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Book Review: The Winter of the Witch (Winternight Trilogy, #3) by Katherine Arden

Book Review: The Winter of the Witch (Winternight Trilogy, #3) by Katherine Arden

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The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Winternight Trilogy (Book #3 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fantasy

Pages: 385 pages (Kindle Edition)

Published: 8th January 2019 by Del Rey (US) & 10th January 2019 by Del Rey (UK)

The Winter of the Witch is a stunning historical fantasy conclusion.

“Do you not know me?” she said. “I have loved danger since I was a child. But I have never loved cruelty.”

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Book Review: Legendborn (Legendborn, #1) by Tracy Deonn

Book Review: Legendborn (Legendborn, #1) by Tracy Deonn

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Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

I had heard so many wonderful things about Legendborn that I was a little scared to read it. What if I didn’t love it? After all, YA tends to be very hit-or-miss for me. I needn’t have worried, because this book was absolutely fantastic. I was blown away by the world-building, the concept, and the character development. Bree was a phenomenal protagonist. She was far from perfect, but I loved watching her strengths solidify and rooting for her as she wrestled with the trauma and loss life had dealt her. And it’s a campus novel with a secret society, which is an added bonus. This is also one of the freshest, most original takes on Arthurian legend I’ve experienced, even making me want to go back and reread some of the source inspiration.

“Don’t make your life about the loss. Make it about the love.”

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Cover Reveal: Until the Last (The Last War, #3) by Mike Shackle

Cover Reveal: Until the Last (The Last War, #3) by Mike Shackle

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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 Until the Last by Mike Shackle! This is the third and final book in The Last War series by Mike Shackle. In addition to the cover art below, I also had the chance to ask Mike Shackle his thoughts and feelings on the cover art and being done with the final book. This is one of my favorite series, and I’m so looking forward to reading this novel. Without further ado, here’s my conversation with Mike Shackle, and also the cover reveal to Until the Last!

Cover art designed by Tomas Almeida …

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Book Review: The Last Wish (The Witcher, #1) by Andrzej Sapkowski

Book Review: The Last Wish (The Witcher, #1) by Andrzej Sapkowski

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Review copy was provided by Gollancz in exchange for an honest review.

Cover art illustrated by Tommy Arnold

Cover designed by Lauren Panepinto

The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Witcher (Book #0.5 of 5)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 352 pages (Illustrated edition)

Published: 7th December 2021 by Orbit (US) and Gollancz (UK)

The Last Wish made me feel like I was reading Geralt doing his side quests in the game.

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Book Review: Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree

Book Review: Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree

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ARC was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Cover art illustrated by: Carson Lowmiller

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone

Genre: Fantasy, Slice-of-Life

Pages: 318 pages (Kindle Edition)

Published: 22nd February 2022 by Cryptid Press (Self-Published)

Legends and Lattes is the wholesome and cozy fantasy you didn’t know you need.

For those of you who don’t know, Travis Baldree has been well known for his role as the audiobook narrator behind Will Wight’s Cradle series. And many other series, really. Legends and Lattes is his debut novel, and I do think Baldree should now be known for his fantasy novel, too. I wouldn’t have known about Legends and Lattes if it weren’t for Twitter. Most of you probably know already, almost all of my favorite novels and stories are intense, emotional, dark, and serious in tone. But I do love slice-of-life as a genre as well. When I saw the cover art—illustrated by Carson Lowmiller—to Legends and Lattes on Twitter, with the premise indicating this is a high fantasy novel with low stakes, I knew I couldn’t go wrong with my expectations entering this book. I knew immediately I should read this when I’m in the mood for something short, cozy, and wholesome. Despite loving slice-of-life in other storytelling mediums such as manga, anime, and TV shows, I seem to struggle to find a terrific slice-of-life fantasy novel. But I got what I wanted here. Legends and Lattes is the slice-of-life fantasy novel I craved and received. …

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Book Review: The Hunger of the Gods (The Bloodsworn Saga, #2) by John Gwynne

Book Review: The Hunger of the Gods (The Bloodsworn Saga, #2) by John Gwynne

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

Cover art illustrated by: Marcus Whinney

The Hunger of the Gods by John Gwynne

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Bloodsworn Saga (Book #2 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 656 pages (Hardcover edition)

Published: 14th April 2022 by Orbit (UK) and 12th April 2022 by Orbit (US)

The Hunger of the Gods tempestuous final chapters have successfully prepared readers for the grand conclusion to come.

