Category Archives: Dark fantasy

Two Twisted Crowns (The Shepherd King 2) by Rachel Gillig

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Stars: 5 out of 5.

The first book in the duology ended in a rather heartbreaking manner with Elspeth losing her soul and her body to the Nightmare. The King and the Maiden effectively became the Monster. This book picks up almost immediately after that fateful night with Elspeth in shackles and in the dungeons of Castle Stone, and Ravyn Yew reeling from what happened to the woman he loved. The monster and the captain of the Destriers will have to collaborate in order to find the Twin Alders card and lift the curse of Blunder once and for all.

Elspeth takes the backseat in this story, with the Shepherd King coming to the forefront and inhabiting her body for most of the book. And let me tell you that he grows on you the more you discover about his past and what happened 500 years ago when the cards were made and mists came to plague the kingdom of Blunder. It’s a classical story of how the road to Hell is paved with good intentions, and how by giving too much of himself to his unhealthy obsession, the Shepherd King lost everything that he should have held dear – his family, his kingdom, and his life.

I loved his interactions with Ravyn, who is devastated because he thinks the woman he loves is lost forever, and he hates the monster that is looking out of her eyes now, yet he needs that monster in order to defeat a bigger treat to his kingdom and his family – the current Rowan King. That made for some entertaining banter between him and the Nightmare, as well as some pretty heartfelt interactions further in the book.

Two other characters from the previous book come to the forefront of the narrative in this one – Prince Renelm (or Elm), and Ione. And I was honestly surprised just how much I liked their story. I liked Elm from the previous book, but Ione had seemed a bit standoffish and “frozen” for most of the last book, because she was under the influence of the Maiden card. Well, we discover in this book that it wasn’t her choice or her doing, and the things she had been put through are frankly horrifying. I was really happy that Hauth got what was coming to him. 

All in all, I really loved this world and the story, even though I thought that the ending wrapped everything a little bit too neatly. But that is just a small gripe and I would highly recommend this book.

PS: I received and advanced copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A Touch of Light (Ashes of Avarin 1) by Thiago Abdalla

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Stars: 2 out of 5.

I grant it to the author, he is trying to tell an ambitious story here, so that necessitates a lot of set up and worldbuilding. Unfortunately, that also means that most of these 700 some pages are exactly that – setup.

The story is very slow going and broken into three distinct POVs that don’t even converge until the very end of this book. And even then, only two of them somewhat converge, I don’t think Nasha ever made it to where Lunn and Adrian were. So we slowly get three different stories developing simultaneously, and up until the end, there was no indication at to how they were connected. Heck, even having finished the book, I’m not sure I understand fully what’s going on.

I wouldn’t have minded this too much if the characters were engaging, but as it stands, I couldn’t connect with none of them. Yes, the author did a good job explaining their motivations, but there was some spark missing with the characters. They felt more like a set of characteristics than real people. So in the end I didn’t particularly care for any of them, which made this story very difficult to commit to.

That lack of fleshed out characters compounded with a slow moving stories that were only loosely tied together made it for a very long read. I thought about DNFing it several times, but but then I had already committed so much time that I wanted to at least see what it was all about.

And that brings me to the final problem I have with this book. There is no conclusion to this story. Nothing is resolved, nothing is explained. These 700 pages are just introduction to the world and setup for the series, I guess. Where did the madness come from? We have no answer. Why some people loose their minds and other seem to still function normally when infected? No clue. What does that have to do with the clan lands and the sickness that kills the land? Your guess is as good as mine. 

All this book did was set up the pieces on the board for the bigger story. I know that first books in a series have the thankless job of introducing the reader to a brand new world and characters as well as planting the seeds for the arching story for the whole series, but there also needs to be a completed storyline for that book. Readers need an emotional payoff after sticking around for so many pages. This book didn’t give me that. 

And since I didn’t get an emotional payoff for reading this book, and I frankly don’t care about any of the characters, I will not be continuing with this series.

PS: I received an advanced copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Cast in Courtlight (Chronicles of Elantra 2) by Michelle Sagara

Stars: 4 out of 5.

This was better than the first book, even though the narrative is still a bit meandering at times which makes it rather confusing. However the story is rather fascinating, so I was willing to excuse the less than tight writing style.

