Category Archives: Fantasy

books, Fantasy, Reviews, YA

Abeni’s Song by P. Djali Clark

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Stars: 5 out of 5

I don’t usually read YA as a rule, probably because I am a few decades past the age when those particular stories were interesting to me. However, I had fun reading this one because it’s very well-written and avoids the pitfalls of other young adult books – insufferable heroines, children who seem to be smarter and better at everything than adults, or dreaded love triangles. 

This is more of a fairy tale and a coming-of-age story or even a hero’s journey story, and it plays by the rules of those genres. Yes, Abeni can be annoying and quick to judge others, brash and even stupid at times, especially at the beginning of the story, but she grows and matures as we follow along. This is very much a journey of self-discovery for her. It’s also a story of found family, of seeing past differences and finding friends in unexpected places. And about courage as well. Not only the courage to confront an evil that terrifies you because it’s the right thing to do, and there is nobody else to do it, but also the courage to take a long, hard look at your own motivations and shortcomings and acknowledge that you were wrong.

I like how we see Abeni growing up and assuming the role of protector for the newly reborn Asha, even though she is still a child herself. Yes, it’s terrifying, and Abeni tries to pass that duty to others, like Asha’s sister, but she still does what she feels is right in the end. 

And no hero’s journey would be complete without trials and adventures. Some are scary, some are sad, and some are there to remind us that there is always a light even in the darkest places. I loved the episode in the Vale of Lost Things. It is an amazing place to visit, though I wouldn’t want to stay there permanently. 

I also liked that Abeni had to confront how anger and resentment can warp people when she confronted the Goat Man. In a way, she could have chosen the same path. He’d even said that she had a lot of anger burning inside her, and that the Witch King could use that anger. I think it’s one of the reasons why she was so upset about how the villagers treated Songu and why she agreed for him to come with them at the end of the book.

Abeni started this book losing everything – her family, her friends, her home. She ended the book having found new friends as well as a purpose in life. And I think she also learned several valuable lessons.

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

books, Dark fantasy, Fantasy, Reviews

Grave Empire (The Great Silence 1) by Richard Swan

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Stars: 5 out of 5

I really loved this book! And I think I found a new favorite dark fantasy series to follow. Also, I didn’t realize that this was a continuation series to a previous series called Empire of the Wolf, though from what I saw, Grave Empire happens several centuries into the future, so knowledge of the prequel isn’t a must. In any case, I will definitely go back and read that series as well while I wait for the next book.

What I liked the most was that the world feels lived in. You can feel the weight of centuries and the lore and history that comes with it. I was also surprised to see that this particular world is in the throes of the industrial revolution, instead of the usual medieval setting so common to fantasy worlds. It was fun to see how stage coaches and steam engines would coexist with magic and horrors from beyond the grave.

The protagonists were also fun to follow. I felt sorry for Peter, who felt like a fish out of water most of the time. He didn’t want to be an officer or be sent so far from home. He only accepted the commission because his late father bought it for him, and he really didn’t feel particularly welcome at home anymore. He is faced with unimaginable horrors, on top of all his doubts about being a coward or an incompetent officer, and he ends up… something else. I’m sure he will have a crucial role to play in the next book.

Renata is a lot more independent and opinionated. She also has nerves of steel. Nothing in her training as a diplomat would have prepared her for the horrors she had to face by the end of this journey, yet she persevered where a lesser person would have lain down and waited for the end. And the hidden reservoir of grit in that girl surprised everyone, even herself.

The only character I really didn’t care about is Lamprecht. He is simply despicable. And I don’t understand why Yelena was helping him in his research for so many years. Why didn’t she put a stop to it as soon as she realized that he wanted to bring one of the vacants back to Sova with them? I know that he is set up to be the villain in the next book and a foil to Renata and Peter, but the man really has no redeeming qualities, whereas the other two are pretty multifaceted people. It makes me almost a caricature instead of a character.

I loved the hints at different other races and their origins, and how science and progress can coexist with religion when the existence of the afterlife is a scientifically proven fact. I would have loved to learn a bit more about Nema Victorianism and how it differs from Nema Conformism, and why those differences are considered so big that nations go to war because of them. I understand that it’s a nod to the splintering of the Christian church back in the day, but I would have loved more details.

All in all, though, I am looking forward to the next book. The board is set, the pieces have taken their places; let the best player win.

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

books, Fantasy, Reviews, Romantasy

Dragon Unleashed (Fallen Empire 2) by Grace Draven

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Stars: 3.5 out of 5.

