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Category: Eon’s Reviews

Book Review: A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

Book Review: A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

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A Murder is Announced booc cover

A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars.

Genre: Mystery, Murder Mystery, Fiction

Published: June 1950 by Collins Crime Club

All hail the queen of murder mystery, Agatha Christie! 

I recently finished The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, my first ever Agatha Christie read and a masterful display of writing. As that book is now among my favourites, I was quite eager to sample more of the author’s works and decided on a book in her Miss Marple series. It was not a completely random choice, rather the blurb was extraordinarily compelling and promised a very intriguing plot.
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Book Review: Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle, #1) by Jay Kristoff

Book Review: Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle, #1) by Jay Kristoff

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Nevernight book cover

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Nevernight Chronicle (Book #1 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 448 pages (US hardback edition)

Published: 25th July 2016 by Harper Voyager (UK) & 9th August 2016 by St. Martin’s Press (US)

A deviously dark and thrilling tale, Nevernight is the first book I read by Jay Kristoff and I loved every murderous second of it.

The protagonist, Mia, is a girl bent on revenge, hoping to make the cut in a fabled assassin school called the Red Church. The story starts off with her making her first kill which will serve as a tithe to the Maw.

“…the Maw. Niah. The Goddess of Night. Our Lady of Blessed Murder. Sisterwife to Aa, and mother to the hungry Dark within us all.”

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Book Review: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

Book Review: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

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Cover of book for The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars.

Genre: Mystery, Murder Mystery, Fiction

Published: June 1926 by William Collins, Sons

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is singularly spectacular.

After recently enjoying some mystery fiction, I decided to explore the genre a bit more and my research concluded that there was hardly a better option than an Agatha Christie novel. I did not plan on reading any specific one until I perused an article on some of the best murder mysteries and saw an Agatha Christie book listed. First published back in 1926, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd was voted the best crime novel ever in 2013 by the British Crime Writers’ Association. I had found my next read.
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Book Review: The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

Book Review: The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

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The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars.

Genre: Mystery, historical fiction

Published: 1st October 2020 by Raven Books (Bloomsbury Publishing, UK), 6th October 2020 by Sourcebooks Landmark (US)

Cunningly crafted and delightfully devilish, the Devil and the Dark Water is not only a masterpiece of a mystery novel but also the most fun I had between the pages in 2020.

And that right there might be all I need to say. While it was a horrible year in most aspects, books were a shining light in the dark, providing the very escapism I needed time and time again with a stellar line-up of stories read. Eeyore-mode averted. (It’s not a pretty sight, I confess.) And if it isn’t already transparently obvious, The Devil and the Dark Water more than did its part in keeping that gloom away. It was one of the stars of the show, making Mr Turton a shoo-in for not only the best new-to-me author I read that year but also my auto-buy author list. This might be your triumph dear author, but it feels like the pleasure was all mine, and I thank you for it.
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Book Review: Rhythm of War (The Stormlight Archive, #4) by Brandon Sanderson

Book Review: Rhythm of War (The Stormlight Archive, #4) by Brandon Sanderson

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Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Stormlight Archive (Book 4 of 10)

Genre: Epic fantasy, high fantasy

Published: 17th November 2020 by Tor Books (US) and Gollancz (UK)

Dealing out as many exhilarating moments and heartfelt ones as questions to think upon, Rhythm of War is a simply stunning composition from a masterful storyteller!
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Book Review: The Fires of Vengeance (The Burning, #2) by Evan Winter

Book Review: The Fires of Vengeance (The Burning, #2) by Evan Winter

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Cover illustration by: Karla Ortiz

The Fires of Vengeance by Evan Winter

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Burning quartet (Book #2 of 4)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Military Fantasy,

Published: 12th November 2020 by Orbit (UK) & 10th November 2020 by Orbit (US

This review is spoiler free.

The Fires of Vengeance melts expectations; burning even hotter than the Rage of Dragons and blazing a trail for Evan Winter to join an elite group at the top of the fantasy pile.

I absolutely loved Evan Winter’s first contribution to the fantasy genre, and ever since I finished the Rage of Dragons I had been counting the months to the sequel’s release and holding on to the hope of maybe even getting a chance to read it earlier. When I was offered an ARC, I jumped at the chance to read more about Tau and his journey on the path of vengeance and immediately made space in my schedule.