We discover a lot more about the past of Elantra and about one of the secretive immortal races that calls this city home – the Barrani. I found this foray into Barrani culture fascinating. How would you live your immortal life if your name truly defines you? Not only that, but it gives whoever knows it power over you as well. So much power that they can compel you to do horrible things. What choice do you have when you know that the only way to escape this influence is death, but you are immortal? 

I find the world of Elantra fascinating. And yes, I’m aware that I used the world “fascinating” at least three times since the beginning of this review. We have a whole civilization living on the ruins of another, much older one. And those ruins are still imbued with magic which is often dangerous. Some of them serve as prisons to beings that should never see the light of day if this new civilization is to survive and thrive.

For example, the High Lord of the Barrani isn’t just an empty title that anyone can hold. That person needs to have sufficient power to serve as jailer to something burried underneath the High Court. Something even the Dragon Emperor fears. The location isn’t vanity. It’s necessity.

Or the ceremony of becoming a Lord of the Court? On the surface, it’s just an exercise in vanity as well. A riddle to be solved for the dubious honor to call these ancient halls home. The price of failure, however, is worse than death, as it turns out.

The more I read about this world, the more I want to know. And I especially want to know how the markings on Kaylin’s body tie into all this. What role will she have to play in what seems to be the continuation of an ancient war between immortal races and forces far more terrible, but long forgotten?

I admit that I am less fond of Kaylin herself than I am of the world she inhabits. For someone who has been through all the horrible things she had lived through, she surprisingly lacks maturity. I know, she is only 18 or so in these books, but sometimes she behaves like a petulant teen who lacks the brains to think her actions and reactions through before she does something. Though I must admit that I see some improvement between Kaylin in book 1 and Kaylin in book 2, so I am holding out hope that she will grow and mature as the series progresses, and hopefully not get on my nerves as much.

As it stands though, I am definitely continuing with the series, because I want to learn more about this fascinating world.

The Bitter Twins (The Winnowing Flame Trilogy 2) by Jen Williams

DNF at 55%.

I had loved the Ninth Rain, the first book in this trilogy. I had loved it so much that I was really looking forward to reading this book and learning more about the world and our characters… until I actually started reading the book. 

Don’t get me wrong. It’s well written, and we learn a lot more about the worm people, as well as more insight into the Erborans and their relationships with the rest of the world, but the story is just so… boring, I guess. The opening chapter was excellent, don’t get me wrong! it was  a fun-filled epic battle that our heroes epically fail. That chapter had me excited about the rest of the book. But then the action just stops. And we get pages upon pages of dialogs, monologs, descriptions, and characters basically just sitting around doing nothing. Even by the time they actually start doing something, the story is so disjoined that I found it hard to keep up with everything, or even care for where it was going.

I think the biggest hurdle for me was the author’s choice to split up the core group that was created at the end of book 1 and send them all on their own epic quests. It’s all well and good, but I found myself loosing interest in most of those quests. Yes, I kinda wanted to know if the Origin island where the sacred tree came from really existed, or whether the war beasts would regain their memories. But the rest of the story arcs? I found myself completely disengaged from them.

I kept trying to get back into this book for four months, resolving to read at least 20 pages each time I picked it up. But I found my attention starting to wander after about 5-10 pages and getting to those 20 page count would be a chore. I mean, I read 15 other books while I was on and off attempting to finish this one, and I found myself making excuses not to pick it up. That’s when I decided that maybe it was time to call it quits.

Other reviews say that the story picks up in the last 30% of the book, but I’m not sure I have the willpower to wait that long, wading through the slow and dreaded middle. I own this book, so I might pick it up at a later date and try again, but for now, I am calling it quits and taking it off the list of books I’m currently reading, just because I feel guilty every time I see it on my Goodreads page and that stresses me out.

Shorefall (The Founders Trilogy 2) by Robert Jackson Bennett

Stars: 5 out of 5.

I was a little apprehensive starting this book, because I loved Foundryside so much and there is definitely a dreaded middle book in the trilogy curse going around. So I was afraid to be disappointed. I shouldn’t have worried. RJB has never let me down before, and he didn’t this time. This is an excellent book that grips you from the first page and doesn’t let you go until the last. It makes you care for the characters and cheer them on… oh, and it rips your heart out in the process. I should have known, I’ve read the Divine Cities trilogy, after all.