I loved the first book in the series, so I was excited to see how the author would take the story of the fall of a horrible Empire further. Unfortunately, I didn’t like this book as much as the first one. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a good story, just not as strong as the first one. 

I think it’s partly because I wasn’t as invested in Halani and Malachus as I was in Gilene and Azarion. They are good characters, but they didn’t quite work for me as a couple. I love Halani and her relationship with her mother Azil, but adding Malachus into the mix? Let’s just say that their explosive romance wasn’t as organically developed as the one between Gilene and Azarion.

Probably because Gilene and Azarion had to overcome some pretty messed-up things together – escaping Kraelag, surviving a cursed city, and navigating the politics and hostilities of Azarion’s homecoming. They had to rely on each other and saved each other’s lives on multiple occasions, so their growing respect and affection felt earned.

With Halani and Malachus, we don’t get any of this. This is basically a story of Halani finding a wounded man and nursing him back to health, and he falls in love with her for that. Nothing particularly bad with this setup, but it makes for a rather boring story. For most of the book, there are no stakes. Yes, the Empress wants to mother-bond, but it’s a distant kind of treat, which doesn’t affect the main couple until we are past three-quarters of the book. Most of the book is just them milling about in the free traders’ camp, away from danger. 

So to me, Malachus’s obsession with saving Halani in the end doesn’t feel earned, because their love hadn’t grown organically or been tempered or tested before that moment. I understand the parallel the author wanted to draw between Goldar trying to save her daughter and Malachus saving his lover, but it doesn’t hit the same as the raw despair Azarion felt when he watched Gilene immolating Kraelag. 

But while I was lukewarm about the main couple, I really liked the side characters, especially Azil and the other free traders. Though I don’t understand how Hamond is still the leader of the caravan after all the heartache he caused. And seeing a glimpse of Gilene and Azarion finally reunited and happy was a welcome sight. Oh, and seeing the Spider of the Empire finally getting what she deserves was also a very welcome bonus. 

So all in all, I still had fun with this book, just a lot less than with the first one.

books, Fantasy, Reviews, Urban fantasy

The Inheritance (Breach Wars 1) by Ilona Andrews

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Stars: 5 out of 5

I am not ashamed to say that the writing duo behind Ilona Andrews books is my favorite contemporary writers. Seriously, I don’t think there is a book by them that I read (and I read almost all of them) that I didn’t love. This one is no exception.

The Inheritance takes place in the same universe as Innkeeper and the Edge series, though on a parallel Earth that is, it seems, loosely attached to Dina’s world (at least to Baha-Char). And it stars an absolutely badass female protagonist. Ada isn’t a fighter. In fact, as Ellias would say, she is the definition of a non-combatant. Her talent is to come into a breach once the fighting has been done, determine what rare minerals or biologicals are there, and tell the mining crew where to dig (or what to pick up). But boy does she get an upgrade in this particular breach… 

I won’t touch any more on that, because that would spoil the story, but let’s just say she is a different person when she comes out, all the while staying true to what has always driven all her actions – keep her children safe and ensure that they inherit a better world than the one she has to live in. And all through this story, Ada is absolutely human and relatable. I understood her reactions and her motivations, and I admired her determination to push ahead to matter what, even though she had to make some hard choices. The presence of Bear, the ever-awesome German Shepherd turned killing machine also helped.

Ellias is just as interesting a character, though we got less of him in this book, which was understandable. This is Ada’s story. Ellias mostly had to sit on his butt and fume about the delay of getting back into the breach (and destroy a desk or two in his impatience). I can’t wait to see how their relationship evolves in book two. Once they overcome their suspicions, they could be unstoppable. 

It was also so satisfying to see London get a good portion of karma by the end. I reread that passage several times just for the pleasure of seeing him fly 20 feet backwards.

All in all, the House Andrews delivers yet another fantastic book in an original and interesting world… And now we have to wait a couple years before we get the sequel.

books, Dark fantasy, Fantasy, Reviews

The Witch Queen of Redwinter (The Redwinter Chronicles 3) by Ed McDonald

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Stars: 2 out of 5

I don’t think I have ever been this disappointed by the conclusion of a series before. This book was a huge letdown both as a standalone and as a book destined to wrap up Raine’s story. It was messy, it was dragging, and it lost all of my goodwill by the time we arrived at the end.

The biggest issue is the fact that the stakes went sky-high in between book 2 and book 3, even though only about six months passed between the events of book 2, when Raine and companions ended up in the Fault, and the beginning of this story. Yet all of a sudden, the world is ending, all other nations have fallen, the Fault is bleeding back into the real world, and ancient monsters stalk the forests and mountains again. 

