Cover art illustrated by Diego Spezzoni
The Fangs of War by E.J. Doble
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Sun Eater (Book #1 of 5)
Genre: Fantasy, Grimdark Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Pages: 575 pages (Hardcover edition)
Published: 11th January 2022 (Self-Published)
It is an impressive feat that a young 21-year-old writer wrote and published a grimdark fantasy debut the like of The Fangs of War. …
ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit Books—in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by: Martina Fackova
Cover designed by: Lauren Panepinto
The Trials of Empire by Richard Swan
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: Empire of the Wolf (Book #3 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High fantasy
Pages: 496 pages (Kindle edition)
Word Count: 164,000 words
Published: 6th February 2024 by Orbit (US) & 8th February 2024 by Orbit (UK)
The Trials of Empire bestowed readers with a different direction and satisfying ending to Empire of the Wolf trilogy.
“One of the greatest feats of human cognisance is to realise and accept that every being capable of thought has a life as complex as one’s own.”
The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
I received an advance copy of this novel from the publisher, Orbit/Redhook, in exchange for an honest review.
The description for The City of Stardust captivated me as soon as I read it. Here’s what hooked me: “A young woman descends into a seductive magical underworld of power-hungry scholars, fickle gods and monsters bent on revenge to break her family’s curse in this spellbinding contemporary fantasy debut.” There are so many things that grab me in that little synopsis. A “seductive, magical underworld?” Sign me up. “Power-hungry scholars?” Forever and always. Fickle gods and family curses? Yes, please. While I did get all of those things, the story itself didn’t land quite as solidly for me as I had hoped it would. …
Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art by Dusan Markovic
Heliotrope by Palmer Pickering
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: Standalone
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy
Pages: 784 pages (Paperback edition)
Published: 23rd November 2022 by Mythology Press (Self-Published)
Heliotrope is a good one-off standalone character-driven fantasy reminiscent of the classic adventurous fantasy novel. …
Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by Kyra Gregory
The Prophet of Edan by Philip Chase
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Edan Trilogy (Book #2 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Pages: 610 pages (Paperback edition)
Published: 21st June 2023 by Philip Chase (Self-Published)
For better or worse, The Prophet of Edan is a heavily action-packed sequel to The Way of Edan. …
Cover art illustrated by Nathan Anderson
Tales of the Sun Eater, Volume 2 by Christopher Ruocchio
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Sun Eater (Book #4.5 of 7)
Genre: Sci-fi, Space Opera, Science Fantasy
Pages: 157 pages (Kindle edition)
Published: 1st June 2022 (Self-Published)
Tales of the Sun Eater, Volume 2 is a comparatively better collection of short stories that shows The Sun Eater can still function without Hadrian Marlowe’s POV. …
Review copy provided by the publisher—Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by Sam Green
Cytonic by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: Skyward (Book #3 of 4)
Genre: Sci-fi
Pages: 432 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 23rd of November 2021 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)
Cytonic was not as underwhelming as I expected, which is good, but it felt like reading a middle-book syndrome despite it being the penultimate installment of the series.
“Sometimes it’s too easy to forget the things you should remember — and far too easy to remember the things you really should forget.”
Review copy provided by author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by Randy Vargas
Unbound by Michael R. Miller
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
eries: Songs of Chaos (Book #2 of 5)
Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Progression Fantasy
Pages: 672 pages (Hardcover edition)
Published: 1st October 2021 by Monolith Books (Self-published)
Unbound is where Songs of Chaos truly transformed to a progression dragon rider epic fantasy series. …
ARC provided by the publisher—Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by Sam Green
ReDawn by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: Skyward (Book #2.2 of 4)
Genre: Sci-fi
Pages: 227 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 26th of October 2021 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)
ReDawn is a necessary installment to read before Cytonic. …
Review copy provided by the publisher—Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by Sam Green
Sunreach by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: Skyward (Book #2.1 of 4)
Genre: Sci-fi
Pages: 177 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 28th of September 2021 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)
Sunreach expanded upon the secret of the hyperdrive and the characterizations of FM and Rig. …