The story starts about seven months after the end of the first book, and our Foundryside crew are doing well, plotting and scheming the downfall of the great scivener houses of Trevenne and accomplishing daring heists. And it seems like they have all found some modicum of peace and happiness, not to mention friendship. Well, all except Gregor, but can you really blame him after the revelations at the end of last book?

So the reader prepares for a book centered around our friends basically giving the finger to the big scrivener houses of Trevanne and bringing about the revolution… but if you think that’s what this trilogy will be about, you don’t know the author very well. Soon freedom for the people of Trevanne takes a whole different meaning, and the stakes become sky high. And our unlikely heroes are left scrambling, trying to stay ahead of the tsunami that is bearing their way, and there are no good choices only bad and less bad ones. 

I loved all the characters from book one and I’m glad we got to explore their relationships more in this book and see them work together as a unit, but also see that they have become the found family all of them needed. It was heartwarming… and we didn’t get nearly enough of it. I would have loved to see them in their compound, sharing scrivening definitions with other scriveners, answering questions, collecting definitions for their library… Unfortunately, we will never get that, judging how this book ended, and that’s sad.

The danger they are facing is very real, very urgent and rather terrifying in its sheer disregard for human life. And the more the book progresses, the worse it gets for our friends and for Trevanne in general. I won’t get into any spoilers, but the ending really rips your heart out. 

I really want to know what happens now and how this story will end for our friends, so I will be definitely picking up the last book in the trilogy.

PS: I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Faded Steel Heat (Garrett Files 9) by Glen Cook

Stars: 3 out of 5.

This is the weakest of the Garrett stories so far, and compared to the previous ones, it was  a big disappointment.

First things first, it dragged way past the time when it was a polite thing to bow out and say goodbye. I would say at least 50-60 pages past that point. This book seemed way too long in general, with a lot of filler that could have been cut out without hurting the story. 

Second issue – I get it that Garrett is a chick magnet and that his brain goes down south every time he sees a good looking enough woman, but it was a bit of an overkill in this story. It stopped being cute and became irritating at about the halfway point. 

My biggest disappointment however is the reveal about Glory Mooncalled. I think Glen Cook dropped the ball on this big time. I think I get what he was trying to go for – don’t meet your heroes and all that, but this was so anticlimactic… I mean Glory Mooncalled has been the driving force behind most of the background events in this series since book 1. By now, he acquired an almost mythical status. To end it the way the author ended it… I don’t know, I feel like it’s a huge disservice to the character and so much waisted potential.

Honestly, same could be said about Sadler and Crask. That was a bit of an underwhelming ending for those two characters that have always been larger than life.

Another complaint is that we didn’t have nearly enough Morley Dotts in this book, but what had what wonderful. I love the interaction between Garrett and him. 

I feel like it’s then end of an era in the Garrett Files series. So much was tied around Glory Mooncalled and his actions in Kantard that I honestly don’t know where the series will be going not. But even though I was not as thrilled with this book as I was with the previous ones, I am definitely looking forward to continuing the series.

The Last Wish (The Witcher 0.5) by Andrzej Sapkowski

Stars: 5 out of 5.

I had read this series back when I was a teenager and remember loving it. Then I played all of The Witcher games and watched the Netflix series. The series was a huge disappointment, especially season 3, but Henry Cavil is 100% Geralt of Rivia. You can see that he loves the source material as much as I do.

Anyway, while I will not be continuing with the TV series, I decided to reread the books. And I started at the book that introduced me to this series the first time as well. I remember being fascinated by the way the author wove original Slavic monsters and folk tales into this rich and complex world. And I absolutely LOVE Geralt of Rivia. 

This book is a collection of short stories that weave into a cohesive narrative that serves to introduce us to Geralt and the most important characters in future books, like Yennifer, Jaskier, the elves, etc. And while Ciri isn’t in this book, she is mentioned and we get to read the story about how Geralt got to be linked to her by destiny. 

