More books for the tbr??
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme where every Tuesday we look at a particular topic for discussion and use various (or more to the point ten) bookish examples to demonstrate that particular topic. Top Ten Tuesday (created and hosted by The Broke and Bookish) is now being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and future week’s topics can be found here. This week’s topic is:
Upcoming Releases I’m On the Fence About
Well, I’m not on the fence about these books but I am trying to be good at the moment in terms of review requests, simply because I’d like to catch up and improve my feedback, and quite a few of these are due to be published this month so I already know there’s no way I could fit them in at the moment. Here are five books that I’m keeping in mind in case I suddenly discover the secret of time travel or, to put it another way, here are some more books for my tbr – because I’m not really fooling anyone – I want all the books:
Heartwood Box by Ann Aguirre
A dark, romantic YA suspense novel with an SF edge and plenty of drama, layering the secrets we keep and how appearances can deceive, from the New York Times bestselling author.
In this tiny, terrifying town, the lost are never found. When Araceli Flores Harper is sent to live with her great-aunt Ottilie in her ramshackle Victorian home, the plan is simple. She’ll buckle down and get ready for college. Life won’t be exciting, but she’ll cope, right?Wrong. From the start, things are very, very wrong. Her great-aunt still leaves food for the husband who went missing twenty years ago, and local businesses are plastered with MISSING posters. There are unexplained lights in the woods and a mysterious lab just beyond the city limits that the locals don’t talk about. Ever. When she starts receiving mysterious letters that seem to be coming from the past, she suspects someone of pranking her or trying to drive her out of her mind. To solve these riddles and bring the lost home again, Araceli must delve into a truly diabolical conspiracy, but some secrets fight to stay buried…
The Grand Dark by Richard Kadrey
From the bestselling author of the Sandman Slim series, a lush, dark, stand-alone fantasy built off the insurgent tradition of China Mieville and M. John Harrison—a subversive tale that immerses us in a world where the extremes of bleakness and beauty exist together in dangerous harmony in a city on the edge of civility and chaos.
The Great War is over. The city of Lower Proszawa celebrates the peace with a decadence and carefree spirit as intense as the war’s horrifying despair. But this newfound hedonism—drugs and sex and endless parties—distracts from strange realities of everyday life: Intelligent automata taking jobs. Genetically engineered creatures that serve as pets and beasts of war. A theater where gruesome murders happen twice a day. And a new plague that even the ceaseless euphoria can’t mask.
Unlike others who live strictly for fun, Largo is an addict with ambitions. A bike messenger who grew up in the slums, he knows the city’s streets and its secrets intimately. His life seems set. He has a beautiful girlfriend, drugs, a chance at a promotion—and maybe, an opportunity for complete transformation: a contact among the elite who will set him on the course to lift himself up out of the streets.
But dreams can be a dangerous thing in a city whose mood is turning dark and inward. Others have a vision of life very different from Largo’s, and they will use any methods to secure control. And in behind it all, beyond the frivolity and chaos, the threat of new war always looms.
Dark Shores (Dark Shores #1) by Danielle L. Jensen
Piracy, blackmail, and meddling gods meet in Dark Shores, a thrilling first novel in a fast-paced new YA fantasy series by Danielle L. Jensen.
A PIRATE WITH A WILL OF IRON
Teriana is the second mate of the Quincense, a ship beholden to the Goddess of the Seas. Her people are born of the waves, and they alone know how to cross the impassable oceans between East and West.
A SOLDIER WITH A SECRET
Marcus is the commander of the Thirty-Seventh, the notorious legion that has led the Celendor Empire to conquer the entire East. The legion is his only family, and even they don’t know the secret he’s been hiding since childhood.
A DANGEROUS QUEST
When a power-hungry ruler captures Teriana’s crew and threatens to reveal Marcus’s secret unless they help him conquer the unknown West, the two are forced into an unlikely–and unwilling– alliance. They unite for the sake of their families, but both must decide how far they are willing to go, and how much they are willing to sacrifice.
The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo
A sweeping historical novel about a dancehall girl and an orphan boy whose fates entangle over an old Chinese superstition about men who turn into tigers.
When 11-year-old Ren’s master dies, he makes one last request of his Chinese houseboy: that Ren find his severed finger, lost years ago in an accident, and reunite it with his body. Ren has 49 days, or else his master’s soul will roam the earth, unable to rest in peace.
