As with most sequels, the Nowhere Gate is similar to its predecessor and share some of its strengths and weaknesses: the characters are varied and enjoyable, and the various worlds connected by the gates are under explored, lacking strong elements to distinguish them from one another.The largest issue with the Nowhere Gate is that for […]
Bleeding Iris is a visually and conceptually strong book; there are several scenes throughout that were just cool to imagine and visualize, from the way the iris’ of those who accept their bargains rupture and bleed out, to more specific imagery like a woman dressed in a veil and all-black despite the heat passively pulling […]
I thoroughly enjoyed Foundryside. The magic system is complex in it potential (and spectacularly used in a variety of innovative and unique ways throughout the narrative) but simple to understand and with enough restrictions and rules to make for clever and enjoyable uses.The world building is strong, allowing a deep, tactile sense of the city […]
There is a lot of good in The Fall is All There Is. The prose and characters are solid, the fantastical elements of the world building are interesting and unique with their frakenstinian technology and the way it handles its ghosts/specters, and the book depiction of autism feels both immersive and authentic. But the book […]
If you liked the first book, which I did, you’ll like the sequel as the recipe is unchanged. Baincroft is a joy to read, and other other characters remain likable with their moments of comedy sprinkled throughout.There’s some more world building in this book, expanding our understanding of the setting, but its fairly superficial with […]
Murder at Spindle Manor is a solid little mystery. The setting, an old stately manor, is appealing and the cast being trapped there with a disguised monsters adds a simmering tension. I found that the monster became largely irrelevant to the story, however, overshadowed by the murder and subsequent investigation. This would’t be much of […]
The House in the Cerulean Sea is what I would describe as a cozy fantasy romance. It is just a soft fun book with bits of comedy, immensely likable characters, and an excellent pacing. There’s drama and conflict, but there’s also never a sense that things aren’t going to just end perfectly.The heart and soul […]
Underveil: The Awakening is unfortunately a book I struggled to enjoy, primarily due to the prose and the characters. The prose is weak, both heavily reliant on the passive voice, which saps the sentences and events of impact while often making those events feel simplistic, and on exposition both within the narrative and via the […]
Blood and Wonder is an interesting mix of fantasy and western in a post-apocalyptic like setting. This setting is well utilized and colors the entire narrative, even affecting the narrative in tangible ways. The desert, with its various environments and dangers, is vibrant and immersive, providing a striking backdrop to a narrative that revolves around […]
Jarrod and the Demon’s Knight is a solid, well paced gothic paranormal book, featuring enjoyably dark malevolent deities and well designed and used magic system.The book can be quite dark and unsettling at several times, with multiple scenes dedicated to torturing characters to slow and agonizing deaths as sacrifices to the aforementioned gods. It these […]
Well paced, deliciously atmospheric with the horror scenes and the monsters, with likeable lead characters. Strong prose and worldbuilding.
I listened to this on audio book and the narrator does a fine job, but nothing special.Zeus is Dead started weak for me; the humor didn’t quite land and largely felt like the same joke with different words (zanny comment and reference), and its main format being the author commenting often comes across as intrusive. […]
I thoroughly enjoyed Song of the Beast. Excellent, often beautiful, prose drives a complex narrative full of emotion. Aidan is a compelling lead with a complex, fully realized personality and narrative, full of internal conflict and growth, and emotion.The plot is fairly unique, relying more on the mystery of the story and on the discovery […]
I found Where the Shadows Beckon well written and fun. The pacing is quick, but steady and well balanced with a good mixture (and variety) of action scenes counterbalanced by character interactions and narrative scenes.The characters themselves are likable with strong individuality despite their number, and generally have good chemistry. (Their interactions, and several other […]
Dagger Eyes is a soft fantasy (light on the magic) court intrigue book that was submitted to me to review. It is also, unfortunately, a book I struggled to finish, primarily due to the plot, but somewhat to the characters as well.The plot is slow, which is less the issue than it is slow and […]