Here’s a rundown of the books we think you should look out for in coming in the week. See any that you are really looking forward to? Find any you had not heard of yet? Know of books we missed? We know we don’t have everything and would love to hear what you feel we may have overlooked.   FANTASY               SCIENCE FICTION               HORROR   FANTASY                   SCIENCE FICTION       HORROR         FANTASY               SCIENCE FICTION               HORROR  

As usual, this review will be spoiler free for Reign of Iron, however, (also as usual), there may be spoilers for the previous books in the series. In this case I wanted to give an extra reminder/warning, because I discuss how a *huge spoiler* for the series from book two impacted this book.   IF YOU HAVE NOT READ CLASH OF IRON — DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW       Angus Watson has shown he has some serious guts when it comes to his writing. We were left with a complete game changer at the end of the previous book and I am impressed with how Watson handled everything after. Honestly, it was something that could have gone horribly wrong in terms of story telling. But this final book proved that Watson knew what he was doing. The death of a major character, actually, I would argue THE major character from books 1 and 2 was a huge risk. I mean, for all the talk of authors like Martin showing their characters no mercy and killing them at will, I have to say there has never been a death in ASoIaF as shocking as what we read at the end of Clash…

Here’s a rundown of the books we think you should look out for in coming in the week. See any that you are really looking forward to? Find any you had not heard of yet? Know of books we missed? We know we don’t have everything and would love to hear what you feel we may have overlooked.   FANTASY          SCIENCE FICTION           HORROR     FANTASY                     FANTASY          SCIENCE FICTION           HORROR     SCIENCE FICTION                      FANTASY          SCIENCE FICTION           HORROR     HORROR           FANTASY          SCIENCE FICTION           HORROR    

Mystic is very much a coming of age, perhaps somewhat standard fare for a young adult novel. And maybe you could say the story, in some ways, was predictable. But you know what? I don’t care. I found the characters refreshing, I wanted to read their experiences as they venture through this story. So, regardless of anything that felt familiar, I still really enjoyed it (remember, sometimes familiar is fun when the story is told well). Mystic is a book to immerse yourself in, in a way that makes you feel you can join the adventure as it unfolds on the page. It is very much a character driven story and the reader’s connection with Pomella is crucial to make this work. Luckily, I found Pomella very intriguing and wanted to root for her the entire time. Even though this is a character driven story, the magic in it is also very cool. The Myst is the magical force/entity/power in which “magic” lives. This type of magic feels natural, like part of the earth and environment, but only select people have the ability to access and manipulate it. Honestly, I loved the Myst and how those who could call on…

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a compilation of the first three Dunk and Egg short stories by George R. R. Martin that have previously been available in separate anthologies. I have been wanting to read these for years, and have just not hunted down copies of the separate anthologies yet. Now that they are conveniently packaged together, I figured there was no excuse. And as an added bonus, the art work in it makes getting the physical copy of the book well worth it. A Knight of Seven Kingdoms tells three tales in the traveling adventures of Dunk and Egg. The first story, The Hedge Knight introduces us to both Dunk and Egg, as well as how they met and some their history prior to being brought together. We also learn about the life of a hedge knight. It was a fun story, and I quickly latched on to both Dunk and Egg. The second story and third stories each highlight a particular escapade in their travels. They are interesting and engaging, and Dunk and Egg are characters I want to read more about. Especially Egg (and Dunk)! I found these stories to be really fun and much…

Here’s a rundown of the books we think you should look out for in coming in the week. See any that you are really looking forward to? Find any you had not heard of yet? Know of books we missed? We know we don’t have everything and would love to hear what you feel we may have overlooked.   FANTASY               SCIENCE FICTION     FANTASY                                 SCIENCE FICTION FANTASY         SCIENCE FICTION      

Today, we am very excited to share Last Launch, a prequel short story for The Ark by Patrick S. Tomlinson. The Ark releases November 3rd in US/Can and November 5th Nov UK/RoW. And, we also have a Worldwide giveaway! Be sure to enter below to win one of 5 copies!   GIVEAWAY   Patrick S. Tomlinson   Patrick S. Tomlinson is the son of an ex-hippie psychologist and an ex-cowboy electrician. He lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with a menagerie of houseplants in varying levels of health, a Ford Mustang, and a Triumph motorcycle bought specifically to embarrass and infuriate Harley riders. When not writing sci-fi and fantasy novels and short stories, Patrick is busy developing his other passion for performing stand-up comedy. The Ark (3 Nov US/Can / 5th Nov UK/RoW) is his first novel. You can find Patrick online at his website: www.patrickstomlinson.com, on Twitter @stealthygeek and on Facebook.  

Planetfall is tense and addictive. It is the story of a colony of humans who fled earth in pursuit of God’s city on a faraway planet. This was supposed to be an answer for humans from earth, where things are not going so well. Since this is not simply the exploration of a new planet, but also a pilgrimage, religion and faith both factor heavily into this society. For me it was an interesting dynamic to have a people so technologically advanced, and also so faithful to this God and city they journeyed to. I honestly kept waiting for more of a scientific approach to explain some of their religious beliefs, perhaps because that is my personal inclination. So as a reader, some of the things that the society referred to as religious fact, I couldn’t help but want to know more, I almost craved an alternative explanation and wondered how the characters could accept things so blindly. Honestly, this aspect of the book fascinated me in a good way. Planetfall also examines the relationships between people as it shows how even surrounded by people, how easy it is to feel isolated and alone. The idyllic community the settlers tried to create sounds…

Here’s a rundown of the books we think you should look out for in coming in the week. See any that you are really looking forward to? Find any you had not heard of yet? Know of books we missed? We know we don’t have everything and would love to hear what you feel we may have overlooked.   FANTASY         SCIENCE FICTION     FANTASY                 SCIENCE FICTION                   FANTASY                 SCIENCE FICTION  

Wake of Vultures is a western fantasy doused with folklore, and complete with vampires, werewolves and shape-shifters. Just don’t go into this expecting the sparkling variety of vampires or the happy, hunky type of werewolves. This is a darker book that left me mesmerized by the world and characters. Nettie has an incredibly hard life. She is the only non-white person around and was raised by a couple who told her that when no one else would have her, they showed her mercy by taking her in as a baby. But they show her no love, give her no support, and they certainly never took any steps to try and educate her. She may call them Pap and Mam as if they were her parents, but they treat her as a servant, without the pay. It really is a loveless and thankless life she has been living. But, she has found a passion, a love in her life. And that’s the animals. Nettie loves the horses that she is told to break. She uses patience and understanding to get the animal to submit to her will rather than force. This is the one part of her life that really makes…