I liked that not all of the short stories involve Geralt slaying soulless monsters. In fact, in a lot of them humans are worst monsters than the actual monsters. And some of those stories are actually rather heartbreaking. Like the whole horrible affair in Blaviken. Was Renfri born a monster like the sorcerer claimed, or did humans make her that way by driving her to become cruel and callus just to survive? Or what’s the point of all your arrogance and pride if your entire race is dying off because of that pride?

I plan on rereading the entire series this year and I am looking forward to immersing myself in the complex and bloody world of witchers, monsters, and political intrigue. 

Warded by JB McDonald

Stars: 3.5 out of 5.

It’s always interesting to pick up a book written in a world other than the traditional European medieval fantasy. In this case, I think I can see some African roots. To me, that was a breath of fresh air, because I could set aside all of my expectations as to how this story would unfold and just enjoy discovering something new.

The characters are interesting enough, though Jahal started getting on my nerves after a while with his constant repetition that he is not a warrior but a healer. He finds the courage to fight when it counts though. Dalak is… supposed to be alien, I guess. But she mostly comes across as a petulant child who does as she pleases and doesn’t listen to anyone, not even her minder. Isn’t she supposed to be at least a century old? Anaye is by far my favorite – complex and broken, but also very loving and human.

The story itself could have benefited from a good re-read or a good editor. Some passages are really confusing. This is especially the case with the final battle between Dalak and the demon. It’s written in such a confusing way that half the time I wasn’t really sure what was going on. 

However, the biggest weakness of this book is that the story is too short. The the author doesn’t have time to explore the world in the details it deserves. There are mentions of demons that only come at night, and that human eye cannot see. There is a mention of two moons. There is even mention of ancient ruins belonging to a different and forgotten civilization… But we never dig any further than that.

So is this a different planet than Earth? Are the demons the native species? Are humans descendants of some colonists that landed on this planet, so the ruins are all that remain of their advanced civilization? Have demons always been there? If so, how did the humans even manage to survive that long? From the little we know, not every village has a warder like Dalak, so how do they defend themselves? It’s repeated several times that a human cannot kill a demon. And if just breathing the spores of a dying demon results in the creation of a child like Dalak, why aren’t there more of them? Why isn’t this known? 

In fact, there is no sense of a bigger world in this story. We have these two villages in the jungle. Are there more? Anaye mentions at the beginning of the story that they get refugees sometimes, but it’s never mentioned again. So is humanity reduced to just a series of isolated villages that barely communicate? Are there bigger cities? What about trade? Surely, the population must move around at least a little or there is danger of interbreeding? Those are all the questions I would have loved to have answers to in this story, or at least hints of an answer, but then again, I love digging into the lore of a world the author created. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. 

PS: I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Jasmine Throne (The Burning Kingdoms 1) by Tasha Suri

Stars: 3 out of 5

I have mixed feelings about this book. There are things that I absolutely loved, and there are aspects that left me cold or that I found rather underwhelming. However, nothing made me mad or made me hate the book, hence the middle of the road, perfectly serviceable 3 stars rating.

The world Tasha Suri created is fascinating and complex. I liked the different religions and customs. Some are truly monstrous though. The yaksa in particular are absolutely fascinating. What were they, really? Where did they go? Are they really gone for good or, as Pryia’s encounter in the deathless waters suggests, they still exist somewhere and are ready to come back. And what is that corruption that is killing crops and people and spreading to the rest of the kingdom? I definitely want to know more about that, because to me, it’s more interesting than the intrigues and politicking of men.

My biggest complaint is that this book is way too long. I understand that as the first book in a series it has the unthankful job of setting up the world and explaining the lore, but this exposition bogs down the story something bad, especially in the first almost half of the book. We spend so much time in the beginning setting up the characters and explaining their pasts, that it gets very boring. Nothing happens. Everyone just spins their wheels for half a book. I even considered DNFing this around 45%.

I’m glad I didn’t though, because the story finally picks up in the second half of the book and moves at a pretty good clip. Things start happening, battles are fought and lost (or won), and the story is set up nicely for the next book in the series. I can’t help but think that this book would have been so much better if the beginning moved slightly faster as well.

