Friday Face Off : “Lord, what fools these mortals be”
4 December 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Books by Proxy, Friday Face off, Hope Mirrlees, Lud-in-the-Mist

Here we are again with the Friday Face Off meme created by Books by Proxy . This is a great opportunity to feature some of your favourite book covers. The rules are fairly simple each week, following a predetermined theme (list below) choose a book (this doesn’t have to be a book that you’ve read), compare a couple of the different covers available for that particular book and choose your favourite. Future week’s themes are listed below – if you have a cover in mind that you’re really wanting to share then feel free to leave a comment about a future suggested theme. I’ve also listed events that take place during the year, that I’m aware of, so you can link up your covers – if you’re aware of any events that you think I should include then give me a shout. This week’s theme:
Fae or Fairy
I confess I have a love of books with the fae so I’m hoping this week’s prompt will be easy enough – hope everyone else finds something to their liking too. This week I’ve gone for a book that I unfortunately never got round to reviewing but is a thing of charm and beauty. Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees. And here are some of the covers:
I have more than one that I quite like for this in fact I could narrow it down to 3:
The first cover I like because that’s the cover of the book I read. The second – I have a love of flower and leaf borders and the third gives me an old fashioned fairytale style of cover and so it just brings me all the feelings of whimsy. My favourite:

Do you have a favourite?
I’ve updated the list now to include themes for next year. If you know of an event that’s coming up let me know and I’ll try and include covers that work for the event itself so that you can link up to the Friday Face Off and, as always, if you wish to submit an idea then leave me a comment – or if you’d like to host a week then simply let me know. Also, I would just mention that it’s very possible that some of these might be repeats from previous FFOs although I have tried to invent more ‘open ended’ prompt that can be interpreted differently and also prompts that relate to emotions. Finally, don’t struggle with any of these, this is meant to be a fun way of highlighting books. If you can’t come up with a book you think fits for a particular week use a freebie – perhaps a recent read for example:
Next week – Lake – the mysterious or eerie lake
2020
11th December – Lake – the mysterious lake
18th December – Highly Stylised
25th December- Freebie – or day off
2021
January
Vintage Sci-Fi month – if you’re taking part you could try and find some vintage style covers
1st – Dressed in White – could be a person could be a landscape – or something else completely?
8th – Books with ‘Moon’ in the Title
15th – An Aerial encounter – spaceships and explosions
22nd – An Alien Encounter – ‘we come in peace’ or maybe not.
29th – A favourite classic or vintage sci-fi
February
5th – A Book with a romance that you enjoyed
12th – Furry – a beast, something cuddly, or a fur covering
19th – Serpentine – could be a snake, could be a snake-like font, could be a snakeskin style cover
26th – A book with ‘Magic’ in the Title
March
5th – March is named for the Roman God of War – a Roman style cover or a cover with a God or Gods or simply a book about war
12th – Middle Grade – choose whatever pleases you
19th – Ruin or derelict, old and worn, could be the book itself, a building, a place
26th – A picture within a picture
April
2nd – A train or tram – travelling down the track, could be old style, futuristic, overhead, down below.
9th – Cartoonish or graphic
16th – I have to have it – a cover that gave you ‘grabby hands’
23rd – Your current read (if it has covers to compare) or any recent read
30th– A series that you love – highlight all the books in the series
May
Month of Wyrd and Wonder
7th – A Series where the cover changed midway through – which style do you prefer most
14th – The earliest fantasy you recall reading – or the first fantasy book you really loved, maybe the book that kickstarted your love of fantasy
21st – The Top Hat
28th – The Hood
June
4th – The nose boop – any animal, or human, with a close up shot.
11th – A cover that annoyed you and why
18th – Out of Perspective, or make you feel a bit dizzy
25th – Upside down, back to front or topsy turvy
July
2nd – A book with a landscape you’d like to visit
9th – A Wicked Grin
16th – Books with ‘book’ in the title
23rd – A Black Hole – could be in the universe or going deep into the ground
30th – Chaos – maybe too much going on in this one
August
6th – “They cluck their thick tongues, and shake their heads and suggest, os so very delicately!” – The Motel
13th – A favourite holiday read
20th – Dressed to kill (could be literally someone dressed to kill, or someone dressed up for a big night out
27th – Sunbathing or on the beach
September (RIP event)
3rd – 1920s feel, noir detective
10th – I’m Henry the Eighth I am – let’s look at Kings or other Emperors/rulers
17th – Books with ‘Murder’ in the title
24th – A favourite thriller
October
1st – A Halloween read
8th – Chills – anything at all that almost makes you too scared to pick up the book (your own pet hate)
15th – Your favourite book of magic
22nd – Books with ‘Queen’ in the title
29th – Must be gothic
November – Sci Fi Month
5th – Your earliest sci-fi read or the first sci-fi you reviewed
12th – A book with ‘star’ in the title
19th – Futuristic vista
26th – A Black Hole – in the universe or going deep into the ground
December
3rd – Windswept, the classic figure, stood majestically, with wind blowing out in a fetching way
10th – A fairytale retold
17th – Winter Solstice approaching – anything cold and seasonal
24th – All things fire – red hair, red covers, fire breathing dragons, simply fire?
31st – What’s your catnip – if it’s on a cover you have to pick it up
December Countdown, Day 3 : Wrapping Paper
3 December 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: December meme, Mexican Gothic, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Wrapping Paper
December book meme (details here). Wrapping Paper : A lovely cover
Can’t Wait Wednesday : Witherward (Witherward #1) by Hannah Mathewson
2 December 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Can't wait Wednesday, Hannah Mathewson, Wishful Endings, Witherward

