Cover art illustrated by Sam Green
Starsight by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Skyward (Book #2 of 4)
Genre: Sci-fi
Pages: 469 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 26th of November 2019 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)
Contrary to my expectations, Starsight was an incredibly fun and engaging sequel to Skyward.
…
This review is a copy of the transcript of my video review on Empire of Silence.
Cover art illustrated by Sam Weber
Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: The Sun Eater (Book #1 of 7)
Genre: Sci-fi, Space Opera, Science Fantasy
Pages: 612 pages (Hardcover edition)
Published: 3rd July 2018 by DAW Books
This was an absolutely stunning, ambitious, and well-written debut novel. From the first page to the last, Empire of Silence is an unputdownable new addition to my list of favorite books.
“It is a mistake to believe we must know a thing to be influenced by it. It is a mistake to believe the thing must even be real.”
Cover art illustrated by Sam Green
Skyward by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Skyward (Book #1 of 4)
Genre: Sci-fi
Pages: 544 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 6th of November 2018 by Delacorte Press (US) & Gollancz (UK)
Skyward is a great and rare example of a YA sci-fi novel done right.
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This review is a copy of the transcript of my video review on Light Bringer
Cover art illustrated by Jonathan Barlett
Light Bringer by Pierce Brown
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: Red Rising Saga (Book #6 of 7)
Genre: Sci-fi, Space Opera
Pages: 682 pages (Hardcover edition)
Publish date: 25th of July 2023 by Del Rey (US) & Hodder (UK)
Light Bringer is a bloodydamn near perfect space-opera masterpiece.
“For a friend with an understanding heart is worth no less than a brother. —Homer”
This review is a copy of the transcript of my video review on Morning Star and Red Rising Trilogy.
Morning Star by Pierce Brown
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: Red Rising Saga (Book #3 of 7)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Classic Fantasy
Pages: 518 pages (Paperback Edition)
Word Count: 173,000 words
Published: 9th February 2016 by Del Rey (US) & 11th February 2016 by Hodder (UK)
Morning Star is an absolutely prime conclusion to the first trilogy in Red Rising Saga, my favorite sci-fi series of all time to date.
“If this is the end, I will rage toward it.”
Cover art illustrated by Paul Lewin
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: Earthseed Duology (Book #1 of 2)
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopia, Post-Apocalyptic
Pages: 356 pages (Kindle Edition)
Published: October 1993 by Del Rey
Parable of the Sower is hard to put down, harrowing, and much darker than I expected.
“There is no end
To what a living world
Will demand of you.”
Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Series: The Founders Trilogy (Book #1 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Science Fantasy, Urban High Fantasy, Science Fiction
Pages: 512 pages (Hardcover)
Published: 1st August 2018 by Crown (US) & Jo Fletcher (UK)
Thrillingly fun and highly imaginative, Foundryside is one of the most promising starts to a series I have read.
ARC was provided by the publisher—Del Rey—in exchange for an honest review.
Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: The Founders Trilogy (Book #3 of 3)
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Science Fantasy, Urban High Fantasy, Science Fiction
Pages: 560 pages (Kindle edition)
Published: 28th June 2022 by Del Rey (US) & Jo Fletcher (UK)
Locklands is a truly inventive, emotional, genre-blending, and reality-defying finish to The Founders Trilogy.
“We’re all the result of countless actions and choices made throughout the centuries, and the odds of those actions and choices going the exact same way again are basically nil.”
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 (2022)
Between 1st January 2021 and 27th June 2022, I’ve read 39 novels + 55 manga/manhwa volumes (31k 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.
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 10 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.) …
Hyperion by Dan Simmons
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Hyperion Cantos (Book #1 of 4)
Genre: Science Fiction, Space Opera
Pages: 483 pages (Kindle Edition)
Published: 26th May 1989 by Spectra
My 600th review goes to Hyperion, an imaginative and magnificent classic science fiction novel.
After years of having Hyperion by Dan Simmons on my TBR, I can finally say that I’ve read this beloved classic sci-fi novel. Before I started reading this novel, I didn’t know much about the premise or the content of the Hyperion except that there’s this creature called The Shrike in it, and also this book or series is one of the most beloved and highly praised sci-fi novels of all time. I’m actually pretty shocked that Hyperion was first published in 1989. This felt like a book written way ahead of its time, and I’m not surprised this has become a classic now. Hyperion has been on my TBR pile for almost 6 years, and because I’ve been missing sci-fi a lot lately, I thought I might as well read this series now, and I’m definitely not disappointed by the first installment of the series.