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Book Review: Darling Girl by Liz Michalski

Book Review: Darling Girl by Liz Michalski

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Darling Girl: A Novel of Peter Pan by Liz Michalski
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Darling Girl sounded like something that would be incredibly up my alley. A dark retelling of Peter Pan? Yes, please. However, I found myself pretty disappointed with the book overall. While I didn’t hate it, I found that the tale and the structure and especially the characters left much to be desired.

“Once the forbidden fruit has been tasted, there’s no going back to paradise. For anyone. Even Peter Pan, it seems. Innocence, once lost, is impossible to regain.”

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Book Review: Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, #6) by Stephen King

Book Review: Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, #6) by Stephen King

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Song of Susannah by Stephen King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Song of Susannah is the penultimate installment in King’s magnum opus, The Dark Tower. And though I still wouldn’t consider it a bad book by any means, I do believe it’s the weakest in the series since The Gunslinger. That being said, I still very much enjoyed my time in this world and with these characters. I was absorbed the entire time, and the tension was palpable. Even when King isn’t at his best, there’s something about his writing that just sucks me in and won’t let me go, even after I’ve read the final pages.

“In the Land of Memory the time is always Now.
In the Kingdom of Ago, the clocks tick… but their hands never move.
There is an Unfound Door
and memory is the key which opens it.”

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Cover Reveal: The Blood of Outcasts (The Bane Sword Saga, #1) by D.A. Smith

Cover Reveal: The Blood of Outcasts (The Bane Sword Saga, #1) by D.A. Smith

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Hi everyone! Petrik from Novel Notions here.

After yesterday, we have another exciting post today. Yes, it’s another cover reveal! Novel Notions will be hosting the cover reveal to The Blood of Outcasts by D.A. Smith! Or to be more precise, this is a cover re-reveal. Knowing the importance of beautiful cover art, especially in self-publishing, the author decided to rebrand his debut novel with a brand new look. This is the first book in The Bane Sword Saga, a gritty samurai-inspired fantasy novel!

Without further ado, here’s the cover reveal to The Blood of Outcasts by D.A. Smith!

Cover art illustrated by Martin Mottet

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Cover Reveal: Starbinder (Eye of Eternity, #0.5) by Mark Timmony

Cover Reveal: Starbinder (Eye of Eternity, #0.5) by Mark Timmony

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Hi everyone! Petrik from Novel Notions here.

We have an exciting post today. Novel Notions will be hosting the cover reveal to Starbinder by Mark Timmony! Starbinder is an Eye of Eternity novella and a loose prequel to The Blood of the Spear. The author has mentioned that it is not necessary to have read Blood of the Spear first but you might get a bit more out of it if you have. The ebook for Starbinder is not available for sale, it’s an exclusive download for people who subscribe to my mailing list – which can be found here: https://marktimmony.com/signup/

There will be a physical version of the book available for sale via Amazon, etc, soon. Without further ado, here’s the cover reveal to Starbinder by Mark Timmony!

Cover art illustrated by Felix Ortiz

Cover art designed by STK.Kreations

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Book Review: In The Shadow of Lightning (The Glass Immortal, #1) by Brian McClellan

Book Review: In The Shadow of Lightning (The Glass Immortal, #1) by Brian McClellan

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

Cover art illustrated by: Dan Burgess

In the Shadow of Lightning by Brian McClellan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Series: The Glass Immortals (Book #1)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Flintlock Fantasy

Pages: 576 pages (Hardcover Edition)

Published: 21st June 2022 by Tor Books

Brian McClellan’s return to the epic fantasy scene is a good one, but it didn’t feel as explosive as his Powder Mage universe.

In the Shadow of Lightning, the first book in The Glass Immortals series, was one of my most anticipated releases of 2022. It has been three years since Brian McClellan concluded his Powder Mage universe series with Blood of Empire, the third and final book in his God of Blood and Powder trilogy. I have read the entirety of the Powder Mage universe, and since then, I have wondered what kind of series and world will McClellan create next. When I saw the cover art to In the Shadow of Lightning being revealed, the illustration done by Dan Burgess, my interest in it was sparked immediately. Plus, Brandon Sanderson, Fonda Lee, and James Islington (all three are some of my favorite authors) gave their praises for this book made me even more excited to read this. Sanderson even said this is McClellan’s best work to date! Unfortunately, I have to disagree with him. The book didn’t click as much as I expected it would. …

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Book Review: The Grace of Kings (The Dandelion Dynasty, #1) by Ken Liu

Book Review: The Grace of Kings (The Dandelion Dynasty, #1) by Ken Liu

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Cover art illustrated by: Sam Weber

The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Dandelion Dynasty (Book #1 of 4)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, Silkpunk

Pages: 640 pages (Hardcover Edition)

Published: 7th April 2015 by Saga Press (US) & 4th June 2015 by Head of Zeus (UK)

This debut is super underrated. Ken Liu’s reimagining of the birth of China’s Han Dynasty is nothing short of epic, complex, thrilling, and heartbreaking.

“Read a lot of books and try a lot of recipes…When you learn enough about the world, even a blade of grass can be a weapon.”

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TS’s Monthly Wrap-Up : April 2022

TS’s Monthly Wrap-Up : April 2022

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Hello all!  Welcome back to my monthly wrap-up.  I can’t believe that four months had already gone by this year.   One positive development so far in 2022 is that international borders are opening up and I’m looking forward to be able to travel again, one of my other favourite things to do besides reading.

April was another great month of reading, as we continued our Middle Grade series reads and started the epic reread of all the Mistborn books in preparation for the release of The Lost Metal in November this year.

NB. Books are rated within its genre.  For avoidance of doubt, rereads are not considered for Book of the Month.

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Book Review: The First Binding (Tales of Tremaine, #1) by R.R. Virdi

Book Review: The First Binding (Tales of Tremaine, #1) by R.R. Virdi

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ARC was provided by the publishers—Tor Books & Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.

Cover art illustrated by: Felipe de Barros

The First Binding by R.R. Virdi

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Tales of Tremaine (Book #1)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 832 pages (Kindle Edition)

Published: 16th August 2022 by Tor Books (US) & 18th August 2022 by Gollancz (UK)

The First Binding is a South Asian inspired high fantasy debut reminiscent of The Name of the Wind. I walked into the book in search of the most important thing in the world of escapism. An unforgettable story. And I ended up swept into one of the most memorable ones. …

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Book Review: Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5) by Stephen King

Book Review: Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5) by Stephen King

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Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When I first read The Gunslinger, I wasn’t a fan. But I was determined to get past that first book, because I know King views The Dark Tower as his magnum opus and I really wanted to at least try to read that. Then I got to The Drawing of the Three and fell in love it. I couldn’t help but think that it would be the highlight of the entire series for me, but then I read The Wastelands. And Wizard and Glass. And The Wind Through the Keyhole. And I’ve loved them all just as much. Wolves of the Calla was no exception. I would have never thought that a western-horror-fantasy would become one of my favorite series of all time, and yet here we are. If King doesn’t drop the ball in the last two books, this will have quite possibly been the most epic literary experience of my life. …

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