Ji Lin always wanted to be a doctor, but as a girl in 1930s Malaysia, apprentice dressmaker is a more suitable occupation. Secretly, though, Ji Lin also moonlights as a dancehall girl to help pay off her beloved mother’s Mahjong debts. One night, Ji Lin’s dance partner leaves her with a gruesome souvenir: a severed finger. Convinced the finger is bad luck, Ji Lin enlists the help of her erstwhile stepbrother to return it to its rightful owner.
As the 49 days tick down, and a prowling tiger wreaks havoc on the town, Ji Lin and Ren’s lives intertwine in ways they could never have imagined. Propulsive and lushly written, The Night Tiger explores colonialism and independence, ancient superstition and modern ambition, sibling rivalry and first love. Braided through with Chinese folklore and a tantalizing mystery, this novel is a page-turner of the highest order.
A Pinch of Magic (A Pinch of Magic #1) by Michelle Harrison
‘A SPELL-BINDING STORY, STEEPED IN MAGIC. I ADORED IT’ – Abi Elphinstone, author of Sky Song
Three sisters trapped by an ancient curse.
Three magical objects with the power to change their fate.
Will they be enough to break the curse?
Or will they lead the sisters even deeper into danger? …
The enchanting new story from Michelle Harrison, author of the bestselling THIRTEEN TREASURES trilogy
#SPFBO – Finalists No.2 and No.3
4 February 2019
Filed under #SPFBO, Book Reviews
Tags: #SPFBO 2018, Finalists, Keith Ward, Steven McKinnon, Symphony of the Wind, The Anointed
Today I’m highlighting the second and third books that I will be reading for the SPFBO Competition (more details here). The first finalist I read was Out of Nowhere by Patrick LeClerc and my review can be found here. The purpose of this post is to shine a spotlight on those books and give readers a chance to see what they’re all about. As already mentioned all my books are randomly selected and my 2nd and 3rd finalists will be:
Symphony of the Wind (The Raincatcher’s Ballad #1) by Steven McKinnon
A bounty hunter with a death wish. A girl with fearsome powers. A kingdom on the brink of destruction.
Serena dreams of leaving her harsh desert home behind in her very own airship. But when an assassin’s knife meant for Serena kills her friend instead, the rebellious orphan ventures into the corrupt heart of Dalthea to discover who put a price on her head. With each new turn, she edges closer to uncovering the awful truth… And the mystical powers brewing deep within her.
After his fiancée’s death, soldier-turned-bounty hunter Tyson Gallows is eager to sacrifice his life in the line of duty. When a foreign enemy assassinates a high-ranking official, he vows to bring them to justice. On the hunt for a killer, Gallows exposes a sinister plot that proves his fiancée’s death was no accident.
Driven by revenge, Serena and Gallows must join forces to take down the conspiracy before the kingdom falls to ruin.
Symphony of the Wind is the first book in a gritty epic fantasy trilogy. If you like hardened heroes, steampunk airships, and dark magic and monsters, then you’ll love Steven McKinnon’s visceral adventure.
The Anointed (Red Proxy #3) by Keith Ward
Being a hero is a choice.
Xinlas’s life goal is modest: he wants to be a living legend, revered in song and story. And he’s off to a good start. He faced death once, and won. His legend grew — at least in his own mind.
Fame comes calling on Xinlas again, or so he thinks, when he stumbles on a hidden village. The village has a resource that no one’s ever seen before. A resource that can be used to conquer other lands. A resource that a power-mad ruler will kill for.
Can Xinlas — with the help of a mysterious orange-haired girl he meets on a river — stop the man who would enslave millions? It will take a kind of courage found in legendary heroes.
Will Xinlas become that hero, or break under the weight of his destiny? The fate of civilization rests on his choices.
Fog Season: A Tale of Port Saint Frey (Tales of Port Saint Frey #2) by Patrice Sarath
4 February 2019
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Fog Season, Patrice Sarath, Tales of Port Saint Frey #2
Fog Season is the second in the Tales of Port Saint Frey series. The first book was a fun fantasy of manners that didn’t take itself too seriously and brought to readers two sisters who have a bit of mettle about them not to mention brains and magic.
Please be aware that if you haven’t read the first book then there may be spoilers below.
