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Tag: Petrik’s Favorites

Book Review: Kings of Heaven (Ash and Sand, #3) by Richard Nell

Book Review: Kings of Heaven (Ash and Sand, #3) by Richard Nell

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

Cover illustration by: Derek Murphy

Kings of Heaven by Richard Nell

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Ash and Sand (Book #3 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Grimdark Fantasy

Pages: 411 pages

Published: 1st September 2020 by Richard Nell (Self-published)


Kings of Heaven has carved Ash and Sand as one of the best fantasy trilogies I’ve ever read.

“A man fails in only two ways, my son. He quits, or he dies.”

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Book Review: Changes (The Dresden Files, #12) by Jim Butcher

Book Review: Changes (The Dresden Files, #12) by Jim Butcher

Cover illustration by: Chris McGrath

Changes by Jim Butcher

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Dresden Files (Book #12 of 25)

Genre: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

Pages: 554 pages (US Kindle edition)

Published: 18th March 2010 by Orbit (UK) & 6th April 2010 by Roc (US)


Changes was insane, a true Game-Changer for the series.

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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

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

Cover illustration by: Tomas 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

Pages: 512 pages (UK Hardback)

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


Incredibly mesmeric and brilliant. The trouble with reading Abercrombie’s newest book is that there’s no more new Abercrombie book to read.

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Book Review: The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, #2) by J.R.R. Tolkien

Book Review: The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, #2) by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Lord of the Rings (Book #2 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, Classic Fantasy, Epic Fantasy

Published: 11th November 1954 by George Allen and Unwin


“It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end… because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing… this shadow. Even darkness must pass.”

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Petrik’s Top 15 Books of the Year So Far (1st January-30th June 2020)

Petrik’s Top 15 Books of the Year So Far (1st January-30th June 2020)


Click here if you want to see the list of all the books I’ve read so far this year: Petrik’s Year in Books (2020)

Between 1st January 2020 until 30th June 2020, I’ve read and reviewed 71 books (35.7k pages).

Please read this first. There will be three rules I set in this list in order for me to give appreciation to more authors rather than having only a few authors hoarding this list. These rules allow me to highlight more authors, and at the same time, I’ll also be able to include both new and older books (many of them still need attention) that I read within this year.

  • Rereads aren’t included.
  • One book per author.
  • The books listed here are not all exclusively published this year; the list consists of the top books I read for the first time within this year. Non-2020 published books on this list will have their first date of publication included.

Do note that although there’s a rank to this list, I HIGHLY recommend every book/series listed below because I loved all of them immensely, and they received a rating of 4.5 or 5 out of 5 stars from me. Without further ado, here are the top 15 books I’ve read this year so far! (All full reviews of the books listed can be found on Novel Notions and my Goodreads page.)

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Book Review: The Burning God (The Poppy War Trilogy, #3) by R.F. Kuang

Book Review: The Burning God (The Poppy War Trilogy, #3) by R.F. Kuang

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

Cover Illustration by: JungShan

The Burning God by R.F. Kuang

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Poppy War Trilogy (Book #3 of 3)

Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Grimdark Fantasy, Military Fantasy

Pages: 640 pages

Published: 26th November 2020 by Harper Voyager (UK) and 17th November 2020 by Harper Voyager (US)


Bursting with violence, devastation, death, and profound emotions. The Burning God is by far the best book R.F. Kuang has written in her career so far.

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Book Review: The Labyrinth of the Spirits (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #4) by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Book Review: The Labyrinth of the Spirits (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #4) by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Cover illustration by: Matt Duffin

The Labyrinth of the Spirits by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Cemetery of Forgotten Books (Book #4 of 4)

Genre: Historical fiction, Mystery

Pages: 833 pages (US Kindle edition)

Translated Edition Published: 2018 by Weidenfield & Nicholson, Orion Books (UK) & Harper (US)


An absorbing literary masterpiece embedded with every range of emotions.

“Tell our stories to the world, and never forget that we exist so long as someone remembers us.”

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Book Review: Paternus: War of Gods (The Paternus Trilogy, #3) by Dyrk Ashton

Book Review: Paternus: War of Gods (The Paternus Trilogy, #3) by Dyrk Ashton

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

Paternus: War of Gods by Dyrk Ashton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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

Genre: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Mythologies

Pages: 746 pages

Published: 23rd June 2020 by Paternus Books Media (Indie)


Bloody magnificent. Urban fantasy novel just doesn’t get more epic than Paternus: War of Gods.

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Book Review: The Prisoner of Heaven (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #3) by Carol Ruiz Zafon

Book Review: The Prisoner of Heaven (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #3) by Carol Ruiz Zafon

The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Cemetery of Forgotten Books (Book #3 of 4)

Genre: Historical fiction, Mystery

Pages: 293 pages (US Kindle edition)

Translated Edition Published: 2012 by Weidenfield & Nicholson, Orion Books (UK) & by Harper (US)


Both Daniel Sempere and David Martin already have their respective background told, now it’s time for Fermin Romero de Torres’s past to be revealed.

“One mustn’t dream of one’s future; one must earn it.”

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Book Review: The Angel’s Game (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #2) by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Book Review: The Angel’s Game (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #2) by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Cemetery of Forgotten Books (Book #2 of 4)

Genre: Historical fiction, Mystery

Pages: 673 pages (US Kindle edition)

Translated Edition Published: 2009 by Weidenfield & Nicholson, Orion Books (UK) & 2009 by Doubleday (US)


The Angel’s Game is another incredible book by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. It’s as good as The Shadow of the Wind in a different way.

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