How did that happen so quickly? We didn’t even know this danger was looming on the horizon. It was never forshadowed in the previous books. As far as I know, the stakes in the previous books were localized to Redwinter and this one particular Crown. There were no hints of a bigger conflict brewing anywhere. When I picked up this book and started reading about all of these catastrophes happening, I really thought I had missed at least one more book in the series that would have built up to this conflict. You simply can’t introduce such huge portions of new lore in the last book and not leave your reader lost and dissatisfied. 

And even despite all these new revelations piling up on top of me from the beginning of the book, this story is boring and feels like an ever-ending road trip of little significance. I understand why the author decided to split Raine into two; otherwise, there would have been no way of showing what was happening in the real world while she stumbled her way through the Fault, feeling sorry for herself. But the unintended consequence is a disconnect between the reader and the two Raines. Who am I supposed to care about? Who is the real Raine and who isn’t? Also, neither of the two is particularly likable.

This split narrative also kills any forward momentum in this book. The moment you get invested in something happening to emo-Raine in the Fault, the chapter ends, and we are thrown back into the real world and dominatrix Raine being awful and not caring about anyone or anything. It’s hard to follow two separate stories when they constantly switch places, but also when you are less and less invested in either one.

The other issue is that I didn’t particularly like what Raine has become in this book. Neither of her two incarnations was likable. The one in the Fault continues to be whiny and woe-me, my destiny is so hard, I love those two people, but I can’t have them. Doom and gloom, and somebody, please, put her out of her misery! 

And the author’s solution to this dilemma? A trisome… Yeah, no. Hard pass.

The Sarathi Raine in our world is everything wrong with death witches in the first place. The way she throws away lives like kindling is simply disgusting. And I can’t forgive what they did to Castus, who was the best character in this quagmire, hands down. He deserved better.

By the time the ending finally arrived, I was done with this book and mentally exhausted. Also, any connection or ties I had to these characters were long gone. Yes, I was glad that Ovitus finally got what he deserved, but the rest of them? Couldn’t care less. I also didn’t need this chapter-long excursion into the past to show us how the Queen of Feathers interacted with all other Dark Queens to set up the tools of the last battle. Those were just names and voices in Raine’s head in the previous books. I had no connection to them. Why did I have to waste time on this?

I am sad. I loved the first book in this series. It was well-written and hinted at an interesting world to explore. Then book two focused on teenage feelings instead of developing the lore and foreshadowing the events to come. Now, book three tried to stuff too much information into one book and failed horribly.

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

books, Fantasy, Reviews, Sword and Sorcery, Uncategorized

The Soul of Iuchiban (The Legend of the Five Rings) by Evan Dicken

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Stars: 2.5 out of 5

I usually love books set in the Legend of the Five Rings realm, because that world is so rich in history, mythology, and lore that it sucks me right in. Add a few compelling characters and an interesting goal for them to achieve, and you have me hooked and happily exploring Rokugan with them.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case in this book. Now, I realize that this is the continuation of The Heart of Iuchiban, so the story follows directly after the events of the previous book ended. If you haven’t read the first book, it would be very difficult to understand what is going on and who is who. In fact, I would say that you shouldn’t start with this book at all. You need to have read The Heart of Iuchiban to fully appreciate the story in this book.

But even that isn’t really the main problem. Plenty of other stories are told in duologies, and I loved the second books in the series just as much as I loved the first ones. My issue is that about 70% of the book feels pointless. Characters start off in different parts of Rokugan and seem to wander aimlessly for three-quarters of the book until they all meet back in the Imperial City and the action really picks up. 

I mean, what was the point of Naoki’s journey back to the Twilight Mountains? The only positive outcome out of that trip was to pick up Seiji. Other than that, it just feels like an aimless road trip designed to add page time to an already long book. I’m sure the author could have found another way of getting Seiji to the Imperial City and have the main characters meet. Heck, make them meet in the basement of horrors, just like they met with Quadan! That would have worked just as well. 

And while most of the book drags and meanders in these pointless detours, the last few chapters rush towards the resolution at a breakneck pace. So much so that you don’t have a chance to breathe and understand what is happening and how the characters jump to the conclusions they jump to.

Also, for an immortal sorcerer who prides himself at being smart and planning for every possibility, Iuchiban’s actions in the end were pretty dumb. And I am going to avoid spoilers here, but why lock them up for just asking about names when NOBODY had any suspicion about you? Just let them attend the ceremony and continue as planned, and nobody would have been the wiser. And why leave such an important artefact as one of your original names in the hands of someone who has the power and will to use it against you?