So here we are again, another year and another book by John Gwynne, one of my top favorite authors of all time. The Shadow of the Gods was one of the best books released in 2021 for me. The Hunger of the Gods, the second book in The Bloodsworn Saga, is my second most anticipated books—the first one belongs to The Lost Metal by Brandon Sanderson—of 2022. Before I talk about what worked so well for me in this continuation, it is mandatory for me to give my praises towards the publisher—Orbit Books—and the cover artist: Marcus Whinney. If you somehow haven’t seen the cover art of The Shadow of the Gods and The Hunger of the Gods, do it now. Orbit Books and Whinney has created another epic and distinctive cover seller. The scope of Lik-Rifa and Ulfrir in the cover arts is massive, and the realism looks downright stunning …

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Book Review: Rise of Empire (The Riyria Revelations, #3-4) by Michael J. Sullivan

Book Review: Rise of Empire (The Riyria Revelations, #3-4) by Michael J. Sullivan

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Cover art is done by: Larry Rostant

Rise of Empire by Michael J. Sullivan

My rating: 4.25 of 5 stars

Series: The Riyria Revelations (Book #3-4 of 6)

Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 802 pages (Kindle Edition)

Published: 8th April 2010 by Orbit

It’s safe to say now that with each installment, each book in the The Riyria Revelations series consistently gets better and better in quality. The second omnibus in The Riyria Revelations titled Rise of Empire consists of the third book, Nyphron Rising, and the fourth book, The Emerald Storm, of the series. Whether on the first or second read, Rise of Empire is overall a superior collection of novels compared to the previous omnibus: Theft of Swords. Similar to my Theft of Swords review, I’ll start my review by showing you another beautiful cover art of the series done right by Marc Simonetti, and also a beautiful fanart of a scene in The Emerald Storm.

“Power rises to the top like cream and dominates the weak with cruelty disguised as — and often even believed to be — benevolence.”

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TS’s Monthly Wrap-Up : February 2022

TS’s Monthly Wrap-Up : February 2022

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Hi everyone, I’m back with my monthly wrap-up for February.

With the shorter month and the Chinese festivities of the Lunar New Year (which means more time spent with family and friends instead of my nose in my books), I only managed to complete 5 novels, a couple of Sherlock Holmes novellas and a handful of short stories.

I’ll start with the novel which was the book of the month for me.

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Book Review: The Girl in the Tower (The Winternight Trilogy, #2) by Katherine Arden

Book Review: The Girl in the Tower (The Winternight Trilogy, #2) by Katherine Arden

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The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Winternight Trilogy (Book #2 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fantasy

Pages: 383 pages (Kindle Edition)

Published: 5th December 2017 by Del Rey (US) & 5th December 2017 by Del Rey (UK)

If you enjoyed The Bear and the Nightingale, I see little chances of The Girl in the Tower failing for you.

“Every time you take one path, you must live with the memory of the other: of a life left unchosen. Decide as seems best, one course or the other; each way will have its bitter with its sweet.”

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Book Review: Empire of Dirt (The Echoes Saga, #2) by Philip C. Quaintrell

Book Review: Empire of Dirt (The Echoes Saga, #2) by Philip C. Quaintrell

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Cover art illustrated by: Chris McGrath

Empire of Dirt by Philip C. Quaintrell

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Echoes Saga (Book #2 of 9)

Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy

Pages: 480 pages (Kindle Edition)

Published: 27th November 2017 by Quaintrell Publishing (Self-Published)

Empire of Dirt is better than Rise of the Ranger in practically every aspect, and it seems promising that the steady increase in quality within each book is unstoppable now. …

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