Publishers Weekly: Parker (the Scavenger trilogy) raises the bar for realistic fantasy war craft with this series opener. When the engineering guild sentences Ziani Vaatzes to death for improving on its supposedly perfect specifications for mechanical toys, he manages to escape Mezentia and throws in his lot with its recently defeated enemy, city-state Eremia. In exile,…
Continue ReadingBefore I start this weeks Around the Web I need to make a confession. In a previous post (here) I talked about how, if I really REALLY like a book I have problems making myself finish it. Well, it seems like I’ve fallen into that rut before. K.J. Parker is taking over my life. I…
Continue ReadingI started this blog as a personal experiment of my own. There was really no point besides seeing why I liked/didn’t like the books I read and finding some means to catalogue my insights so I wouldn’t read every book 100 times before I realized I’ve already read it before. Well, I’m lying. I also started it…
Continue ReadingPublishers Weekly Review Scottish author Ruckley’s outstanding fantasy debut, the first installment of the Godless World trilogy, introduces a sprawling realm abandoned by the gods after two races united to destroy a third. The peoples left behind struggle with centuries-old prejudices and unresolved conflicts that threaten to destroy them all. The start of winter is…
Continue ReadingBack Cover Blurb: Basso the Magnificent. Basso the Great. Basso the Wise. The First Citizen of the Vesani Republic is an extraordinary man. He is ruthless, cunning, and above all, lucky. He brings wealth, power and prestige to his people. But with power comes unwanted attention, and Basso must defend his nation and himself from…
Continue ReadingI’m going to try to make this “around the web” a weekly feature on this blog. Recently I joined Twitter. Now, this is both good and bad. Good, because I’ve met some incredible fellow book-obsessed bloggers and bad because it’s easy to loose track of time on there. Anyway, this has opened my eyes to…
Continue ReadingPublishers Weekly: At the start of this chilling fantasy from Berg (Daughter of Ancients), the first of a pair set in the land of Navronne, her rebellious hero, 27-year-old Valen, has been hiding from his pureblood family of sorcerers for 12 years. Valen, who’s also struggling with a kind of drug addiction called “doulon sickness,”…
Continue ReadingAbout the Book Only seven minutes younger than Rolencia’s heir, Byren has never hungered for the throne. He laughs when a seer predicts that he will kill his twin. But the royal heir resents Byren’s growing popularity. Across the land the untamed magic of the gods wells up out of the earth’s heart. It sends…
Continue ReadingFrom Publishers Weekly: In this delightful first novel, the opening salvo of a trilogy, Novik seamlessly blends fantasy into the history of the Napoleonic wars. Here be dragons, beasts that can speak and reason, bred for strength and speed and used for aerial support in battle. Each nation has its own breeds, but none are so…
Continue ReadingIt seems like there are a lot of book giveaways going on right now. We all like free stuff, so in (yet another) effort to streamline browsing experiences, here is a list of the ones that I’ve found (thus far). I’m not going into detail with these giveaways. I figure if you are interested you…
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