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Category: Petrik’s Reviews

Book Review: Defiant (Skyward, #4) by Brandon Sanderson

Book Review: Defiant (Skyward, #4) by Brandon Sanderson

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Cover art illustrated by Sam Green

Defiant by Brandon Sanderson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Skyward (Book #4 of 4)

Genre: Sci-fi

Pages: 415 pages (Kindle edition)

Word count: 117,000 words

Publish date: 21st of November 2023 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)

This is another series wrap-up from Sanderson. Defiant is a satisfying concluding volume to the Skyward series that reflected the root of the first book: friendship.

“Some of them might die, I said. And it’s going to hurt. We’ll get through it though. Pretending that nobody will ever be in danger is the same as living in the nowhere, pretending loss doesn’t exist.”

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Book Review: The Dollmakers (The Fallen Peaks, #1) by Lynn Buchanan

Book Review: The Dollmakers (The Fallen Peaks, #1) by Lynn Buchanan

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This review is a copy of the transcript of my video review on The Dollmakers

ARC provided by the author’s agent in exchange for an honest review.

Cover art by Ashley Mackenzie

The Dollmakers by Lynn Buchanan

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Fallen Peaks (Book #1)

Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 400 pages (Kindle edition)

Word Count: 114,000 words

Published: 13th August 2024 by Harper Voyager

The Dollmakers is guaranteed to be a contender for one of the strongest fantasy debuts of the year 2024.

“Shean enjoyed thinking. Logic was a comfort— as long as she had a plan, she had direction, a guide to follow and mull over and think and rethink until she’d thought of every possible outcome to every possible event.”

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Book Review: Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Book Review: Coraline by Neil Gaiman

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Cover art illustrated by Dave McKean

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone

Genre: Fantasy, Horror

Pages: 201 pages (Lyra’s Books Hardcover edition)

Word Count: 31,000 words

Published: 2nd July 2002 by Harper Collins

Coraline is the best book by Neil Gaiman that I’ve read. And maybe, all this time, I might have picked the wrong Neil Gaiman books to read.

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”

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Book Review: Winter’s Heart (The Wheel of Time, #9) by Robert Jordan

Book Review: Winter’s Heart (The Wheel of Time, #9) by Robert Jordan

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Cover art illustrated by Scott M. Fischer

Winter’s Heart by Robert Jordan

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Series: The Wheel of Time (Book #9 of 14)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 705 pages (Kindle edition)

Word Count: 238,000 words

Published: 7th November 2000 by Tor Books

This was so damn rough. Winter’s Heart is easily the weakest book in The Wheel of Time so far.

“A man who trusts everyone is a fool and a man who trusts no one is a fool. We are all fools if we live long enough.”

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Book Review: The Trials of Empire (Empire of the Wolf, #3) by Richard Swan

Book Review: The Trials of Empire (Empire of the Wolf, #3) by Richard Swan

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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.”

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Book Review: Kingdoms of Death (The Sun Eater, #4) by Christopher Ruocchio

Book Review: Kingdoms of Death (The Sun Eater, #4) by Christopher Ruocchio

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This review is a copy of the transcript of my video review on Kingdoms of Death.

ARC provided by the publisher—DAW Books—in exchange for an honest review.

Cover art illustrated by Kieran Yanner

Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Sun Eater (Book #4 of 7)

Genre: Sci-fi, Space Opera, Science Fantasy

Word Count: 200,000 words

Pages: 544 pages (Hardcover edition)

Published: 8th March 2022 by DAW Books (US) & Head of Zeus (UK)

Ruocchio gets what I love to read in science fantasy. Every book in The Sun Eater series has become one of my favorite books of all time, and Kingdoms of Death is not an exception to this claim.

“Art, great art, serves as a reminder of invisible things and of their manifestation in things visible.” …

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Book Review: Heliotrope by Palmer Pickering

Book Review: Heliotrope by Palmer Pickering

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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. …

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Book Review: The Prophet of Edan (The Edan Trilogy, #2) by Philip Chase

Book Review: The Prophet of Edan (The Edan Trilogy, #2) by Philip Chase

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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. …

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Book Review: The Heart of What Was Lost (The Osten Ard Saga, #3.5) by Tad Williams

Book Review: The Heart of What Was Lost (The Osten Ard Saga, #3.5) by Tad Williams

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Cover art illustrated by Michael Whelan

The Heart of What Was Lost by Tad Williams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Osten Ard Saga (Book #3.5 of 7)

Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy

Pages: 222 pages (Kindle edition)

Word Count: 78,000 words

Published: 3rd January 2017 by DAW Books

The Heart of What Was Lost is the action-packed epilogue to Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy, and it is also a great setup to The Last King of Osten Ard. …

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Book Review: Evershore (Skyward Flight, #2.3) by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson

Book Review: Evershore (Skyward Flight, #2.3) by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson

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Review copy provided by the publisher—Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.

Cover art illustrated by Sam Green

Evershore by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Skyward (Book #2.3 of 4)

Genre: Sci-fi

Pages: 224 pages (Hardcover edition)

Publish date: 28th of December 2021 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)

Even without Spensa, this is a return to form. Evershore is the best title in Skyward Flight omnibus.
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