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that was originally created by Breaking the Spine. Unfortunately Breaking the Spine are no longer hosting so I’m now linking my posts up to Wishful Endings Can’t Wait Wednesday. Don’t forget to stop over, link up and check out what books everyone else is waiting for. If you want to take part, basically, every Wednesday, we highlight a book that we’re really looking forward to. This week my book is : Witheard (Witherward #1) by Hannah Mathewson – and here’s why:

Welcome to the Witherward, and to a London that is not quite like our own. Here, it’s summertime in February, the Underground is a cavern of wonders and magic fills the streets. But this London is a city divided, split between six rival magical factions, each with their own extraordinary talents – and the alpha of the Changelings, Gedeon Ravenswood, has gone rogue, threatening the fragile accords that have held London together for decades.
Ilsa is a shapeshifting Changeling who has spent the first 17 years of her life marooned in the wrong London, where real magic is reviled as the devil’s work. Abandoned at birth, she has scratched out a living first as a pickpocket and then as a stage magician’s assistant, dazzling audiences by secretly using her Changeling talents to perform impossible illusions. When she’s dragged through a portal into the Witherward, Ilsa finally feels like she belongs.
But her new home is on the brink of civil war, and Ilsa is pulled into the fray. The only way to save London is to track down Gedeon, and he just so happens to be Ilsa’s long-lost brother, one of the last surviving members of the family who stranded her in the wrong world. Beset by enemies on all sides, surrounded by supposed Changeling allies wearing faces that may not be their own, Ilsa must use all the tricks up her sleeve simply to stay alive.
SIX OF CROWS meets THE PRESTIGE in a debut YA/crossover fantasy set in an alternate Victorian London, perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab.
Expected publication : February 2021
December Countdown, Day 2 : Shopping
2 December 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: December meme, Last book added to my wishlist, T Kingfisher, The Hollow Places
December book meme (details here). Shopping : The last book added to my wishlist:
Stoker’s Wilde West by Steven Hopstaken and Melissa Prusi
My Five Word TL:DR Review – A series I am loving
This series is so very good. I’m thoroughly enjoying it. See my review for Stoker’s Wilde here and also I must give a little shout out to Pages and Tea who first brought this series to my attention – thank you so much you lovely person you.
So, this second instalment largely follows the mode of storytelling set out in book No.1, diary excerpts, journals, field reports, telegrams, etc. The epistolary style is something I love and to recreate it here, with such style and panache is a real work of genius. This is a series full of characters and references that I simply adore and so, I’m not going to lie, I was pretty much bowled over by both books.
What differs with this particular instalment is that the authors take us out of Victorian England and into America and the Wild West and the change in setting is fantastic and inspired. We have cowboys, gold diggers, gunslingers and a host of familiar names, not least of which is Calamity Jane.
I won’t over elaborate on the plot. There are of course vampires and dastardly deeds which involve certain people trying to open the doors between the realms, and there is plenty of action, jumping off cliffs and traversing the country on horseback or train. Suffice to say -highly entertaining.
Again we have Stoker and Wilde, Florence and in this instalment the addition of a couple of other voices that add to the story.
As with the first, I think Oscar really shines, I love his diary inserts and his show stealing ways. He’s so outrageously and delightfully flamboyant. Stoker completely manages to downplay this by being so downright no nonsense, in much the same way as the first book, and of course Florence also plays a much bigger part in this story and I really enjoyed her scenes and character growth. I think the three are really growing in terms of friendship and strength and I can’t wait to see what they get up to next.
I also love the way that both stories are interspersed with real facts and events, such as Oscar touring America or Stoker taking his theatre company there.
The writing is, again, perfection. I love the voices of the two main characters and they makes me long for more and more adventures. They manage to get themselves into such outrageous situations where death feels like a real possibility, but at the same time, you know something or someone will save the day.
In terms of criticisms. Well, I think this one meandered slightly and also there are quite a few plot lines coming into play in the early pages – I mention this simply to make readers aware as I personally didn’t find this problematic at all.
Overall, I just love this series. If my arm was twisted and I was hard pressed to choose a favourite I would say the first book stole my heart. That being said, this book was incredibly enjoyable.
I receive a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the author, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4.5 of 5 stars





