#SPFBO 6 – Cover love (6)
28 August 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Cover Love, Embered Soul, Jesse Teller, John Bierce, Legends of the Exiles, SPFBO, The Wrack, Willem Neill
300 books 10 Judges 1 winner
The 1st of June marked the start of the sixth Self Published Fantasy Blog Off (details here.) My Introductory post is here. This year I’m aiming to shine a little bit of focus on some of the books either through posting excerpts to act as teasers for potential readers or through posting some of the covers and highlighting the book that way (not just for my own books but other entries). The invitation is open to all authors from the competition – if you’d like to post an excerpt then give me a shout in the comments (also, if you’ve contacted me recently and I’ve not responded please give me a shout, I’ve noticed recently that a lot of my comments have gone straight to Spam or Pending so I may have overlooked something.
As part of the competition there is a cover contest. The details can be found here.
So, this week’s chosen SPFBO covers – and, call me fickle, but I must say I would be immediately drawn to all of these – do you have a favourite?
Friday Face Off : ‘the road goes ever on and on’
28 August 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: American Gods, Books by Proxy, Friday Face off, Neil Gaiman
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:
Dark road – ‘the road goes ever on and on’
I thought I had lots of ideas for this week’s theme but then I spotted this one. I listened to this a few years ago on audio, it was a special edition and it was really good. Unfortunately I didn’t write a review but I thought I’d use this week’s theme to highlight the book:
Believe me when I say there were a lot of covers for this book – which isn’t really a surprise as it’s very popular. I like some of these but my favourite is:
I don’t know why but this cover just works for me – perhaps it’s familiarity.
I’ll be updating the list in order to include forthcoming events that I’m aware of so that you can perhaps link your themes up where possible (if you know of an event you’d like to share then let me know in the comments). 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.
Next week – Cold and crisp – any cover that gives you winter vibes
Future themes: (if you’re struggling with any of these themes then use a ‘freebie’ or one of your favourite covers) (I’ve added some new themes – some of these are slightly different, in order to avoid too much repetition I’m trying to make the themes more of a suggestion that everyone can interpret how they like.
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4th September – Cold and crisp – any cover that gives you winter vibes
11th September – A cover with a pattern
18th September – Minimalistic, lacking clutter
25th September – A very busy cover full to bursting with detail
2nd October – A standout font
9th October – Mist/fog – “A thin grey fog hung over the city, and the streets were very cold; for summer was in England.”
16th October – Spider web – “Farewell, Aragog, king of the arachnids, whose long and faithful friendship those who knew you would never forget!
23th October – Ripped/torn – interpret it as you wish
30th October – Forest/jungle – ‘None of the Jungle People like being disturbed.’
6th November – Planets – “You’re on Earth. There’s no cure for that.”
13th November – Bright – ‘The future’s so bright, I gotta wear shades’.
20th November – Words only – “Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts.”
27th November – Modern sci fi
4th December – Fae – or fairy??
11th December – Lake – the mysterious lake
18th December – Highly Stylised
25th December- Freebie – or day off.
Can’t Wait Wednesday : The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell
25 August 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Can't wait Wednesday, Laura Purcell, The Shape of Darkness, Wishful Endings
“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 : The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell – because LAURA PURCELL!!!!!! That is all.
As the age of the photograph dawns in Victorian Bath, silhouette artist Agnes is struggling to keep her business afloat. Still recovering from a serious illness herself, making enough money to support her elderly mother and her orphaned nephew Cedric has never been easy, but then one of her clients is murdered shortly after sitting for Agnes, and then another, and another… Why is the killer seemingly targeting her business?
Desperately seeking an answer, Agnes approaches Pearl, a child spirit medium lodging in Bath with her older half-sister and her ailing father, hoping that if Pearl can make contact with those who died, they might reveal who killed them.