All in all, I enjoyed this foray into Rokugan, as I always do with these books, but a lot less than many other series set in this world.

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

books, Fantasy, Reviews, Urban fantasy

Spring’s Arcana (The Dead God’s Heart 1) by Lilith Saintcrow

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Stars: 2 out of 5.

I loved American Gods, and as a Russian myself, I LOVE Slavic folklore, so picking up this book was a no-brainer for me. And I was on board and invested for the first 50% of it, but  then it just.. dragged… and dragged… and slowly plodded its way to the end. And I realized that I didn’t like any of the characters anymore. Also, the book literally ends without any denouement. Nothing is resolved, nothing is learned, it’s just one big road trip that just… stops. I guess the story is to be continued in the next book?

Also, comparing it to American Gods does it a big disservice. This book is not even remotely as well plotted and written as American Gods. It’s boring and it drags. 

I guess this has a lot to do with this author’s writing style – Lilith Saintcrow decides to describe absolutely EVERYTHING that our protagonists see, feel, smell, taste, etc. It is too much description that bogs down the action to a glacial pace. Dima and Nat are riding in a muscle car, for God’s sake, why is it going so slow through the story?

And there isn’t much story there to speak of. Girl goes to see big bad Baba Yaga, who promises to make her mother better again if she brings back something her mother stole. Girl agrees and goes on a road trip with a deity of thieves and assassins. Girl meets some other divinities along the way and reaches a well. The end. Oh, she learns a secret that wasn’t a secret to anyone but her as well.

There is no tension, there are no stakes, there is no sense of urgency even to that particular road trip. Dima keeps telling her that hungry and not very nice powers are hunting Nat and want to either take what she finds or kill her, or both at the same time, yet we never encounter any of those powers. They aren’t ambushed during this trip even once (and no, the encounter with Friendly doesn’t count). Nat doesn’t have to fight for her life. Dima doesn’t have to defend her or show his divine powers. It’s all tell, but not show. I’m told the stakes are high and the road is dangerous, but I don’t see it.

My other issue is with Nat herself. I was sympathetic to her in the beginning and rooting for her to finally come into her own power and stop wilting in the shadow of her horrible mother. But it never happened. I mean, how stupid can you be not to put two and two together and realize what is happening to your mother and what only two outcomes could be to this issue? Especially when people hint at that over and over again. But she just refuses to listen… or ask any questions that could help her navigate this weird world she finds herself part of? Also, you have to be very good at self-delusion to refuse to come to any conclusions from the clues you gather. It literally takes hearing it from a horse’s mouth to make it clear to her what her mother has planned for her.

Also, the worldbuilding is wobbly at best. We have divinities, but some of them are old concepts like Winter and Spring, and some are gods of murder and thieves, or cowboys, or corrupt cops. And then they are literary divinities? How does that work exactly? Is there a hierarchy of power? That’s never explained.

And since when is Baba Yaga the lady of winter? She is the crone. She is the witch. Wise and mysterious. Helpful sometimes, other times cruel, but I don’t remember her having power over winter. The Slaves had Ded Moroz for that. And he wasn’t the jolly old fellow bringing gifts to kids on New Year’s Eve. No, he was the old man in a coat made of frost that could freeze you with a glance if he deemed you disrespectful… For some reason, that de Winter business really grated at my Russian soul. Baba Yaga is powerful enough on her own. She doesn’t need to steal other deities’ powers. 

All in all, I am really disappointed with this book. I will read the next one because I had requested it from NetGalley before I read this one, so I might as well see where the story goes. However, I doubt that I will check out other books by this author anytime soon.

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

books, Dark fantasy, epic fantasy, Fantasy, Reviews

A Tide of Black Steel (Age of Wrath 1) by Anthony Ryan

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Stars: 4.5 out of 5

This is epic fantasy at its best – dark, gripping, with compelling characters facing hard challenges.

I love stories based on Nordic and Viking settings, but I read a few disappointing ones as well. Crafting a compelling world based on an existing mythology requires a lot of research and respect for the original setting. I bounced off a few books that did this poorly. Thankfully, Anthony Ryan managed to take the Nordic elements that we know and love and make them his own. The result is a living, breathing world with different nations that feel different in culture, religion, and worldviews. I had fun discovering the different corners of this world along with our protagonists.

