Cover art illustrated by Nekro XIII
The Liar’s Knot by M.A. Carrick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Rook and Rose (Book #2 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy
Pages: 688 pages (Kindle edition)
Word Count: 215,000 words
Publish date: 9th December 2021 by Orbit
The Liar’s Knot took its time to get its gear running, but the moment it started, the M.A. Carrick duo proved why this is a stronger installment than its predecessor. …
Long Live Evil (Time of Iron #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Publish date: 1st August 2024
How many times have you dreamt of entering the world of your favourite novel or series? Got lost in the thought of meeting that character or leading the charge against that villain? Being the one to entice that dark haired, shadow wielding … *cough* ok, let me bring it back to the point. Many of us dream of entering our favourite fantasy novel, with the usual caveats, of course. Obviously, we want to be one of the rich or powerful or beautiful characters, not the cannon fodder or poverty stricken nobodies that hover in the background, worth nothing more than a passing reference, if that. But what would it take you to actually DO it? Maybe your imminent death? That’s what happens to Rae. When a mysterious woman reveals that there’s no hope left for her, that her tumours have spread and the upcoming costs of treatment will destroy her family before she dies anyway, she’s offered one opportunity to change it all, to live. And she takes it. Who wouldn’t? Finding herself in the pages of her favourite fantasy series, Rae uses every bit of her (admittedly patchy) knowledge of the plot to keep herself alive and manipulate her way to her goal – stealing the Flower of Life and Death. It’s her only chance to live her real life again, free of disease and pain. But being a villain is harder than it looks and the real world is not the only place where death stalks the story…
Sanctuary by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Publish date: 30th July 2024
Imagine this. You’re home for the holidays, sorting out the final trimmings for the best meal of the year. But just when you thought it was safe to relax and enjoy your Christmas, Chernobog, the God of Destruction, Darkness and Death, decides he needs something doing. Immediately. So he sends a dream request with no get out clause. We’ve all had bosses like it – no boundaries and can’t take no for an answer. On top of that, a child, bloody and near death, rocks up asking for sanctuary, with elite mercenaries and a catastrophically powerful priest hot on his tail. The whole situation reads like disaster – now, nobody gets to eat turkey and perhaps even worse, they might actually die. A rubbish outcome all round.
For Roman, a classic homebody (read: recluse with no desire to see or speak to people), this means a Christmas break gone completely to hell. But like any proud homeowner, he is more than prepared to defend his space, and everyone in it, from bad guys. Especially when they turn up with very bad attitudes and suspicious reasons for wanting to ‘take the child home to his parents’. Yeah right. We know how this works. And so does Roman. If you know anything about him from the Kate Daniels books, you know he has a bit of an attitude himself. More than enough to take on some jumped up soldiers, he’s the Black Volhv after all.
ARC provided by the publisher—Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by Giby Joseph
Kavithri by Aman J. Bedi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: The Ghosts of Ethuran (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Pages: 448 pages (Hardcover edition)
Word Count: 111,500 words
Publish date: 16th of May 2024 by Gollancz
Imagine an engaging Indian-inspired steampunk fantasy debut reminiscent of The Poppy War with an empathetic heroine with a rein on her wrath. That’s Kavithri. …
Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art by Omer Burak Onal
Bonds of Chaos by Zack Argyle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Threadlight (Book #3 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Pages: 360 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 25th of August 2022 by Zack Argyle (Self-Published)
Bonds of Chaos has successfully nailed the necessary satisfying conclusion to the Threadlight trilogy.
“No matter how hard a man may try, he never truly understands hurt beyond what he has experienced himself.”
When Among Crows by Veronica Roth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I received advance digital copies of this book and audiobook from the publishers, Tor Books and Macmillan Audio, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.
When Among Crows is the first Veronica Roth book I’ve read since throwing Allegiant across my living room over a decade ago. I really enjoy her writing style but felt desperately betrayed by that book, and so I haven’t picked up anything by her since then. However, the premise of When Among Crows fascinated me, and a standalone novella sounded like a relatively safe way to dip my toes back into the pool of her work. This proved to be a great decision. While I didn’t quite love When Among Crows, I did have a lot of fun with it. Is it a perfect novella? No. Is it worth picking up? Absolutely. …
Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art by Omer Burak Onal
Stones of Light by Zack Argyle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Threadlight (Book #2 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Pages: 362 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 4th of April 2021 by Zack Argyle (Self-Published)
This was a great sequel. In Stones of Light, Argyle maintained the consistency of quality in his storytelling.
“It’s like comparing granite to clay. The clay may take shape more easily, but the granite, once you’ve chiseled it into place, is so much stronger. For some people, motherhood comes more easily. For others, it takes a hammer and chisel. No one is made for motherhood. Motherhood is made for you. Some of us aren’t so lucky.”
Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art illustrated by James L. Cook
Tales of the Sun Eater, Volume 3 by Christopher Ruocchio
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: The Sun Eater (Book #5.5 of 7)
Genre: Sci-fi, Space Opera, Science Fantasy
Pages: 216 pages (Kindle edition)
Published: 15th September 2023 (Self-Published)
Tales of the Sun Eater Volume 3 is, by far, the strongest collection of short stories in The Sun Eater series so far. …
Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cover art by Omer Burak Onal
Voice of War by Zack Argyle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Threadlight (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Pages: 382 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 19th of March 2020 by Zack Argyle (Self-Published)
Promising beginning. Readers weren’t exaggerating when they said Voice of War by Zack Argyle is a great Sanderson-lite fantasy novel.
“The Rite of Revelation was such an important event for a parent, but would a parent really love their child less based on the color of their eyes? Love is not a calculated result of features and faults. Love is the unseen thread binding two souls together no matter the externalities.”
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.”