But Agnes and Pearl quickly discover that instead they may have opened the door to something that they can never put back…
Expected publication : January 2021
The Night Swim by Megan Goldin
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Heartbreakingly sad and shocking story
The Night Swim is without doubt a difficult book to read due to the raw emotional impact it delivers. To be honest, I’m struggling to formulate words to write a review because this really did hit me quite hard, in fact I admit that it took me longer to read than usual because I needed to step away from it occasionally just to have a mental break. This is a book that takes a grim look at rape and more than that scrutinizes the blame and shame treatment that is often handed out to victims of such crimes at a time when they are most in need of support. What can I say, it’s not a book that you’d say you enjoyed, the content is too shocking, but at the same time it’s a good read that made my emotions run amok.
We meet Rachel Krall, host of a popular investigatory style podcast that really took off after a previously convicted man was found innocent and released when new evidence was uncovered by Rachel. As the book begins Rachel is travelling to a small coastal town where a rape trial, that has the town completely divided, is about to start.
The Night Swim is told in the form of podcast transcripts prepared by Rachel and letters from somebody called Hannah who almost seems to be stalking Rachel in a desperate attempt to get her to investigate a 25 year old case that she believes was murder. Part courtroom drama and part flashbacks this is a brutally frank look at two young women whose lives were torn apart. It’s a sad read, it upset me, it made me angry and it made me want to punch something (I would just point out that I’m not a violent person – but this book! I had definite book rage).
What worked really well for me here was the way the story flows. It involves two very similar tales, both desperately sad and shocking, one a glaring injustice and the other being played out in front of the judge and jury and really highlighting how very difficult it is for rape victims to be treated fairly. For example, in the rape trial the young girl has to provide testimony, reliving the attack and being scrutinised and harangued. The accused doesn’t have to face any such ordeal. He doesn’t have to prove that he’s telling the truth or tell a consistent story whilst facing hostile questions from an attorney.
Rachel is a really good character to read. I liked her modern attitude and the way she stood up for herself even if she was inwardly scared. Rachel is approached by Hannah who is trying to discover what really happened to her sister 25 years ago, she supposedly accidentally drowned and yet it seems that any evidence was mysteriously lost or simply not acted upon. At first Rachel is hesitant to become involved but as the correspondence from Hannah begins to arrive with increasing regularity Rachel finds herself getting pulled into Hannah’s story and really starting to care.
In terms of criticisms. Well, this has quite a slow build, which to be fair I really didn’t mind, but by comparison the conclusion felt a little rushed. Things came together very quickly in the last few chapters and the tone felt different compared to the rest of the book. It certainly didn’t spoil the read for me but it surprised me a little.
That being said this was a compelling read. Very emotional, very hard hitting and maybe not for everyone but a well written book that manages to handle a difficult topic in a sensitive and impactful way.
Rating 4 of 5 stars
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
#SPFBO : My Fourth Batch of Books
23 August 2020
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Anthony Stevens, Calico Thunder Rides Again, Emma and the Minotaur, Jon Herrera, Jon Monson, Joseph O Doran, My Fourth Batch of Books, Rise of the Forgotten Sun, Shifter Shadows, SPFBO, Stacey Trombley, TA Hernandez, The Child of Silence, Trial of Thorns
300 books 10 Judges 1 winner
The 1st of June marked the start of the sixth Self Published Fantasy Blog Off (details here.) My Introductory post is here. You can find my first batch of books here and my update here, and my second batch of books and update here and here. I’ve now read and updated my third batch of books and also provided an update and today I will be outlining the fourth set of books that I will be reading.
As with previous years I will read a batch of books each month. I will read at least 30% and hopefully will choose one or two books from each batch to roll forward and read fully and review before choosing semi finalists and a finalist. My book list is chosen randomly and the six books I will be reading this month are outlined below:
Rise of the Forgotten Sun (The Sun and the Raven #1) by Jon Monson
All I ever wanted was to see the world and maybe discover an ancient civilization or two. A life of scholarly solitude and adventure was more than enough for me. I never wanted to play politics. I never wanted to get married. I most certainly never dreamed of becoming a god.
Yet when I ventured into the depths of the Soulless Desert, I found… something- a power so ancient it has been forgotten by mankind. That day unleashed a chain of events that, once started, cannot be stopped.
It is the Rise of the Forgotten Sun.
It is the beginning of the end.
