I’m going to start this review with a little story of my own.  About six and a half/seven years ago I picked up a book called Prince of Thorns.  This book was different than anything I’d read before in fantasy terms.  I absolutely loved it and pretty much devoured the series in short order.  The main protagonist, Jorg, is not for everyone.  The Broken Empire series is awash with blood and Jorg, although he will grow on you if you give him a chance (imho), is somebody you don’t want to cross, not if you like breathing.  This was my first, but not last, foray into grimdark and I was absolutely sold.  Obviously I couldn’t wait to read the Red Queen’s War.  What a difference.  I expected more of the same, and I certainly got that in terms of good writing, but the story was so different, still bloody, still brimming with fantastic characters and Jalan was just a blast to read.  I seriously think The Wheel of Osheim is one of my favourite books ever.  Then Lawrence comes along with a magic/school for assassins story, his main protagonist a female.  So, colour me intrigued but maybe a little bit…

Sometimes I find it difficult to write a review for a book that I loved wholeheartedly, mainly because of all the emotions I’m feeling and it’s as if every single one of them is vying to burst forth from me all at the same time. The Poppy War is one of those books. There’s so much I want to say about it, like why it’s so awesome, why it spoke so strongly to me, and why you should drop everything and read it at once. Really, I just loved this book so damn much, I’m at a complete loss as to where to start. But perhaps a brief rundown of its premise would be a good first step. The Poppy War is the story of Rin, a war orphan who was adopted into an opium-running peasant family from a poor southern province of Nikara. Life was hard, but tolerable—that is, until they tried to marry her off to a man three times her age. A girl like her has few other options, however; but Rin is determined not to become some fat merchant’s bed slave, surprising everyone when she decides to study for the Keju imperial examinations and ends up…

Having read the first two books in Weeke’s Rogues of the Republic series I was intrigued when I saw Feeder with it’s ‘sci fi’ feel.  I’m enjoying the fantasy series by this author (although I need to read No.3 and complete the series – I have completion issues!) and similarly to his fantasy works this book has a fun feel.  I enjoyed this.  I would say it’s probably aimed at a YA audience although to be honest it has a comic book type adventure feel that I’m sure will appeal to many.  It’s not a serious read but definitely something that I could see being adapted to screen really successfully.  A bunch of young adults with mutant powers plus a very diverse and inclusive cast of characters.  On top of that it’s virtually non-stop action with monsters of the tentacle-kind. As the story starts we meet Lori Fisher.  She’s received a message with details of her latest job and is sorting out real life issues in order to dash out the door – this gives you an immediate glimpse into Lori’s life.  You meet her brother Ben, who she adores, and get a feel for their close knit unit –…

A Veil of Spears continues the fantastical excitement I’ve grown to expect from this series, starting immediately from where With Blood Upon the Sand left off. If ever there was an under read, under recommended series, I really think this is it. It has so much to offer and is so well written, I am always surprised I don’t hear it discussed more. Reading this book just reinforced that. The Moonless Host has taken a huge hit, but instead of giving up, Çeda devises a plan to try and deal another blow to the Kings, one that might not require so much manpower. Çeda is squarely in the sites of the kings as a threat, and so she needs to evade them while also continuing to scheme against them. The one thing she has going for her is that the kings no longer all trust each other. Divisions are forming, and if they don’t stand and work together, then taking them down will be, if not yet easy, at least less daunting. The divisions can create opportunities, which Çeda can not afford to not take. Since there are more moving parts, all of which have been set up very well, I felt like…

I have to say from the outset that I had fun reading The Sisters Mederos.  This is a fantasy of manners with two sisters, raised with privilege, whose family loses everything, and who, using their wits and determination seek to reinstate their family’s good name and fortune. There’s not too much to go into in relation to the plot.  The Mederos family was one of the most influential and wealthy merchant houses in Port Saint Frey until the fleet was sunk and it was discovered their was no insurance.  Their fall from grace was as spectacular as it was speedy and clearly somebody orchestrated the whole affair.  The sisters are determined to find out who is to blame although at the same time they need to take action to keep their family afloat. As the story sets off we meet the Mederos family as they’re in the process of being accused.  The family home is taken from them, the girl’s uncle is imprisoned and the two girls are sent to boarding school.  When we next meet up with them the sisters have been returned home to their family after an absence of six years.  Times have changed, none of their…