Another issue I have with this story is that out of the main protagonists, Malini seems the weakest. She spends about 60% of the story imprisoned, drugged, and basically helpless. Not an agent of her own story, but somebody that the events just happen to. A passive observer, so to say. Pryia, and Ashok, and everyone else are acting and reacting to what’s happening, making plans and fighting their own battles. And Malini… Malini sleeps in a drugged sleep or is having withdrawals from that drug later on.

The problem that causes is the credibility of the character. Rao seems to admire her a lot. We are told that she single-handedly orchestrated a coup against her brother the Emperor. We are told that she is cunning, educated, and very smart… Yet we see none of that until very late in the book. So instead of being a strong and capable person, Malini comes across as a damsel in distress. That is not a trope I particularly like.

She became a more interesting character later in the book when she was allowed to actually act and react, so I have hopes that she will get more page time and better character development in the next book.

As it stands, I am on the fence whether I want to pick up the next book in the series or not. I might give it a try to see if the pacing issues have been fixed, and if we learn more about the yaksa.

PS: I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Beholden by Cassandra Rose Clarke

Stars: 3 out of 5

It is sad when you say something like “It was okay,” when you try to describe a book. Unfortunately, this is exactly what this book was. Just okay. The story was okay and moved swiftly enough to keep me interested. The characters were okay, though I question the need for some of them. The worldbuilding was… lacking, honestly. 

There are some aspects that I liked about this book. The relationship between the two sisters being one of them. It felt very real. It wasn’t saccharine sweet. They bickered, they resented each other, they didn’t see eye to eye on some things. But they always cared about each other, even when mad and fighting. 

The sisters were also pretty fleshed out as characters, with distinct motivations and character flaws, so it was easy to empathize and root for them. Though Celestia’s stubborn belief that Lindon would help them and do as she asks “because he is her husband” became a little bit grating overtime. Especially after their first encounter when he proved that no, he wouldn’t do as she asked or even listen to her.

Unfortunately, I cannot say the same about Ico. Honestly, I’m still not sure what purpose he played in this book. He had no motivation for going on this quest (apart from being forced into it for no fault of his own), and he is never a driving force in this story. He is more of a complaining sidekick that the sisters drag along. We could have cut his character out of the book completely and not lost any of the story. The sisters could have hired the help of a nameless boat captain or guide and he would have fulfilled the same role.

I loved the jungle and the valley of the Seraphine river. It is so well described that I could feel the humid heat and smell the sweet and rotting stench of the river. I was less entranced with the other locations in this book, because we spent a lot less time in them, and most of the time spent was indoors, so I couldn’t really picture them in my head.

And speaking of locations, some of them were completely unnecessary. For example, what was the point of the whole visit to the Emperor’s palace? It didn’t move the plot whatsoever. They learned nothing new there. It was just a detour before continuing the story. And it felt shoe-horned into the story as an afterthought.

Finally, I’m still not sure how the magic of this world works, and it’s never really explained. So we have aetheric magic, and the magic of each Airiana is different, but then also you have the Starless mages, and oh wait, the magic in the city of Bloodwine is also different, and there is alchemy… It’s a confusing mess. Don’t get me wrong. I’m more then happy to believe in a complex magical system, if I understand the rules. Here, the author doesn’t even bother explaining them, so that’s frustrating.

Also, I’m not sure I am onboard with the ending. Are we forgetting that the Emperor of the Seraphine had forbidden them to go after Decay? That he kept them as hostages in his palace to prevent them from doing that? That they basically committed treason? And killed a few of his guards escaping the palace? Yet Celestia returns to Cross Winds, like nothing happened. Is she not afraid that Starless Mages will come for her in the night? For her son? The Lady of the Seraphine even told her that those are human affairs that don’t concern her. Yet Celestia seems to continue her life, like nothing happened. 

I am also not particularly sure how I feel about the romance between Celestia and Omaira (spelling). It felt completely unnatural to the story. Probably because it wasn’t woven organically into the story to begin with. Celestia was so focused on finding Decay and preventing her husband from dying that any hint of romance simply wasn’t there (or I missed it). So it was shocking to me to see them so sweet on each other days after her husband died. This as not needed. They could just have been really good friends brought together by pain and loss and the hard times they experienced together. Whatever grew out of that friendship could have been a story for another book.

PS: I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.