Website:http://www.JonMonson.com/
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The Child of Silence (The Burning Orbit Book 1) by Joseph O. Doran
You’ve never met a hero like this before.
Born severely disabled, Aiata dal’Pelferta has spent her life despised by her own people simply for who she is. Worse still, she is the youngest daughter of the Empress, making her an Imperial embarrassment. Unable to talk, move or let anyone know she is a thinking, feeling person, she spends her days observing – and learning – from those around her.
Everything changes when she finally discovers a way to communicate and is plunged into the dangers of the Imperial court. With the magic of Songthrust, Aiata’s people can force others to their will, however they are ill-prepared for a popular revolt within their own borders – a revolt that Aiata is dragged into. Abused by her family and surrounded by danger, Aiata will learn that her intellect – not her magic – is her greatest asset, as she fights to save her home from the ravages of civil war.
Yet while all eyes are on the war at home, a far greater threat looms in the dark of the night sky.
Trial of Thorns (Wicked Fae #1) by Stacey Trombley
In a ruthless competition of blood and magic, attraction to the enemy may be the biggest weakness of all.
I am Caelynn of the Shadow Court, banished to the human realm for killing a fae prince in my youth. But when I learn my homeland is in peril, I strike a bargain.
The Trial of Thorns will decide a champion to save the realm from a terrible plague, and secure the winner fame and fortune. I could care less about the money or notoriety–I’m playing for freedom. If I win, I will earn a full pardon. And I intend to win.
But I don’t account for Reveln being one of my opponents. We’ve got…history. And ten years later, he’s even hotter than I remember. Oh, right, he also hates me.
Only one of us can win, and Rev will do everything in his power to make sure I don’t make it out of the trials alive.
Because ten years ago, I killed his brother.
And Reveln never forgets.
Website : http://www.StaceyTrombley.com
Emma and the Minotaur (World of Light, #1) by Jon Herrera
All stories are true.
In the forests of Saint Martin, a great power has awakened. Whispers abound of a monster who lurks in the dark as more and more of the city’s residents go missing.
Emma Wilkins is eleven years old and lives on Belle Street. Early in the school year, Emma befriends a boy whose father has disappeared. Together, they embark on a mission to find him. Awaiting Emma in the shadows of Glenridge Forest is a world of magic, secrets, and creatures of legend returning from exile.
During her adventure, Emma discovers the truth behind a power greater still. One who watches and waits, preparing for the day when the world is ready for his return
Emma and the Minotaur is a modern-day fairy tale. It is a love letter to innocence, magic, and fantasy.
Website: http://www.jonherrera.ca
Calico Thunder Rides Again by T.A. Hernandez
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to the Most Fantastic Show on Earth…
Three years ago, the Ban changed everything, outlawing certain forms of magic and bringing about the rise of powerful crime syndicates. Now, speakeasies in every city sell illegal charms and jinxes, and bootleggers traffic restricted potion ingredients across the country. But even in this changing world, the magic of the circus still acts as a wondrous escape and provides entertainment for all.
Jake Strickland owns one such circus, inherited after an accident ended his career as a rodeo dragon rider. He also inherited the circus’ financial troubles, but since the show became his, he’s slowly managed to turn it into a profitable business once more. Or at least, that’s what he thought.
When a dangerous mobster comes to collect an old debt, Jake resorts to desperate measures to get the money before a strict deadline. With lives and livelihoods at stake, he battles the clock, his responsibilities to the circus, and a longstanding personal grudge that has festered for years. Can he pay back the mob before it’s too late?
Website: http://www.tahernandez.com
Shifter Shadows by Anthony Stevens
From the dawn of prehistory to an apocalyptic day after tomorrow, shifters and their friends have been in the background of every historical event. Shapechangers, healers, hunters, shamans, and great leaders, have always been around. We recognize the legendary ones, but must always keep in mind that Gomer is a good dog.
Website:http://www.anthonystevens.co.uk/
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Once again, good luck to everyone. If you’d like to visit my blog for a guest post, excerpt, etc, then leave me a note in the comments (and, if you’ve already left me a comment and I haven’t responded please give me a nudge).
Books and travelling with Lynn 