?? 2025 "Best Series" Bronze Medalist, Moonbeam Children's Book Awards?? 2025 "Best Audiobook" 1st Place, Royal Dragonfly Book Awards?? First Place, Gertrude Warner Award for Middle Grade FictionShe didn't mean to burn down the gym. That was just the beginning. Vivian Carmine always knew she was different. She just didn't know she was a phoenix. When her powers ignite at the worst possible moment, her parents reveal a world of hidden myth and folklore - then vanish before they can explain anything else.
Following the only lead she has, Vivian lands at RISE - a secret academy in Seattle where demigods, fairies, and fabled creatures train to blend into the human world. But spy school has its own rules, its own dangers, and its own secrets. And not everyone there wants her to find her parents. Armed with science, stubbornness, and a growing flame she's still learning to control, Vivian forges unlikely alliances - including with Samael, the sharp-edged son of Hades himself, whose loyalties are harder to read than any textbook.
When the clues point straight to the Underworld, Vivian doesn't wait for permission. She goes. Getting in is easier than getting out - and getting out costs more than she bargained for. A Flash of Fire, a Gertrude Warner Award-winning series starter, is packed with mythology, found family, and one fierce girl determined to save the world - before it goes up in flames. Book One of the Moonbeam Award-winning "Best Series" The Phoenix Rising Trilogy. CRITICS ARE SAYING: "Crisp prose and a brisk plot keep things moving along...the end result is a fresh, fantastical take on a coming-of-age tale." - Kirkus Starred Review, "Get It""The mythic, playful world that Vivian must make sense of will appeal to young readers, as will the heroine herself, a smart, strong-willed young woman who does not back down from a fight or turn her back on those she loves...
Readers who enjoy school fantasies and Greek myth will be eager for more of this promising trilogy." - Booklife"A Flash of Fire by A. L. Wyss is an excellent children's fantasy adventure. Erin Chemla did an incredible job with the narration. The story is entertaining, fun, interesting, and fast paced. Children will be entertained." - 5/5 Britany Britton, Booksprout"A. L. Wyss's A Flash of Fire is the first installment in The Phoenix Rising Trilogy.
The author seamlessly blends contemporary urban elements with Greek mythology in the world-building, creating a unique landscape in which gods and humans interact as equals in modern-day city settings... The detail-oriented narrative style shines through in the strategic planning between Vivian and her allies, as well as in the intricate battle scenes. Wyss stylishly weaves all these elements together using a graduated pace and a ballad-like delivery in specific parts of the narrative.
I look forward to more of this fascinating story." - 5/5 Essien Asian, Readers' Favorite"This dynamic storytelling kept me glued to the book from start to finish. Fortunately, this is not the end of Vivian's journey. Her adventures have just begun, and I really cannot wait to read more books about her in the future." - 5/5 Doreen Chombu, Readers' Favorite
?? 2025 "Best Series" Bronze Medalist, Moonbeam Children's Book Awards?? 2025 "Best Audiobook" 1st Place, Royal Dragonfly Book Awards?? First Place, Gertrude Warner Award for Middle Grade FictionShe didn't mean to burn down the gym. That was just the beginning. Vivian Carmine always knew she was different. She just didn't know she was a phoenix. When her powers ignite at the worst possible moment, her parents reveal a world of hidden myth and folklore - then vanish before they can explain anything else.
Following the only lead she has, Vivian lands at RISE - a secret academy in Seattle where demigods, fairies, and fabled creatures train to blend into the human world. But spy school has its own rules, its own dangers, and its own secrets. And not everyone there wants her to find her parents. Armed with science, stubbornness, and a growing flame she's still learning to control, Vivian forges unlikely alliances - including with Samael, the sharp-edged son of Hades himself, whose loyalties are harder to read than any textbook.
When the clues point straight to the Underworld, Vivian doesn't wait for permission. She goes. Getting in is easier than getting out - and getting out costs more than she bargained for. A Flash of Fire, a Gertrude Warner Award-winning series starter, is packed with mythology, found family, and one fierce girl determined to save the world - before it goes up in flames. Book One of the Moonbeam Award-winning "Best Series" The Phoenix Rising Trilogy. CRITICS ARE SAYING: "Crisp prose and a brisk plot keep things moving along...the end result is a fresh, fantastical take on a coming-of-age tale." - Kirkus Starred Review, "Get It""The mythic, playful world that Vivian must make sense of will appeal to young readers, as will the heroine herself, a smart, strong-willed young woman who does not back down from a fight or turn her back on those she loves...
Readers who enjoy school fantasies and Greek myth will be eager for more of this promising trilogy." - Booklife"A Flash of Fire by A. L. Wyss is an excellent children's fantasy adventure. Erin Chemla did an incredible job with the narration. The story is entertaining, fun, interesting, and fast paced. Children will be entertained." - 5/5 Britany Britton, Booksprout"A. L. Wyss's A Flash of Fire is the first installment in The Phoenix Rising Trilogy.
The author seamlessly blends contemporary urban elements with Greek mythology in the world-building, creating a unique landscape in which gods and humans interact as equals in modern-day city settings... The detail-oriented narrative style shines through in the strategic planning between Vivian and her allies, as well as in the intricate battle scenes. Wyss stylishly weaves all these elements together using a graduated pace and a ballad-like delivery in specific parts of the narrative.
I look forward to more of this fascinating story." - 5/5 Essien Asian, Readers' Favorite"This dynamic storytelling kept me glued to the book from start to finish. Fortunately, this is not the end of Vivian's journey. Her adventures have just begun, and I really cannot wait to read more books about her in the future." - 5/5 Doreen Chombu, Readers' Favorite
