue reading, or to seek out a book as well as the movie or game. I can’t say if it’s an especially gender-biased approach, but if a story reaches a child through his or her favorite activities, there’s a chance. :-D

Alessio: The book's illustrations are super cool. Are you or will you be selling any posters of artwork, 3D character figurines or plush toys?

Aaron: I’m so stoked that you like the illustrations! Me too :-P . We’re absolutely looking into all the ways the audience can share in the world of Cerulean, and that includes 3D characters, and plushies, and the like. The artists in the office already 3D-printed a model of Barra! Crazy cool stuff. People have requested a Plicks plushy since sneak-peeks began a couple of years ago. When we figure it all out, our website, sunbornrising.com, will have all the information.

Laura and Alessio: How did you come up with the world of Cerulean?

Aaron: I wish I could tell you exactly how, but in my experience of creativity, I cannot create and simultaneously observe the process while it’s in progress. The best I can do is guess in retrospect. In some ways, the way the tectonic plates of Earth float on oceans of liquid magma must have played a role, but also, it just sounded cool to consider a heliocentric planet of water and trees — a great place to create fantasy creatures!

Alessio: Will there ever be a movie or a TV series made from the Sunborn Rising books, just like the Silverwing animated series by Kenneth Oppel?

Aaron: I’m not familiar with Silverwing, but looking it up now, I’d certainly feel proud to be in similar company some day soon. I can tell you that we already have Barra modeled and animated thanks to the extraordinary team at Neoglyphic. Fingers-crossed it all goes well, and there continues to be interest in the world of Sunborn Rising. We’re certainly pursuing episodic content as well as feature length film opportunities.

Laura and Alessio: Who was the character that was the hardest to create? The most fun?

Aaron: Creating Tory presented the most difficult obstacles in terms of description. He morphed physically several times, and although I still think of him somewhat differently than he turned out, I’m excited for his continued development. Fizzit makes me happy whenever I think of him, and he’s still the most fun character for me to inhabit/channel when writing.

Alessio: What was your favorite book as a boy?

Aaron: I can only pick one? :-P I don’t remember what my favorite was back then, but looking back today, I think of Many Waters by Madeleine L’engle. I honestly believe I fell in love for the first time in that story.

Laura and Alessio: Why did you choose to make your main character female?

Aaron: Barra just is. Didn’t occur to me to make her male or female. She was the character I knew would be capable of challenging her society’s views of her world. I never considered anyone else for the part :-P . She exemplifies the characteristics I value most in people: a willingness to try, explore, and question. She has a kind of fearlessness that will someday allow her to truly know herself, and that makes her both vulnerable and powerful, and I treasure that in her.

Alessio: Are you considering producing an animated short of one of your scenes in the book? For example, like one of these shorts from a video game called Overwatch: Alive and Dragons.

Aaron: OMG. First. I’m a HUGE Overwatch fan. Genji is bae! The animated shorts released with the game so far have been impressive, and set a high bar for anyone wanting to expand story and characters for any modern franchise. We are indeed working on animated shorts for Sunborn Rising, and the team recognizes the quality the audience expects, and we endeavor to impress. Wish us luck!

Laura and Alessio: What are you currently reading? Or what was the last good book you just read?

A: I am currently reading, this census-taker, by China Miéville and I love it. I’m a huge fan of the author, and weird fiction — the name given to his style and others like it. I’d highly recommend his novel, Railsea.

Laura and Alessio: What is your favorite dessert?

Aaron: Oh man. Tough call. Chocolate mousse. I make it myself, and I’m my own toughest critic, and it’s spectacular! :-P Seriously. It’s really good. In another interview, I may have said cake. Probably depends on whichever I’ve had last; I crave whichever I haven’t had in awhile.

Laura and Alessio: What is the funniest thing that's ever happened to you? The scariest?

Aaron: Funny strange or funny haha? How about both? I clipped my hair randomly to make myself look mangy for professional company photographs. I tried to start a trend, but it didn’t take off. The scariest moment was when I broke my neck in a roofing accident. I didn’t know I’d broken my neck at the time, and I rolled around on the ground, pounding my arms against the grass trying to put the fire out, but it was only my nervous system exploding. I have a titanium plate in my neck now, but otherwise, I’m fine. Well, physically, I’m fine :-P .

Laura and Alessio: Thank you for visiting our blog Aaron! We look forward to reading Book 2 in the Sunborn Rising series.

Aaron: Thank you for having me. It’s been a blast, and I can’t wait to get Book 2 into your hands. Cheers!

Laura and Alessio: We look forward to reading it too!

Sunborn Rising Wins Art Award!

Neoglyphic Entertainment was honored to have their art recognized as some of the best in the games/interactive industry. Into the Pixel is a major art award for the gaming industry and their piece titled “A Mother’s Imperative” was selected as a winner. It’s a huge moment for this small company to be named with such iconic titles and studios as Riot's League of Legends and Ubisoft's Far Cry Primal.

In Neoglyphic's game Rush Blast, you play as a Rush delivering packages and flying through the great trees of Cerulean. "A Mother’s Imperative" shows the big branches that are the pathwoods the Arboreals traverse to move through their trees, and the basis for the Rush Blast environment. Dens like Barra’s, pictured in this image, are some of the destinations of the messengers in the world of Cerulean.

Enter the Giveaway!

Prizes:

1. Five winners will each receive a signed hardback copy of Sunborn Rising AND a free signed CD of the original musical soundtrack (open to USA only)

3. Ten winners will each get a gifted Kindle copy of Sunborn Rising with a $10 Amazon gift card AND a free digital download of the original musical soundtrack (open international)

Giveaway ends Aug 6, 2016.

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