ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit—in exchange for an honest review.
The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Drowning Empire (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Mystery
Pages: 448 pages (UK hardcover edition)
Published: 10th September 2020 by Orbit (UK) & 8th September 2020 by Orbit (US)
This will most likely be my favorite fantasy debut of 2020. …
Solo Leveling by Gi So-Ryeong & Jang Sung-Rak
Series: Solo Leveling (Season #1)
Genre: Fantasy, LitRPG, Progression Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Petrik’s Review: 5 of 5 stars
I will level (pun fully intended) myself with you; this was by far the most badass and engaging LitRPG I’ve ever read. …
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Cemetery of Forgotten Books (Book #1 of 4)
Genre: Historical fiction, Mystery
Pages: 506 pages (US Kindle edition)
Translated Edition Published: 2004 by Weidenfield & Nicholson, Orion Books (UK) & 2004 by Penguin Books (US)
An astonishingly engaging story within a story type of novel; the passion for books and reading introduced in the first chapter was just an appetizer before all the interconnecting twists and turns. …
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: Standalone
Genre: Historical fiction, Mythology, Retelling
Pages: 389 pages (UK Kindle edition)
Published: 5th September 2011 by Bloomsbury (UK) & 6th March 2012 by Ecco (US)
Beautifully heartbreaking and tragic, Madelline Miller’s first novel burst with palpable emotions. …
ARC provided by the publisher—Del Rey—in exchange for an honest review.
Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: The Founders Trilogy (Book #2 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Pages: 512 pages (US hardcover edition)
Published: 21st April 2020 by Jo Fletcher Books (UK) & Del Rey Books (US)
Shorefall is mind-bending great; Robert Jackson Bennett once again proved himself that he is a precious gift for the SFF genre. …
I read The Lightning Tree in Rogues anthology.
The Lightning Tree by Patrick Rothfuss
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: The Kingkiller Chronicle (Book #0.5 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy
Pages: 58 pages (Available in Rogues anthology)
Published: 6th July 2015 by Titan Books (UK) & 1st July 2014 by Bantam (US)
Cozy, sweet, and memorable, The Lightning Tree is a must-read novella for every fans of Bast and enthusiast of The Kingkiller Chronicle.
…
Review copy provided by the publisher—Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.
We Are The Dead by Mike Shackle
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Last War (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, Grimdark Fantasy
Pages: 496 pages
Published: 8th August 2019 by Gollancz
So much bloodshed and actions, Shackle’s debut is fast-paced, grim, and unputdownable.
I’m very eager to recommend this debut to readers of The First Law World series by Joe Abercrombie and War for the Rose Throne series by Peter McLean. We Are the Dead is the first book in The Last War series by Mike Shackle, and it leans towards the grimdark sub-genre rather than heroic fantasy. “No More Heroes” is put at the top of the cover art, after all. I honestly thought I was super late in joining the party for this great book because it has been six months since this debut was first published, but I must say that I’m surprised that not many readers have read this yet. I hope more readers will give this book a go. …
ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit—in exchange for an honest review.
The Light of All That Falls by James Islington
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: The Licanius Trilogy (Book #3 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, Epic fantasy
Pages: 864 pages
Published: 12th December 2019 by Orbit (UK) & 10th December 2019 by Orbit (US)
The Light of All That Falls is an absolute marvel, a prodigious finishing touch to an ingeniously plotted series.
Here’s a little statistic to give you an idea of how much I loved this book and series. If you look at my Goodreads profile, you can take a look at my list of favorite authors. Inside this list are authors who have written three or more books—that I’ve read, of course—to be included in my “favorites” shelf. Before today—out of approximately four hundred books I’ve read—there were eight authors on this list. With one trilogy, and without a shadow of a doubt, I’m going to include James Islington as the ninth author to join my list of favorite authors. Binge reading this trilogy for the first time blew me away, and I’m already looking forward to rereading it in the future. If you stumbled upon this review without having read the previous books in the trilogy, rest assured that this review will be spoiler-free; no details regarding the plot will be mentioned. There is, however, a better option for you, pick up The Shadow of What Was Lost and begin binge-reading this astounding series. Now. …
An Echo of Things to Come by James Islington
Petrik’s rating: 5 of 5 stars
TS’s rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: The Licanius Trilogy (Book #2 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, Epic fantasy
Pages: 752 pages
Published: 24th August 2017 by Orbit (UK) & 22nd August 2017 by Orbit (US) …
The Shadow of What Was Lost by James Islington
Petrik’s rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
TS’s rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Licanius Trilogy (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, Epic fantasy
Pages: 736 pages
Published: 3rd August 2014 (self-published). 8th November 2016 by Orbit (US) & 10th November 2016 by Orbit (UK). …