I also grew to really care about all four of the narrators we follow in this book. Each of them is different, with a distinct personality, flaws, dreams, and fears. They felt alive and complex. Not always good and righteous, but I could empathize with all of them. And since I grew to care for them, I was also invested in their fates. Whether it was Thera trying to do her duty to the Sister Queens, or her brother Felnir chasing an impossible errand in the hopes of regaining lost honor, or Ruhlin, who has to fight other prisoners to survive, but also fight with the beast within him to keep his humanity.

As far as the story goes, this is the first book in the series, so it serves more to set up the stage than give us any kind of resolutions, but from what I see, the story will be brutal, because the enemy is ruthless and relentless, and the only goal they have is to subjugate and destroy. It is rather fascinating to see how two nations that started believing in the same gods and having a similar culture could turn out so different. 

My only issue with the story is that I find it hard to believe that the enemy has so many spies everywhere. This points towards a campaign that was years in the making, because some of those spies ended up in very high places, so they must have been sent to infiltrate all the power structures in the target countries at least a decade or two before the events of this book. Yet nothing that we have seen from Ruhlin’s point of view indicates an authority structure capable of such advanced planning. Granted, he has only seen gladiator arenas and slave pens (and people who run those), so his experience is not all-encompassing. 

I am definitely looking forward to picking up book 2 and learning more about this world. I also very much hope that our four protagonists will be okay, even if we left several of them in rather dire straits at the end of book 1.

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

books, Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, Reviews

The Market of 100 Fortunes (The Legend of the Five Rings) by Marie Brennan

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Stars: 5 out of 5

I never played the Legend of Five Rings games before or even heard of them, but you don’t have to do that to enjoy this book. The story stands on its own two feet even without being attached to a larger franchise. I also didn’t know that this was book 3 in Sekken and Ryotora’s adventures, so I will definitely go back and read the previous two books, because I like the characters and want to know how they got to the point they are at now.

I enjoyed this book tremendously! I love Japanese culture and folklore, and this world is heavily inspired by it, so reading about different Fortunes, spirits, and yokai was an absolute delight. The Market of 100 Fortunes was a delightful place to explore, both the human side of it and the supernatural one. I must admit that I hadn’t heard of the tsukumogami before I read this book, but the idea that objects used for 100 years can gain consciousness or even a soul is interesting. Makes you think twice before being mean to your umbrella, huh?

I think the biggest strength of this book is in its characters though. Sekken and Ryotora are complex individuals with their own quirks, needs, and wants, but it’s their interactions that bring the spark to this book. You can feel the care and love they have for each other. They are trying to navigate this very difficult condition they are in, where they literally share one life force between the two of them, so they have to be very careful how they draw on that power so as not to drain the other person. I like that the best solution to live with this condition is acceptance and harmonization between the two. And they do it through performing tea ceremonies! All tea lovers around the world unite!

The supporting characters are just as likable. The small but stubborn Kuzu, as resilient as the weed she is named after. Or Meiro, who risked everything, including her career with the Emerald Magistrate, to follow an obscure prophecy and helped our heroes immensely along the way. Even some of the tsukumogami have distinct personalities.

All in all, this was a very fast and delightful read, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I will definitely go back and read more about Sekken and Ryotora, and I will check out other stories set up in the Legend of the Five Rings universe as well.

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

books, Fantasy, Reviews, Urban fantasy

Dead Witch on a Bridge by Gretchen Galway

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Stars: 3.5 out of 5

Though I wasn’t particularly fond of the protagonist initially, she grew on me by the end of the book. This is a pretty cosy urban fantasy story about witches, wellsprings, fae, and murder. Yes, there is murder(s), but there are no gory descriptions, so it’s all pretty PG-13.

All in all, it was an enjoyable read, though I found Alma to be very gullible and rather clueless for the better part of this book. You would think that with her horrible upbringing, she would be less trusting of people. And speaking of upbringing, dear old dad doesn’t win any awards there. But when your only parent is a known thief who only cares about himself, I would think you would develop a healthy distrust of other people, seeing how even your dad probably lied to you and betrayed you over and over again in the past.

I did like that Alma stopped wallowing in her self-pity and actually started developing her magical abilities as the story progressed, and that she finally decided what kind of witch she wants to be. Which is one that doesn’t need the approval of the Protectorate to feel important and worthy.

The central mystery wasn’t particularly complicated, and I admit that I knew right around the memorial service scene who the villain of the story was, but it was still pretty entertaining. And the dog survives until the end, so that’s an added bonus!

I had a pleasant time reading this book, but I don’t know if I am invested enough to continue with the series.