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Book review: Northern Wrath (The Hanged God Trilogy #1) by Thilde Kold Holdt

Book review: Northern Wrath (The Hanged God Trilogy #1) by Thilde Kold Holdt

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I received an ARC of Northern Wrath from the publisher (Rebellion) in exchange for an honest review.

Northern Wrath

Cover illustration by: Larry Rostant

Northern Wrath by Thilde Kold Holdt

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Series: The Hanged God trilogy (Book #1 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Norse Fantasy, Historical Fantasy

Published: 29th October 2020 by Rebellion (UK) & 27th Solaris 2020 by Orbit (US)

A promising and ambitious debut.

This book grabbed my attention completely when I saw the gorgeous cover art by Larry Rostant and I immediately added it to my tbr. For all I knew though it could have been about A lost tribe of Norse gummi bears coming back to claim The Lost City of Marshmallow as it was just one of those covers where you don’t really need to ask questions. Stunning in its simplicity and allure.I confess though, I was no less eager upon reading the blurb about vikings, gods and battles and could not resist requesting an ARC of this epic norse fantasy.
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Book Review: The Trouble With Peace (The Age of Madness, #2) by Joe Abercrombie

Book Review: The Trouble With Peace (The Age of Madness, #2) by Joe Abercrombie

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I received an ARC of The Trouble with Peace (Gollancz) in exchange for an honest review.

Cover illustration by: Tomás Almeida

The Trouble with Peace by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Age of Madness (Book #2 of 3), First Law World (Book, #9 of 10)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Grimdark fantasy

Published: 15th September 2020 by Gollancz (UK) & 15th September 2020 by Orbit (US)

A savagely stunning sequel. 

The Trouble With Peace takes place shortly after the events of A Little Hatred and its ominous conclusion. Whilst peace has been hard-won, it is a peace built on shaky foundations and the title for this second book in The Age of Madness trilogy is not coy about the direction of this story.
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Book Review: A Little Hatred (The Age of Madness, #1) by Joe Abercrombie

Book Review: A Little Hatred (The Age of Madness, #1) by Joe Abercrombie

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A Little Hatred


Cover illustration by: Tomás Almeida

A Little Hatred by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Age of Madness (Book #1 of 3), First Law World (Book, #8 of 10)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Grimdark fantasy

Published: 17th September 2019 by Gollancz (UK) & 17th September 2019 by Orbit (US)

As ferocious and fun as ever.

It’s been a while since I read a Joe Abercrombie novel, and the truth is that it has been too long. This dawned on me when I recently read one of his short stories in an anthology and was instantly reminded that he is one of the greatest fantasy writers of our era, with a writing style and tone of his own, and a gift for bringing words, thoughts and emotions to life like no other. A Little Hatred moved up on my TBR and when I saw that his latest book, The Trouble with Peace, was releasing soon I decided that there was no time like the present for catching up.
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Book Review: The Bone Shard Daughter (The Drowning Empire, #1) by Andrea Stewart

Book Review: The Bone Shard Daughter (The Drowning Empire, #1) by Andrea Stewart

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I received an ARC of The Bone Shard Daughter (Orbit) in exchange for an honest review.

The Bone Shard Daughter book cover

 

The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Drowning Empire (Book #1 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy

Published: 10th September 2020 by Orbit (UK) & 8th September 2020 by Orbit (US)

I will make no bones about it: This brilliant fantasy debut has announced Andrea Stewart as quite possibly the best newcomer of the year.

Bone. Shard. Magic. How intriguing does that sound?!?! I’m a sucker for a cool magic system and the sound of that sold me instantly. Having finished this book speedily, I can honestly say you would be wrong if you thought that was the final mark under this book’s coolness column. We’re talking migrating islands, lost ancient civilizations, wet and dry seasons that last for years if not decades, mythical creatures, people mysteriously disappearing, and other inexplicable magic. I fully understand if you stop reading this review about now to go and place that pre-order. Excellent choice in supporting this author if I may so.

“The construct looked nothing so much as a giant spider, dark brown and glistening, as tall as my chest when it stood to attention. Human hands were attached to the end of each of its spindly legs, and an old woman’s adorned the abdomen.”

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