Glimpse is my second book by Jonathan Maberry, and I felt like I was taking a little bit of a chance because several years ago my attempt to read his book Patient Zero did not go so well. However, the premise simply sounded too good, and in the end I’m glad I overcame my hesitation to give this one a try because I really enjoyed it. In addition to being a blend of horror and the paranormal, this chilling story also has an element of otherworldly suspense that I think will make it appeal to fans of Joe Hill or Dean Koontz. Glimpse follows recovering junkie Rain Thomas, a twenty-something young woman who has struggled to overcome tragedy and loss to build a life for herself in New York City. At age sixteen, she became pregnant and was forced to give her child up for adoption after Noah, her first love, was deployed to Iraq and killed in an IED attack before he even found out about the baby. An embarrassment to her upper crust family, Rain was essentially left to fend for herself after she succumbed to her grief and fell into of life of drug addiction. Now three…

Unbury Carol is a wonderful story that takes you into the mind of Carol, a woman with a condition that causes her to have episodes where she appears to be dead. She goes into a coma like state, her breathing slows to the point of being almost undetectable. From the outside, she seems dead, but she remains fully aware of her surroundings. She can hear and remember conversations that are held around her, but she can’t respond. It’s a living nightmare, having your mind and awareness held captive in her paralyzed body. This book is not going to be for everyone. It is a slow burn and the conflict is not an adrenaline rush type of suspense. It is a psychological horror that really focuses on Carol’s character and the fears and risks her condition presents. She lost her first love, James Moxie, due to her condition as he just couldn’t handle the stress of watching the woman he loves die again and again, always worried if she would come back. After this, she was very selective in who she told, worried that other’s may leave as well. After the death of her dear friend John, the only person who…

The Bitter Twins is the second instalment of Jen Williams’ Winnowing Flame Trilogy and is an excellent second in series that demonstrates William’s ability to create a richly woven world, full of history and religion and characters that are a delight to read and fall in love with. Before reviewing The Bitter Twins I would point out that it is necessary to read the Ninth Rain first.  The story picks up immediately after the conclusion of No.1 and there is no recap of previous events so if you haven’t read the first book then I strongly recommend you stop right here, don’t read this review, simply go and pick up the first book.  The other thing that I would mention is that this is a book that is a little difficult to review without giving away spoilers for the first book or indeed for the content of The Bitter Twins so I’m really going to avoid discussion of the plot and limit my review to the writing, characters and world building. Once again the story brings our favourite characters to the table.  Lady Vincenza, or Vintage, again plays a key role.  Not to be deterred by her lack of either…

I need to just start out with stating how much I love this book and series. It is a refreshing and lively fantasy that has characters that I just can’t get enough of. The entire concept of a non-magic user being tethered to someone with magic, with the ability to essentially turn their abilities on and off, and tying their lives to one another creates very interesting dynamics. Having Amalia, the heir to the Empire, also be a Falconer puts her in a really unique position. The throw in that Zaira, her falcon, is a fire mage, and things get really interesting. In the last book, we saw Amalia’s relationship with Marcello both start to bloom, but also become stifled as the reality of her duty as heir made it apparent she had to remain open to suitors that could gain the Serene Empire a political advantage. In the Defiant Heir, her relationship with Marcello is further tested and strained as an opportune suitor presents her with enormous possibility politically. It is something she can’t just dismiss. The problem? This suitor is not a normal noble, but a Witch Lord from Vaskandar. Witch Lords are the things of scary childhood…

Given the choice between a one-way trip to Mars and life imprisonment, what would you choose? For Frank, who committed murder in order to save his son, he knows that whatever happens he will be getting a raw deal. But rather than rot in jail for the rest of his life, he figures that maybe, just maybe, he can accomplish something before he dies that will help him be remembered, something that will make his kid be proud of his old man. So, when the representatives of a company contracted to build a new Martian base approaches Frank with the offer to send him to space, he said yes. But just because he’s an astronaut, doesn’t mean he’s not still a prisoner. Frank had known that he and his fellow inmates recruited for the mission would be watched and guarded at all times, but the situation turns out to be much worse than he thought. The construction company in charge of the project has been cutting corners, and using convicts to build their Martian base is just one of a number of shady practices they don’t want anyone to find out about. Mars is already dangerous enough without having to…