In book one we were introduced to the Mederos family. Formerly a family of merchants of good standing within Port Saint Frey their fortune and good name were brought low after a shipping disaster that they were deemed responsible for. In book two we pick up fairly soon after the sisters uncovered the culprits who were responsible for their families misfortune and although their fortunes have since been restored there are still troubles aplenty and danger for the sisters.
As the story begins we’re introduced to a happy family scene, the girls are waving farewell to their parents who are setting forth on a voyage to discover what happened to their ships. Of course, this leaves the girls happily in charge of the household and their own actions. The staff are still very much diminished consisting of a formidable cook, a reliable butler (dare I say handsome and sometimes slightly dishevelled) and a sneaky housemaid, plus the rambunctious uncle. We’re also introduced to a detective, hired by the other merchant houses to try and uncover what took place during the Great Fraud. This man himself seems to have hidden talents and also a hidden agenda. On top of this the regular constabulary are still investigating the actions and whereabouts of the Gentleman Bandit and it seems that there are at least two other interested parties in discovering more about Tesara’s magical abilities.
As with book one the story here revolves around the two sisters, Tesara and Yvienne. Tesara is the younger sister and the one who is capable of magic. Unfortunately her magical abilities garner the attention of some very unsavoury types who would use her for their own nefarious schemes (all whilst twirling their waxed moustaches of course). Yvienne is renowned for her intellect and intelligence and is the sister who was primarily responsible for uncovering the schemes against her family. I was really impressed in this instalment by the way in which the two seemed to share a much greater bond. In the first book I didn’t really feel any strong family ties but I felt that came across a lot better in this instalment and there was no shortage of risk and danger for both of them to worry about as their previous actions came home to dwell.
I enjoyed Fog Season. There was plenty of derring-do and ne’er do wells, a suggestion of romance and a lot of scheming. If anything, it felt like there was almost too much action and too’ing and fro’ing but that’s not really a criticism. More that I did, at points, feel like things were going round in circles. I like the setting and the period feel but at the same time enjoy the sense of freedom that the author has managed to give the girls and I don’t mean just by their parents being absent. Neither of them seem to be too encumbered by the rigid formalities of the period that seem to restrict others so much and I think that’s as a result not only of their families misfortunes but also the fact that they spent many years in a harsh boarding school where they were expected to clean as well as learn and this has almost given them a foot in both camps if you will.
In terms of criticisms the only thing I found lacking was any more information about Tesara’s magical abilities. She seemed, as the book started, to have gained a bit better hold over her own powers, although they start to become out of control as the book proceeds, but there seems to be very little knowledge about why she is gifted or what the extent of her ability is. I also think that Tesara is her own worst enemy sometimes – although I had to keep in mind that she is the younger sister. Both sisters have, by their actions in the first book, caused suspicion but whereas Yvienne seems to think on her feet to try and lessen the impact it feels like Tesara is just too impetuous and it feels like her actions usually end up causing a lot of bother. Still, in fairness, there would have been a good deal less action without Tesara charging about the place recklessly.
This is a fun series with a light feel and a period setting that fits well in between chunky reads to give a welcome change of pace. I look forward to seeing what the author comes up with next.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the author, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
January : My Month in Review + book covers
Well, January flew by at breakneck speed for me and I hope February puts the brakes on a little. I can’t even think where I’ve been or what I’ve done, it all feels very hazy almost as though I wasn’t taking part! Birthdays, lots of seeing friends, a short trip away visiting in-laws and a few books. So, I didn’t read as many books as I’d hoped this month with seven in total but I’ve had some amazing reads that I loved and what’s really surprising is I’ve reviewed them all. I’ve been catching up with some other reviews too and I read the first of nine SPFBO finalists. My weekly wrap ups hit the dust this month but I’ll hopefully resume them during February – I find they help keep me on track. So, here’s my month in review (I usually post my month in covers separately but I’ve added them here as I’m a couple of days later than normal):
Books read: this month = 7
- The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden
- Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield
- The Wolf in the Whale by Jordanna Max Brodsky
- The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Ryder-Hanrahan
- The Devil Aspect by Craig Russell
- Murder Theory by Andrew Mayne
- Out of Nowhere by Patrick LeClerc
What’ve you been reading??
Backlist books
None.
Unfinished series completed:
None.
Books Bought:
None – that’s a surprise!
Review Books
- The Furies by Katie Lowe
- Never-Contented Things by Sarah Porter
- The Whisper Man by Alex North
- The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons
- Murder Theory by Andrew Mayne
- The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins
Cover compare:
I like the first cover the best of these two – I like the starkness of the second cover but prefer the colours of the first – although I’m not fond of the gold medal!
White is your favourite?
Hope you’ve all had a good month.
#SPFBO Out of Nowhere by Patrick LeClerc
2 February 2019
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: #SPFBO 2018, Out of Nowhere, Patrick LeClerc
Out of Nowhere is the first finalist that I’ve read for the SPFBO competition. All my books are randomly chosen and I will be shining the spotlight on my second book shortly. In the meantime here are my thoughts on Out of Nowhere.
Out of Nowhere is urban fantasy. I enjoy urban fantasy and so I’m always happy to pick up something new and this is a novel that feels very original in it’s approach.
The central character is an immortal called Sean Danet. Sean has a special healing ability that he puts to good use here by working as a paramedic. He’s learnt over the years to keep his talent for healing hidden as people are quick to break out the pitchforks and so working in an occupation that allows him early access to the injured before they’ve been diagnosed gives him the chance to correct some of the damage without being discovered. However, as the story sets off Sean does a patch up job on a patient with an unusual accent that he can’t place and he can’t help having a bad feeling that this stranger knows more about Sean than he’s entirely comfortable with. From here things start to go wrong for Sean starting with a random attack that takes place on a job, followed it seems by somebody asking questions about Sean, who is he? Where does he live. Things finally escalate when Sean’s friends get caught in the crossfire and it becomes apparent that there are two choices: flight or fight.
Sean’s usual instinct and strong sense of self preservation would lead him to pack up and go, start over somewhere new, but this time things have changed. He likes his job, he has friends now and has just started a very promising relationship. He decides instead to do some of his own digging.
I would start by saying that I enjoyed this. It was an easy and in fact quick read. I liked the attention to detail that the author pays to Sean’s role that brought a level of interest to the story that was unexpected and I thought the writing was impressive.
In terms of the characters. I’m not quite sure yet how I feel about Sean. He’s a decent character, don’t get me wrong and having been around for such a long time he’s knowledgeable and competent and when the proverbial starts to hit the fan he feels moved to take action. I think at this stage Sean and his love interest maybe still feel a little bit flat for me, but, that being said I usually find that the first in an urban fantasy series can leave work still to be covered in future instalments. Sean has no real memories of his early years. He’s aware of his own immortality but he doesn’t have much other knowledge and although this is explored later in the novel it only really scratches the surface – which is much as you might normally expect but, at the same time, I think I wanted to be fed a little bit more information about the whys and wherefores.
I really enjoyed the writer’s style which makes this a very easy read indeed. I think that the only thing I would mention however is that the pacing feels slow, or at least it feels like very little happens in the first half of the book, in fact, strictly speaking I wouldn’t say that the plot here is the strong point. It revolves around Sean finding out why this stranger is seeking him and trying to stay alive in the process. The second half is a different kettle of fish with much more action taking place and Sean stepping up to the plate and showing his mettle.
In terms of criticisms. Well, I would have liked more information but I chalk this up to being the first instalment and the author wanting to pace the way in which he delivers his story. I thought there were definite areas where the story felt like it was becoming a bit testosterone fueled but then, again, the banter and such didn’t feel out of place. I think my main issue would be that very little happens during the first half and in fact that’s a testament to the strength of writing that this wasn’t more of an issue for me during the read. I also had some questions in terms of how the ‘bad guys’ went about looking for Sean – I just couldn’t help wondering, as they knew where he worked, why not simply follow him when he finishes one of his shifts – it felt a little bit convoluted to be asking around and harassing others about Sean when they could have gone right to the source but, maybe I missed something in that respect. And, I felt like the conclusion felt a little bit rushed and too easily tied up and I didn’t completely buy into the resolution. It didn’t spoil the end, don’t get me wrong, but I think I wanted something more dramatic – but, that being said, this is an ending that definitely leaves potential for more yet to come.
Overall I think the author makes a great start here and leaves the potential to really build on the characters and their pasts.
If I was rating this on Goodreads I would give it 3.5 of 5 stars or for the purpose of the competition 7 out of 10.
